Skiing

Edward and I love to ski. We both started skiing before we even started dating.  We haven't skiied in five years, and before that, it's been almost ten.  Three little people are the cause of our skiing hiatus.  Well, we all went skiing this past week at Winterplace in West Virginia.  The kids had a teacher workday, and the local school district has a "Deployment" policy to excuse family trips before and after deployments.  We had no idea how the kids would enjoy skiing.  Being of "Arizona blood" with not a huge tolerance for extreme cold, we really didn't know if they would enjoy it.  Thanks to the huge snowstorm last week, we had a ton of fresh powder.  We feel truly blessed for such a great trip.  Temps were in the upper 20's for our first day of skiing, and they were in the upper 30's for our second.  It made for great skiing weather, especially for kids learning.

 

 Madison is ready to hit the slopes.  She did Ski School the first morning.  We know she's a good athlete, but we weren't prepared for the superstar she was on the slopes!  The Ski School told us she didn't need to come back anymore; she was ready for the slopes.  She was very excited to wear her new helmet and goggles...all nice sale finds  :)

 Alex went to the daycare the first day.  The Ski School doesn't usually take kids under four...usually.  Well, Alex was so mad that everyone else was skiing and he wasn't, we asked about school for him. So, the second day, he went to Ski School and did surprisingly well for a three-year-old.  Edward is ready for the slopes after we dusted off our skis.  Yes, we have our own-we love it that much. They worked great for my skis being 12 years old and his being almost 20 years old.

 Alex's skiing adventure only would have been better if he'd brought his Flash cape for the slopes.

 That's me under all that clothing.

 Luke, all ready for his first skiing experience.  We were very proud of him.  He did well for a five-year-old. He is working on turning and couldn't understand why he couldn't go down the challenging hills.

 We did well for not skiing for five years.

Lunch

 Boy table

 We took some pictures of Alex at Ski School.  We didn't want him to see us.  He's in the orange (go figure).

 Girls on the ski lift

 BEAUTIFUL weather

 The crew

 Alex

 Ready for the top of the mountain

Alex

I'm so glad we were able to have such an enjoyable trip. It's definitely going to be an annual event now.  I just need Edward to realize the kids aren't ready for Whistler yet (in British Columbia).  Someday...

Camping

With Edward's days stateside getting fewer and fewer, he wanted to take the kids camping.  So, last weekend, they went to Carolina Beach State Park in Wilmington.  I rode along, but was dropped off at my parents' house to hang with them. Everyone had a great time. I was glad Edward had some time to spend with the kids, and they enjoyed the weekend very much. It was a bit cold, but hey, when Dad is getting ready to head out, you take what you can get!

 

 Alex found the campfire.

The kids took most of the pictures, so yes, they are interesting. 

 Alex seemed to bring "everything but the kitchen sink" in his backpack.

 

 

The kids called Saturday evening to say good-night. My mom and I were in the car, heading back to her house after dinner.  We couldn't stop laughing after Luke got on and said, "I'm so sorry I burned a hole in my fleece.  I didn't even know I was on fire until Daddy put the fire out."  Yeah.  Apparently, Luke brushed up against the fire, and while I envisioned the worst, it wasn't anything.  Luckily, it never touched any part of Luke's skin. 

 

I also was told that Alex doesn't like s'mores.  He likes to peel them apart and eat each part by itself.  Madison, while a tomboy, still likes a shower even when camping. 

 

I'm glad they had so much fun, and I know they are going to miss Edward.  They asked if they could camp in warmer weather when he gets back  :)

The Circus

The circus came to Fayetteville this week, and we went on for their opening night.  The kids had never been to a circus, and it had been years since either Edward or I had been.  We started the evening off with pizza at Mellow Mushroom in town, and then we headed to the circus.

 

 

 The camels and horses started off the show, and the kids thought they were pretty cool to watch.

 Juggling

 Flips and stunts-we were disappointed they didn't have a trapeze.

 Edward and I agreed this was the most interesting part to us...the sphere.  They brought out three dirt bikes, and the dirt bikes were ridden, at the same time, in the sphere.  What impressed us is how no one got hurt and the timing was perfect.

 Yes, they had a great time.

We all really enjoyed the elephants. 

 While so large, they look so graceful.

 

End of the show, and the elephants were ready to sleep. 

 

It turned out to be such a nice evening.  The kids were tired when we left, but they seemed to have a lot of fun. We only had a 20 min drive home, but all three were fast asleep when we got home.