8/8/2010

This Blog is officially closed! If you are interested in viewing the next chapter to this Blog, please let me know. An eMail, phone call, or a reply to this post will most likely get you a link to the next chapter.

Thank you all for reading and responding to Taco Girl, Monster Taco and Ribby's Playhouse. It really has meant a lot.

Regards,

The DJ Kid's Pop

5/3/2010 A long, dusty weekend

We're really glad that this weekend is over. This past weekend we competed in the 1st annual Hogs 'N Heat BBQ cook-off. We did absolutely terrible and finished 14th out of 20 teams. We havent done that poorly in about...well, a long damn time. We did manage to raise almost $400 for the Autism Society of America, which is what is most important to us.

On a brighter note, we will be GLADLY taking two months off from the BBQ circuit (and weekend work) to spend the next 8 weekends with the DJ kids...thank god. The next competition VRM Pit Crew will do will be in Williams, AZ and we are 100% planning on taking the DJ Kids with us. Honestly, we cant wait to have them there with us.

Besides Lisa being sick, there isnt much else to say really. I sure hope she gets well fast, we all need her.

All for now.

The DJ Kid's Pop

4/21/10 Staying so damn busy sucks...

Staying busy is good and bad...all at the same time. There just never seems to be enough time to accomplish all the tasks that need to be done for our family. I guess it is what it is though.

The kids are doing pretty damn good and they all made the Honor Roll again this quarter.

Maddie got her first 100% on a spelling test...... only her 3rd test this year (1st was a 50%, second was an 80%).

Tori has been kicking a$$ on her spelling tests. If she doesn't get an A+, she does tend to get down on herself. Tori actually tried to send herself to her own room a few weeks ago for only getting 90% on her spelling test.

Richie, well the dude just cant spell that well just yet. I guess we can just leave it at that. He has shown improvement though and that's really all we can ask for.

As far as school and, well, pretty much everything else, all we ask of the DJ Kids is to do the best that they can do. For the most part, they do great...except for cleaning their rooms and the Playroom.

On another note, two weekends ago, VRM Pit Crew competed in the 1st annual Arizona BBQ festival. We did OK, finishing 17th out of 58 teams. We might have placed in the top 10 if some idiot (ME) didn't decide to change a recipe at the last minute. Changing a proven recipe at a competition is almost always the kiss of death...lesson learned. 3rd place Ribs, 18th place pork, 13th place brisket and, ummm... 44th place chicken (the one that killed us) got us that 17th out of 58. On a happier note, we were able to raise quite a bit of $ for our charity, Autism Society of America. Year-to-date, we have been blessed enough to collect over $1600 for our charity.

It's a difficult road competing professionally on the BBQ circuit, but it does help financially as well as professionally. It also allows Lisa and I to do something we truly love and to spend some great time together as a couple. We do have a great time competing and there are actually some unbelievably awesome opportunities opening up for us.

This weekend Lisa and I will head off to Indio, CA to help some friends with their catering business. It should be fun and money is nice (and needed), but at the same time it really sucks to be away from the kids.

After this weekend, we will head to Rock Springs, AZ to compete in our last contest for a few months. Thank god for that, as it is getting too damn hot and we need to just be with the kids for a few months.

All for now.

The DJ Kid's Pop

3/7/10 So busy...

The time just flys by out here in Buckeye AZ. Never a dull moment and never something that doesnt need to be done.

Victoria is kicking some serious ace in school and received yet another A+ on her last spelling test. She has asked us to call her "A+ Girl". Victoria also got her recent report card sent home and is doing phenomenal. She did get a B in Music, but hey....it's freaking music.

Richie is also rocking some serious mojo at school and continues to impress us with his witty thoughts/ideas. The dude is a 100% typical boy. Sometimes that's good, sometimes that's bad.

Madeline was named "Bug of the Week" (dont ask) and has maintained her status for an additional week due to her teacher being sick. She is really relishing her role as "Bug of the Week".

Basically, all of the DJ Kids are doing very well.

Lisa and I have been very busy working and competing in BBQ competitions. This past week, we were in Lake Havasu, AZ competing against some of the world's finest BBQ teams. We did OK, finishing 24th out of 71 teams. We also finished third in ribs overall and are currently ranked 11th nationally. Yup, we are definitely BBQ nerds. We head to Chandler, AZ in less than two weeks hoping for a decent showing w/ 20k in prize $ on the line.

Oh yeah, we also made a lot of $ for our charity, ASA, at last week's Havasu event.

All for now.

The DJ Kid's Pop

1/21/10 First Post of 2010

Today Victoria brought home a very cool gift for me. She was recognized as her class' Student of the Week. She was very proud and I was even more proud of her accomplishment. Victoria knocked out another A+ on her spelling test, her 4th A+ in a row. She also received her 2nd quarter grades and got 3 A's and 1 B. She was pretty bummed about the B, but I explained to her that a B was just awesome.

The twins are doing pretty good, with Richie being a typical punk boy and Madeline still being my overly dramatic child. All three kids are now BMX riders (kind of) and got to go to the local BMX track to race their bikes. They all did really good and have the bruises and skinned knees to prove it. They absolutely loved it and cant wait to go again.

This weekend all three kids are going over to a friend's house while Lisa and I are doing yet another BBQ event. It will be a good time for us to get a brief break and some adult time away from kids. At the same time, we will miss them though.

We have been so unbelievably busy and really haven't had a free weekend in a few months. It doesn't look like things will be slowing down much either as our weekends are mostly booked into April. I anticipate the coming of the AZ summer will get us back to a somewhat sense of normalcy.

All for now.

The DJ Kid's Pop

12/13/09 Holiday Party

We attended a holiday party this weekend with a great group of friends. The kids were so unbelievably pumped to see Santa and Mrs. Claus, and they were not dissapointed. After spending a good 3 hours gazing at the sky for Santa (seriously), the Mr. and Mrs. finally arrived. Thank goodness because the kids were really starting to become concerned about a possible no-show.

All of the DJ kids got to sit on Santa's lap and tell them all about the unbelievably expensive gifts they hoped to get this year. Whatever happened to kids wanting dolls and trucks? Now it's I-Pods and, X-Box's and DS's.

We all had a great time, got to eat some great food, we're able to see some great friends and make new ones as well. It doesnt get much better than that.

All for now.

The DJ Kid's Pop

12/9/09 Tempe Brew and Q results

What a fun event this was. We had a great time with our BBQ family and surprisingly rocked the house in our toughest competition to date.

VRM Pit Crew finished 7th overall out of 33 teams and managed a 1st place call on our ribs. Most importantly, we beat the three top teams in the entire US in ribs. We were very proud and even more shocked. Yes, we are BBQ nerds, to say the least.

Almost as impressive as our 1st place ribs was our 7th place finish right behind 4 of the top 15 teams in nation. The other two teams that we finished behind are arguably the two best teams in the West that are not in the top 25 nationally. We also managed to make $100+ for our charity, ASA. I'd have to say that we did OK.

Lisa and I are really glad to be home and will take a much needed break from the rigors of competition BBQ for a few months. It's now time to settle in and really enjoy the holidays with our VRM's (Victoria, Richie and Maddie). We have a holiday party to attend this weekend and the kids are excited to see their friends.

On another note, Maddie made Honor Roll for the 1st Quarter of 2009. She was very proud and got a free coupon for McDonald's chicken nuggets. Richie is rocking his math schoolwork and is getting A's. Tori is an unbelievable speller and is consistently getting A+'s on her tests. I am so damn proud of my beautiful children and how hard they work. The DJ Kid's are rocking some serious mojo heading into the Christmas break and Santa will be very proud of them.

All for now.

The DJ Kid's Pop