We took a long weekend and headed for the cabin. We knew it was going to snow, so we tried to get the kids to ski the day before the big storm blew in. This is Brett's 3rd time snowboarding, so he had it down pretty good. He was sick of the bunny hill and wanted to go to Midway, but I wouldn't let him go by himself. This was Josh's first time skiing and we put him in lessons. The first half of the day was pretty long and they didn't get that much accomplished besides learning how to get in and out of their skiis. The second part of the day, Mike joined the group and helped out the ski instructor, I am sure the ski instructor was excited about that :). But by the end of the day, Josh was skiing down from the top of the bunny hill. He really enjoyed it!
Then we buckled down and waited for the snow storm. My favorite part was sitting on the couch, looking out the window while the snow fell. The kids favorite part was heading outside to play in the snow. We tried a happy medium where we spent time indoors and outdoors. But, I kept gettin' dragged out there to watch the kids play and play with them. We had so much fun. I am glad we made it down the mountain before the second wave hit. Pinetop lost power and people were snowed in for the week. Sunrise shut down for almost 2 weeks to recover.
Mike's youngest brother got married this month. What a fun occasion it was to have a wedding in our family. It has been a while. The kids really enjoyed feeling like a part of this special day and we gained a wonderful new Sister-in-law and Aunt into our family. The best part is, she is taller than me..WOOT! I'm not the tallest girl anymore. Thanks Janelle :) She is also beautiful and smart and a nurse. So a win all around. Mike's brother is one of the sweetest guys I know and he is going to make an awesome husband and great father some day soon. Congratulations Jared and Janelle.
I have to hurry and post this. Yes it's late, and it is hanging over me. I can't go on without checking this off my list. Must. post. Christmas pictures!
This Christmas was a little more quiet. All of my sisters and brother and their families were out of state this year. So it was just my family at my parents house. It was nice, but we missed everyone. We had lots of time to play "Sorry," Josh and Brett's favorite game, at least 20 times between Christmas and the beginning of school. How come that game never gets old for them? They also spent a couple of days building Legos, their favorite.
They also got a new game which they loved to play. It is called, "Who Knew?" It is along the lines of Apples to Apples. We played that too almost as much as "Sorry."
Christmas Eve - Nativity play with the Cousins
Christmas Morning
Giving Dad Big Hugs for their favorite presents..Lego's.
Just waiting to be formed into Battleships!
For New Year's, Mike joined his friend to visit Boston. They went to the Winter Classic Hockey Game that was played outdoors at Fenway Park. They had a great time, although I missed him on New Year's Eve. But, in the end it was worth it because he got to meet this guy.
He also got to worship at the Holy Grail for any Boston fan, The Green Monster. Yes, he actually touched it!!
I have a million pictures of every angle of Fenway which I will spare everyone. Mike did take a couple of pictures of some landmarks that were around his Hotel. He loved Boston. I have been there once when I was 12 so my memory of Boston is limited. I remember parking on the street across from a long row of Motorcycles, a woman came up to my Dad and said, "I hope you are comfortable leaving your van there." My Dad shrugged his shoulders and said, "Yep." I also remember watching a man urinate in the street. Good memories. I think I am over my aversion to Boston and would like to visit again soon.
Quincy Market
Sameule Adams Statue
Some cool looking building. Mike said he knew I would know what it was..Nope.
On the flight out, he took this picutre of a Snow plow working hard to clear the runways! At least his flight was only delayed an hour.
Brett and I went to the Suns game this week. Mike is working late this busy season, so Brett was my Date!! Our budget was $20 and Brett thrives on a budget..He opted to take the light rail instead of paying for parking. When you take the light rail to an event at US Airways, your ride is free with your tickets. So Brett opted for the free transportation. When we got off at our stop, we were looking for dinner. We decided to have hot dogs and share a soda. He relented and went with a Diet Coke, because he knows I am alergic to anything else! The kid loves his Mama :0)
As we made our way to our seats, which are quite awesome, we realized we have some new neighbors. Amare Stoudemire's family sits next to us. We found out that this new seating arrangement has its perks. Before the game started, the Sun's promoters were handing out these cool Amare sunglasses to only a certain section. When I commented on the glasses to our new neighbors, we were quickly given a couple of pair.
Then after we finished our food, they announced the winners of the free Peter Piper pizzas. You guessed it, Sec. 123 row 3..our row. That has never happened to us before, must be our new lucky charms seated next to us. Brett was super excited and he also was sad he already spent money on his food!!
At half time, Brett had $9 left that was burning a hole in his/my pocket. We headed to the Suns team shop where he was determined to find something. Well, of course, most things he wanted were more than his budget. I think that he turned over every item in the store. When we were about to check out, he eyed a flag behind the cashier and it was $8! Sold! He was happy with his purchase and we made our way back to our seats. One of the team Doctors that sits in front of us, handed Brett some new purple wrist sweat bands from the locker room. He gave it to Brett and said that he picked them up from Nash's stash and he appreaciated how good Brett was being tonight. Well, I could not convince him to return his flag to the shop, he was quite content with his goodies.
Brett was ready to go after the beginning of the 4th quarter. Since we took the light rail, it takes about an hour to get home. So we headed out early. Brett said goodbye to his friends and I said Goodbye to the Christian Louboutin shoes worn by Amare's wife. I was a lucky girl too, I got to stare at these amazing shoes the whole game, I almost took a picture, but I thought that would be a little weird. Of course, googling them is not weird at all.
Last year during December I went on a cruise. I swore I would never go on vacation in December again, because I felt that I was racing when I got back to reality. So of course this year, we decided to try it again. This time I took Mike with me and we went to NYC. I always wanted to see the store front windows, the Christmas tree at Rockafeller Plaza, the ice rink and to top it off, it SNOWED! I felt like I was dreaming, it was so perfect.
The kiddos stayed home, so THANK YOU to those that helped out! I know December is not the best time to babysit, but we appreciated it! On the plane ride out, the funny flight attendants at Southwest were doing their speech on safety at the beginning. This one was particularly entertaining, he said, "If you are traveling with small children.... WHAT WERE YOU THINKING? Please secure your mask first than help your child next to you. If you have more than one child, then pick the one you like best and secure their's first." HaHa..A nice chuckle to start off our trip.
Once we got to NYC, Mike, being the more adventurous one, decided that we could find our way without a taxi. We ended up taking the Q33 bus from Queens and catching the F-Train to 42nd street. It took an hour, but we made it without getting lost and we were able to stop at every street in Queens which was a bonus. On one of the stops, this guy got on the bus, his hair was slicked back and he of course was wearing a leather coat. He looked like he was in his early 20's and he scowled at me as he sat next to us. His IPod was so loud I could almost recognize the song that was playing. As I was watching him, he reached in to his jacket and pulled out a book. It was "New Moon." I kind of smiled and Mike looked at me and said, "You should talk to him about it." I think my eyes fell out of my head as I was begging him not to say anything to this random guy on the Q33 bus at 7:30pm at night in Queens, please..no. Mike ignored me and tried to talk to him, but luckily he ignored us probably beccause he couldn't hear us!!
I knew I was in for an interesting weekend, because in NY there are a lot of people in a close proximity, this is Mike's comfort zone. He loves talking to everyone and getting their life story. I wish I could list the people he/we met. I am always amazed how open people are and how they are willing to share alot with people they do not know! All I know is I now have a friend named Jenny Kim who has lived in NY for 30 years and has two boys. She took a fifteen minute break from work so she could escort us to her favorite restaurant. Okay on to the pictures...
We stayed in the Theatre District and this theatre was right around the corner!
Mike in Times Square
A fountain with cool Ornaments in it. It was across from Radio City Music Hall
NBC Studios where they tape SNL..That night was Blake Lively and Rhianna
The Christmas Tree at Rockafeller Plaza
Mike and I at the tree.
Saks Fifth Avenue snowflake designs. They blinked on and off to music.
Amazing picture of the ice skating rink. I had to wait in line to get to the spot to take a picture!
Me and Matt Laur, he was more handsome in person!
Times Square Again
Central Park
Whoa..close up!
Starting to get cold..
This is the Alice in Wonderland statue that I was on a mission to find. We passed it once and had to loop back around to get to it again. After we got there, Mike took this picture. I didn't check it afterward. He totally missed Alice, he just got me. Dang it!
Stopped for lunch at a yummy Korean place. We are in the middle of ChinaTown and Little Italy, who knew there would be good Korean food?? Thanks to our friend Jenny Kim.
Wall Street..I would love to go inside there one of these times. It always seems so small on the outside.
Crumbs Cupcakes..Yummy..Located on the North side of Bryant Park. Thanks Shay :)
Grand Central Station - This is where Marty from Madagascar went to when he escaped the NY Zoo. My kids where excited about this picture..
The Chrysler building. So cool with the fog and lights.
THe Empire State Building. It was snowing and cloudy so you could not see anything from the top. We were glad to hang out in the lobby and get warm for a minute. They had some neat displays of the building inside. Outside the lights on it were blue.
Macy's! I lost Mike for a minute. I ran straight for the windows while he was fixing his umberalla.
Inside Macy's--I can't imagine working this..Yikes!
Finally it is Josh's turn to play a sport! He has been waiting so long for the family to watch him play. He has really enjoyed playing coach pitch. He plays the position between the first and second base in the infield. He has caught a pop fly and made a few "Outs!"
His goal is to get a home run sometime this season. He usually just motors around the bases until his coach can stop him. I think one of these days he will make it around all the bases, that will be the best! Here are some pictures of the Lil' Slugger.
My living room is no longer mine. It has been taken over by a Lego City. I never actually had any furniture in that room before, becuase I just couldn't bring myself to buy a nice dining room table. I had dreams of my boys playing tag around it and jumping over the table to get to their room while chairs were being throw down. So, instead, it is filled with legos.
Apparently, there is a method to the madness, it is quite a layout. There is a Lego City, with battle ships ready to go to war. There is a Cantina and a Cafeteria, Training Center and Rocket Station. We have a number of lego builders in the neighborhood that have helped contribute to the creation. The boys even have each other labeled as "Master's" or "Beginner's". "Master's" have successfully built a lego ship that has won a battle.
It has been fun to listen and watch them interact with each other and be proud of what they have built. I wonder where we are going to put the Christmas tree?
I have been married for 18 years and have two fun, active, never a dull moment...boys. My husband keeps me on my toes as well..he has way too much energy and Brett and Josh benefit greatly from that!
