Nathaniel's been busy

Another activity of Nathaniel's is his Kyuki Do class. I haven't been as diligent in the past as I should have in documenting his progression. So this time I was there for it all taking pictures. This time he was testing for his green-blue belt.


Here he is warming up.


Here is the first part of the test. Going through the routine.


Here is the second half where they pair up and go through offensive and defensive positions. The boy he is working with forgot his belt so he had to wear the pink belt with the sequins. :)

He was very pleased with how he did. So was I. It's been a long time since I've really seen him test and I think he did great. I've never seen him move like that.

The test was almost two weeks ago, but I held off on posting so that I could include pictures from the belt ceremony which was last night.


Here his is getting his new belt!

I'm so proud of the progress he is making. This is such a great activity for him.

As a side note, the class is made up students of all ages. The only other green belt, or at least the only other green belt that tested, is an older guy. So whenever I see them in line together I can't help but think of the episode of Seinfeld where Kramer took Karate lessons.


"We're all at the same skill level"

They obviously don't ever spar together so it's not a problem, but it still makes me chuckle inside to see them together.

Nathaniel the Scout

Last Wednesday was pack meeting and Nathaniel got his Bobcat and Weblelos badges. We were not diligent in getting him to scouts when he turned 8 but about a year ago I really wanted him to be involved so I made a bigger effort to get him there. The problem is that it is on Wednesdays. I'm at orchestra on Wednesdays so for this to work, Jaaromy has to be involved. This often means taking all three boys to pack meeting once a month by himself. I wouldn't relish the idea either, but Jaaromy has done well and Nathaniel was able to get his two badges. I decided to stay home from orchestra(not a huge sacrifice for me since we were starting on the Mahler) to see him get his badges.


Here he is with his Bobcat. I had forgotten after all these years that the scout gets to pin medallions on his mom when he gets a badge. I took this after he got the badge since I was busy getting pinned.


Here we are after getting his Webelos badge. It's too late to get the Wolf and Bear, but apparently he has to get the Bobcat to get the Webelos. Sorry for the very unflattering shirt. I've been cold lately and didn't want to take a chance at the church. Behind us is Nathaniel's scout leader, Bishop Palmer. He's from another ward since ours is small. I really appreciate him working with Nathaniel and even putting in extra time to help him get his Bobcat.


As a side note, I first met Bishop Palmer at the Republican Caucus Meeting last summer. He and I were both elected to be delegates. He didn't realize it was me until earlier this month when we got together for the Special Election to replace Ron Bigelow. He's a good guy.

After the badges and things were awarded, the scout leaders had us all stand in a circle to do the Hokey Pokey and dance to other fun songs. The theme or goal for the month had been a positive attitude. This was lost on Nathaniel who didn't understand why he needed to do something so silly.


Jonathan, however, had a blast dancing in his boots. Brigham was around somewhere too. I think he was taking advantage of the dancing to sneak away some rice crispy treats before anyone else got to them.

It was worth missing orchestra to see Nathaniel get his badges. I'm proud of him for passing off his goals.