Book Character Day

The kids and I had so much fun dressing up last year for book character day (see our costumes here  http://medleymemories.blogspot.com/2013/04/book-character-day.html. )  that I was excited to be subbing on book character day again. 
 I didn't want to be the same thing as last year so it was time to do some planning with the help of Pinterest.   I wanted to be something that the kids would all recognize.  I decided to go with the Chicka Chicka Boom Boom tree and it was a hit.  Ella was able to use her Halloween costume again this year and go as Saige the American Girl.  Sam wasn't really sure that he wanted to participate this year.  He wanted to do something where he could wear his new golf hat he got for Christmas.  He decided to dress as Ricky Fowler assuming that there must be a book written about him.  It was fun seeing many of the kids and teachers dressed up for the day! 

NASA Night

My kids' school wrote a proposal to be one of a handful of schools that get to speak to the astronauts this spring while they are aboard the space station.  I think this is such a great opportunity for them!  So, they have been learning a little extra about space to help them prepare for this opportunity.  One of the things they did was had a space night at school.  Ella and Sam were anxious to attend.  The kids participated in all kinds of experiments to learn about what life would be like in space.  They had a wonderful time.  The school was packed and it was so great to see so many kids excited about learning science.  

Excuse the quality of the pictures, all I had was my phone.  Sam's is especially fuzzy because he wanted to do a selfie.  It would be too embarrassing to have your mom take your picture.

Ella learning about force. 

Ella with boots that show what it would feel like to walk on Jupiter. 

More Baby Snuggles

So we snuck off to Kansas City again last weekend for some more time with Declan (oh and everyone else).  Saturday night my parents watched the kids so that John could finally have his birthday dinner at Houston's.  The food, as always, was delicious and we enjoyed a dinner with just the two of us.  
Sunday we headed to Jon and Laura's after church to see Declan and his new nursery.  They did an excellent job, it is super cute!  John got to meet Declan for the first time and we all enjoyed time holding him.  I will admit that I was the one hogging most of his time but I just could not get enough of him.  

Can you tell how big the smile is on this girl's face?  She loved holding her baby cousin. 

That evening AC and Uncle Al brought over Emma and Aiden so that the kids could all play.  My two were super excited to see them!  I love nothing more than a weekend filled with relaxing and family.  

Meeting Declan!

We got a phone call last Saturday night that Laura and Jono were at the hospital awaiting the arrival of their new baby.  We were so excited, so the kids and I made a plan that depending on how everything went with the delivery we would head to Kansas City on Sunday to meet our new cousin/nephew.  The phone call came around seven the next morning that Declan had arrived and that he and Laura were both doing well.  
That was all we needed to hear.  After church we loaded in the car and headed to Kansas City.  I don't think I waited more than a minute to get my hands washed and hold him.  Declan is absolutely precious and we are so blessed to have another healthy baby in our family.  The kids are also getting so good at baby holding.  They loved getting a chance to hold Declan and hated when their turn was over and it was time for someone else to have a chance.  We will head back to Kansas City this weekend and get in some more snuggle time.  We can hardly wait! 

Family Hammer Day (last day skiing)

Sam declared the last day of our vacation "Family Hammer Day."  Meaning that we were going to go, go, go all day (or at least they were).  We had yet to really see Ella ski so we headed up the two lifts that I feel comfortable with and the whole group headed down West Ten Mile.  She was great!  Everyone went down the hill with no problems.  We did that run one or two more times and then took a break for lunch.  
Everyone decided it was time for rougher terrain.  So we headed up the lift they had all gone on previously.  It was great to watch my kids head down the mountain even though they kept having to wait on me.   I decided I could do it again even though my trip was slow going.  This time at the top Ella decided that she wanted to try a jumps course they had set up next to the lift.   John consulted with me and I thought why not?  If she isn't scared now is the best time.  She, John, Hannah, Sarah, and Dana checked it out while the rest of us waited at the bottom.  She got some air on the first jump but just doesn't weigh enough to keep her speed up and make all the jumps.  She loved it though.  
After the end of that run and making everyone continuously wait on me I decided  I would let them go ahead without me.  It was great though to see my kids doing so well and watch everyone have a great time.  I think they are all ready to head back again soon. 

Heading up the lift

Photo time at the top of the lift. 

The jumps Ella was going on, she is right behind the man that walked in front of my camera. 

Totally Tubular! (day 3 of the ski vacation)

I knew when going out to Colorado that I would not want to ski all four days so I checked out our other options.  Copper Mountain has a tubing hill and it looked like a lot of fun so we decided that day three would be a rest day for the kids and me and we would go tubing.  Dana, Caleb and Sarah decided on a rest day too so the boys spent the morning at home relaxing with tv and video games while the girls hit the outlet mall one town away.  We found some great bargains and our legs enjoyed the rest from the snow boots. While we were relaxing John, Kevin and Hannah were having their day on the slopes.  They got to hit all the blues and blacks their hearts desired without having to be slowed down by the rest of us.  Everyone enjoyed their morning.
Then it was time for the kids and I head to head to the tubing hill.  We couldn't talk anyone else into joining in but it was a blast!  We went down the first time together holding onto each other's tubes and their smiles at the bottom were priceless.  They have four hills each with a different amount of speed.  Ella was a, go straight to the fastest hill while Sam preferred to stay at level two.  The guys will give you as much spin as you want as you go down the hill and both kids were all about that.  We had a lot of fun whether going down the hill solo or together.  It is definitely something we will want to do on our next ski vacation! 

Ready to hit the tubing hill! 

She wasn't happy I was taking her picture, she was ready to go! 

All smiles after the first run! 

A few post tubing pics.

Dashing Through the Snow! (Day 2 of skiing)

It was back up and at it early in the morning to get to the mountain and get Ella to her second day of lessons.  The rest of us headed up the lift to do our first run together.  I was anxious to see Sam ski!  We all did an easy run (mostly for Caleb and me) and enjoyed skiing as a group.  That was enough though for John and the girls as they headed to some blues.  
The rest of us went up two lifts for a little more of a challenge.  Sam had sped down the last hill and was full of confidence.  This run was a little steeper and he got going a little quickly and had his first big crash of the trip.  He was ready to stop but I know from my personal experience he needed to conquer that fear quickly.  We went back up to the top and did the same run again but this time he followed Kevin in controlled turns down the hill and got that confidence back into his system.  
We all met back up for lunch and while we were eating the lift I use broke.  I decided it was time to get my book out of the locker and read while the rest of the crew hit some runs on a steeper lift.  They had a great time and John said Sam did well with the tougher runs.  When I picked up Ella I was amazed at all her instructor said she had accomplished that day.  He just had Ella and one other girl and I think all the attention was great!  She went on the toughest greens, loved skiing through tree trails, could stop on command and was getting some turns parallel.  Holy Cow!  I now had a real skier on my hands who was wanting to do runs that frighten me.  Luckily, John is a good skier and was ready to take her out the next time.  After a full day it was home to the hot tub, some dinner and another early bed time.  

Ready for the first ski run of the day! 

Lunch break

Hitting the Slopes! (Ski vacation travel and day 1)

Christmas Day we left Kansas City for a ten hour drive to Colorado.  We should have packed more than snacks because finding dining options on Christmas Day was not an easy task.  A big thank you to Limon, Colorado and the one McDonald's we saw open after 518 miles of driving.  It was a late dinner but I don't think McDonald's has ever tasted so good!  Luckily though, we had good weather and enjoyed our time together across the ever exciting state of Kansas (detect the sarcasm).  Ella and I did get to see the new windmill farms for the first time and they kept us pretty fascinated for miles.   The kids also experienced their first tumble weeds.  
We arrived late that night and checked out our condo for the week.  It was really nice and had views of the mountains from three sides.  It was such a pretty sight.  We quickly headed to bed since it would be an early morning getting our equipment rented and both kids to ski school by 9:15.  
The next morning, Ella was a little nervous but excited and Sam was all ready to go.   We dropped them off in time for their day of lessons and Caleb took a lesson too since he was trying snowboarding for the first time.  John, Dana, Kevin, and I hit then hit the slopes (Hannah and Sarah had already gone on ahead while we got everyone to ski school).  I was super nervous having not skied in eleven years and never having skied well anyway.  My first run was very successful (that means no falls).  Quickly though the others were graduating me to tougher runs and I had a real rough experience.  After numerous falls that was the end of my day.  The others continued to ski and I waited then picked up Ella and Sam from ski school.  They both had great days and were doing well.  Ella was skiing the same slopes I was, like a pro, and Sam was venturing to some tougher terrain.  

All ready for ski school!

I am so glad they love skiing.   Then it was time to head home and relax.  We all went to bed early to rest our tired bodies in anticipation of skiing on day two.  

Christmas in Kansas City

Christmas with my family was a little too short this year.  John had to work Christmas Eve and was in no mood to drive after his day and we were scheduled to head to Colorado Christmas afternoon for our ski trip so that left a short time to spend with my family.  We made the most of it though and I loved being able to see everyone and enjoy a house filled with people, noise, presents, hugs and joy! We made it to my Mom and Dad's before the crowd and enjoyed a quick breakfast and presents with my Mom, Dad, Jono and Laura.  Then everyone else started arriving and it was more food and more presents.  We had fun catching up with everyone and getting to visit.  It was a wonderful way to start Christmas Day! 

Ella and her new doll, Kit, from Santa heading to Kansas City!

Someone is excited to get this day started!

Family photo

One of Ella's many wonderful gifts. 

Do I look like Rickie Fowler? 

I tried to get photos of everyone in the pictures but I know I missed some people. 

Look who got talked into making Ella's doll wardrobe? Thanks Ryan! 

Medley Christmas

The weekend before Christmas we headed down to Springfield to celebrate with John's family.  Sam was excited that Friday night he got to spend the night with Lucas.  He has been missing Lucas a lot and loves a chance to spend time with him.  We got to spend the day Saturday with the Lowe's and carry on the Christmas tradition of decorating sugar cookies.  It is always such a good time.  Sunday, Dawn and Ellie made it into town from North Carolina.  We had brunch together and opened gifts.  It was a great start to Christmas.  

Happy to have the beater! 

Working hard to make the cookies! 

Decorating time

A few of the finished products.

Ella with the adorable hat she got from Ellie for Christmas.

Sam with his Twinkie maker and some finished Twinkies! 

Breakfast with Santa

We joined the Country Club of Missouri a few months ago and the kids have been begging to go and check out the club house.  Our friends, the Swoffords were going to breakfast with Santa and we thought that would be the perfect opportunity to dine there.  The kids loved getting to go see the clubhouse, have an all you can eat buffet, and enjoy time with our friends.  Santa was a bit of an afterthought in the whole morning but they finally agreed to take one picture with him.  Everyone enjoyed the food, Sam had a whole plate of bacon and Ella loved the cheesecake, but most of all we enjoyed the time  with each other and with friends.

Basketball Begins...

It is back to the basketball court for Sam.  He is playing with the same boys that he did last year and having a good time.  They are really focusing on fundamentals this year.  It has been a slow start for them but when you are changing the way you do things that can happen and in the long run I think it is going to pay off for them.  He is super excited that his coach this year is Steve Moore, who used to play for the Missouri Tigers.  He has learned a lot more set plays and has been in his room designing plays of his own.  Here is hoping for a good season to come! 

Sam is showing John his plays the night before their first tournament. 

Running down the court. 

Go Nets!