Oh, February...

Every year I forget what a handful you are.  

Today started with Jack getting a tooth pulled, a day of auction work for the kids' school, two visits to the school to change Jack's gauze, two junior high basketball games (both wins!), a first grade game (8 points for Henry!), a second grade game (10 points for Jemma!), arrival home past bedtime, a round of homework and a bowl of cereal for everybody, and then off to sweet bed.  All with Big Daddy out of town and a pile of snow on the ground.

It's a little ridiculous but man, I love watching these kids play and I love to hear them after--they're so happy for each other!  These are definitely the days.

Skiing! Finally!

We finally hit the slopes!

It's so weird to turn around and see your girls just riding up the chair lift.  

It's official, I'm a grown-up.

This girl is once again fearless.  She never looks nervous or asks where I'm taking her...just sets her little jaw and heads on down.

What a beautiful day!

Ended with some Red Robin, pool time, and a late night raid of the hotel snack bar.

first basketball practice!

and she could not be more excited!

I'm not kidding

this kid is out there every chance he gets.  Tie and all.

downtime is rare in January

they try to make the best of it.

Happy Birthday Jack!

 

Eleven years old.

Watching him grow up is such a joy.  I still see the sweetness of him as a toddler but almost every day, I see him growing into a hard-working, disciplined, almost teenager.  He still wants to hold my hand and snuggle on the couch but he's so strong and wiry that he can kill me in basketball any day.

And man, I just really like to spend time with him.

He was thinking about playing hooky on his big day but we woke up to Jemma throwing up, so he headed off to school with a birthday request of worms and mud (every year since preschool) and made big plans to take stats at Ava's basketball game with Will.  Then a late dinner at Buffalo Wild Wings and then, finally, home for presents:

It was a long, less than fantastic day but at the end he said, like always, "this was the best birthday ever!"

And that is why we love him so much.

the sledding never stops....

it might be cold, but it is gorgeous.

Every.single.day.

And just like that, the season's over.

What will we do with our time?

homework!

My little man loves homework.  

Getting to do a full penguin report was pretty much the best thing ever.

hiding out.

We had a solid week of ridiculously cold temps, it was bad enough I let Cooper in the house even when Ed was not home (it was that cold!).  Cooper's smart enough to keep quiet so he doesn't get sent to his room.  I totally died though when I looked up from the kitchen to see him hiding behind the coffee table:

More basketball!

Jack's team had a great tournament, heading into the championship game at 3-0.  And it was a tight, back and forth game, then with a few seconds left, a teammate made some clutch free throws to tie it up.  Jack's team was on full press and Jack stole the second pass, dribbled down, and layed it up for the win!

We are really liking this team!  Great coaches and a lot of fun boys to watch--they have a really great time out there.

Jack likes to end every night right here with me on the couch.  And I'm not complaining.

I really like this kid.

He's not the best athlete on his team but he's smart, he's coachable, and he works his tail off and this season he has seen that pay off in really big ways.  

Here's a little Jack for you: they were short one championship shirt and you'll see he's the one without and that's because he was over thanking his grandparents for coming when they were passing them out.

He's got a really big heart, this kid.

the view is so good...

even my little snowman has to stop to take it in!

new years resolutions.

We like to start small.

Here's Jemma's reminder to keep us on track:

one way to start the new year!

Checking out the tailgaters.

We were a little nervous about taking our Seahawks fans into enemy territory but we soon found ourselves in a sea of blue and green.  There doesn't seem to be too many 49ers left.

We had plenty of time to watch them warm up but Jack was especially excited to see Pete Carroll.

my favorite Earl Thomas fans.

This was a pretty sweet way to kick off the new year!

We had one last night in CA and after a vote, the boys picked up In-n-Out and Ava and I got a Whole Foods variety pack and we went back to the hotel like the party animals we are.

Hello 2017!