Skiing Update!

I have to let everyone know that last Thursday Alex had a great time in her ski lessons. The teacher had said that she had a "lack of motivation". Well, when I picked her up from her class that day he said that she showed a HUGE improvement and did excellent today. She even skiied down from the top of the magic carpet to the bottom of the hill all by herself. She was so excited when I picked her up, I wish we had time to go out together so she could show me her improvements but we had too much going on that day and had to head right home. Next Thursday though Brad is taking the day off to ski with us and after our lessons we'll all be able to go out together and have fun on the slopes. Can't wait!

Ski Lessons

I figure it's time for a new post. For the last couple of Thursdays Alex and I have made the drive up to Bogus Basin for ski lessons. The first day was snowy and wet and Alex's cheap "waterproof" gloves were not so waterproof. I spent the whole two hours wondering what kind of an experience she was having. When I went to pick her up she was cold and hungry and said she didn't ever want to come back. I explained that we already paid for 4 lessons and so we were going to come back and try to have fun and improve. When I asked her what she learned she explained the "pizza" and the "french fry" to me but then admitted that she practiced a little but mostly sat and watched other people practice. No wonder she was cold, sitting in the snow most of the time. Then after a sandwich and a few cups of hot cider were in her she said that she had fun today. Sounds familiar, she does this every time we try something new.

So that week we went shopping for nice warm gloves as well as liners. She said that she would use the face guard this time and we got extra tights to put another layer on her legs. The next week we went up and it was still cold but at least it wasn't snowing and the snow was nice and powdery. Her teacher took her up on the magic carpet this time which they stand on like an escalator and it takes them up to the top of a little hill. When I picked her up she was smiling and telling me that she practiced a lot and told me about the magic carpet. The first week we packed lunch and headed straight home after our lessons. But this time we went into the lodge and ordered a meal and then went out together and she took me on the magic carpet. I'm sure we looked a little funny going down the hill. I would walk sideways on my skis while Alex slid down to me. I wish I could watch the teachers so I could continue teaching her what they have already started on. She worked on her "pizza" shape and laughed the whole time even though she was a little nervous. It was fun but still as we were walking to the truck she asked if we had to come back again. I told her yes of course, the more you practice the more confident you become and the more fun it is for you. I explained that some day Johnny would be taking lessons too and we would all go up skiing together as a family and she'll want to know how to ski so she doesn't feel left out. She looked at me and said "you signed up for 4 lessons?" I replied with a yes. "And we've already had 2?" Yes. "So we have 2 more?" Yes. Then she dropped the subject, figuring she could make it through 2 more lessons I guess. I don't know what I'm going to do with this girl, she's having fun but she hates it when something doesn't come easy to her. She loves her school work because for her it's easy, she loves her tricycle because it's easy. She doesn't like to push herself. But when she gets on her bike and gains confidence she really loves it. Should I keep pushing her to realize her full potential or should I let her stay in her safety zone? Next month we were suppose to sign back up for gymnastics but she says she doesn't want to. I'm afraid that if I sign her up for dance I will spend all this money on new dance clothes and classes and she'll decide she doesn't like that either. I think I'm going to make a deal with her that if she can stick with gymnastics for this year then I will sign her up for ballet next year. Any suggestions?

Snowman Snow

So yesterday it snowed ALL day long. Around 3pm I went out to shovel the driveway so Brad could pull into the garage when he got home. By the time I was done it needed shoveling again. It was really sticky "snowman-making" snow so before starting another round of shoveling I figured I'd test the snow to see how good it was (maybe the kids and I would come out later and build a snowman). Well Johnny was asleep and Alex was having quiet time and before I knew it I had a 5+ foot tall snowman standing next to "Crystal" who we built a couple of days earlier. The snow was so sticky it would leave the grass completely bare after rolling a snowball over it. By the time I had the head on, Alex had peeked her head out the front door asking me what I was doing. So I invited her out and not too long after that Johnny woke up and joined us. We spent a long time just playing in the snow with the neighbor kids. It stopped snowing just long enough to snap a couple of pictures. I felt bad over Christmas that the kids never made it outside to enjoy the snow we got up at the cabin. But they haven't missed out this year after all, who knew we'd get so much snow in the valley!

Let It Snow

Yesterday we had a fresh blanket of snow on the ground so we bundled up and headed outside to build a snowman. When I asked Alex what we should name our snowman she said "Frosty" of course. I joked around about how I've never heard of the name Frosty for a snowman before and she decided to change the name to Crystal (Frosty's wife). Although Crystal's snow gear isn't very girly she is still a happy snowman (or woman). The kids are wearing their new hats that Grammie made them, thanks Grammie! Below is a picture of our backyard today. It snowed again last night and is still snowing this morning. Hopefully this means nice skiing on Thursday for me and Alex. Poor Johnny is going to be so sad when he finds out that he won't be skiing with us. I can't wait until he's old enough to do everything Alex can do like go to school, ski, gymnastics, swim lessons, wear underwear. Ok so the last one is on my wish list more than Johnny's but we'll be working on that soon. Hopefully he'll be good to go by this June because Brad and I just booked flights and hotel for a week in Puerto Vallarta! Yeah! It's to celebrate our 10 year anniversary in 2008. I can't wait! My Mom's flying out to take care of the kids. Speaking of my Mom, we both just got new webcams so we can keep in touch better and so she can watch the kids grow up even though we live so far apart. It's great, so if anyone else out there has a webcam and wants to chat with us online let me know and we'll add you to our friend's list!

Let it snow!

Snow at Home

We got snow for a couple of days in Meridian! The kids went outside and played for a long time in the little snow that we got. Johnny kept insisting that the snow was ice cream and Alex tried her best to make a snowman, but the snow wasn't sticking so Johnny ate it instead.

They discovered the joys of jumping on the trampoline when covered in snow.


The second day we tried out Alex's skis to make sure everything fit right before her first lesson this Thursday. Johnny was excited to try the skis too but not so excited when he found out that Alex got to go first.