Brad sent me to the store to find anti freeze for him so he can start winterizing the boat. It was just Luke and I running errands because everyone else was at sports practice but he was a big helper! He said he knew exactly where the anti freeze is and he said he’d be able to carry them both for me! He made it half way to the register before he asked if I could carry one for him. I was grateful for his help! He’s the best little side kick.
We watched Toy Story 5 as a family yesterday. It was really cute and it was mainly about devices and electronics taking over kids lives. It was preaching what we’ve been preaching to our kids forever. So today Ryder and Luke got out a lot of toys to play with. They built an epic race car track and it was awesome!
It’s been a busy week with co op and piano starting again. Our mornings have not been as free as they used to be. So Luke was excited this morning to hear that he was able to do his morning routine! He feeds the dogs, eats breakfast, gets dressed and brushes his teeth, and then takes the dogs for a walk. Today he and Ryder actually rode their bikes while I walked the dogs and they decided to go around the big, BIG block. It was a beautiful morning and I loved Luke’s morning routine as well!
Kade and Tenley got home from their sports practices and then quickly left to go to the football game. They are so busy!
This morning I could tell Luke was sad. When I asked him why he told me that he was sad that he had to fold his clothes and put them away. I said, “I bet it will take you less than five minutes to get your clothes folded.” He said, “Do you bet me cookies?” I said yes and he ran to get his clothes folded. It ended up taking him eight minutes so I lost the bet and had to make him cookies tonight! But honestly that was the easiest way to get him to fold his clothes without a fight. It was totally worth it!
And speaking of food, Ryder made a delicious lunch of grilled ham, egg, and cheese sandwiches and chocolate Frappuccinos for Kade, Tenley, and himself. It looked delicious and it was so sweet of him!
With Kade, Tenley, and Ryder all in sports right now we are running around like crazy and Luke gets to tag along with me! After Luke and I dropped Ryder off at soccer practice we went to the high school for Kade’s soccer parent meeting and to pick up Tenley from volleyball practice. Brad had meetings at the church tonight which is why he wasn’t able to help. When we got to the high school we had a few moments before the meeting and Luke ran around chasing squirrels. He also tried to feed them his pretzels but they weren’t willing to come out of the tree for that.
Luke really wants an RC car that he found on Amazon. His current car isn’t fast enough to keep up with Ryder’s and Kade’s so he did some research and found one that is fast enough. The only problem is that it’s $90. We told him he could ask for it for Christmas. The next day he told me again that he really wants it before Christmas so I told him he could ask his Dad if there’s something he could do to earn it. He asked Brad and Brad and I thought about it and finally came up with a deal. We told him if he could do the dinner dishes every night for 8 weeks then he’d be able to earn the car. He agreed! Brad printed out a calendar with a picture of a car on the day he’d earn it. He hung it on the fridge and is pretty excited about it right now! I hope the excitement lasts! He happily did all the dinner dishes tonight!
We bought a new freezer so we could hold all the fish the boys caught. Luke and Ryder helped me organize it today. I love organizing and they were great helpers! When we were done they got to enjoy a popsicle!
We had a very sad incident on Sunday. Luke tripped by the treadmill while it was running and got his fingers stuck on the belt which caused it to burn off several layers of his skin. It makes me sick to see and hurts my heart! He’s been handling it so well but it hurts when we clean it. Luckily Brad has been helping him take care of it. Luke and I are so grateful. I hope it heals quickly.
Tenley is still loving FSY and even got to tour the MTC today. Kade went out with friends to the fair tonight and enjoyed that. The rest of us enjoyed a quiet evening at home.
Ryder and Luke had another soccer game tonight. We showed up to the game listening to Pump up the Jam! And I think the boys were pumped up! They played hard and walked off their field so tired and with red faces. That makes me happy to see them give it their all. Ryder had two goals and several great passes. Luke had so many great moves and almost scored twice. I loved spending this hot summer night watching them play!
Ryder and Luke had another soccer game tonight and they rocked it! Ryder scored three goals against and Luke scored two! They both played so hard and were exhausted by the end of the game. It was so impressive to see Luke score against such big kids. I was proud of them both! Ryder was making plays we’ve been seeing in the World Cup like passing to the keeper so he can kick it across the field and passing good crosses. It was fun to watch them play!
We have been having so much fun watching the World Cup everyday! We hope America lasts a long time. We also got to watch Ryder and Luke play tonight. They played well! Ryder scored three goals for a hat trick. It was exciting. Luke is the youngest on the team and playing with kids a lot older and bigger than him but he also did such a great job as a forward and as a defender. I’m excited to watch their growth this season!
Tenley was my hero tonight. I had to leave to take the boys to soccer in the middle of making dinner so she stayed and finished making it for me. It was a more complicated recipe but she did a great job and it was delicious!
Luke used AI for his first time ever. He had seen Tenley use it to get a workout plan for volleyball so he decided to ask AI if it’s possible for an 8 year to play in the NBA someday. AI told him that it’s absolutely possible! And then he asked AI for drills he can work on to improve his skills. He printed the drills out and got to work! It’s fun to see him pursuing a goal!
I had to get a few pictures with Luke today because I forgot to on Friday. It was a bit emotional for me walking to the baptismal font on Friday knowing that this was my last child to be baptized. All the “lasts” are hard to process! My kids are growing up too fast! I’m grateful it is summer time now and I hope we are able to enjoy it together. Brad shared some of his thoughts from Luke’s baptism today in his testimony that he shared. He talked about how excited Luke was to be baptized. He had gotten in his suit and packed his clothes for the baptism hours before it was time to go. And when he and Brad were walking to the front, Luke was running to it! I need to be that excited about making and keeping my own covenants! It was such a great weekend. We’re so grateful to our family for driving to be here. I’m so grateful for the perfect weather we had on Friday. It’s been rainy ever since! We were lucky that things worked out so well.
Luke has been looking forward to this day for a while now! The first thing he said to me this morning was, “I get to be baptized today! He was so happy and so happy to have both grandparents here and Lesa, JT and Elly! It was a busy day getting some yard work done and food ready for our guests. Brad even put up our outdoor pergola lights with his dad’s help. Grandpa Hobson gave Luke an American pin and Grandma and Grandpa Woodruff gave him an American tie! He looked pretty sharp!
The baptism service was so nice! Tenley played the piano and did such a great job! She practiced everyday and played all the music perfectly. She works hard! Ryder gave the opening prayer and it was sweet and perfect. Kade gave the baptism talk and taught Luke about Jesus is there to help us fix our mistakes and about how he’s now on Jesus’ team. Then Brad baptized Luke. We should have given the font more time to fill up but luckily it was deep enough for Luke to be fully immersed. His Grandma Woodruff and Grandma Judy were the witnesses. Then the kids sang “Families Can Be Together Forever” together. It was so sweet! Luke chose the song. After that my Dad, Grandpa Woodruff, gave the talk on the Holy Ghost. He taught Luke who the Holy Ghost is and the many ways he can help him. Then he shared some neat stories about my life and his. I loved it. Then Brad blessed him with the gift of the Holy Ghost. It was a special blessing and my friend sent these notes of what Brad said:
Luke Hobson confirmation 6/5/26 by his father:
Bless you to:
-Learn to recognize the language of the Holy Ghost and to follow promptings
-Live life in a way you are able to receive those promptings
-Be able to further your natural disposition to do good
-be a disciple of Jesus by expressing love to all
-Grow strong in the gospel and be a good example to those around you
-With the things you need to accomplish those goals
-To be a future worthy husband, father and son of god
It was really special. The whole meeting was done in 30 minutes! We got some pictures together and then came home to eat dinner that was thankfully catered by Smoked and enjoy our beautiful pergola! We had homemade ice cream and waffle bowls for dessert as well. It was so nice to sit and visit with everyone and enjoy such a beautiful evening after such a wonderful day. I’m so grateful for Luke and for my family!
I really don’t mean to just talk about Luke all week, although it is his special baptism week so maybe it is appropriate. He was just so resourceful with his setup today. He, of course, had another kiwi co box to build and he set up his trashketball build from two days ago to the side so he could throw things away, and then he set up his tools box build from yesterday to the other side so he had all of his tools nearby. He even begged Brad for a wrench so Brad found some old tools that he doesn’t use anymore and look added them to his toolbox/workstation. It’s so adorable!
The primary presidency came over tonight to talk to Luke about his baptism. They showered him with gifts! They gave him a quiet book for sacrament meeting, a Kit Kat to help him remember the covenants he’s making, and a towel with a CTR shield on it. He was so excited! It’s going to be such a fun weekend for him!
I think Luke is a lot like Brad. He loves to tinker and build and he seems the happiest when he has a project. Kade has a lot of old kiwi co crates that he never built and Luke found them all and has been building one each day. I’m actually impressed that he’s been able to handle builds meant for teenagers! He has loved it and I love seeing his serious face as he concentrates on building!
