Christmas Letterboxing...

The weather was so nice during parts of Christmas break that we were able to get outside and do some more letterboxing (If you're wondering what the heck letterboxing is, here is a great article from Family Fun Magazine about it.  We have been doing it for a few years and our whole family really loves it.)

We have mostly done boxes that are in the mountains on hiking trails, but some friends of ours that are also into letterboxing said that we needed to try out some of the more urban boxes.  So this was our first urban letterboxing adventure, and I have to say it was pretty fun.  There are 3 boxes located close to the REI Flagship store in downtown Denver, so that is where we headed. 

Ana pulling out our first two finds.  A regular box and a seasonal letterbox with a hand-carved Christmas Tree stamp...

The kids documenting their find.  Sophie cracks me up, it's like her hand is a magnet for the stamps and ink.  Her hands are always covered in ink (good thing it's washable) before I realize it.  Every time! 

Our third box.  This one is actually indoors!  The kids thought that was pretty cool...

We tried for one more that was supposed to be located outside of Coors Field, but never were able to find it.  (Nothing irks me more than when I know we are looking in the right spot, and we just can't find it!)  Oh well, we got great exercise trekking around the stadium.  It was a super fun day outside with the kids.

12 Years...

Rob and I celebrated the Big 12.  12 years that is... that we've been married.  We had a pretty low key anniversary.  We went car shopping.  I know, I know... romantic.  It was pretty unromantic, but it was one of those things that had to happen that day.  But then afterward, we had a nice dinner, some sparkling cider and put together a puzzle - something we loved to do when we were first married, but haven't done since we've had little hands to grab the pieces.  It was a nice, relaxing evening.  Happy Anniversary Robbie!  Here's to 12 great years...

**I just read over this post and realized... we are getting old and boring.  We'll have to spice it up next year...

Rollerskating...

We took the kids rollerskating for the very first time over Christmas break and... they loved it!  I was worried.  Hayden doesn't usually get into things like this, and at first he wasn't too sure about it.  But after a few times around the rink, he and Ana both got the hang of it and in the end we had to drag them off when it was time to go home.  Sophie even got to go around the rink in a stroller.  It really was so fun!

Ana trying out the Limbo...

Two cheeseballs heckling from the sidelines...

A Rarity...

One of those rare times when Santa hit the nail right on the head. A gift that they all enjoy doing... together.  Yay!! I think that this playhouse has either been colored on or played in every day since Christmas...

Sophie Goes to the Dentist...

Last time that Hayden and Ana had a dental check up, Sophie was trying her best to get up in the chair with them. That was my cue that she was ready for her own visit to the dentist. So here she is on her big day. She was so excited to have her turn up in the flying chair, with the fancy sunglasses on...

 

And she was super brave when they cleaned her teeth...

 

I just love our dentist, he is so sweet with the kids. Thanks Wild Smile for making my kids LOVE going to the dentist!!

Christmas Dancers...

Two cute dancing dolls...




The girls had their Christmas dance recital last week and it was just so fun to watch them. I wasn't sure if Sophie was going to dance or not (you never know with her), but man did she dance! She was so stinkin' cute!

Snowman Treats...

It wouldn't be the holidays, unless we made some sweet treats...


Thank you Pinterest!!

Ana's Egypt Day...

It seems like just yesterday that Hayden was having Egypt day in first grade, but it's been 2 years, Holy Cow! And now it's Ana's turn, and man was she excited. This is what she looked like before she left for school...

And this is what she looked like when I got there to help with the activities...

I asked her where her hair went, and she said "Joseph didn't have a costume, so I let him have part of mine." Ana, you are such a sweet girl:) Egypt Day was such a fun time with you...


Ana and her teacher, Ms. Cantrell. It's so fun that the teachers dress up for these special days, too, the kids just love it...

Flash Moms at Christmas...

Do it once... and you'll have to do it again... Ever since our Twilight flash mob, we Flash Moms have all been itching to do it again. So last night was the night! We had all planned to go see a play at the Fine Arts Complex, downtown Denver. It was the perfect scenario, we couldn't help but do it. This time my friend Sara coordinated it, she even got finger lights for all of us to wear... fitting for the season (and the song Lights). It pretty much rocked! Here's a photo of the group and a video. Can I get a Woot Woot!?!

First Grade Field Trip...

8 first graders. 1 huge museum. 3 hours. Fun(but total chaos)...

Daddy-Daughter Day Spa...

Over thanksgiving break, Rob promised the girls a "surprise". I had no idea what he was planning, he uses the word "surprise" quite loosely, so I thought nothing of it. So when he busted out his plan for a spa day, in which he would be hair stylist, nail tech and cosmetologist, I was just as "surprised" as they were... Yes, Rob is sitting in a tiny pink chair:)
It was so fun and cute to watch the whole thing play out, and of course, Sophie and Ana were on cloud 9...


He actually did a really good job on the make-up and nails. Way to go honey!!

A Tree for Me...

Last year after Christmas, I bought these cute little trees for just $3 each. It was so fun to get them out this year and let the kids each choose how they wanted to decorate them. Ana kindly let Sophie have the pink one, it made her year I think...

 

 

The kids loved choosing which tiny ornaments to use (also purchased last year at 90% off!! Gotta love a good deal), and making each tree their own. I think they decorated and redecorated their trees about 5 times. Great family fun...

 

This may be the year that our big tree is just for me! We'll see...

Thanksgiving Break...

I don't know how many times I've said that I just love it when my kids are home from school. We never have time during a school week to do all of the fun things that we want to, so when we're on break, we like to take full advantage of the time at home together.

Q-Tip Painting. An idea I saw on Pinterest, and that all my kids LOVED. And, not to mention, super easy to do because all you need is paint and Q-tips. We did fall-colored trees...


Sophie, mad because her tree didn't look like Hayden and Ana's. (That happens sometimes when the only color you will use is pink)...



Roll a Turkey. Fun for kids (and for the kids at heart)...



Candy Acorns. Hayden especially liked this craft, and made sure that every nut went through quality control to make sure it was fit for a squirrel...



Sophie, on the other hand, made sure that each nut was fit for her little mouth...



Owl watching. There is an old abandoned barn near our neighborhood where two big, white barn owls live. Rob and I took the kids out to see the owls as part of one of Hayden's cub scout badge requirements. Hayden got out of the car with this on his hand...

He claimed that he needed my oven mitt for protection, just in case one of the owls wanted to perch on his arm. (I love that kid!) Ana thought that it was as funny as we did...


Relaxing. I think that this is the best part of "breaks", just lounging around and being together. I'm so thankful for my little family, and that my Heavenly Father has blessed me with such dear, sweet kids and a wonderful husband, whom they love to pieces...

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!!

Castling...

If there were a verb to describe what our family did for several days to help Hayden with his latest third grade project, castling would have to be it. To conclude their study of the Middle Ages, each student had to build a castle that had all of the "real life" features of medieval castles. It was quite the undertaking, a lot more work than I expected (thus the reason we waited till the last week to do it and ended up burning the midnight oil to get it done). But in the end, Hayden did an awesome job and had really great ideas on how to make it cool (ie. the flag labels and the rocks around the outside)...


Sophie and I got to go to his class to listen to his oral report about the Middle Ages, it was so fun to hear him explain all of his ideas and how he implemented them into the castle. When I was helping him type his report, he kept wanting to add information that he didn't learn in school, but learned from a book. I kept trying to persuade him to just stick to the stuff from school, but he wouldn't be deterred, so we added it at the end. I'm so glad he was determined, his teacher was really impressed that he added things that he learned on his own. Way to go Hayden, I'm proud of you for always being true to yourself and never afraid to take risks (you get that from your dad:).