Parents Came to Texas

 My parents came to Texas for the month of February. They rented a house nearby and visited off and on over the month. They took Ashton and Tanner for their own sleepover and then had a special day with Gemma. The kids loved all the visits and extra attention. It was nice having them nearby for a little bit. We also went to a little Mardi Gras Boat parade at the local boardwalk. Lydia loved reconnecting with Molly, the dog. We won't see them until next winter so it was wonderful to have such a long visit.

Tanner's Basketball Season

 Tanner played on a basketball league for the first time this winter. He had a blast! He wishes he was a little taller, but overall, he enjoyed it. The league broke the age groups by grades so Tanner was with 1st and 2nd graders. The height difference even between those two grades was crazy some weeks. He held his own and scored lots during the games. Tanner is a little leader on the court. He rallies his team, instructs them on who to guard, and helps get subs in and out quickly. His preferred position is guard. He did get a little upset when a teammate scored in the wrong basket, but we worked on that. He lost a couple games but I think came out with a winning season. If you ask him, he can give you all his points and statistics probably.

Now soccer season has started so he's back to that. He will definitely do basketball again next year.

Taking pictures was rarely an option while trying to corral Gemma and Lydia during the games. My parents got better ones when they visited but this will have to do.

Lydia turned 3

 We celebrated Lydia's birthday! She was excited to be 3 and be counted as a big kid in the family.

She picked a Daniel Tiger cake. That makes us 4 for 4 on kids having a Daniel Tiger cake. I think it's safe to say that was the last one I'll make.

Lydia enjoyed opening all her presents and cards. She "read" each card very carefully. Her favorite gift was a purple ice cream scooper. She eats yogurt with it everyday. Lydia also received a magnetic tile ball track, some yummy snacks, cookie mixes to bake with, and a new scooter (after Gemma got one for Christmas, we had some meltdowns over sharing).

On her birthday, the elementary school hosted a Glow Dance Party. We told her it was her birthday party and went to it. All her friends were there (the younger siblings of Ashton and Tanner's friends). It was great! She danced the night away and we didn't have to do anything special for her. Lydia is happy to be 3!

Tanner turned 7!

Tanner had the day off of school for his birthday. It was nice to not feel rushed in the celebrations. His birthday party was the Saturday before. We went to a local park and had some fun playing soccer and beach volleyball. I kept it pretty low-key. But I did make him a football field goal out of PVC pipe and swim noodles. He loves it. I also made some sports-themed cupcakes for the kids.

His favorite gifts include a little calculator from Ashton and his kicking tee for football. One toy from us didn't work out so we gave him the gift money to spend at a sporting goods store instead. He picked a water bottle that the pros use. And maybe some new soccer cleats before the season starts next month. I think he had more fun walking around the store than actually choosing what to buy.

Tanner, at 7, is such a great kid to spend time with. He is still very competitive, which is tricky to deal with at home. Thankfully, it doesn't mess him up at school. Although, the school librarian recently started a reading competition across the school so now he tries to read as much as he can every day to win some prize. The last few days, he has read 120 minutes or more. He is motivated by setting goals and meeting them. When he got his calculator, he went outside and shot baskets until he successfully made 300 shots.

Tanner bonds well with Ashton and Lydia. Gemma and him butt heads all the time. He is trying to train Lydia to be a goalie for him. He desperately wants a sibling to play sports with him. Lydia is probably his best chance. Tanner is almost always successful on getting the neighbor kids to come play sports with him. They're between 12 and 15 years old and yet they still come out and play with him. We gave him a set of walkie talkies so he can walk down to a bigger park in our neighborhood and play sports with other kids. That way, if there is a problem, he can let me know. It's about a ten minute walk away. He likes the freedom of going to a park with more space to kick and throw. Our backyard is too small for him.

Tanner's favorite part of his day was having his best friends from down the street come over for cake and ice cream. They couldn't make it to his party, which he was sad about. He spent the whole time talking to them.

His dinner request was pizza but at a restaurant. I was quickly reminded why we don't go to restaurants.

Tanner's Birthday Interview

How old are you?  7 years old
What is your favorite color? Blue
What is your favorite animal? Island Fox
What is your favorite book? Lucky Enough by Fred Bowen
What is your favorite show? Matthew Loves Ball (a YouTube channel with sports highlights)
What do you like to eat? Chicken nuggets
What is your favorite game? Football
What is your favorite thing to do? Read
Who is your best friend? Joseph, Emery, and Oliver

What do you like to do with Dad? Watch sports games
What do you like to do with Mom? Give hugs to her

What is your favorite restaurant? Buffalo Wild Wings
Where do you want to go for vacation? Australia- because it's an island
What do you want to be when you grow up? Author and professional sports player

What is your favorite song? Rise and Shout (BYU fight song)
What is the best time of day? School
What makes you happy? When I win and my team wins

2023 Goals

Here are our goals for the new year!

Physical:

Joseph: Maintain healthy habits- eating, sleeping, and exercising right

Casie: Go outside for at least 30 minutes a day (easier some days than others; aside from the normal walking to and from school, etc.)

Ashton: Qualify for the reserve/champ meet in swim again. Her age bracket moves up to 50 yard races this year so she is nervous about flip turns.

Tanner: Earn a medal in a race. His goal is to place in the school's fun run and 5k held in April. But if he doesn't place there, he can try another race. He got first place last year in the fun run so we'll see how he does.

Gemma: Swim across the pool (and qualify to join swim team for the summer)

Lydia- Learn to use the toilet. We just started underwear this week so we'll see how this goes.

Intellectual:

Joseph: To be determined

Casie: Track spending better and limit expenses if possible. We have a budget and I'd like to keep better track of our day to day spending.

Ashton: Order food in Spanish and speak Spanish at a authentic Spanish restaurant

Tanner: Write a book

Gemma: Learn to speak Spanish (this will come when she starts kindergarten)
Lydia: Learn to put the caps on the markers

Social:

Joseph: Play games with kids more

Casie: Limit phone/social media. I have a challenge to lessen my phone usage each day based on the day before. I'd love to hit an all time low record for this.

Ashton: Invite a friend to swim team

Tanner: Be a friend to a specific boy in his class.

Gemma: Play nicely with siblings

Lydia: Say please and thank you. She can be quite demanding.

Spiritual:

Joseph: Read the New Testament

Casie: Fast with greater intent

Ashton: Start fasting each month

Tanner: Read the New Testament

Gemma: Go to primary class without crying (Gemma struggles to go to class without me. Since I am primary president, she thinks she can stay with me the whole time. It is very exhausting.)
Lydia: Sit quietly during the sacrament

Review of 2022 Goals

Here were our goals for the last year. We definitely crossed off some.

Physical:

Joseph: Run 2,000 miles- He estimates about that. He says he switched running apps mid-year but based on his calculation, he accomplished it.

Casie: Run a half marathon in March- DONE. My sister came down to run it with me, which made it even more fun.

Ashton: Improve the butterfly stroke on swim team- She rocked at this goal. Not only did she improve, she qualified for the Champ meet (the fastest swimmers in the league).

Tanner: Play soccer and join swim team- He definitely played soccer last year and swam on the swim team.

Gemma: Learn to ride a bike (two wheeler with no training wheels)- Yep, checked that goal off completely.

Intellectual:

Joseph: Learn to officiate a sport- This didn't happen as he wanted. He thought about getting "qualified" to referee local high school games. Instead, he became Tanner's soccer and basketball coach.

Casie: Play the viola for a special musical number at church- Failed at this one. I just don't get the viola out much with little kids around.

Ashton: Read her Spanish books every day- Mostly accomplished this one. Her Spanish reading is above grade level so she has definitely progressed in Spanish.

Tanner: Learn to read (in either language)- I think this goal is one that was met the most this year. Tanner is a phenomenal reader in both languages. For 1st grade, the state recommends students be at a level H/I at the end of the school year. Tanner was at a level J before Christmas break. And that is in Spanish. His English is well beyond that but the dual language class doesn't test for English reading. That kid loves to read and doesn't get hung up by much. His school goal for this year is to reach level N in Spanish. This would put him at 3rd grade reading. His teacher is optimistic he'll reach that.

Gemma: Learn the letters- Mostly accomplished this. It finally clicked over Christmas break so hopefully we keep the momentum going.

Social:

Joseph: Go hiking with friends- He went on a brother's trip to Utah for hiking/canyoneering

Casie: Continue involvement in the community via swim team board and PTA- Yep, did that. And I will probably back off PTA a little bit this year. Not my favorite thing to be more involved in.

Ashton: Invite friends to play with her- Did that.

Tanner: Be a good sport, not cry and scream when his team loses or when he loses- He definitely improved in this. Although, it took a long time. Last spring, his soccer team lost the championship game in penalty kicks (poor kids!). He lost it. Was inconsolable during the team pictures and everything. When he played fall soccer, he handled his one loss decently. And he doesn't lose it at home if he loses in a board game.

Gemma: Speak kindly to her siblings- Still a work in progress

Spiritual:

Joseph: Continue interactive family scripture study- we have consistent scripture study every night. Depending on the behaviors of the kids, we are more successful at this goal than other nights

Casie: Prepare for the Sabbath day- I sure tried my hardest

Ashton: Read the Old Testament Scripture Stories- Yep, read the stories

Tanner: Sit reverently during the sacrament- He has improved at this. Tanner pays attention to most of church now, which is nice.

Gemma: Learn the 1st Article of Faith- nope, didn't even get around to this. Another year.