West Coast Kay Family

SNOW

2008-12-18T12:19:00.000-08:00

Yay - our snow dances and insulting the weather by making paper snowflakes WORKED!!!

CHOIR

2008-12-13T20:30:00.000-08:00

Mikayla is in the 4th & 5th grade choir at her school. She has to be at school over an hour early every Friday. This was their Holiday Concert the other night.

Mikayla & Faith

Mikayla & Ashley

Journey to Bethlehem

2008-12-13T20:11:00.000-08:00

If you've never been before, you need to go to http://www.aaachurch.org/article.php?id=10 to find out more! It is so neat! Live animals, including camels... Roman guards yelling at you... then the grande finale of baby Jesus in Mary's arms! It makes it all so real...

This year we went with my mom and my aunt Tina plus we brought Alex's good friend Nevada...

Zyler's First Day of 2nd Grade!!!

2008-12-13T20:01:00.000-08:00

Only a few know our story so for the rest of you, it has been quite a journey! But, all that matters now is that we have an amazing team of teachers who are excited to teach Zyler!! Finally someone was willing to go deeper than the surface and pick his brain... finding out that in intelligence testing, he scores high to superior -- THANK YOU -- we already knew that but to have it on paper and tested by a professional was absolutely a prayer answered!

So, here he is, completely ready to learn!!

Zyler's 8th Birthday!!!

2008-12-12T12:42:00.000-08:00

My BABY is 8!!! What happened?!?

Long Time No See!!!

2008-11-09T16:56:00.000-08:00

Ok ok, so it has been almost a year and the reason why is because I get so behind. So many things that are worthy to be blogged about, like vacations, and Mikayla on a Select Soccer team and, birthdays (no different than my excuse almost a year ago!), that I feel bad if I skip anything BUT this is so much more worthy than anything else that I will skip over the last 2 years and just start again from here :)

Our sons Alex and Zyler just started wrestling. I am very proud of them both for taking this on and being excited to practice and learn. Yesterday Alex had only his second meet (I think it's called) and he won the first 2 matches with points and the 3rd one with a pin!! He has been on cloud 9!!! We are so very very proud of him!!

Here are some pictures... of Alex...

and then, Zyler...

Hey Look!!!

2007-12-16T17:34:00.000-08:00

All right, so at our friends' Christmas party, much talk about not updating... well, my friends, it has been such a busy 6 months!! I have so much to blog and I've gotten so behind - summer activities, Wild Waves, friends, school, sports, dogs, vacation, holidays :( it's very sad! I was doing so well!
BUT, I received these pictures from our friend Dina today, of Chip & Barnaby... and no matter what else we end up blogging or not blogging about, these needed to go up right away!!

This is Chip's all time bff... lol... for the last 13 years!! Thick and thin!!
Barnaby, Dina and their kids Chris, Jordan & Rayah all got to come for a visit a couple weeks ago! They now live in Arizona so we don't see them as much. We had alot of fun living life with them for a week. We miss them already!
A little history... many of you already know but for the rest of you... Dina and I have been friends since junior high (so, 17-18 years? sheesh!) and after high school, she joined the military, met Barnaby, married him... his best friend was Chip... so then, of course, him and I end up meeting and there ya go!! We got married and are living happily ever after!!
So, ya see folks, if it weren't for that man above, Chip & I would've never met!! We owe our marriage to him and Dina!!
We love you both... so very much!! Glad we'll get to see you soon, again! We loved having you here and miss you!!

SO MUCH FUN!!!

2007-07-19T10:59:00.000-07:00

4th of July 2007

2007-07-05T08:54:00.000-07:00

Starting the day off with the Katesridge Parade!!

Then we head off to Wes & Candy's!! Another great 4th - just like last year!!

Once again, our very own Chip'n'Dave show!!! Thanks guys!! It was awesome!!

Our Gang!!

2007-07-05T08:17:00.000-07:00

~Nitro, Kovu, Sienna & Devani~

I LOVE THESE GUYS!!!

To see more, go to www.divinityamstaffs.com!!!

The BEST breed ever!!!

~First Purchase~

2007-07-05T08:11:00.001-07:00

Action Shots!!

2007-07-03T15:27:00.000-07:00

This does not even capture their abilities to FLY through the air! It is SO fun!!
My favorite picture -- looks like Sasha just knocked Devani over!! And Sienna is "outta here!!"

Our first child turned 10?!?!? What?!?!

2007-06-28T22:13:00.000-07:00

Look at these well behaved boys!! Friends from just this last school year all the way to friends from when he was just born 10 YEARS AGO!!!

We've got Jordan, Stephen, Jonathan, Ben, Matthew, Alex, Simon, Nevada, Brett, Sam & Adam!

(not pictured here but showed up later, Rand)

Once a friend of Alex's, always a friend of Alex's!!

Then I told them to all give him a big fat kiss on the cheek!!
"Son, for your 10th birthday, you only get stuff you need so here's a back pack of school supplies..."

Wii!!! The birthday present of the decade!!!

Alex, I can't believe it's been 10 years since I took this little baby home!! Having NO idea what I was doing but knew that I was absolutely in love with this new little man! You're growing up SO fast and it is such a bittersweet feeling! I love you sweetheart! You changed my life and I am forever grateful! You just keep growing, loving God and loving people like you do... I am SO very proud of you!!!!

Alex's BD present from the Craigs!!

2007-06-26T15:51:00.001-07:00

Jordan flew up here from Arizona last week for Alex's birthday!! They've been friends since Alex was 2 months old!! That means he is probably his second friend ever!!

Beautiful sunny days for them to slip-n-slide with Simon!!
Red Robin to celebrate!!
Alex's actual birthday party!!! Playin' the Wii!!
The final day: on our way to Wild Waves!!!

Back to the airport he goes :(

We love you Jordan!! Thanks for coming to spend a week with us!! I hope you had a blast!! See you soon!!

My 2 Birthday Presents!!

2007-06-20T15:58:00.000-07:00

The Police

Chip bought me 4 tickets to see The Police!! After looking for friends who would appreciate these tickets, we decided to take our boys! I am SO glad that we did because both of them enjoyed it just as much as we did! Plus, they got to take a limo to and from the concert!! How many 9 & 6 year olds get to do that?!?

Gwen Stefani

My second big present from Chip was Gwen Stefani tickets!! He said I could do with them what I want... so, I wanted to take Mikayla and then one of my very good friends, Kelly and her daughter, Zoe, who is one of Mikayla's best friends! We had alot of fun! No limo but we ate at Red Robin before and then took a very interesting bus ride up to the White River Ampitheatre... wow!

Our Baby Graduated from Kindergarten!!

2007-06-20T15:49:00.000-07:00

Thank you Sonship Kindergarten!!!

Kovu ~Best of Breed~ May 28th!!

2007-06-05T12:47:00.000-07:00

This was mine and Kovu's first Best of Breed!!! He's already a Champion but then we and his breeders started showing him as a "special" which is what ends up ranking dogs in the country. Well, on May 28th, he took Best of Breed over 3 of the top dogs in the country!! One of them being the #2 or #3 dog!! At the same time, Devani took Winners Bitch, Best of Winners & Best of Opposite - we should've gotten their picture taken together but we didn't :( Next time!! So, here's the one with us and Kovu... oh, I love this dog!!

So, after you take a Best of Breed, you then go on to compete against all the other Best of Breeds in your group - which in our case, is the Terrier group! I had NO idea what to expect or even what I was doing. So my friend told me to just watch the group before us. OH NO, not me, we got to be first group in and then on top of that, first dog in!! Nice! It was fun though and luckily a professional handler friend of ours was right behind me with another Terrier telling me what to do (or not to do - thanks Ed!!!). And the judge was very specific, so that was really nice also! It was alot of fun and I hope to be in that ring alot more!! Which I'm sure we will with Kovu and then also Chip's new boy, Nitro!! Both amazingly perfect!!

All About Alex...

2007-06-01T07:44:00.001-07:00

Alex was the assistant director in "The Little Mermaid" at school! He had alot of fun, worked real hard and the play was perfect!!!

Also, Alex tested for his orange belt this month and PASSED!!! He is doing so great in TaeKwonDo! He just does it so well!

Good job Alex!! We love you... keep up the great work!!

All About Mikayla...

2007-06-01T07:31:00.001-07:00

Mikayla has had one busy month!!

AWANA Awards Ceremony!!

Solo for Mother's Day!! She rocked it!!
"The Little Mermaid" production through the Missoula Children's Theatre with her school. Anyone who knows Mikayla, knows that she was the best, most animated seahorse up there!! It was such a blast to watch.
We are so proud of her!!

A Chapter Ends

2007-03-24T12:29:00.000-07:00

Two weeks ago, we received a letter telling us that Puget Sound Therapy was closing its doors and that we would have our final sessions with our child's Speech and Occupational Therapist that following week. WOW!! What shocking news!! Zyler and I have been going there every Wednesday since he was 4!
So, we showed up for our last appointment, and I have to tell you, it was very emotional! Both Julie (speech) and Kathie (occupational) have worked with, fought with, loved, and enjoyed Zyler for a long time.
I want to thank you both for your time and love! You both have been our main guage as to how and when Zyler has grown and progressed with everything we have stepped into to help him get better! You have both helped him, and me, so much!! Thank you for being my ear many times and such an encouragement! We will both miss seeing you every week and we hope that your "replacements" will be even half as much of a friend you each have been :)

Our Vacation!!

2007-02-27T16:10:00.000-08:00

www.divinityamstaffs.com

Rose City Classic!!! Our first Champion!!

2007-01-23T09:16:00.000-08:00

Kovu is now "Ch Pooler's Knock Out of Divinity, OFAca"!!!!

Here's a couple pics that somebody took and posted on a message board thingy :-)

PureBredPuppy

Sienna's First Show

2007-01-12T12:14:00.000-08:00

No pictures :-(
Sienna got Winners Bitch/Best of Opposite today!!! Only 1 point and she only beat one other dog but hey! It was great for her first show. She was a total sweetie, of course - the judge even said to her, "Well, I don't want to talk to you too much; you'll crawl right up in my lap," - I laughed and said, "you're right". She really seemed to like being there. Chip said that we looked really good together.
Meanwhile, Rusty seemed quite out of the game. Chip practically had to drag him around the ring. :-( Hopefully tomorrow will be different.

Yeeeeaaaaahhhhh Sienna!!!

Best Christmas Ever!!!

2006-12-26T16:49:00.000-08:00

Wow - what an eventful Christmas!! All the way from a couple days before thru the actual day of Christmas!!! Most everything was fairytale like!!

I decided that putting a slideshow on here would be better than trying to pick which few pictures should actually make it onto the post... see here it is... from watching Snowflake Lane at Bellevue Square, to ice skating in the park, to our Christmas Eve service including Mikayla's solo, to Christmas Eve at Grandma's house, to Christmas Day at ours with my parents and my brother Drew and his girlfriend Stephanie!!! After presents, the kids got to go on a Treasure Hunt to find out what the GRAND FINALE gift was and then put all the pieces together... which, by the way, is a Mexican Riviera Cruise over Midwinter Break!! Then the pups got to enjoy their Christmas presents as well... couldn't forget about them!! Enjoy the pictures!!! Hope you all had a Merry Christmas as well!!

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O Christmas Tree... O Christmas Tree...

2006-12-19T14:05:00.000-08:00

'Tis the Season... to be busy busy!!

2006-12-09T11:01:00.000-08:00

Zyler's School Christmas Concert!!! Model in the making... he loves dressing up and posing!!
First performance ever-- he was SO excited... not that you could tell once he was on stage!

And he's a cow, by the way!!
But he finally did some of the hand motions!! Yeah!!
Alex's 4th Grade Holiday Concert!!!
Remember recorders?!?!
They did an amazing job!!
I loved the sunglasses and then the Santa hats!!!
SO cute and SO into the Spirit of Christmas!!

More in the * * SNOW * *

2006-11-28T14:52:00.000-08:00

Gorgeous boys.... Kovu

and Rusty!!!

Goofy Girls!! Going out to snowboard!!!

* * SNOW * *

2006-11-27T23:14:00.000-08:00

Zyler throwing snowballs...

Madison & Mikayla...
Alex making a bigger snowball...
even the pups got to play.... Devani....
and Sienna!!!

~Happy Thanksgiving~

2006-11-24T07:56:00.000-08:00

My grandparents beautiful house!!

Alex & I!!

5 generations!!

Myself, my Great Grandma Gribble, Mikayla, my mom and my Grandma Johnson!!

My Baby is 6!!!

2006-11-19T16:55:00.000-08:00

I absolutely cannot believe that it was 6 years ago that I had my last child!! It is so unreal!!

Friday night, we celebrated Zyler's birthday at Bullwinkle's/Family Fun Center... Fun was had by all... We got to hang out with our friends - the Youngs and the Sherwoods - and of course, my mom, Cameron, Zyler's old preschool teacher Maki, Darian & Seth all came as well!!

Thank you each for being a part of Zyler turning 6!! We love you all!!

New Belts!!!

2006-11-17T12:57:00.000-08:00

Last Friday night, Alex and Mikayla tested together for their yellow/orange belt!! We are so proud of them!! Once they found out what it takes to finish up their cards, participate in free sparring, pass the pretest, they got on it and completed it all!!
Mikayla has all the enthusiasm and Alex has the form & power!! I wouldn't ask for it any other way! Chip & I were both very impressed with how Alex has improved - he was better than some of his senior belts!! Mikayla is loud and definitely a leader... she was asked to move forward for a portion of the test... after she yelled "YES SIR!!!!", she took these LARGE funky steps forward... 2 other children were asked to move forward "like Mikayla"... LOL... they each took the large funky high-in-the-air steps "like Mikayla"!!! EVERYONE was rolling!! Even the judges!! I believe somebody got it on video - I want a copy!!

So, they passed the test with flying colors! Last night was the little mini-ceremony where they get their next belt!!

CONGRATULATIONS ALEX & MIKAYLA!!! On to the orange we go!!

Another Win!!

2006-11-13T21:29:00.000-08:00

Let me introduce you to Rusty aka "Noble's B.O.I. The Town Crusher"... he really is the sweetest thing! He thinks he's a lap dog... he will climb up in your lap and actually think he fits there!! He came to us in August as a replacement for Chip's blk&wht male, Tyson who ended up not being show quality. Rusty is Tyson's brother! Not what we were expecting to get as a replacement, a year old dog, but he is prooving to be a pleasant surprise!!

This last weekend, we drove down to Salem for a show with just Rusty. He has been trained more than we have (although I do have to say that, Kovu's breeder, Adrian has done wonders with us - thank you, Adrian)! So, on Saturday he gave us Winner's Dog and then on Sunday, Best of Wnners!! He is now AKC pointed! We have 12 more points and 2 majors to go... but I don't think it'll be all that difficult!! I will be showing him this weekend in Monroe while Chip will be showing Devani!! I can't wait to see how that turns out!!

Here's a couple more pics in the ring in Salem...

Halloween '06

2006-11-03T10:00:00.000-08:00

We definitely had a GREAT Halloween!! We/Chip carved pumpkins... got the kids' costumes on... went trick-or-treating... and then went to Lake Sawyer Church's Halloween Party in hopes to run into our good friends, the Stivers! Sure enough, towards the end, we found 'em and the last pic is of Mikayla and one her best friends, Emma Mae! Everyone pigged out on candy and then went home and went to bed!! Great night!!
All 3 turned out so cute!! Zyler as Cat in the Hat (one of his favoritest movies right now)... Mikayla as Wonder Woman with make up and all... and Alex as Clark Kent/Superman!!

Look at these handsome guys....

2006-10-27T09:24:00.000-07:00

Chip & Alex went on a Father/Son Retreat last weekend... Wild Wild West theme at Camp Berachah. They had a blast with good teaching, horseback riding, go karts, lotsa swimming, miniature golf, zip line (although Alex wasn't old enough) and hanging out with our good friend, Eric and his 2 boys, Zack & Sam (one of Alex's best friends). Great time!!
Alex decided that next year a whole group of our friends (with sons) should go together!!!
Mikayla & I will be doing the Mother/Daughter Retreat in May!! Anyone want to join us?!?!

More of Kovu Winning!! Again!!

2006-10-04T11:19:00.000-07:00

This last weekend in Kennewick, Kovu took Winners Dog again for 2 pts and beat the dog that kept beating him!!! Ain't he beautiful?!? We're so proud of him!!

Final 2 pics!!

2006-09-26T23:10:00.000-07:00

AKC pointed!!!

2006-09-26T22:46:00.000-07:00

So, that's the term for dogs that have points but have not finished yet (for their championship)...
Now we have Pooler's Knock Out of Divinity, AKC pointed!!
This last weekend, he got 2 3pt majors!!! With Winners Dog/Best of Winners!! What a good boy. Saturday was with Adrian (his breeder) handling and then Sunday was with Chip handling (he looked SO awesome and professional!!) Honestly, I think Kovu acts like he was bred, born and raised for this! He's still a tad puppyish and really just wants to play with ALL the dogs but when it came time to work, for the most part, I think, he did great!! Plus, this boy turns heads - I love it!!!

Next we have Pirouette's Treasure of Divinity, AKC pointed!! She got her first 2 pts (not a major) on Sunday with a Winners Bitch/Best of Opposite!! Not enough females entered though to make it a major but even still, we are so proud of her!! She did amazing... she had only been in a couple of shows but she just moved and acted so natural! A bit nervous beforehand with the back leg quivering but in the ring, she did what I needed her to do and she paid attention to just me. I am truely so honored to have her!

Above are the final 2 pics of Chip & I showing Kovu & Devani together... this is after Kovu already took Winners Dog and Devani had already taken Winners Bitch. This is where they go up against any other already championed dogs... so, we didn't beat him but still, Kovu walked away with Best of Winners and Devani walked away with Best of Opposite (opposite sex of Best of Breed). Do you feel slightly educated now? I'm still learning it all but it's starting to come together... let me tell you how the points work... oh wait!! I still don't quite get all that -lol- I just know that Kovu has 6 (out of the 15 that he needs) and 2 majors (out of the 2 that he needs) -- Devani has 2 points (out of 15) and 0 majors (out of 2)... so we are well on our way to having our own Champion dogs!! Aren't they pretty?!?!?!

Hawaii!!!

2006-09-19T20:27:00.000-07:00

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Kids' New Summer Pics!!!

2006-09-07T15:21:00.000-07:00

Been Awhile...

2006-08-29T14:39:00.000-07:00

Well, I am on day 7 out of 10 of the Master Cleanse. This is a toxin detox. It really is amazing... I am feeling great, I've lost a few pounds and I am excited to be able to eat real food again in a few days :-) but really only eat healthy food to fuel my body. I have done SO much research and fat cells store toxins therefore increasing fat cell size and making it nearly impossible to lose it.

http://www.circle-of-life.net/TheMasterCleanse.pdf

Kids' Camp!!!

2006-07-13T17:03:00.000-07:00

My Girls!!!

Chip's Boys!!

QUEEN OF CAMP!!!

Melissa, you are an amazing amazing woman!!! Everything was a blast!! From meals, to meetings, to worship, to games, to campfires, to more games, to a Big Huge Water Fight (where I almost died!), EVERYTHING!!! I believe you thought of everything to make it a huge success!! Plus kids' lives were changed... my life was changed!!! Congratulations on a job very well done!!

AND a shout out to Mike also!! Mike, you are an awesome man of God with a huge heart for kids... truely dynamic in everything you do!! Thank you also for all that you put into our kids and all the hard work you do... and all the "grief" you get from Melissa!!! Rock solid, man!!! :-))))

Thank you both... you are a God-ordained team!!!

The Rest of 4th of July... at the Helm's!!!

2006-07-13T16:30:00.000-07:00

"Grandma" with Zyler!!!

Mikayla!!

Alex!!!

Alex, Connor, Mikayla and Reagan... good ol' friends!! Lots of fun!!

A little patiotic!! Ya think?!?

We had our very own Chip'n'Dave show!!!

Thank you so much Wes & Candy... we had a GREAT time!!!

4th of July Neighborhood Bike Parade!!!

2006-07-04T11:06:00.000-07:00

Mikayla, Zyler & Alex... all decorated and ready to go...

Zyler!!!

Alex!!!

Mikayla w/ Emma Mae & her dog Abigail!!!

And they're off!!!

Our friend Peggy holding the line w/ EmmaMae & Abigail :-)

And of course, we brought sweet lit'l Sienna - who was SO well-behaved!!

Our Show Dogs...

2006-07-02T13:56:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we headed out to our friend's house, Kovu's breeder, Jack & Adrian. They've been showing for years and know all the ropes... so we went there for some "training" (ok so I mostly watched but will definitely be working with the pups daily now :-) for my own sake)... it was absolutely amazing how the dogs just did whatever Adrian wanted them to... I have great dogs but they're never THAT great for me!! I will get there!!

Pooler's Knock Out of Divinity ~ "Kovu"

This is my sister's Amstaff that we co-own with her!!

Pirouette's Treasure of Divinity ~ "Devani"

This is our first pup - just turned 1 on Alex's birthday, June 22nd!! She is truely queen of the yard - don't mess with her toys!! Also, she is absolutely funny - she shows you how much personality, reasoning and so on that dogs really have...

Blue Diamond Sienna of Divinity ~ "Sienna"

This is my "must have" girl because she was the most brindle I had found and she comes from the Barbarian line... she looks just like her daddy :-) and she is the sweetest most expressive little thing.

This is Devani with her mom, Breeze. This was very special for us because Devani was shipped in from Illinois - we never met her parents and we picked her out online... so a chance like this is just undescribable. Breeze just so happens to be here "visiting" - oh ok - so she's here being bred to Kovu's dad... which, to me, is another really neat thing - their pups will give us somewhat of a sampling of what Kovu & Devani pups may be halfway like :-))))

Kovu and his dad Fireball...

Devani & Sienna so patiently waiting... I just thought it was a cute pic so I had to include it!

Off to Camp Berachah

2006-07-01T20:28:00.000-07:00

Mikayla and her friend Zoe went off to camp for the first time... at least it was together!!

Alex is 9 Years Old -

2006-07-01T20:24:00.000-07:00

- Where does the time go?!?

2006-07-01T20:08:00.000-07:00

Pretty Girls!!! Sienna & Devani!!!

2006-07-01T20:01:00.000-07:00

My baby sister graduated High School!!

2006-07-01T19:59:00.000-07:00

Congratulations Michelle - Class of '06!!!

Shouldn't let a month go by!!!

2006-07-01T19:35:00.000-07:00

Feeding the ducks - IN OUR YARD!!!

Zyler's preschool graduation!!
Yeah! Kindergarten, here we come!!!

Maple Valley Days Parade!!!

Mikayla got her Yellow Belt!!!

Congratulations, Mikayla!!!

~Beautiful Day~

2006-05-30T21:01:00.000-07:00

The days are getting longer, the sun is giving us teasers and all the signs of SUMMER IS COMING! So the kids pulled out the Slip-n-Slide today...

Might've been a little premature but, oh well, they had fun anyway...

even one of Alex's neighbor friends joined in!

Wacky Hair Day

2006-05-30T20:49:00.000-07:00

Mom's job!!

After Dad added green to Alex's!!

And red to Mikayla's!!

Actual Birthday Dinner at Red Lobster...

2006-05-30T20:37:00.000-07:00

On my actual birthday, we went to Red Lobster for dinner... a place we've been talking about going for as long as I can remember but have never made it. I had some sort of ultimate seafood feast and well, WAY TOO MUCH FOOD! But I was in good company... my mom, my dad, my sister, my hubby and my kids!

Alex got his Yellow Belt!!!

2006-05-30T20:23:00.000-07:00

In Tae Kwon Do (as in all martial arts), you must learn, practice, work hard and then test for each belt. Well, this is very exciting because Alex found out what it takes to get signed off on his card, turned it in at the appropriate time and became elligible for testing. He tested on May 12th, found out that he passed and got his yellow belt on May 19th... we are so proud of him!!

Alex's final moment as a white belt!!

This has actually been alot of fun for both him and Mikayla to do together... she has now gotten her's signed off and will be testing next month... more to come on that when it happens.

My Surprise 30th Birthday!!!

2006-05-21T17:14:00.000-07:00

Wow!! Where do I begin...
Hmmm -
I was invited to my friend Julia's surprise party...
Which, I just so happened to rub it in Chip's face that she was getting a party and I wasn't... she's turning like 32 or some "insignificant number" and here I was turning 3-0!!
So, let the fun begin with Renee!!
I can't even possibly write all the ways they did this behind my back -- it would be a book... all the way from Melissa -the big planner- apologizing that she didn't realize my birthday was so close to Julia's and decided to plan one for me for Sunday TO me singing Happy Birthday to Julia Saturday morning... when her real birthday happens to be in OCTOBER!!! Jessica and Kenzie emailing me asking if I'm going to Julia's birthday.. and having fairly extensive email conversations about what we're wearing and how we're doing our hair etc!!! Enjoying themselves way too much at my expense!!!
We get there and it's "hurry hurry hurry - they're on their way!" only to walk in and first see my friend ANNA -who would not be at Julia's party- and then some of MY family... somebody said surprise and well, let the evening of amazing food, great company and fun dancing begin... I LOVED IT!!!
Melissa - wow woman!! You amaze me!! I love you SOOOO much! I cannot believe you pulled it off. Thank you thank you thank you!! I will never be able to express my appreciation enough!
Julia and Christine - thank you both SO much for all the hard work and help you had in it -- even the mastermind hairbrained ideas involving LIES!!! LOL!!! :-))))))))) I love you both and thank you!!
The hubbies -- boy guys - I know how Melissa works and I can just imagine the amount of hard work you had to put into it... and you guys get a huge THANK YOU also!!! Mike, Olaf and Leonard... I will probably never fully know how much and to what extreme the work you had to do.
And to all my friends who had their hand in the effectiveness of the LIES....
THANK YOU... AND I LOVE YOU!!! I felt the most honored and loved ever in my life!! And of course, it was so much fun!!
Dearest Chip -- 1 point!! :-) I love you -- you earned more than 1 - I promise!!! Wow sweetie - I don't even know what to say except - wow! You truely captured my heart yet once again and I thank you sooooo much! I am so crazy in love with you!! Thank you!!

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Zyler's Field Trip

2006-05-16T21:13:00.000-07:00

~ Point Defiance Zoo ~

To finish the day off...

The Snowboarding Day -- Friday May 5th, 2006

2006-05-05T21:22:00.000-07:00

Alpental had Cinco de Mayo $5 lift tickets!!! One last chance to get up there -- for super cheap!! Couldn't pass that up so we pulled the kids out of school (ooooooo, bad bad parents!!) and it was well worth it!

I had no intentions of getting Zyler up the mountain -- actually, I had NO idea what I was going to do with him but I figured we'd wing it and if Chip at least got to go up with Alex and Mikayla, well, yeah! And then my lift ticket only wasted us 5 bucks. Well, as you see in the above picture, Zyler really thought he was stealing MY goggles and DADDY'S snowboard... so, that was that, I had to go rent him some gear. Man he was excited!!

He also ended up thieving my gloves during the first run down, which basically meant my day was over :-( But I SO enjoyed watching my kids ride!!! Chip was much better at guiding Zyler down than I was anyway. And Zyler kept going up that chairlift and coming down with Daddy... and kept going and going and going... until Chip had had enough!!

Here's Alex and Mikayla also!!! Li'l pros in the making!!

Mikayla's Easter Solo Video on MySpace

2006-04-27T14:39:00.000-07:00

http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=663589139&n=2

Azusa Street

2006-04-27T14:10:00.000-07:00

I had never heard of Azusa Street before but wow - what a part of Christian history. It is where the current day outpouring of the Holy Spirit began. 100 years ago... an amazing revival began where people were saved, filled with the Spirit and people getting healed... it was HUGE!! So, Dina & Barnaby, Jerry & Sheryl McCarty and Chip & I all went to 1 day of this week long celebration of the centennial of Azusa Street! It was amazing... so many people pouring into the LA Convention Center... people are hungry! I heard that there was over 100,000 people involved... they were in the Faith Dome "Crenshaw Christian Center" and also 2 other large churches/cathedrals in the area as well. So the night we went was Benny Hinn - I had never seen him before in person... and what I have seen of him on tv, all he did was heal people... but he actually preaches also! It was very very good!
What an awesome thing to be praising God with THOUSANDS of other people... just flat out gives you goose bumps! Before good ol' Benny preached, we had probably an hours worth of praise and worship... undescribable... we did take a couple of pics - had to! Hope that's not disrespectful! God wants it documented, I'm sure of it!!

Sparks, NV with Kurt & Mary

2006-04-27T12:05:00.000-07:00

Well, Chip & I realized Monday, when it was too late, that we got NO pictures... NONE!!! We were so sad!
So, even though we didn't get any pictures, I still have to include it on here cuz it was a big part of our trip...
We had a great time... lots of driving around looking at the area and just really spending good quality time with them! Man, we miss them! They are such great friends -- such common interests, common beliefs and views, similar place in life and just plain comfortable.
Their church, Summit Christian Church, was great -- I love Kurt leading worship! I do miss it... and you can just tell that he is so in his flow, everything that he is doing there - he is so happy! He really fits and has a purpose and is walking it out, loving it!
And Grace is such a doll!! Reminds me SO much of Mikayla... which is totally my kinda girl! And just talking and talking with Mary.... plus seeing also how proud of her church and what they're doing there. She's also really happy and it was good to see that...
Of course, having lunch with Justin & Karon... those 3 boys together is just a riot! All 3 of them are too funny for their own good. And the way Justin helps "parent" Grace is well, too funny... but their's is on the way.... and he's gonna "sow what he reaps" - or is that "reap what he sows", Kurt? Whatever!
It was all fun... and sad to leave! Chip so loves Kurt... one of the few people that has really cracked the surface. I really appreciate that.

~ Brian's Coast Guard Graduation!!! ~ Cape May, NJ

2006-04-27T11:17:00.000-07:00

Wow! We are so proud of him! This is truely one of the greatest experiences of Brian's life and I am SO glad that I got to be a part of it!!

Chip, Eric, Paul, Brian's wife ~Kim~, Chip's mom ~Debbie~, and Chip's dad ~Doug~ before graduation.

Brian is the one in the center of the picture - in the very back at the start of the brown cabinets.

This is the first time he got to see Kim in 2 months!! Look at that - her belly had grown!!! 3 months pregnant to 5 months pregnant is a big jump... she's looking so cute too!! She was excited, yet nervous, to wear her maternity shirt to really shock him :-) He was all smiles - I loved it - he was so excited... and proud of his accomplishment -- man, that basic training (or, as many of you know it, boot camp) is some serious hard stuff!

We had a great time and I am so glad that we got to be there longer than we originally had planned. Lots of time to just hang out with the fam... You all know Chip -- well, imagine being with 5 others of him, all basically cut out of the same mold... their father. Pure entertainment, nonstop I tell ya! He claims he's not responsible but well, sorry, he gets all the credit!! And it was really nice to not have the kids... really weird and kinda sad but still nice to enjoy without any interruptions. Loved it!

April 18th - Mikayla's Field Trip

2006-04-27T11:12:00.000-07:00

Our Show Girls...

2006-04-17T22:27:00.000-07:00

This is Devani... our first American Staffordshire Terrier!! She is queen of the house.

This is Sienna... our little princess. She was our second pup...

We'll be showing -- ok, maybe not "we" -- I will be showing them as soon as we get our classes done and we start registering for shows. I'll travel as far as Oregon, all over Washington and even one in Montana (which I'll then visit my grandma at the same time). I'm excited to see them become champions.
We also have a boy that we co-own with my sister at her house... Kovu, and man is he gorgeous! I'll get pics on here soon of him.
So, once they're all champions and they've all been health tested, we'll breed here & there! Probably in a couple of years! I can't wait! This is such an awesome dog -- great family dog, wonderful with kids, beautiful, smart, loyal, has tested up there with the Lab on temperament tests and SO much more.

Easter!!

2006-04-16T13:32:00.000-07:00

Wow!!
All 3 of my kids are SUPERSTARS!!! But today was Mikayla's day to truly SHINE!!! First and foremost, she auditioned for a solo a few weeks back and got it! So, today, it was time. Man oh man... this girl was seriously the BEST... and that's not just cuz I'm mommy and we always think our children are the best but, because she's the only one that got the "ooooo"s and "aaaaa"s plus clapping (even though it was in the middle of a song). Talk about a proud mama!!! I had so many people come up to me and tell me how cute she was and how great she did. Teacher Karen even said they'd definitely be using her again :-) yeeeeaaaahhhh! Great job Mikayla!!!

So, second of all -- all the kids had an Easter Egg Hunt. Well, in some of those eggs, there's numbers which correspond to big prizes. The biggest prize being a bike. Now, who do you think won the bike PLUS 2 other prizes, a skateboard and a golf set thingy??? Yup, Mikayla!!! And guess what!! She even ended up giving the skateboard to a kid that didn't get anything and had really wanted the skateboard... even more so, proud mama here!!

All in all -- this has been a great Easter... Alex was up there singing also and everybody looks gorgeous... of course, all our dear friends did a great job with the whole Easter program and of course, Pastor Steve's message was wonderful! Soon, we'll be off to grandma's house to enjoy the fam!!

Women's Retreat at Semiahmoo

2006-04-09T14:22:00.000-07:00

My great friend Melissa invited me to her church's women's retreat... she is so sweet, so real and so funny. She called me saying ~ ok, I'm going to this women's retreat and the registration form is asking who I want to room with... all I can put is "Renee!" so then further on, I have to put who I want to carpool with and all I want is "Renee!!" so, Renee, you have to go with me!! ~ I thought it was so precious. It was a good time... very interesting. These gals from Taylor Creek Church are just so nice, kind, gentle... their Christianity, their walk with God could definitely be desribed as "gentle". You can tell that this is truly who they are. We sang hymns plus some other worship/praise songs... only Melissa and I, in the back row, raised our hands in worship. The food was AMAZING! Talk about high class! We got gifts too... we were just treated SO well!! The ladies were so friendly... I felt so welcomed and we found so many connections.
The speaker was a gal named Susan Heyamoto... she goes down to the women's jail in Kent every Tuesday to preach. She prayed for her husband for 20 years to be saved and 3 years ago, he gave his heart to the Lord. What a great testimony she has! I was able to talk with her a bit in the espresso line and it's just neat to hear that she, herself on her own, is a horrible communicator but yet, look at what God has called her to do and given her a passion for. Just so reminds me that my weaknesses are there for a purpose -- so that God can show himself strong through me.... then people know it IS completely Him!

My Mom's 49th Birthday!!

2006-04-09T14:12:00.000-07:00

Wow - 49 years old!!! Doesn't she look good?!?! My mom, sister and I went to see a movie - Failure to Launch - for her birthday down at the new Kent Station... was pretty neat actually. We went to a few of the shops down there. It is absolutely amazing to me how God puts such different personalities in the same family... and I realized that I don't think the 3 of us have ever done anything like that before... such different styles, different stages of life, just plain different... yet it was a good time. Probably something we should do more often and not take for granted how close we live to each other.

Drew moved away...

2006-04-09T14:00:00.000-07:00

So, my brother moved to Boise, ID... him and his girlfriend, Stephanie. We met up with him to send him off with our loves! Who knows - we might actually see him more often now that he lives further away than we did when he lived in Bellevue - who knows!! We love them and pray for the best!! Apparently they have a really nice house in a really nice neighborhood. All the best and maybe, just maybe we'll see a wedding in the future...

Here Kitty Kitty Kitty!!

2006-04-09T13:52:00.000-07:00

God has got the biggest sense of humor of us all!! He took 2 dog-loving, cat-hating people and gave them a "head-over-heels" cat-lover as a child!! So, hmmm, here we have an opportunity to show him true selflessness... isn't that fun?!?! Years and years of Alex wanting a kitten has finally happened for him. A couple weeks ago, Chip really prayed about it and decided to surprise Alex with the kitten he had his eyes on from our neighbors. He has decided that he has the nicest dad in the world! And of course, you KNOW my heart was touched!

My Boys!!!

2006-04-09T13:43:00.000-07:00

Ok -- new to this whole blogging thing so, I have to do some "back-blogging"... This is a pic of my boys having a BLAST!! Great fun in the Kay household!!

Trying this out -- let's see if it works!!

2006-03-27T21:46:00.000-08:00

Well, many have done this already and I DO think it is swell... so, here I am, joining the band wagon.