Grace in small things, January 24, 2016

1. Productive day with my husband and I working together...got some things done that have been on our radar for a while (organized the guest bath, fixed a few broken things, put up hooks for coats, cleaned out my desk/filed) plus laundry and my husband made such a yummy pasta + steak dinner...
2. Pet baby whales (aka our kids) pretending to be whales in a zoo in the bath this evening, laughing and splashing and happy...
3. I'm not a huge football fan but have been watching the Broncos lately...fun...
4. Big fat slow swirling snowflakes all afternoon...
5. No work today...so nice to have a true break, even if just for a day...

XOXO

Grace in small things, January 23, 2016

1. Breakfast at Freshies this morning with my loves...
2. Followed by manicures with Sis...they had lollipops there and she insisted on bringing one home for her brother...love how sweet and thoughtful she is...
3. Getting dressed up for a party tonight...about to wake Sis from her nap because I promised her she could help pick out my outfit...
4. Got some work done before the kids got up this morning and during naps...so that I can take some time Monday afternoon to snowboard...up to 16 inches new snow predicted between now and then...psyched...
5. Super snuggly pet baby whales (as the kids call themselves) all day today...

XO

14/50 and grace in small things, January 22, 2016

The latest I've gotten on the mountain all season today, but grateful to have gotten a few great runs. :)

Some other lovely things that happened today:

1. Story hour and reading some good new library books to the kids while they ate their lunch in the library cafe
2. Drive-through car wash with the kids, with the blue monster and the porcupine and the red monster, rinse cycle and dry cycle...they love it...
3. Sis sending her tiny stuffed polar bear to go snowboarding with me in my pocket (a little blanket got sent with him too to keep him warm...too cute...
4. Doing some work again with friends from way back...psyched...
5. Mellow weekend with little planned aside from a party on Saturday that I can get dressed up for...fun... :)

Happy weekend everyone! 

XOXO

13/50 and grace in small things, January 21, 2016

Just crazy-good snow right now...we are getting so spoiled, seems like every day brings fresh powder...I had a few super-fun hours out on the mountain while kids were in ski school...speaking of which, here's Luke with his instructor...Luke and Zo are both doing great...

And a few other lovely things happening today:

1. Chili in the crock pot for dinner...yum...
2. Fresh flowers in the house...love...
3. Sunshine streaming in...makes it so warm...
4. Had a great visit with my mom and dad earlier this week, but love coming home to my husband...
5. Snoring dog sleeping next to me while I work...

XOXO

Grace in small things, January 19, 2016--train station edition

In Junction seeing my parents...a few lovely things that have happened:

1. Taking the kids to the train station this morning to see Papa's friend off on the train...so fun for them...
2. Time with my mom and dad...wonderful...
3. Luke getting a helium balloon (he loves helium balloons) and, totally unprompted, wanting to let it go up to Heaven so Uncle Luke could have it
4. "Uno" with the kids today...with them sharing their snacks with me and Grammy...
5. Kids watching "Dora" with Papa before bed...

XOXO

12/50 and grace in small things, January 16, 2016

My fabulous amazing wonderful husband sent me to the mountain early this morning, I got in line at 8 AM, up on the 11th gondola car and boy, was it a good day to be up on the mountain early. Powder everywhere. Moment of the day was on the lift halfway through the morning listening to a little kid not much bigger than mine flying down the hill going, "Wheeeeee!!!" 

And some other lovely things that happened today: 

1. Super relaxing afternoon at home with my husband and kids
2. Snuggling with Zo under the electric blankets on the porch as dusk fell, watching it snow
3. Hungry Hungry Hippos with Bubs, who always manages to win
4. Date night about to happen...yay!
5. Kids drawing me pictures:

This is Zoey's...it's me on the left and her on the right. According to Zo: "We're going to have hot chocolate and M&Ms. We're out and about together!"

And here is Bubby's. "It's us in the Hot Springs, Mommy. It's Luke/Owner time." (He calls himself a pet baby whale and me his owner.)

XOXO

11/50

Powder...yay... :)

10/50 and grace in small things

Ski school for the kids this morning and a glorious snowy few hours for me on the mountain, some areas I'd never been to before, just super fun.

And a few other lovely things that happened today:

1. Driving up to the mountain this morning I just had an overwhelming sense of gratitude for being in this lovely place with my two precious children and husband, that we're able to live here is just so amazing...we all love it so much...
2. Pillow fights are big these days. And dinosaur battles. Pretty cute...
3. All's going smoothly with work this week...which is good, as I'm trying to get up on the mountain again tomorrow...
4. Play date to look forward to in the morning...
5. Cut up oranges and grapefruit to snack on these days...we only do it mid-winter when the citrus is at its best and I love it...

XOXO

Grace in small things, January 13, 2016

1. Easy errands with kids this morning (which is not always the case)...bank (with grape lollipops for the kids per their request), car wash (one of the ones you drive through..."It's time for our porcupine friends!" Luke says of the brushes), dry cleaning...
2. House clean, laundry done, work relatively caught up...I'm ready to take advantage of the storms that are coming over the next few days... :)
3. Cuddling with Zo and Luke in Luke's bed early this morning after he woke himself and Sis up with a bad dream...and Zo asking me to cuddle with her during morning cartoons...I usually work but instead we watched "Paw Patrol" together...super cute...
4. Kids are excited to go back to ski school tomorrow. "We get to be on the blue team again!" they tell me. And Luke says he hopes that tomorrow he gets to go first...that he didn't get to go first last week and he wanted to...ah, having to wait your turn...there's so much they need to learn...
5. It's so very cold outside...and our house is so cozy and warm...

XOXO

Grace in small things, January 12, 2016

1. Zo playing this morning in the Princess Elsa dress her grandma made for her...love her love of costumes that's happening these days...
2. Work made me feel like crawling back into bed and pulling the covers up over my head today...which, working from home, I can actually do (and did)
3. Jeff woke me at 3 AM last night to see some light/fog combination out in front of our house--aurora borealis-esque...beautiful...
4. Sunset tonight was unreal, crazy pink and glow-y...
5. Pillow fight between Daddy and the kids before bed
6. Kids just learned about duos and trios and delight in putting duos and trios of various things together
7. Luke after bedtime stories: "And now, it's time to run amok!" Too bad for him, Mommy didn't buy into that plan...

XOXO

Kid cuteness, January 11, 2016

Luke, counting his bike's wheels while debating whether or not to go for a bike ride in the snow: "Our bikes are only 2 wheel drive Mommy!" And: "I think we need to put snow tires on our bikes, in order to be safe."

Zo, when I told her not to jump on her bed: "Just go away Mommy! Hide! Don't look!"

Zo, negotiating for more play time before naps, laying down and sticking her bare feet and hands up together: "I want this many minutes!"

Luke: "Watching cartoons with Papa makes me feel good."

Zo: "I want crab pincher bread."

Me: "You mean this croissant?"

Zo: "Yes."

Luke: "Santa brought me everything I wanted!"

Luke, after I helped him with getting his mitten on and thumb in the right place: "Mitten accomplished!!!"

Luke: "There's no hole in my head, so how do the thoughts get out?"

Me: "Luke, why are there grapes all over the table?"

Luke: "Because you said I had to eat everything on my plate and I didn't want to eat the grapes."

Luke, with his new guitar and his stuffed duck: "Mommy, Duckie and I are rocking out!"

Me: "Zo, stop whining please." 

Zo: "I'm not whining, I'm squeaking!"

XOXO

9/50

Epic fog on the mountain Saturday. And first time on new bindings (thanks to Reece at Powder Tools for setting me up)...felt good...

XO

Books + magazines, January 2016

A few things currently on my bedside table:

• Darling Magazine...love the positive messages in here and the photos of real women...so much more relevant to my life vs the big circulation glossy magazines. I love how it smells when it arrives, too. And I'm super psyched to try the Paleo-friendly recipes from Sweet Laurel Bakery inside (oh and I'm in love with Sweet Laurel's beautiful blog)...
• The Paris Wife from the library...I'm about a third of the way into it and still undecided about how enthusiastic I am...but I haven't put it down yet, so...
• Simple Abundance: A Daybook of Comfort and Joy: I first read this book as a young adult and tend to turn back to it from time to time...especially as the New Year begins...these little essays, one for each day of the year, feel particularly inspiring when everything's off to a fresh start
• Poetry Magazine...love...I've been reading poems to the kids from this magazine while they're in the bath since they were itty bitty...which my husband thinks is ridiculous but I think Poetry is so important...and what's in here usually gets it right...
• The House by the Sea, borrowed from my Mom over Thanksgiving and I'm reading it slowly and savoring, such beautiful sketches of life in Maine in the early '70s...

XOXO

Grace in small things, January 7, 2016--first day of ski school edition

1. First day of ski school today and the kids did great...these pictures were taken just before and you can tell they're a little nervous...they said the kids do better if the parents aren't there so I didn't see what went on but the instructor said Luke was full of jokes and mischief and was working on his wedge...and that Zo was super shy and did lots of runs...3 more weeks and my hope is that at the end I'll be able to take them one at a time with me on some easy slopes...but we'll see...they had a good time and are excited to go back and that's what matters at this point...
2. Invited to a baby shower tonight...so nice to be making new friends...
3. And...a friend from way back and his family booked their tickets to come ski with me in February...so psyched...
4. Work is finally picking up again (as I knew it would...the holidays are always slow and the beginning of the new year)...the time off has been fantastic, but it's comforting to be getting back into the swing of things, too...
5. 4 inches of perfect powdery snow today...so pretty watching it fall, sipping some Bengal Spice tea, doing some work by the fire while the kids nap...

XOXO

January bucket list

• Drink hot chocolate with homemade marshmallows
• Go sledding
• Build an igloo
• Build a snowman
• Slow down and enjoy the calm after the holidays
• Bring some fresh flowers into your home
• Ski or snowboard
• Commit to some New Year's resolutions or goals
• Play games, read books, do crafts with your kids
• Cook dinner in the crock pot
• Snuggle with your family by the fire
• Love and dream....

2016 goals

Not so much resolutions as things that I want to focus on this coming year...in no particular order...

• Love and support those in need
• Keep my marriage strong
• Read some good books
• Learn about the stars
• Take better pictures
• Give all I've got to my kids
• Simplify, organize, streamline
• Do something new with this blog
• Write some children's books...ones with meaning...
• Keep us all healthy, mostly by getting outside
• Spend lots of time with family
• Snowboard, hike, camp, etc.
• Tend to my business...and move into some more meaningful work...

XOXO

Steamboat with kids: January 2016 edition

Here are a few ideas for getting out and about with your little ones this month:

• MusicFest free outdoor concerts—JAN 5–9, 1 PM, Gondola Square. More info...
•  Little Toots ski lessons (once a week for 4 weeks)—Starting JAN 7, ski area. More info..
• Concert: “Shades of Blue”—JAN 14, 6:30 PM, Steamboat library. More info...
• Hot air balloon glow—JAN 17, 5–6 PM, base of mountain. More info...
• Cowboy downhill with petting zoo—JAN 18 starting at 11 AM,  Gondola Square. More info...  

Pajama hike, winter edition

Grace in small things, January 4, 2016

1. Work will be ramping up again shortly I'm sure but it's still slow...and that gave me some time to play with my camera during and after naps...which I always mean to do but never actually make happen...fun...
2. Dark this morning when I woke up...lovely to read and do emails by the fire and watch the light come to Emerald Mountain...
3. Snuggly pet baby whales (what the kids call themselves) this morning. And sleeping in pet baby whales as well...
4. We're reading some great library books these days...there's a theme of penguins and snow going on...
5. Have plans to play in the snow some tomorrow...it's been a little warmer so I'm hoping to work on the kids' igloo with some snow that will pack...

XOXO

8/50

Yesterday late afternoon was all about steep black runs with BIG moguls...and not really on purpose...I'm not scared of those conditions but I don't really know what to do with them either...one of my goals for the season is to be able to get down those runs with some sort of grace...

Great fun and not enough time up there...

Oh and the kids called me "Queen of the Mountain" when I came home... :)

XOXO