Haircut

This cute boy is a pro at getting his hair cut! No tears or frowns - just happy smiles all around.  

Broken Arm

It seems like Liev was just cleared for full activity after his last accident and here we are back at the hospital for another round.  He was messing around with Keen in the hammock this morning before school and low and behold - broken arm.  Ugh here we go again.  4 weeks without riding his bike or scooter again might help with wisen up for the future.

Ice Bath

Just a few weeks away from marathon day so that means ice baths are in full swing at our house!  I try and take an ice bath after any run longer than 12 miles and, though it really really sucks for those 7 minutes, it has become worth it to me because it helps so much with the soreness.  So it looks like the ice bath tradition will continue on!  

Coloring

Just like his brothers and sisters that have come before, this little man loves to color and draw.  He has his own coloring set and drags it out of the closet often to draw his masterpiece of the day.  I love watching him grow up and want to be just like the others.

The Zoo

I was one of the lucky moms that got to accompany the 1st graders to the zoo today for their fieldtrip.  It turned out to be a cold and rainy day so we did our best to split the time between the indoor exhibits and the outdoor ones when it was a little dryer.  The kids did great and we only had a couple criers for a few minutes during the day.  Mostly though we loved seeing the lions, snakes, apes, giraffes and every other creature that we passed.  And I loved being with Keen who is one of the kindest kids around and a friend to all.  Thanks for letting me be your mom!

Battle of the Books

It's Battle of the Books time!  And aside from the furious reading that has been going on, there has also been so serious costume planning.  Rease's team decided on the Willy Wonka theme and Rease was Willy Wonka himself and the others Oompa Loompas.  They look so cute and represented the chocolate factory well!

Sky on Fire

Our kitchen window is the perfect place to watch the sunrise - and we have some of the best ones in the world I believe.  This morning it looked like the sky had caught on fire!  And with those snow capped mountains it was a gorgeous sight.

Kiddos

We love to visit Grammie and Papa Beutler and it always seems that the kids end up in the big tree in the front yard whenever we're there.  I love each of these kids for so many reasons and can't get enough of being their mom.  Mostly I love that this picture captures their love for adventure, unity and for heaven sakes look how that tree is filled up with all 6 of them!!!

Two Things

Desh has two great loves in this world.  

1) His Milk.  He sucks on that cup of milk like he is a drunk.

2) His red shoes and he is so proud to show them to anyone and everyone.

I'm not sure what a day would look like for Desh without those two things.  It would be a very dark day indeed if one of them were lost...

Piano Competition

Rease and Rhen have been practicing so hard for quite a few months for their piano competition.  Each of them have two songs that have been practiced and memorized and practiced again to make perfect.  They are judged during their songs by three judges and then given a rating and a score.  We had to wait 2 weeks for the scores but I knew before we received them that the girls each got a Superior.  They both played their pieces almost perfectly and so beautifully!  It was a big accomplishment for them to work hard and see the benefits of that hard work.  They have both become such talented piano players and I know they will continue to progress as the years go on!

Two Boys

These two boys are the only ones I have left at home.  They have become the best of friends and love having the days to play their hearts out before the others get home from school.  I just want to capture this moment in time and save it in a bottle - don't ever grow up!

Birthday Girl

Rhen turned 10 today!!

I can't hardly believe she's in double digits and growing up as fast as she is! But here we are another year, another party and lots of friends and presents to celebrate with.  Rhen told me that all she wanted was an Oreo birthday with homemade Oreo cookies and Oreo ice cream cake.  That may be the easiest request for a birthday cake I've ever had from my kids!  And so delicious.  Rhen gathered a few of her favorite friends and had cake and cookies and presents before we headed to an escape room for the rest of the afternoon.  We had a blast - everyone working together to find clues, put together puzzles, figure out hints and laughing a lot to get ourselves out of the locked room.  We made it just in the nick of time!  It was a perfect 10 year old party and these 10 year olds did good!

My favorite things about Rhen at age 10:

1) Rhen is our string bean and just seems to keep getting taller and taller every day.  She loves to wear leggings and jeggings and would hardly ever be caught wearing a pair of jeans. She is the funnest, happiest and tallest girl in her class.

2) Rhen loves to crochet!  She learned the tricks of the trade from Aunt Hayley and hasn't stopped since.  She said that she is going to take over the stocking business for Hayley when she's done with it, so in the meantime is practicing as much as she can!

3) Rhen is the most honest person I know.  She can not tell a lie, even the very smallest of fibs, without feeling bad and spilling the whole story.  She wants to tell me all the details of her day and doesn't leave out the moments that she feels happy, sad, excited or even a little guilty for things that happened at school.  I love chatting with her and knowing that I'm the "the whole story."  That is a great quality to possess!  

10 year old stats from Dr. Erickson:

Height: 5'1" - 99%

Weight: 68 lbs. 13 oz. - 32%

Happy Birthday dearest Rhen!

Bowling

Josh has been out of town this week and me and the kids have been itching to get out of the house.  What better way to do that than with a good old game of bowling?! Beck and Desh loved being able to bowl a strike just by letting their ball roll down the ramp in a perfect straight line and the older kids tried to perfect their bowling technique.  In the end, we had a blast and captured a couple priceless moments on camera!

Rhen Parent Teacher Conference

Rhen's big accomplishment this term was her science project that she has been working so hard on and just presented to her class.  She did lots of research on The Water Cycle and spent lots of hours on her clay model and poster.  Her presentation to the class was spot on!  Love her and all her hard work this year!

Rease Parent Teacher Conference

As usual, we got a glowing report about Rease from Mrs. Keller.  She is doing so great in 6th grade this year and is well on her way to being ready for middle school next year.  One of my favorite things I got lately is this note from Rease that was passed on through one of the office ladies.  Melted my heart.  She is the best and most amazing oldest daughter.  

Keen Parent Teacher Conference

Mrs. Hoffer has nothing but good to say about Keen whenever we get to meet with her.  She tells us how helpful he is in class and how much he looks forward to class reading time each day when she reads to the students.  He has loved being in 1st grade and eating lunch is definitely the highlight of the school day!  We are so proud of Keen and his hard work!

Liev Parent Teacher Conference

Liev's teacher Mrs. Ashby always has good things to say about him.  He has made so much progress from the beginning of the year until now and will continue to do so I'm sure of that.  He loves to write and has amazing handwriting, does awesome on spelling tests and makes great art projects.  Keep up the good work Liev!

Early Riser

Josh and I get up early to go to the gym.  Once in a while we hear little footsteps as we're trying ever so quietly to get out the door.  This one is the main culprit.  Gosh I love him and his handsome dad!

Cabin Week

One of our favorite weeks of the whole year is here!  Cabin week at the ski cabin at Brighton.  It is seriously a dream to be able to stay here and ski in and out for 5 days with the kids.  We have a blast and look forward to it every year!  The hardest part is getting all our gear hauled from the van to the cabin, but we have lots of helpers and after a few trips we finally got settled in.

 We could not have picked a more perfect week with the weather this year.  We had lots of fresh powder every morning as it snowed almost every night we were there.  During the day we saw patches of blue sky but then patches of snow coming down.  It made for soft landings when we'd fall and beautiful clear skies when the sun came out!  I personally love having lots of soft new powder and this week was ideal for that.  

 We spent each morning skiing together and putting one of the kids in charge of each run and the rest of us would follow.  It made for some fun, adventurous runs and lots of trips to the terrain parks when the boys were in charge.  This year we brought walkie talkies with us and it was so fun to chat back and forth with everyone as we spread out over the mountain in the afternoons.  Each of us had a call sign and we used them all week to talk back and forth to each other.

Dad - Ski daddy

Mom - Scaredy Cat

Rease - Dog Jane

Rhen - Noodles

Liev - 

Keen - Micro

Beck - Slide Boy

Rease and Liev did not ever want to stop and after skiing all day, still were the last ones to come in after night skiing too!  Grammie and Papa joined us for a night and brought Desh with them to hang out with us for a little while.  He got to take a ride with Aunt Kristi on the snowboard and loved it!

 At the end of the week we gave out awards:

Dad - Bruiser award (running into Liev and taking him out at full speed)

Mom - Luckiest award (I sat in chair #1 on the chair lift)

Rease - Best call sign (Dog Jane)

Rhen - Dominance award (hiking up the mountain and skiing down in fresh powder)

Liev - Gentleman Award (helped mom navigate the trees without letting me get too far behind)

Keen - King of Splat award (wrecked in the same place twice on two different runs)

Beck - Most Unique Wreck award (ski and boot came off together)

Andy - Ramping Award (ramped all 3 jumps on My Oh My terrain park)

Kristi - Naturalist Award (Spotted a porcupine in the top of a tree)

That pretty much sums up how our week went.  Lots of adventures, a few cool wrecks, lots of improved skiing and lots and lots of memories that we will always remember!  We left the cabin with sore legs, grateful hearts and tired eyes.  Can't wait for next year!

Keen's art

 Keen makes the cutest pictures and loves to do it!  Pictures of an assortment of fruit, animals and this darling picture of his school are my favorites he's done lately.

Beck's Art

Beck loves to color and make his pictures very colorful!  This one is darling of his hand all striped and rainbowed!

The boys' job

I gave Beck and Desh the job of unloading all the protein shakes into the fridge outside.  They took their job very seriously and stacked them very neatly.  Now we are set for a while!

Sunrise

We have some of the most beautiful sunrises and sunsets where we live.  I snapped this photo yesterday as I was finishing my run and the sun was just peaking over the mountains.  And this one this morning with all the colors.  Gorgeous.

Liev's Baptism

Liev got baptized today and we couldn't be prouder of him and his decision.  He has been so thoughtful about his baptism for the past few months and asked lots of questions about it.  I know that he felt the importance of this decision and today was a wonderful day witnessing this special ordinance.  We were surrounded by so many members of both families and lots of wonderful friends that love Liev so much.  I hope he felt that love coming from all around him today and the love of his Heavenly Father as well.  

Liev has been saying that he wants to wear a suit when he gets baptized so we got him this black suit that makes him look oh so grown up (tear trickling down mom's face.)  He looks like a man all dressed and ready for this special day.

I feel so grateful to be Liev's mom and watch him grow up and make good decisions.  He's not perfect but he tries so hard to be good and has such a kind heart.  He is a friend to those around him and never says no when I need a hug from him.  I am so proud of this young man that is growing up before my eyes.  

Puerto Rico

Josh turned 40 and to celebrate we took a trip to Puerto Rico!  Sid and Dan and Dixie and Scott joined us for 5 days in the sun and we had such a fun time together.  We rented a house just on the border of the jungle and loved it.  The sounds of all the creatures at night were amazing and we felt like we were in a tropical rainforest!

One of the days we rode the ferry out to Culebra and spent the day at Flamenco Beach which in my opinion is one of the most beautiful beaches in the world!  We soaked in the sun and enjoyed being warm so much.  That night Josh and I stayed on the island and camped in our hammocks overnight.  The others headed back on the ferry and we met up with them the next morning.  We had such a fun night on the beach just relaxing and taking in the island life!  And you can't beat waking up to a sunrise on the beach.  

One of the days we hit a local spot where there is a natural water slide in the rocks.  It was the coolest sliding down the rocks and ending up in a pool of water!  And the best part is that not many people were there cause it's kind of a hidden gem.  We ate lots of good food and loved being with family.

We took a city tour one of the nights and though our tour guide was a little crazy and weird, we did have fun seeing Old San Juan at night!

One of my favorite things we did was take a snorkeling tour and we got to swim with the turtles!  Our guide was awesome and knew just the spots we could go to see lots of wildlife.  Plus she took some pretty great pictures!

We also drove a couple hours to the middle of the island to ride a huge zipline called The Monster.  We had heard of it before and I'm glad everyone was up for trying it!  The zipline is over a mile long and you basically ride face first down a huge canyon.  It was soooo awesome!

We did the bioluminescent bay one night, swam in the pool at our house, played lots of games, laughed a ton, listened to cool latin music and LOVED being there.  When it came time to leave, we didn't want to go back home to the snow and cold.  Such a fun way to celebrate 40 years of this man's life!  Love you Josh!