Grayson at Ramona Falls

Benjamin

Went to Freshman orientation with Grayson this evening. Can you guess by the image where?

Have a great day!

Free Stylin'

A shot of Grayson yesterday compliments of his Grandpa Bruce... Thanks Bruce for the awesome shot and an even better experience!

Bowling for Stuffed Animals

We spent the evening bowling with 8 Jr High boys... After they were done, Grayson put a few tokens in the stuffed animal machine and won an animal almost every time he tried. It was a bit crazy at the bowling alley but nothing like it was when we got home!!!

Oh to have this much energy again.

A little birthday belly dancing...

This past weekend we went to dinner to celebrate Grayson's transition into his teens... He is now a big 13 year old!

We went to Marrakesh in downtown Portland. As part of the nights festivities he and his friend, who will remain unnamed for his protection :) got to experience a new kind of food, eating with their hands, and of course... a belly dancer.

It was lots of fun...

Happy Birthday Grayson!

Great Day For A Swim

Skype is so cool!

Here is a picture today of Grayson from our conversation on Skype... I love technology!

Black Belt Ceremony 2010-06-23

Grayson, Robert, and Micheal received their
black belts today in a little ceremony.
Here are some pictures.

(notice the new haircut?)

Great Job Boys!

Our New Black Belt

Grayson received his letter today congratulating him on becoming a black belt in Tae Kwon Do!

Congratulations Grayson!

End Of The Season Picnic

Grayson and coach Guy at the end of the season picnic. A little rain and a whole lot of fun!

Sunrise Invitational 2010 - Can You Say Second Place?

Ok, so testing for black belt this weekend just wasn't enough. Grayson's baseball team had the end of the year Sunrise Invitational Tournament. We kept him out of the games due to scheduling conflicts with the testing and precautionary reasons. This evening the Portland Little League Royals were playing for all the marbles... but came up just a little bit short. Second place is still a great way to end the season.

Grayson got up to bat three times and made it safely to base twice and scored a run. In the third inning it appeared that his body had just about enough for the weekend between belt testing and baseball so coach Guy sat him down for the rest of the game. (Thanks to coach Guy for being an awesome coach and providing the best environment for these kids this entire year!)

Here are some pictures from a very fun tournament...









Here is a picture of the team angel Georgia... She is my favorite :)


These boys played their hearts out and all deserve a big congratulations on playing great baseball, having an awesome attitude, and being all around great kids! Good Job Royals!

Black Belt Testing Day Two!

Today was day two of Grayson's black belt testing. He had to do his fitness, terminology, self defense and read from his writing he was required to do about what Taekwondo means to him. He also had to run two miles yesterday after his two hour test... The kid is in shape that's for sure!

It was a grueling process for him and the other three boys, but they stuck it out and made it through the testing process.

Robert was back and was able to complete the test as well... They find out in about a week if they passed. (Between you and me... I am pretty sure he was able to fulfill the requirements, but we will find out next week for sure)

Great Job Grayson, Micheal, Bailey, and Robert. You guys have spent several years committing to something that most of us just dream of doing... Congratulations for getting this far!

Black Belt Test Day One

Today was the first day of Grayson's Taekwondo black belt testing. He did his forms, kicking, sparring, and board breaking. Four kids started out the morning, but due to a previous injury, one of them had to stop testing... so now there are only three.

Grayson, Bailey, and Micheal are doing an awesome job! Robert may or may not continue tomorrow, but regardless if he can finish, the entire class knows he is definitely a true black belt...

Great Job Today Guys!







I will post more later...

Powell Butte Hike Today

We spent the afternoon hiking around Powell Butte in Portland.

Grayson, Lori, Nancy


Grayson posing for his portrait :)

Daisy sniffing away... The lead dog!

Fun Nature Shots...

MJ Lives

Grayson had a school dance and the theme was to dress like someone famous. He chose Michael Jackson. It was so convincing he won a king size dark chocolate bar as first prize...

Grayson's Pre-Black Belt test

Grayson had his pre-black belt testing a couple of weeks ago and last night we received the results from the test. Here is a partial video of his form. It is a combination of 7 forms put together and all the students perform it at their own speed.

He did very well on his pre-test and was informed last night that he was ready to test on June 5th.

Great Job Grayson!