Gabe's Birthday 2019

This guy had another birthday and, naturally, he was on call, but he did find some time to celebrate with us. The kids insisted on a few details of the cake this year (lemon, drizzle frosting, etc.) and also were pretty set on making a "math problem" out of the candles this year.  I can't tell if that was because we didn't have the right number candles or if they just thought it would be funnier this way, it was hard to say.  Either way, they were happy to celebrate Gabe's birthday.

100s Day 2019

100s day (or when we celebrate it, give or take a few days) always seems to fall in times of slight chaos.  This year I actually thought I could skip 100s day because the kids were getting older, but I was wrong and they demanded we do the same 100s activities we do every year.  I will admit that it is neat to see how their creative sides grow as they get older and in how they interpret the same activities differently each year.

This year we had the added bonus of watching the Wroble twins for the morning and the kids couldn't get enough of entertaining them by dancing the macarena or having any excuse to get out the bins and overwhelm the boys with infant toys.  They were good sports at least!  

Skiing, Baking, More Skiing... So much Skiing!

It feels like we are spending much more time out than in this winter and it is pretty exciting.  With the Patriots in the Super Bowl this year Sugarloaf offered discounted lift tickets if you wore your patriots jersey AND they gave you a free ticket to return on another day this season!  Naturally we had to take advantage of that, so Gabe took Noah and they had an awesome ski day at Sugarloaf before the big game.

A while back, in the prime of our British Baking Show watching, we baked tarts.  The kids loved making them and have been asking to make more for quite some time now.  On this stormy day we made another batch and they did not disappoint.  Also in the kitchen, after learning about India we had an Indian food night for supper cooked by the kids.  They each had a part of the meal they were responsible for and, as a result, they all willingly tried everything and were surprised at how much they liked it. I definitely see more cooperative meals in our future!

We had our first family ski day at Sugarloaf of the season and it was amazing to see how much they all have improved and what type of terrain they aren't afraid to tackle this year. It was cloudy and cool, but everyone seemed to enjoy themselves and were happy to be back out on the mountain.

Noah continues to pick away making progress with skate and classic nordic skiing competing in races almost every weekend. Ben and Audrey are enjoying Sno Cats and were thrilled to dress up as a jedi and Darth Vader on this dress-up day.  James is really enjoying his free skiing time with friends while his siblings have other skiing commitments.

Art and Skiing

We are transitioning to learn about some more modern forms of art using different mediums. This week we dipped pieces of yarn in paint and let gravity make the art. The kids certainly enjoyed this messy activity, though some of them had a difficult time not manipulating the yarn into a different pattern;)

We have just gotten so much snow this year it is crazy and exciting all at once.  We have been skiing and snowshoeing for over a month!  Noah joined FAST (Farmington Area Ski Team) to be part of their nordic team and is learning a lot in a short time.  It doesn't come naturally to him, but he is working hard at it and is enjoying being part of the team.  Meanwhile, Audrey and her friend Margie are certainly glad to have each other to play with while their siblings race.  They have built some pretty impressive fairy houses so far this season.

Despite being outside so much, we have been taking on some inside things too.  James worked really hard to avoid school by constructing this piece of goldfish art instead.  They kids have also participated in Lego night at the library a few times this winter when skiing and basketball don't interfere.