Christmas and New Year's in Review

Things have finally gotten back to normal from the holiday activities (well, almost normal - the decorations are still up, but will come down this weekend). Christmas itself was fairly uneventful. I cooked "Christmas Dinner" on Christmas Eve, and we opened all our gifts afterwards.



The older two taught baby M
how to open his presents.



Christmas morning was filled with the usual excitement of finding out what Santa brought, as well as the hustle and bustle of us loading up the car for our first Christmas Vacation. The hubs grew up skiing, none of the rest of us have ever attempted any sort of winter activity - other than sledding - so of course, an eight day trip to the mountains was just what we needed, right?

After loading the car full of suitcases, skiing/snowboarding/sledding/skating equipment, the dog, and of course ourselves (and yes, the car looked like it belonged to the Clampets once all of the previously mentioned items were in it) we were off to Winter Park, a ski resort town about an hour's drive from home.

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View from the car as we crossed
part of Berthoud Pass.

Most days were full of activity; however, I will confess that cooking at a higher altitude than what we're currently at proved to not always be as easy as it is down here at a mere 6,000 ft. Somehow, I managed to bake cookies (not typically an easy feet at higher elevations), but didn't get soup right - I'm blaming it on the water, no way it could be anything I did wrong!



Day one of our quest put both me and the middle child in "ski school". I use this term loosely because he will fiercly tell you he does NOT ski, he boards/rides/whatever the "cool" term for snowboarding is. All I know is after two lessons he's flying down the mountain fearlessly while I'm still plowing my way at a snails pace on the baby slopes. It was a lot of fun though, and I'm looking forward to many memories being made out there.



Proof that - contrary to any reports
 you might hear -  I can stay upright on skis.



I am happy to report that there were only two falls made by yours truly on the mountain. The first was when I went a little faster than what was in my comfort zone, and subsequently got the tips of my skis stuck together. I know, rookie mistake... Fortunately there was a nice soft snow dune that I drove myself into. I'm sure it was a lovely sight. The second was a classic "Beth Accident". For some reason I have an unrational fear of the chairlift. As the hubs and I approached the end of one of our rides, there was literally a man down. Some guy had fallen not far from the lift's exit ramp. Of course I was afraid of running over him, so got stuck on the chair and instead of exiting when I should have, I instead jumped from the chair as it turned the corner to head back to the bottom. Luckily it had snowed a few inches the previous night and I had a soft landing pad.



Middle Child (in green jacket) gets
ready to head downhill in class.

Middle child, of course, is much more athletic and was zooming down the slopes in no time. Laughing at me as he passed by, and upset the last couple days we were in town because it was too cold and windy to take him out.

One of the highlights of our trip was a jaunt over to Grand Lake. An area known for summer activities, but also a haven for snowshoeing and ice fishing. Originally the plan was to do some ice fishing, but we got a late start and just did some sightseeing and shopping instead.

We did not;  however, venture close
to them. Moose are not known for
being nice if they think you are
invading their space...

We did see three large moose in a meadow on our drive. To me that was one of the highlights of the trip!

Unfortunately, our trip was not without drama. We originally planned to come home on the 2nd. But, as temperatures plummetted (windchills ranged from -50 to -31, with real temps being around -4 for the highs) the hubs and I decided we'd all be a little saner if we went back to our own home, where we each had our own rooms to retreat to instead of the two bedroom duplex we were staying in.

We packed up and decided to leave after lunch. While we cooked, the kids entertained themselves. And that's when middle child decided he would carry baby man around the back bedroom. Somehow, they fell and when they did the baby took a face plant into the metal bedframe, splitting his right nostril open.



What? You mean stury strips aren't
normally part of my handsome physique? 



Nine and a half hours, two emergency rooms and quite a few stitches later - we were home. Thankful that nothing more tragic happened, and wondering if maybe we should have left after breakfast instead of trying to cook lunch.

It was a good trip; however, and these are the things memories are made of, right?

Oldest child refused to pose
for pictures - but that's her on the left, just
in front of the bridge skating
.

Baby Man loving the sled!

***Side note, I have no idea why there are two of the same pics of middle child snowboarding, the first one is not showing up in my edit thread, it appears to be deleted but when I publish it's there. So get over seeing the same pic twice. Also, I apparently lack the skills of making a cool photo montage, so deal with the sloppy way they are there. As you can tell, I did not resolve to be less snarky this year - only to post on a more regular basis. Cheers!***

What Thanksgiving Means to Me

Thankgsiving has always been a favorite holiday of mine. As a child we would pack up the car and head over the river and through the woods on a 12 hour trek to northern Illinois to my grandmother's house. Upon arriving we would be plied with all sorts of treats and goodies - not to mention some of the best food ever put upon this Earth.

Every day of the week was dedicated to a special treat we couldn't get in the south - for example: one night would be Italian beef night, Friday or Saturday would typically be homemade Ravioli night (complete with the family story of who held the record for eating the most ravioli's - my mom or my aunt. The number eaten grew like a great fish tale every year, and of course the loser always proclaimed it was because they drank more milk, but actually consumed more calories).

No joke, by the week's end we each probably gained about 20 pounds, would reload the car and head south again. When we arrived back to the house the Christmas season would be in full swing. As we've gotten older and family members took jobs across the country keeping this tradition has been harder and harder to keep. Since moving to Colorado last year, the hubs and I decided we would create our own version of this yearly holiday trek. Only instead of heading to IL we now head back to Arkansas.

To me, Thanksgiving is a holiday for family and we want our children to have similar experiences to those I had and hold dear from when I was a child. We will go back to Colorado and anxiously await a white Christmas, but this week is dedicated to bonding and memory making with family.

The Lost Art of the Letter

I admit it, one of my TV shows is Family Jewels with Gene Simmons. I am not a KISS fan, but I am a Gene fan. Once you get past the fire eating, demon of death he's actually a pretty nice guy. I digress.

I watched an episode the other day (it was on demand, so probably a rerun from I don't know when) that really made me think about what a toll cyberspace has taken on our lives. Sure it's great for instant news on Lindsey Lohan's drunken escapades, and we can find out what's going on halfway around the world with us in the click of a button, but what about our ability to communicate?

In the episode I'm referring to Shannon (G's wife err... long time girlfriend of 20+ years and mother of his children) buys a writing desk and finds a stack of love letters inside. She goes on a quest to find the woman they are written to and return them to her. She finds the lady in a retirement home and returns the letter. The lady isn't really excited about the letters, but she tells Shannon that her favorite picture was with these letters, or maybe in a hat box somewhere... Shannon sets off on a needle in the haystack hunt for the picture.

She finds the buyer of the hatbox, and low and behold - there's the picture hidden inside in a little compartment! She returns the picture to the lady amid many tears from everyone around - see playmates and rock stars can be compassionate! We find out why the lady wasn't excited over the letters - her son is there and explains he's a prop master on movie sets and he wrote the letters using his parents names, addresses and a few true details to make them seem authentic on set. The desk Shannon bought was in some movie @ one point, and then he kept it for his mom - forgetting the letters were in there (who knew such detail went into a set, I mean those letters were probably never actually shot on camera).

But the whole time you're watching this show you are thinking these are real letters between real people. There have been books released about love letters between John & Abigail Adams, Ronald & Nancy Reagan, and many other famous people who corresponded when they were apart. The point to my blog today is that these things don't exist as much now that the Internet is taken over.

A deep heartfelt 3 page love letter has been replaced (many times) with a quick email or text saying Luv U, TTYL, etc. It's becoming rare that we even receive hand written letters or anything other than a signature inside a card at birthdays and holidays.

So, this is my long rant warning everyone that this year I'm going to be one of THOSE PEOPLE. You know, the ones where you roll your eyes because when you get their holiday card every detail of their lives are documented. Ha ha... well, maybe I won't document everything, but I do think I'll include a letter to most people giving them the scoop on what they missed out on this year. My living tribute to the lost art of the letter.

Memorial Day - a Day of Reflection and Honor

As we head into this three day weekend, let's remember what it means. While we are enjoying a relaxing weekend full of graduation parties, bar-b-que's, and boating remember the millions in our history who have sacrificed themselves so that we could freely continue in a democratic society.

Stop and reflect on the colors of our flag - Red for courage, White for purity, Blue for honor. Memorial Day isn't just another day off from work, to sleep in. It's a day of reflection and thanks to those who sacrificed themselves for the cause - a cause bigger than themselves - a way of life.

Politics aside, whether you agree or disagree with our military involvement around the world I encourage you to join in at 3 p.m. on Monday, May 31, for the national moment of rememberance.

And if you see a member of our armed services, please take a moment to stop and thank them for what they do for us. If it weren't for them, you might not have the choice to agree or disagree with current events.

Having a Hard Time Planning a Menu

This rarely happens, food is a specialty of mine, I love to cook and plan parties/meals. However, I have to admit that I'm having a hard time figuring out what's on the menu for Easter. You see, this will be our first Easter just the four of us.

Typically, Easter (as any major holiday) is spent with my side of the family at my parents house. Picture a scene from "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" and you have a scene from my family. Even though there were only three children, we're loud and everyone's into everyone's business. Sunday dinners are a big deal, and holiday dinners are especially a big deal.

We got through Christmas just fine... we had the hubs' family here. So it wasn't so glaring that we were alone. This weekend is shaping up to be another story. First, there's the obvious - less family. Now, when you are used to helping plan a family meal for about 15 hearty eaters and suddenly you're downsizing that to 4 it makes things interesting. Next, there's the delimia of what do you eat, exactly? All the sides and trimmings you're used to having on the table just seems like overkill when it's for so few people. And of course there's the debate of what will the main entree be? Traditionally we've had ham in my house, but this year lamb has been suggested. hmmm.....

So, I'm at a complete and total loss. I'm opening it up to suggestions. What are your Easter traditions? Apparently we're going to have to make some new ones here, so I'd like to steal from you if you're willing to share!