Happy Thanksgiving!!

We are back in Texas for Thanksgiving and have had a really good time so far! We came in early (Saturday evening) so we would have a chance to visit everyone and help with all of the preparations for Thanksgiving dinner. Gracie wasn't a great traveler this time around though. She has made every trip with us since she was a puppy, and this was the first time we ever had any trouble with her. She had her comprehensive snout to tail check up the day before we left and ended up having to have 8 teeth extracted, so I guess that is why she was so fussy. She whined the whole way here, and that is something that she has never done. There was another dog on the plane and he was so good. I told Gracie she needed to take notes! Hopefully, she won't be crabby on our way back home.

We were here early enough to spend my birthday with all of the grandmas too. We ended up going to Copeland's and had the best dinner ever. We of course got the onion mum, and I got my First Kiss martini and the garlic fillet with a potato and banana's foster for desert. It was AMAZINGLY good, and so was Bouke's creole and his Crash and Burn. The only Copeland's left in Texas is in South Lake at the Marriott, so we had a little bit of a drive. It was worth it because it was SOOOOOO good, and the hotel was already decorated for Christmas. Bouke and I had our traditional margaritas at Mexi-Go the first night we got in, and left the kids with Nana. We ate at the Prairie House and La Finca as well, so our tour of food has been complete. Mom and I have been cooking all day, so we have decided we are doing take out tonight, so Bouke and I are heading over to the sushi place for some creamy shrimp and california rolls.

Thanksgiving is tomorrow, and everyone will be over early. We are anxious to see Aunt Kathy, Uncle Larry, Granny, Jennifer and Madolyn and I am sure that it will be a nice day. I still have to make the creamed corn, but I don't know if I will be doing that today or tomorrow. I was planning on making some crab dip as well, but I am sure we will have enough food, but I love cooking so much, that when we start doing all of this, I just keep going!

Well, Cameron is now a rank higher in martial arts. We are getting ready to enroll him in black belt training, and he is very excited about that. He will get the black uniform too, and he is excited about being very ninja! Alyssa and Mikayla are wrapping up their quarters at school when we get back and Alyssa will have her finals right before Christmas break. They are all growing up so fast, and continue to amaze us every day, we are so proud of them!

Well, that is about all that is going on in our world for now. Bouke is heading to Canada to meet up with his business partner when we get back to CO, and his business is rocking and rolling right along! I will write some more later, but until then..........HAPPY THANKSGIVING EVERYONE!!!

Fall Is Here!!

I am so happy it is finally fall! This is absolutely my favorite time of year! The air is cool, the sky is a beautiful blue, the mountains have snow on the tops, and the leaves are changing color.

In true Hale form, things have been crazy busy around here. School started and the kids LOVE their teachers and classes. Alyssa is adjusting to high school very well, and Mikayla loves having the entire middle school to herself. Cameron is 'king of the hill' being a big fifth grader, and he is looking forward to the 5th grade trip at the end of the year to Snow Mountain.

Mikayla is anxiously awaiting volleyball season as she has decided to only play that sport this year, rather than that and basketball. I was a little surprised to say the least, but she has decided she likes playing that better. She loves her art class in school and just found out that her art teacher is having her first baby. The whole class is excited about it, and they are all offering help and advice to their teacher. She is really growing up, and it is hard to believe that in a few months, she will be a teenager too. Time sure does fly.

Cameron has been Mr. Ninja in his martial arts class! He just had his 2nd test, and is now a full yellow belt. He was SO good during testing, and is doing an amazing job in class. In fact, he is doing so well, that his instructor (and 3rd degree black belt in 4 different types of martial arts) has invited him to enroll in black belt training. This is by invitation only, and we are super proud of him! He is also doing very well in school this year. Last year was quite an adjustment for him coming into such a demanding school, especially after what he had experienced in the past, but he has found his groove this year and is doing very well.

Alyssa has just had her first Homecoming of her high school career. She had a total blast all week! She participated in each spirit day, helped to decorate the hallways at school, went to movie night, the game of course, (they won 17-0!) and the dance. Her dance was a masquerade them, and she said it was the coolest thing she has ever been to! She looked absolutely beautiful in her dress too. I cried, naturally, because she looked so gorgeous! She ended up going to the dance with several of her friends and danced the night away. She spent the night with all of the girls after the dance, so it was a great end to a great week.

Bouke's business is doing very well and getting busier and busier. He and his partner will be going out of town for a few days next month to finalize some new deals and get some new business. He says he isn't looking forward to going, but I know where they are going, and I can't imagine it being a chore!

Things are going well for my new business as well. I have been on several networking sites, have been working with new clients, and gaining more interest from women from across the country about the program. I missed my conference in NYC in September, which is okay, but there is another one coming up next March in California. I am planning on going to that one.....it isn't New York, but it is closer!

The kids are looking forward to Halloween and their fall break from school. They have already started asking us about going to the Spirit store to look for costumes and decorations. They are sure to be something scary and gory again this year, so it will be interesting to see what they come up with! They are also looking forward to Paranormal Activity 3 coming out in theaters next month, and they want to go to a midnight showing. The girls are also looking forward to Breaking Dawn part 1 coming out in November, and are already planning to have a group of friends join them at Southlands for a midnight showing, and yes, I will be with them!

Bouke and I have found an awesome local restaurant that is by Cameron's martial arts studio. I love it because they have great sushi and bento boxes for lunch, and Bouke likes their satay, and their peanut curry chicken. I can usually talk him into a lunch date every week or so, so I can get my sushi fix! It is really good, and it is a nice place to go for a quiet lunch. It really helps break up the day!

Well, that is about all of the news from here in Hale world. I am sure things will continue to be hectic, especially when volleyball season comes around and Cameron is going to karate three nights a week! Guess I better rethink drinking coffee in the mornings!

It Is Back To School Time!!

The kids are all checked in to school, and it is official. We now have a 5th grader, a 7th grader, and a (sigh) freshman in high school. This summer seemed to fly by, but it was one that will not be forgotten. The girls spent a lot of time with their friends this summer hanging out at The Southlands shopping with friends, hanging out by the pool talking, or seeing all the summer's newest movie releases. Then of course was our trip to DisneyWorld and the beach in July.

The kids had so much fun and we even took in a character breakfast with Donald, Goofy and Minnie Mouse. You would've thought Mikayla was eating with Taylor Lautner with the way she reacted to seeing Donald Duck. She about jumped out of her seat. I thought she was going to tackle him if he didn't come see her. We spent a day at Hollywood Studios and the rest of the time at The Magic Kingdom and the beach. It was hot and humid (of course) so it did take a lot out of us, especially coming in from Colorado, but it was still so much fun. The fireworks at Cinderella's castle and their new "Wishes" display and the Tinker Bell fly over was also very cool to see!! The kids had a lot of fun at the beach, and really enjoyed jumping in the waves and the temperature of the water was awesome as well. We all got some good sun, and had a lot of fun in the water.

Cameron has had his back to school night and met his teacher and he seems to be excited to start a new year. He found out he has some friends in his class from last year, so it will be a good transition for him. We even got to stick our head into his old classroom from last year and see Ms. Williams. We sure are going to miss her this year, but are sure he will have just as good of a connection with his new teacher as he did last year.

Mikayla found out she has friends in her classes and she is happy about that as well. She has decided that she isn't going to play basketball this year, and will only play volleyball. I was surprised to hear that, since she had always really liked playing basketball, but I guess volleyball has taken first place in her mind. She is excited about having 3D art this year, so I am sure she will be making some awesome things. She has heard that her homework load will be heavier this year, and I think she is worried about it, but I am sure she will do fine.

Alyssa has freshman orientation this coming Friday. It will be an abbreviated day, but it will allow her to run through her schedule so she will know where all of her classes are when school starts for everyone the following Monday. I really like that the high school does that and offers so much support to their students, both incoming and current. She has dance and french as her electives this semester, and she is excited about both of them. She is nervous, but excited and she also has friends in her classes and that will help ease her mind I'm sure. I think most of it is fear of the unknown, but I am confidant that she will do fine.

I know it has been all summer since I posted anything, but things have been so busy with running the kids around, to their friends being over, to going to Florida, to getting them ready to go back to school, I haven't had much time to blog. Hopefully this short entry will catch everyone up on what has been going on in the Hale world. I will keep my entries more regular now that school is back in session.

P.S. One last note, we now have a higher ranked martial arts man in the family. Cameron took his first belt test the Saturday we returned from Florida and did excellent! He received his higher rank, and has his next belt test at the end of September. Way to go Cameron!!!

End Of The (School Year) Update!

School is out for the girls and Cameron only has 2.5 days left! Alyssa's 8th grade year ended with a dinner and formal with a "Evening in New York" theme at school. She looked B-E-A-U-T-I-F-U-L in her royal blue dress, and from the second I zipped it up for her and she turned around, I started crying. I can't believe that my little boo boo bear is going to be a freshman in high school next year and is turning into such a beautiful young lady. She had a ball at school and even danced with her social studies teacher with a group of friends. They taught him (he is a whopping 24 years old) how to do the reject and how to Dougie. She came back from the dance on cloud 9 and ready for their 'senior' trip to Elitch Gardens (six flags) Monday. The entire 8th grade and all of the teachers went for the day. They didn't get back until almost 7:00 that night and bless her heart, she was exhausted! She had a lot of fun, and it was a good thing for her to do, she even got on the big roller coasters with her friends (texting her sister the whole time). It was a great weekend for her and she is still talking about it.

Mikayla wrapped up her first year in middle school with a presentation in her drama class. She did a pantomime with some of her friends in the class to demonstrate some of what she learned during the quarter. It was a really cute play, and they all did a great job. It was fun to be able to go up to her class and see what she has been learning. Drama was always one of my favorite classes, so it was a lot of fun watching her. She doesn't seem to happy about being in the 7th grade next year because she doesn't like the 'new' 8th graders. I think things will be okay, and we are excited to see what amazing teachers she will have next year.

Cameron is heading into his final stretch of school as well. Since he had a 2 week fall and spring break, he has to go to school until the 15th. However, it hasn't been all bad. He had an all day field trip to AmeriTowne in downtown Denver and they all had a great time. He also had another full day field trip at one of the gold mines here and went panning for gold and visited some caverns. He had a blast and came home with a huge rock that he is convinced has silver and gold in it. His last day is a half day so he really only has a little bit of time left. His teacher, Mrs. Williams has been out on maternity leave with her daughter, but we were expecting her to come back for the last week of school. She was able to extend her maternity leave so she will not be back until the 15th, where it is just a half day. Cameron was pretty upset about it because he completely LOVES her. He has been writing her letters and even drew a picture for the baby. His teacher, her husband and their new baby came up to the school last Friday so the kids could meet Maddie. She was born on Mikayla's birthday and the entire class had been a part of the pregnancy along with seeing the sonogram pictures, helping to come up with names, and betting on whether she was having a boy or a girl. They all loved being able to meet her in person, and we thought that was very neat that she did that.

The kids have spent almost every day swimming since school has been out. Thankfully their new swim suits have held up with all of the washings they have gone through. We have grilled and swam and the kids are so tan, so they should be set to go to Florida in July. The weather has been really nice here so it has been great for swimming by day, and sitting by the fire pit and making s'mores at night. Mom and Memaw came up to visit us for a bit so they have joined us at the pool, the grill, and all of the kid's end of the year events. We have taken them for mountain pizza at Beaujo's and will be taking them for a cricket burger as well. They have made the rounds at Caribou and I think they are on their way to having all of the drinks on the menu.

Cameron has begun taking Martial Arts classes. He has his first test at the end of July for his yellow belt, and he is doing well. He needs to make sure that he kicks with the top of his foot when he does his round house kicks, but he is doing very well. We both thought it would help with his focus, concentration, and self esteem. The school he goes to had come to do a demonstration at his elementary school. I took him up to the school for a private lesson from their owner (a 3rd degree black belt!) who worked with him and awarded him his white belt at the end of the lesson. Cameron LOVES going. He goes twice a week, and I think if I would take him up every day he would be fine with that. We might add one more class when school is over, but he just loves it. He takes it very serious, pays close attention, and practices at home. He is doing awesome! I can't believe that next year will be his last year in elementary school; but let's not talk about that because I will start crying again!

The trip to Florida has been booked and the kids are really looking forward to it. They have been looking at all of the rides online and planning what they are riding in what order on the days we are at the parks. We teased them about getting matching family shirts to go to Disney like they have on the commercials, and the funny thing was they were okay with that! We are NOT doing that, but I was surprised they were okay with the idea!

That is the end of the school year wrap up! So as you can see, even though things are winding down, they are not slowing down at all!

13 Days Left.......

I can't believe that we are on the last stretch to the end of the school year. Alyssa has a lot going on for the end of 8th grade. She has a dinner and dance for the end of the year. The dinner is being catered and the dance even has a theme; "An Evening In New York" . Alyssa is wearing a beautiful royal blue dress, and we even found a nail polish that matches perfectly. We are going to get her a pair of shoes dyed to match and then head over to Charming Charlie's for some accessories. She is going to look absolutely beautiful! Not that she doesn't every day, but this will be extra special.

The following Monday she has her graduation ceremony and then she and the rest of the 8th grade will head off to Elitch Gardens for the day. She is very excited about hanging out for the day with all of her friends and teachers. I still can't believe that she is going to be in High School next year. It still seems so surreal.

Mikayla has been working on a project for her science class since January. She has to give a presentation for the entire 6th grade, the deans, the teachers, parents and the principal next week. She has to dress up for this, and that is the funny part. She can't wear jeans or shorts, she has to wear a dress, so we are heading over to Hollister this Saturday to get her something to wear. Thankfully she likes the dresses there, so this won't be such a fight. Mikayla isn't really the dress wearing type. She had her first volleyball game Tuesday night and she made two points for the team. They did really well, and we have another game tomorrow. She really likes playing on the team and is doing really well.

Cameron has to go to school a little longer. Since he had a two week fall and spring break, he has to go to school until the 15th. He is okay with that though, and hasn't complained too much about it. He did really well on his science fair project and on his animal research project on the red wolf. He is doing well in school and really does have a ton of friends. The last time we were at his school with the girls Alyssa was shocked at how popular her little brother is. I don't know why she is surprised, because all of her friends LOVE him, including hugging him every time they see him and texting him often. He will love that when he gets a few years older.

Bouke just returned from a business trip to Miami and has decided we need to take the kids to Florida this summer. We did some checking around and found that we could get some good prices on tickets, so we are heading to Orlando in July for a family vacation. We will have a slight layover in Dallas, so we can drop Gracie off with her Grandmas. We are taking the kids to Disney, Busch Gardens, Sea World and the beach. It should be a lot of fun and we both are really looking forward to taking the kids on this trip. They are super excited about it too, and once the countdown for the end of school is over, I am sure the countdown to Florida will start.

Nana and Meamaw are coming up for a few weeks next month and then we are going to head down to Texas again for a few weeks. The summer will be full, but it will also be a lot of fun!

That is all that is going on in the world of The Hale's. I will post pictures of the girls in the next update

Science Fair

Tonight is Cameron's science fair at school. He did the best job on his project. He took some old baby teeth that we had saved and placed one tooth into Dr. Pepper, Pepsi, Coke, Mountain Dew, Sprite and distilled water to see what the effects of soft drinks has on teeth. He did the whole experiment for a week and a half and the results were pretty disgusting! The teeth in the darker sodas turned black, the mountain dew tooth turned bright yellow, and the sprite tooth turned a chalky white and shriveled up. He had a lot of fun taking it into school on Monday. He said that all of his classmates were really grossed out by the experiment. He did such a good job on it and we are very proud of him. He has to explain his project to some high school students tonight, so he is a little worried about that, but he will do fine.

Mikayla finished up her project on Aztec human sacrifices and that was pretty gross as well. We learned several things about the rituals that were disturbing. She did a great job on it though and I am sure she will get an "A" on it. It was very colorful, and had a ton of facts about all of it. I never knew how many sacrifices the Aztecs performed, and to be honest, historians aren't even 100% sure of the number. It was an interesting project, however morbid it was!

Alyssa is getting ready for her 8th grade graduation/dinner/dance. We got her the most beautiful royal blue dress to wear. We have decided to dye some shoes platinum and I found some nail polish that was the exact same metallic royal blue for her nails and toes, so I am sure we will head over to the nail salon the weekend before. We will also head over to Charming Charlie to see what other 'bling' we can find to complete the outfit. She has been looking at hair ideas too. I have no doubt she will be amazingly beautiful!

That is all that has been happening in our world, I will post some more pictures on the next update!

Crazy, Busy, Beautiful!!

I can't believe that April is almost over and that May is just around the corner. Spring Break is over for all three kids and they are all now back in school. You would think that things would be a little quieter, but that isn't the case. Things are crazy and in full swing as we have headed into the last quarter of the year. The kids are in their last minute push for projects, tryouts and volleyball games. They have new enrichment classes this quarter, but they all seem to be enjoying them. Cameron's teacher is due to have her first baby next week, so we will miss Mrs. Williams for 6 weeks while she is welcoming her new daughter. She plans on coming back for the last few weeks of school, but we will really miss her while she is gone.

We ended up at the Cherry Cricket for hamburgers our first Friday back in Colorado from our trip. Mikayla really wanted a hamburger all week, so we honored her request with the best hamburgers ever! Speaking of Mikayla, her 12th birthday is in 10 days! I can't believe she is already that big, and I am so proud of how beautiful she is inside and out. She is gearing up for Volleyball season and I am sure she will do excellent and her team will do well too. Her basketball team was undefeated, and I am sure the same will happen with this team.

Cameron is finishing up his science fair project. He has taken real human teeth and placed them in different sodas to see the effect of the soda (and all the chemicals) has on your teeth. It is a totally gross project but it is also totally cool! We are having a lot of fun seeing what the effects are and recording the data. He also has an animal project due next month that he is doing on Red Wolves. He has to do all of the research, complete a book and do a power point presentation as well. He is doing a great job on that as well!! He also has a play based on the book The True Story of the Three Little Pigs that the entire 4th grade has written and produced. He even has a few lines. They have also written the music, so we are anxious about seeing that too!

Miss Alyssa has been doing a clinic at the high school for the Poms team. She is trying out next week, and she is excited about it. I am super nervous about her trying out, because I know how much she wants this, but I am trying to act like I'm not. I can't watch her tryout, but I will be up at the school waiting for her, as she will find out that day. So I will be at the high school nervously awaiting the results. I know she is amazing and I know she will do fine, I just don't like worrying about it. It totally sucks when they get older and you can't protect them 24/7. So please keep your fingers crossed and keep her in your prayers.

Well, that is all that is going on with The Hales this week. We will keep everyone posted as to what is happening next!