12/31/13

Skiing Sunrise

 While at the cabin, Jeremy and I were able to take all 4 of our kiddos snow skiing at Sunrise.  It was so much fun but oh so exhausting!  When you stop to think about it, that's 4 kids, 4 helmets, 4 goggles, 8 skis, 8 gloves, 8 boots, sweatshirts, jackets, long under ware, and ski bibs. That didn't include any of Jeremy or my stuff.  It was so crazy!
 Today was Ledger's first time snow skiing.  We put all of the kids in ski school for half a day and by the end, this cute kid was skiing allover the place! He had a blast!
 Even Miss B. got in on the action.  This girl is so coordinated and athletic.  She attended half a day of ski school with her boyz and did fantastic. She is the cutest little snow bunny!
 Brody has skied a couple times before but we had him do ski school too.  He was mad at us for making him go, but this boy needed a refresher.  At one point today, all four of my kids were crying during ski school.  Two were mad that they had to be there, 1 was cold, and another had boots that were hurting her.  Like the good parents we are, Jeremy and I kissed them goodbye and skied a run together.  Miss Renee their ski instructor was so patient and good with them.  I think she was happy that we left.
 Case couldn't decide if he should ski or board today.  He ended up skiing and loved it. He is really athletic so learning new sports comes easy to him.  Case's biggest struggle today was his wardrobe.  He hated the helmet and the goggles gave him a rash under his eyes.
 Getting from the car to the slopes and then getting geared up took about an hour.  Not one kid could get any of their equipment on by themselves.  Jeremy and I were pooped by time we were ready to hit the slopes!
 After the half day lesson, we ate lunch in the lodge and then headed up the mountain for an afternoon of skiing with our 4 kids.  We were a little nervous about how we were going to get each of our kids and their equipment on the lift.  Luckily the chair lift controllers would slow the lift down when we finally made it to the boarding line.  Then we just grabbed the kids by the back of the jacket and yanked them on!  I rode with Berkley and Brody and Jeremy took Case and Ledger.
 Being that this little lady has no fear, we attached a "leash" to her so that we could control her from flying down the mountain.  She loved this.
 I spy Berkley and Jeremy!
 By time we got to the bottom of the run, Berkley was wiped out. The run flattened out and she didn't have poles, so Jeremy would have to carry her to the chair lift.  
 Case and I riding the chair lift.
 I spy Case flying down the mountain! (And Ledger right above him).
Snow skiing is exhausting but so much fun.  Case needed a little break after half a day of skiing!
So did Brody!  The weather was so perfect for skiing.  By lunch, Jeremy had to run to the car to take jackets and gloves because we were all sweating.
Ledger did so good skiing for his first time today!  I am so proud of him and all his hard work.  We ended up having so much fun on Monday that we took the kids skiing again on Tuesday.  Had we gone a third day, I think we would have all been skiing black diamonds!
By lunch time on the second day, Berkley was wiped out.  I ended up running her home to the cabin and then going back to ski the afternoon with my boyz! We had so much fun!
Jeremy and I are already planning our next ski trip with the kids.  Hopefully we can sneak away one weekend in January for a couple days on the slops.  I can't believe how good each of the kids did these past two days.  Berkley is a trooper.  She is happy no matter what.  Way to go skiers!

12/28/13

Sledding At The Cabin

 We are at the cabin and having waaaaaay to much fun.  There have been days and days of sledding even though there is very little snow.  Although it is cold and wintery here, it isn't freezing and horrible.
 Mark, Angela, Ana and Nicco joined us for a few days of cabin fun.
 Miss B. loves flying down the hill.  The faster the better for this girl.
 Ledger is just hilarious on this little sled.
 This goofy boy loves going fast but is very cautious. He loves his new Go Pro and had taken hours of video of himself sledding.
 This year Case has decided that standing on the sled is way more fun then sitting on it.  I can't believe how coordinated this boy is...even on the icy snow!
 This is the luckiest little lady.  She gets rides up the hill from every one of her brothers.  
 Ledger flying off the sled.
 "Look mom, one hand!"
We are having a relaxing and fun time at the cabin.  Wish we could stay here forever! Wish it was Christmas break every day!

12/25/13

Christmas Morning



Christmas morning started at 5:55 am.  It felt like I had just gotten into bed so you can imagine how grouchy I was when Brody showed up in my room.  Jeremy and I made the kids wait until 6:00 because we just couldn't do it.  
 After Jeremy and I finally rolled out of bed, we made the kids wait in our room until we made sure Santa had actually come.  We also set up the video camera and got all the lights turned on.  This is pure torture for this impatient group.  You can see how ready they were when we finally told them they could come out.
 We don't have any rules on opening gifts in our house.  I know some families do the, "one gift at a time" rule, but not us.  It literally takes 5 minutes to open a months worth of work.  After opening Santa's gifts, the kids dove into Sugar's gifts.  My mom came over and we ate breakfast.  It was all a whirlwind!
 The highlights this year for Brody were:  The Go Pro camera, Remote control Legos, Shoes and Games.  He also got lots of books.
 The highlights for Berkley this year were:  A scooter, Bitty Baby Twins, FlutterBye, Barbie Horse, Shoes and Clothes.  This little lady was happy with everything she opened!
 The highlights this year for Ledger were:  An ASU football, Kinetic Sand, Skylanders Starter Kit, and The Magic Treehouse Chapter Books.
The highlights for Case this year were:  Nike shoes, The Unofficial Harry Potter Cookbook, A Go Pro,  Wilson Pro Kick, and a Bow and Arrow.
 Berkley got a new leo this year and put it on immediately.  She wore it all day as she played with FlutterBye.  
 As a child, my favorite thing about Christmas was my stocking.  I love all the fun little things that go in the stocking. 
We had a fun filled Christmas this year.  It was fast and furious but fun.  After our long busy day, we headed over to Sugar's house for dinner.  We were all wiped out and back home by 8:00.  Hope each of you had a Merry Christmas!

12/24/13

Twas The Night Before Christmas

 For Christmas Eve, we always spend the evening with the in laws.  This year, Nanny bought the kids Nerf guns and sent them outside to play.  
 They played out there until it was time for dinner.  
 When it was time for dinner, we all headed inside and had a toast.  My kids love the sparkling cider that Nanny always has to drink.  
 I actually don't think any of my kids like the way it tastes, but they think it's fun to drink out of the fancy glasses.  
 After dinner, it was time for gifts.  This year the kids got clothes and watches.
 Case opened his presents in 2.5 seconds.  He just rips through them and is done.
Brody showing off his new snow hat.
After our evening at Pam and Rons, we headed home to get our new P.J.'s and books.  We then headed off in the Ranger to look at Christmas lights in the neighborhood. This is a tradition that the kids love.  After our Ranger ride it was back home to read our new Christmas books and get to bed.  These kids are so excited to see what Santa is going to bring them this year. Me too! 

12/23/13

Cookies For Santa

 After the cemetery today, we came home and made cookies for Santa.  This is quite an experience at our house because most of it ends up in the floor.  This year it was all about the sprinkles. There weren't enough sprinkles in all of Arizona for these cookies.
 Brody had a difficult time with cookie making today.  Every cookie he tried to frost broke in his hands.  He was more then discouraged.  There were temper tantrums flaring left and right from this perfectionist! 
 Case did great tonight.  This type of activity is really not Case's thing but he patiently frosted couple cookies and then called it good.
 Ledger's creative juices were flowing tonight as he creatively frosted his cookies.  He was having a ball frosting cookies tonight.
And then there was Miss B.  This girl glopped and sprinkled every corner of every cookie.  She mixed colors and triple stacked the frosting colors.  Her cookies were hilarious.  I'm pretty sure the big guy is gonna love our homemade cookies this year.