Presenting Harriet Tubman

Today, Emaleigh gave her presentation on Harriet Tubman for her Famous African American speech. This is the third speech she has given this year. She is becoming very proficient at using props. In fact the last two speeches have entailed creating power point presentations to help her audience stay engaged. It is amazing how comfortable she is using the various technologies available.

Up Next:
Science Fair in February
US State presentations in March
The annual Mock Trial at our city courthouse in April

Fortunately she seems very relaxed and we look forward to her future presentations!

Happy 39th Craig

On Tuesday Craig celebrated his 39th birthday! Is was a quiet evening with his new favorite for dessert...frozen homemade cupcakes with slightly melted ice cream. The kids really enjoyed it too!


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Back to School

The kids are back at school today. It's hard to believe that we had been off since December 19th. Eighteen days of pure relaxation. No commitments. No appointments. No schedules. Freedom. Stayed in in our jammies until--well--whenever we felt like getting dressed. Watched a lot of great movies. Read some really wonderful stories. Traveled to a few great places. Enjoyed each others company immensely.

Surprisingly, there were only a couple of disagreements that didn't last much longer than--well--a load of laundry to finish! I am so blessed to have such great kids that really like each other.

I wonder if this is what life is like when you get to heaven?!

The First Ski Day of the Season

Many of you know that we have become avid skiers over the past few years. It is great way to pass the winter season in Colorado, and the kids have really taken to it, as well. This year Emaleigh skis free at over twenty different ski areas as a part of a Colorado program to entice 5th graders and their families to learn how to ski. For those of us who already ski, it's a pretty good deal! For our first ski day we decided to try Loveland again. Last spring we ended our ski season here. It was a little windy, we lost Caleb in the trees, and the drive home was not so enjoyable. Long waits on the interstate. Since it is the closest to our house and we thought it would be the least crowded with it being the holiday season, we decided to give it another chance. We don't enjoy big crowds as it usually means you have to wait in line to get on the lifts. The morning was pretty crowded, but it was worth it. The past two days dumped 8 fresh inches of snow which made for a great ride down the slopes! By the afternoon most of the people had left because the temperatures were pretty bitter. Even Ema and I had to take a brief interlude in the lodge to warm up a bit. The boys were a little more diligent and decided to tough out the cold temperatures. They got in two extra runs, but I say having warm fingers and toes was worth the loss of those runs! We still had a blast and look forward to many more trips. By the way...the drive home was worse this time. It took us a little over three hours to drive what should normally take just under two hours.

Nana Takes Up Skating

On New Year's Day we headed up to Green Mountain Falls to do some ice skating. Nana decided to join us this year as she got her hands on a pair of skates. She was once an avid skater, but after the surgery she had, and the balance issues she now suffers from, she was a little apprehensive about getting on the ice. She fell a few times, but she remained diligent and got right back up. Emaleigh let her borrow one of the hockey sticks we brought along, so she could have something to lean on. By the end of the morning she was doing so much better! In fact, she even gave up the stick!

Happy New Year

As 2009 comes to an end, let us be the first to wish you a Happy New Year! We are looking forward to what 2010 has to offer and being able to share our news once again through our blog to keep you updated on all of our life's happenings!

Planning on ringing in the new year with a trip to the slopes as they just got some fresh powder the past couple of days. Check back soon to see if we made it or not!

May your families enjoy a wonderful last day to 2009 and a great beginning to 2010!