Not wanting to cook, we stopped at the store and got the makings for jalapeño poppers. We had to get up early the next day for skiing so we didn't want a lot of work.
The day after Christmas, which was a Monday observed, the weather had cleared and we decided to go sledding as a family (except Ana and Elin). First we tried somewhere new, Quarry Park, which was one of the first places we ever geocached.
Thorin had a blast! He was would race the kids down the hill, ears flapping and legs flying.
There was a flat deeper place sort of between the two hills and therefore all the heavier people got stuck there.
Theo would be immobilized in the snow so Nathan pulled him.
Samuel appeared to be the perfect weight since he absolutely flew down the hill and never got stuck. He was having a great time and never cried when he wiped out.
The snow was too powdery and not packed down enough to go very fast for everyone but Samuel.
Stuck in the deep stuff.
Flying and happy.
That dog has springs!
Terry and Noah, Thorin, Nathan and Theo.
Thorin chasing Noah.
Evie wiping out.
It was a pretty long hill.
Happy Ezra.
After a while we decided to try Meadowbrook hill since this one was sort of difficult. Gosh it was beautiful that day though.
I was a bit in love with Thorin.
Good dog!
Beautiful right?!
Samuel and Theo at Meadowbrook.
Nathan and Theo.
Again. Those ear flaps flapping were funny.
I love this huge old cottonwood tree in that field.
Shortly before leaving I had everyone line up so I could do a video of them all going at once. I also took pictures at the same time and caught Noah pulling Samuel's sled to the side...
...which resulted in a pile up!
Carnage.
In real time.
I went down a few times with Ezra at the end. He was psyched because with my weight we beat Samuel every single time.
Noah was motivated to make contacts work this year. I think running with glasses is irritating and he wanted to be able to wear sunglasses too. He tried contacts last year but just could not get the hang of it. This time he couldn't get them in on his own so the optometrist finally put them in. So he was on his own to take them out that night, which he did after a long session in front of the mirror with dad. Mastery came after many hours of practice, but he's finally got it down now, a month later.
Terry was modeling what to do for Noah.
We're so cool. But driving while dilated...I wouldn't recommend.
After lunch and a short rest we decided to go to Canyon Lake to see if we could sled. Our normal hill at Meadowbrook was barren, as was the hill by Kathy's where Samuel went into the creek bed. But in the shade of the trees at the park we found the perfect spot.
The kids tried just about every trick they could.
I wandered around under the sun a bit. It felt so good.
Terry took Noah to track practice after an hour and I stayed behind with the rest. I don't think I've mentioned track yet. Yes, Noah decided to compete with RCC this spring and practice began February 25th. They've had several meets cancelled due to adverse weather. Not sure I want to sign up again next year but Noah likes to run in the cooler weather of spring verses summer/fall.
Zoom in to see Evie's air on that jump. They went over it countless times and had so much fun. One other boy about Evie's age joined them.
Evie and I very still very much needed our eye protection. Can you tell hers are just the inserts behind her actual glasses? She thought it was great. 😆
I have iMovie on my phone and I just discovered I can combine all of my shorts clips together. It's a lot less work. Yay!
The following day, Saturday March 16th, we went to the ranch to celebrate Shari's birthday, which was the 17th. We had lunch out there and then I accompanied Alice outside to check on the cows. Some of the hens followed us around, ha ha.
The snow from the blizzard was already melting and everything was a muddy mess. Jerry laid down as much hay as he could. Hopefully the cows would calf in the hay and not in the mud!
Pretty hen. These are my favorites, the fluffy feets.
While we didn't get as much snow as they were predicting (18"), but the wind was rather strong and whipped up some pretty big drifts. I'd never seen such a large drift here, at the back porch corner of the house.
Around the back of the house.
This was taken from the front yard.
Gotta sled if there's snow I guess, even if it's just a really short drop. Ha!
The drift was taller than Evie!
Looking northwest towards the roller coaster.
I climbed to the fence line for this one.
"The hills are alive with the sound of music...!"
Little cousins and big cousins.
Noah was so sweet to stay out there and help the little girls.
Dwidgie sliding on his knees.
Back inside we sang, had some cake, and played cards.
Shari and I took some Snapchat filter St. Patrick Day selfies.
Ha!
See? Muddy, muddy mess.
Terry had been out to the ranch a couple times to get Jerry's new cameras set up. They can swivel and zoom very well and were finally working correctly.
I restrained from putting this photo anywhere on social media, but since practically no one reads the blog, it should be safe here. Afternoons at the ranch are for naps! 👍😴👍
After moving away from home in 2007, I became weary of emailing recent photos of our kids to the grandparents. So I started a blog. And even though we moved back home in 2012, I still really enjoy keeping track of our lives!
