USIES!

You've heard of selfies, well me and the kiddos LOVE taking USies.. ahahha pictures of US! Even Kadir gets in on the fun...

 

 

 

 

DISCIPLINE AND DEFENSE

For the past year Khyri has been taking Tae Kwon Do at a local martial arts academy here in Smyrna.

In addition to showcasing his forms and moves, Khyri had to demonstrate his strength and focus by breaking a board using a push kick. He was really surprised the first time he tested for his first belt.

After 9 months of training as a white uniform (novice) and moving up three belts from white to yellow to orange, Khyri was invited to participate in black belt training. This means a new snazzy black uniform and also getting protective gear.

Tae Kwon Do has taught Khyri that you do not get things without effort, practice, and patience. He always says that he does not "get" belts, but he earns them. It's a great lesson for today's youth who believe that everything should come easy and without effort. For every belt test, the student's teacher has to fill out an "intent to promote" form. This form asks the teacher to evaluate the student's discipline, focus and overall academic standing. I like this policy of including the teacher, because it shows Master Chung's dedication not just to Tae Kwon Do for each student, but also their academic success as well. You can't do well in your extracurricular activities and not excel at school - Master Chung does not allow that!!

This past month, the school had a local tournament. Khyri was not allowed to participate because, to me, he is not practicing enough at home. He  needs to work on his technique one additional day besides the two days that we go to the dojo. He has another opportunity to test for his next belt in a month, we will see if I will allow him to test.

Tae Kwon Do is not about being aggressive and "learning to fight". It is a lifestyle that requires he understands how to handle himself in difficult situations whether they be physical, mental, academic, or social. It is a plus though that he is learning some great self defense skills so that if something happens, he will be able to protect himself and stand up to whatever comes.

And of course the Mosleys get a package deal because whatever Khyri learns in class I make him teach me and Kielle :-) hahahahah. We're all gonna be black belts up in here!

SUMMER SWIMMING

Since we moved into this new neighborhood, we have had access to a pool! Last summer while I was pregnant we went to the pool maybe once or twice a month - this summer!?!? we were in the pool at least two or three times a week!

With all of this water fun, it was imperative that the kiddos get more familiar with the water. I started first by purchasing puddle jumpers. Last year we had life jackets and they did not work for us. I found out from other moms that life jackets are meant to have kids float on their backs and await rescue. Puddle Jumpers, however, are designed to keep kids' heads above water but forward facing.

I rushed over to Target and grabbed two Puddle Jumpers to start the summer.

In addition, I looked around for swimming classes for Khyri. Kielle was still in school all day, so I wasn't so concerned with her learning to swim this summer. I decided to look at the local Smyrna Community Pool over at Tolleson Park. For $75 you can get 8 forty five minute swim classes held Monday through Thursday. Sign us up! I signed Khyri up for the beginner's class and it was a good pace. There were 6 or so kids each day and two instructors. 

The instructors worked on the fundamentals of swimming from kicking with straight legs, to breathing under water. The children used kick boards to work on their technique and pushed each other to swim across from one edge of the pool to the other. 

At the end of each class, The kids got to jump off the diving board into the 12 foot depth. 

Now I feel very comfortable taking all three kiddos to the pool by myself. I know that Kielle has her puddle jumpers to keep her afloat and Khyri's swimming skills are getting better each day. I will definitively sign them up for classes next year so Khyri can improve his technique and Kielle can hopefully move to swimming without the Puddle Jumpers.

KADIR IS EVERYWHERE!

Well baby boy is getting reeeeaaalll comfortable with his strength and legs :-) Since he has learned to crawl and pull up, he has been getting into EVERYTHING. The baby gates are installed for safety, but baby boy is definitely on the move.

Now's the time when Kadir is about to really get to know the world. We will be stepping up our outings so that we can enjoy the world tacitly - by touching a s much as possible! 

LITTLE CHEFS

Khyri and Kielle like helping me cook. Usually its a simple dinner meal maybe spaghetti or something like that. Every now and again we will bake something.

Making Lemon Pepper Chicken Strips

Making Banana Muffins with Crumb Topping

Making Chicken Stir Fry

WE GOT SNOW

Ok so this post is clearly late, as we are now experiencing 80 degree weather, but I wanted to document the 2015 snowfall.

This is the view from our back window. There had been ramblings about snow, but so far this year the snow hadn't stuck... so this was a nice sight to see :-)

School was cancelled and we had a honest to goodness snow day.

 

It may look like a little bit of snow, but this was perfect for the munchkins! They ate icicles, made snowballs and even attempted snow angels.

 

 

Khyri helped me shovel what little snow we had and when we were all exhausted from the snow fun, we got some hot chocolate from the neighbor girl across the street.

Our snow man was cute, but the absolute cutest little snow bunny was this chunk right here...