If you can't beat them join them

We are all getting tired of the snow so I decided we needed to do something fun in the snow to enjoy it. After school on Thursday I took the kids sledding.  I'm really glad we did, it was a lot of fun.

We went to a smaller hill so the little kids would like it.  It was still a pretty good size and we were the only ones there, so it was perfect.

Wyatt has become so much more daring in the last year.  He loved getting a running start.

Hallee didn't want to go, but I put her on the sled and took her down anyway.  I thought she would like it, but you can tell by her face that she wasn't a big fan.  She did go one more time with me.

Hallee had fun on the playground.

The kids had fun going down together.

Caitlyn loves to go down with other people. I had fun going down with her a few times.

This sled was just sitting there so we used it.  The kids loved it.  You could go really fast on it.  I might have screamed like a little kid when I went down on it.

Caitlyn tried to make a new track.  It was a little tough with the deep snow.

There was a jump on the trail, it was a lot of fun.  We got some really good air on the bump.  I'm glad we finally got out and enjoyed all of this snow.

Winter Blues

Every year I am reminded that winter blues are a real thing!  Especially this year with all of the snow.  I feel like it has been snowing forever.  It is so cold that Jackson likes wearing a sweater!  Yes, I have turned into the crazy dog lady that buys her dog a sweater.  The dreary weather mixed with illness mixed with endless home repairs is getting really tiresome.  I shouldn't complain because we have been very healthy this winter, but a couple of weeks ago we started a round of colds that hit everyone pretty hard.  Wyatt and Hallee were sick for over two weeks, which means we were all going a little stir crazy.  Since our leaky pipe in the ceiling we have replaced the furnace, the water heater and the water pressure valve.  We have spent about $5000 on home repairs in the last 4-5 months.  The money is stressful and frustrating, but so is having repairmen in my home all the time.  I'm so tired of dealing with repairmen and planning my day around them and keeping my kids out of their hair while they are here.  Okay, I'm done complaining, hopefully we are finished with repairs for a while.

A couple of weekends ago I took the boys skating at Classic. They were excited to use their new roller blades/skates.  We had a lot of fun skating.  Caitlyn was in Salt Lake for the weekend.  She spent one night at Mel's and the next day was Katelyn Serr's birthday party.  It ended up snowing a ton that night so we let Caitlyn stay at Katelyn's house and we picked her up the next night on the way to Beck's house.  We had a great time at Beck's and enjoyed a yummy dinner and lots of visiting.

When we were finished skating we met Keith and Hallee at the theatre and we all saw "Sing."  It was a really good show.  This was my first time in the recliner seats and I don't think I can go back.  Jonah had a game later that night.  His team has improved so much.  I'm so proud of how hard Jonah is working.  He gives it his all every game.  He is working hard and it is showing.

We have spent a lot of time at home these past couple of weeks.  One afternoon I played restaurant with Wyatt and Hallee.  We all took turns ordering and making the food.  They are so cute!

Last weekend Jonah and Keith went to church alone, the rest of us were too sick.  Jonah sure looked handsome in the clothes Cody passed down.

We had fun setting up our new picture from Gary and Julie while they were at church.  Caitlyn was more than happy to climb up and set it up.

Wyatt and Hallee wanted to climb up there with Caitlyn.

The kids had Monday and Tuesday off of school.  Allison and the kids came over on Monday.  It was so nice to visit with Allison while the kids played.  They had so much fun that they talked us into a late night.  We met up at 10 PM to trade back kids. On Tuesday we went to my mom's house.  She wanted to spend time with the kids while Dante and Alexys were in school.  They had a great time playing with grandma.  After that we went to Elijah's basketball game.  We have been able to make it to a few games this season.  I love spending time with Mel's family and watching Elijah play.

Keith has been working so much lately.  Last week he worked over 70 hours.  He had to work all weekend and he had a lot of late nights.  The poor guy has so much responsibility and stress on his plate.   I try to keep things as simple as I can while he is gone all of the time.  The kids have been great, most of the time!  They have been playing school a lot.  It is so cute.  I peeked in Caitlyn's room tonight to see her helping Hallee on a worksheet.

Both of the girls were having a great time.

Next I looked in on Jonah and Wyatt.  I love that they have set up desks with name tags for the kids. Jonah told me he was teaching Wyatt about safety. 

I love when the kids have fun playing together.  Hopefully Keith's work will slow down soon.  It is tough for all of us to have him gone so much, especially poor Keith, he is exhausted! 

Dance Party

After the talent show Lori pulled out their disco ball and music and the kids had a dance party. 

They made up a dance together. It was so cute. 

After the group dance they split into groups and made up dances.  Lexi made up a cute dance for her and Wyatt. 

Cody, Jonah and Elena danced to Michael Jackson. 

I was impressed with their dance, it was so good. 

They are so cute! 

Caitlyn and Hailey made up a cute dance too. 

The Mannequin challenge. 

Matt and Lori have always jumped into the new year.  I remember jumping off their couch at their house right after they were married.  The kids had fun jumping off the couch. 

The kids loved going outside at midnight and blowing their horns and running up and down the street. 

Hallee only made it until 11:00 PM, but Wyatt made it until midnight.  He was so excited to stay up with everyone.  We had a great night. 

We were planning on driving home on Monday, but there was a storm coming through on Monday so we left Sunday morning instead.  I'm really glad we did because it was a bad storm.  We made it home with no problem on Sunday and it was nice to have a day to recover before the kids went back to school on Tuesday. It was another great trip to Arizona.  Thanks for showing us a great time Matt and Lori!

New Years Eve

Lori knows how to throw a party!  She made a ton of great food for New Years Eve.   We all enjoyed eating and snacking through out the night.

Lori also bought some fun party favors for the kids.  They loved them.

I love my beautiful girls. 

Handsome boys. 

The kids loved blowing the horns! 

It was pretty loud while the kids were running through the house blowing the horns. 

Caitlyn is looking so grown up.  

We all had fun with Matt and Lori's new air hockey table. 

Matt and Lori had their neighbor and his girls over for New Years Eve.  The kids hit it off right away and had a great time together.  They loved playing ghost in the graveyard outside. 

The kids were excited to play the balloon game.   

Each balloon had a paper with something they had to do and a dollar to keep if they did it. 

Caitlyn hates popping balloons so Cody popped it for her. 

Caitlyn had to do the splits. 

Hallee got to do the splits too. 

Jonah had to do push-ups.

After the balloon game the kids put on a talent show. Caitlyn and Elena spent a lot of time making crafts.  They put on a play with the flowers they made. 

Jonah and Wyatt sang Jingle Bells in cowboy twang.

Caitlyn sang for us.  I love hearing her sing.