Lately, Theo’s been getting a big kick out of headstands on his lower bunk.  The other day I walked in when he was changing to his pajamas.  There he was, upside down on his bed putting on his PJ’s.  Tonight I found out that Theo’s apparently been teaching his brother the same trick.

Following up on the success of our first ski trip with the kids, we decided to play hooky today and head back to Monarch.  Our hope was that a quick return would let the kids build on last week’s success and excitement.  I’m pretty sure, by the kids’ reactions, there was no shortage of either.

   

Every time we get any significant snow, it doesn’t take long for one of the kids to start asking if we’re going tobogganing.  Even if the snow isn’t completely covering the hill, this gang is game to give it a try.  An inch or two overnight and into the morning was all it took to get their sledding juices flowing.

   

Aunt Roons once again gave the kids Disney on Ice tickets for their birthday.  This year’s theme was about the Incredibles going to Disneyland.  As always, the show was wonderfully entertaining, and not just for the kids.  Roons, Gail and I thought it was delightful, too.

                     

Spring Break from school gave us a grand opportunity to take the kids out skiing for their very first time.  They were so excited the past couple of days knowing we’d head to the slopes, and that didn’t fade as we drove into the mountains.  Once there, we got everyone outfitted and started moving toward the Bunny Hill.

                             

Apparently we forgot a couple of presents in all the hustle of yesterday, but made up for it today.  It didn’t take much convincing to get the gang to unwrap just one more time.

   

We welcomed friends and family to our home for a big party and then sent them through the wardrobe into Narnia for a fun-filled afternoon that will be pretty tough to forget for quite a while.  With mountains of anticipation and excitement, I think the real thing actually lived up to the hype the kids have had in their minds for months.  The looks on their faces when we were done made all the work worthwhile.  What a day!

                                                       

Time to make the final preparations for tomorrow’s birthday party.  Lots of excitement and anticipation topped off with a sleep-out at the Drury in with G-ma!

           

Gail managed to sneak away to meet her friend Sue for a day on the slopes.  Looks like they managed to have a pretty good time.

With the big festivities scheduled for this weekend, the celebration today was more subdued.  Sure there was cake and a few presents, but it was only a hint of what’s to come.

       

I was working on a project and needed a long spike to drive into the ground.  When I decided to grind a point onto a piece of steel rod, all three kids got a big kick out of not only seeing the sparks fly, but seeing what it was like to let the flying sparks hit them in the hand.

I’m not sure I’ve ever heard the answer “No” from any of the kids when asking if they’d like to go to the zoo.  They all loved the idea when I suggested it today, so off we went.

       

At lunch today, Theo took a bite out of his open face sandwich only to discover that his sandwich had bitten back.

Being Valentines Day, I figured it would be appropriate to give hearts as gifts, so I grabbed some scraps and made an oak heart for each of the kids.  They thought that was pretty neat.

That’s the question Theo could have asked today at school as his Mom filled in for his regular teacher today.  Of course he was proud as could be with his peers, and Gail was pretty excited, too.

   

Aunt Roons stopped over with some early Valentines Day treats for the family.  The kids were plenty happy to have more chocolate.

Today we celebrated Gail’s birthday by going out for dinner and sharing a wonderful time as well as a few presents.  The kids are always so excited to give presents, and tonight was no exception (as you’ll see).

       

With 24 hours to cool off, we decided to take a walk and survey the damage from yesterday’s wildfire.  It was a good educational opportunity for the kids and interesting for Gail and I.

       

We were definitely a little closer than we’d like to be to a really wild fire today.  It turns out a couple of kids went up into the foothills west of our house and set of some fireworks that ended up catching the grass on fire.  The origin of the fire ended up being about 400 yards from our home.  I was outside and saw the smoke pretty early on along with a few neighbors.  The fire spread very quickly and had the prevailing winds been different, we’d have been scrambling to get out of our house.  But from the start, the wind fanned the flames in a direction almost parallel, but gradually getting further from our house, up into the foothills.  By the time the CSFD got it under control, the fire had burned quite a wide swath through the beautiful foothills open area.

Tonight, the kids choir at Woodmen Valley Chapel put their talents on display at Church, singing for Legacy Ministries (50+) group.  It was wonderful not only to see the kids sing, but also to see the audience so enjoy the talents of these kids.  A highlight for us was Nathan singing a solo in his sweet voice, and his siblings joining him for parts of the chorus.  What a night!

     

For Christmas, Jennifer and Sharron made a scrapbook for each child to keep their school papers from Kindergarten, first grade and second grade.  (Getting this done was a gift for Gail, but the triplets get to keep it, so they think the gift was for them.)  What a nice gift to hold their mementos.

 

Well, tonight was race night for the kids.  After planning, shaping and painting their cars for competition, the kids finally got to race their creations in the Awana Grand Prix.  They were excited, an all managed some pretty good races in their four heats apiece.  CC even managed to win one of her heats outright (Nathan finished behind her sister by about an inch in that heat!).  When it was over, there were smiles all around, and the satisfaction of a job well done.

                 

The kids have been involved with Awanas club at church for a few years now and chose to participate this year in the Grand Prix.  Each one bought a car kit and designed their own racer for a competition coming up shortly.  Today, we put their plans to the saws and sanders to get ready for the big race day.

   

Tonight was a special roller-skating deal for the students at Trailblazer and the kids didn’t want to miss the chance to strap on the skates and take a few laps.  This time they managed to drag their Dad along and even convinced Aunt Roons to join the fun.

       

The kids got a shot with some good snow to get in another session of sledding.  This time they met up with a friend of theirs, Rebecca, at their school to take advantage of a lovely, fresh snowfall.