Here we go, a-skiing!

I finally gave in.

Matt won.

Or maybe, Tatum won.

Yeah, Matt won.

For the past year and a half, Matt has been talking about getting T into ski lessons.... WHY? Why would I do that??? I can not imagine my little girl in skiis! What if she falls? What if she gets hurt? What if she falls off the mountain? (ha!) What if..... ???? No, she's not ready! She's too young! NO!!!! or is it, Mom's just not ready? Mom's scared she'll get hurt? Mom's scared to let go of her little girl's hand and let someone else teach her something... something that Mom has no clue how to do... Mom's scared to do it, so shouldn't her little girl be scared as well? Well...

If we don't show our kids to be scared, then they won't be scared! If we build something up to be exciting, it will be. If our kids see us doing things that we love, won't they want to do the same things? Of course. T has been talking to Daddy about going skiing for a long time. Daddy loves to ski, and gets to go, well, as often as he can, so of course T is interested in it. And Mom wishes she was better and had more opportunities to actually learn to ski. Sooo... we finally had the opportunity, as a family, to head up the mountain to ..... ski (or that's what it is called when anyone but me, Mom, does it).

"I'm going to ski around the mountain!!!" ~Tatum

So, off we go! We pack up the car,wake the girls up EARLY, battled the snow-packed roads, waited for the 'avalanch prevention' to complete, watch semi's being towed.... and finally reach our destination... Vail. (who had gotten 18 inches the night before) So, just the name intimidates me. Maybe that is what my issue was... but eh, we'll get to that later.

We are all excited, well, I'm not quite certain Kalina had any clue as to what we were doing besides taking a really long car ride... but the rest of us were excited! Tatum could not wait to go to her "Ski School". "Will it be like my other school?" "Um, no, Tatum. You'll get to learn how to ski!" "Oh! Yaaah! I'm going to ski AROUND the mountain!... Are we at my ski school yet?" I don't know how many times she asked if we were there yet... ha ha... and so it begins (are we there yet?)

And finally, we were... we were there. Matt grabs T, bundles her up... I grab K, bundle her up. Matt & T are off to ski school, and K & I are off to the Child Care. I meet them, T is all bundled up, ready to ski... helmet, goggles, coat, gloves, mittens, snow pants, coat, ski boots... and, of course, skiis. Looking like a real skier... our little three year old is ready to go... And ope, there she goes! No big send-off... they just took her to the back... and I didn't even get her picture! UGH!

Matt and I head off in our car, girls are going to be fine... and we are going to have fun! Together!!! So, off we go, find a parking spot, get our ski stuff on.. I'm feeling like I belong here... have my own boots, skiis, poles, new actual ski socks, goggles, gloves... etc. This is going to be great! Matt is all confident in his gear... I'm a bit nervous, but eh, I can do it! I've done it once before... yeah, it was 2 years ago, but it's like riding a bike, right?

HA! I had only gone once, and I wasn't all that great the first time... here we are in Vail... take the Gondola up to the top... get out, fix my boots (which already made my legs sore and I hadn't even skied yet) get out... beautiful, except I sort of know how high up we are and well.... if we are that high up, we have to get down somehow... can I just hop back on the Gondola and go back down and wait??? NOPE! I can do this! Okay, I see the sign... "EASIEST" ... that's me! "PRACTICE HILL" ... yeup, that's me, too! So, we head that direction.... ope, I already fall.... ha ha... Okay, wait, are you serious? This is the EASIEST???? Are you KIDDING me???? UGH! This is going to be a looooong day... So, after quite a few crashes (some done purposely), quite a few tears (I can not believe how scared I was up there)... following all of the green signs... it only took us 3 (maybe 3 and a half) HOURS to get down...

I don't know how he did it, but Matt was extremely patient with me! He gave me great advice and taught me well, and most importantly, helped me get down the mountain in one piece. We ended up at the bottom, near where T was taking her lessons, and we saw this "Gopher Hill"... This is where we should have began. Matt worked with me on my turns and going slower... but by this time, my legs were baked... I was done. So, I told Matt to go have fun and actually ski... and I hiked over to find where Tatum was and got to see how much better she is than me, already! :)

Unfortunately, I have no pictures of Matt and I... very disappointed in that... but I was too busy with my face in the snow to even THINK about taking out a camera.... and if you know me... it takes a lot to push that out of my mind! BUT, I did arrive to T's school in time to take a couple of pictures and video of her!

Be warned when watching this video... the first thirty seconds are with me walking... so, you will get motion sickness! I would start it, go look at something else, then come back to it! :) Happy Viewing!

Kalina's Second First-Birthday Celebration :)

Pocky B and Grandma Birt decided to take the chance and travel during the winter. (They are always a bit apprehensive because of weather)... and although, their traveling dates and flights were smooth, they did get stranded here because of a small snow storm...errr, blizzard of almost 2 feet of snow... in Chicago... so, their trip that was originally going to last 4 days... was extended by a couple days! I'm sure they were VERY disappointed to have a couple of extra days to visit with two of their Granddaughters!

Unfortunately, for them, the girls had both been sick for a week/two just prior to their arrival, so Mom was not interested in taking them up to the mountains to the cold and snow. Sorry! But it did give everyone the chance to just hang out, chill, relax, and visit. Oftentimes, we find that we are so busy experiencing around us, that we miss the time to actually enjoy each other and make memories. So, this was a chance to do just that. We hung out, read books, watched movies, played with cars, just relaxed. It was nice.

We were also able to celebrate Kalina's First Birthday... (with more cake, of course!)

Kalina was able to enjoy her own cupcake... The rest of us indulged in the most amazing cake... Red Velvet "Nothing Bundt Cake"... mmmm... melts in your mouth.... (thank you to R.&J. H)

I hope you can see Tatum in the background of this one! HA! She was 'helping' Kalina eat her cake!

I don't know who was having more fun! :) T was such a great helper! She was feeding Kalina cake... later, Kalina, being a good little sister, shared her cake with Tatum and fed HER!!!

T was definitely staring at 'her' cake... (the Bundt cake)

Walking with Pocky B

SURPRISE! Tatum asked Grandma Birt to READ!

Kalina's Big Oh-One pics!

Here are the pictures I took for Kalina's First Birthday!

This girl is definitely a happy girl! She definitely keeps me on my feet, and knows when she is doing something that she shouldn't be doing. I'll say her name, and she just turns around and flashes those pearly whites and bright eyes at me... it's hard not to just return the smile :)

Looking Back at 2010

2010 was a great year for our family! We had some ups and some downs, but all in all, it was a good year. We started the year off with a newborn and a 2 year old. I was a little scared to see how we were going to juggle two little ones, but Kalina has been one of the happiest babies, and T has been such a great helper from Day 1! I could have not asked for more!

Unfortunately, as T grew older, she had an allergy pop up and get worse and worse.... a dog allergy. This was probably the worst part of the year, I still get upset when I think about them... we had to find Jackson and Hunter a new home. As most of you know, they were our babies from our first year of marriage. We did find them an active home full of love and full of life- together. I have been in contact with their new 'mom' a few times throughout the year, and I know they are extremely happy! On to our next sad part... we found a dog, Dexter, whom T had no reaction to for quite a few months.... then it came... with a vengeance.... Dexter was rehomed to a co-worker of Matt's and is really in the best place he could be! So, no dogs for our house :(

On to good things!!! This was definitely the year of babies!!!
K was born in 09, but just a few days out...
Alex (Carl & Samantha's baby) was born in March
Alivia (Elisabeth's baby) was born in August
Liana (Dan & Kim's baby) was also born in August
What a wonderful year!!! Family is definitely growing and I'm loving it!

My sister moved in with us in April. It was so nice to have her around and the girls definitely loved it! We shared many mornings with some coffee, and too many trips to baby/kid clothing stores!!! :D Liz did share the most amazing experience with me... the birth of my niece, Alivia. Life is such a beautiful thing, and to be there when one 'begins'... hearing her little cry... amazing. Thank you for sharing, Liz. :) Unfortunately, Liz had to move back to IN in December. Too many miles between us, but thank goodness for Skype (and smartphones).

We also had another big change... another move... from Westminster (north of Denver) to Highlands Ranch (South of Denver). Matt did another Grand Opening with LifeTime, and I'll have to admit, that as much as I dislike grand opening months and the hours he has to work, nothing can compare to this past summer/fall that we all got to spend a lot of quality time together. We took a trip to IN together in May, headed up to the mountains quite a few times, including a beautiful trip to Aspen in the fall.... Wow, was Aspen beautiful! Matt was also able to enjoy playing softball in the Spring and Summer.

The girls...
K is just growing like crazy- and as happy as can be! You can't help but smile back at her, even when she's doing something she knows she's not supposed to be doing, when she gives her devilish little grin! She has not been much of a crier (until she began teething), and really just smiles a lot!She has been a cuddler and I can't say that I was upset about that! One of my favorites this year, was around Halloween, when she had just her fangs on the top... her smile was absolutely adoarable. She is our little miss curiousity and likes to get in to EVERYTHING! So, she is definitely keeping me on my toes!

T is just beautiful inside and out. She has been quite the helper with K and absolutely loves her! She really, never did the 'jealous' thing, and always wants to hold/hug/kiss/play with her sister. This year, T has just loved learning! Learning everything and anything. She likes to know what things are, how they work, etc... very interested in everything, and loves helping me in the Kitchen! We enrolled her in Pre-School for two half-days, and she absolutely loves it! She loves the learning, loves her teachers, and loves playing with her friends. She also goes to Tumbling once a week. This year, she fell in love with Melman, from Madagascar, and only recently set him down for a bit as she became obsessed with the movie Cars. The other day, I asked her what her favorite thing was.... her answer.... shopping.... UH OH! ;)

Throughout the year, we had quite a few visits from family. I can't really tell you how much I really appreciate everyone coming out here! It is so nice to have family come visit, and the girls absolutely love it! (I love having a house full as well) Thank you!!!!!

All in all, 2010 was a great year, and we are looking forward to 2011!!!! Hope this next year treats your family well!

HAPPY FIRST BIRTHDAY, KALINA!!!

Kalina at 11 months

So, Kalina is 12 months old... this past year sure did fly by! The past two months, we have seen Kalina really start loving her environment. She is so curious and interested in everything around her and wants to know what everything is called. She points at everything and says "that", "that", "that". And smiles like crazy when she gets the answer. At the beginning of November, K started blowing kisses and just loves sharing the love!

She loves standing and bounces up and down when music is playing. Her absolute favorite is Tatum! She gets so excited when T walks (not so quietly) into the room! The other day, K and I were plaing on the floor in the living room when T started down the stairs. As soon as she saw T's pant legs, she dropped what she was doing and booked it crawling over to the stairs, climbed up the first stair and reached her arms up to T (who had sat on the second step) to have T pick her up/hug her! Pure love.... It is so much fun watching them together, and T gets so excited everyday when K will hug her or kiss her or just play with her. If Tatum is her favorite, Daddy is a close second! One of my favorite things I was able to watch... Matt walked in from work, and the girls and I were in the living room, playing, and K dropped her toys as soon as she heard Matt's voice and went crawling straight to him! :D

Last night, I was holding K's hands while she was walking, and she felt pretty solid, so I let go of her hands, she stood for a second and actually took her first step! :) Now, she is not really close to officially walking, but that was definitely exciting! I was not expecting that at all!

Talking... Kalina definitely has her own plans on when she will do things and what she will do. She has said a few words- Momma, Dadda, Sis, HI (her favorite to say), fish, teeth, attempted foot, book, and Buttercup (her doll). She will say things, but then, won't say them again for a long time. She has been doing this for quite some time... she will do something, and then not do it again for a while... lol... I think she just likes playing games with me!

Anyway, life with a one and three year old has begun! Bring on the fun!!!

While everyone was in town, we also celebrated Kalina’s first birthday! Kalina definitely took her time and didn’t dive right into her cake… We were all ready, waiting, excited… and, well, not much happened… so we let her play with her cake while we cut the other cake up for all of us, and before we knew it, the cake was annihilated! She didn’t eat much, just took it apart and smashed it! J

Having a staredown with the Care Bear!

Carrington Christmas in Denver!

We welcomed the Carrington Family to Denver last weekend and had a wonderful visit! Tatum's 2 year old cousin, Grace, walked in and the girls took off! Tatum could not wait for Grace to get here, and talked about what they were going to do for a full week before she arrived! They are definitely great friends already, and that friendship will be so fun to watch blossom through the years!

The girls had a great time with Lola and Pocky as well. Tatum and Lola did some crafts, shared some hot chocolate, played some soccer, made some fudge, put a Gingerbread house together, read a few books, and really just had fun. I don't know who was more wiped out... T definitely took a nap a few hours after everyone left!
Kid Table has begun... I think Pocky had a good time, too... Kalina really seemed to take to Pocky pretty well and he got to assist in the fudge making.... or, maybe he was busy feeding Tatum marshmallows and chocolate.... hmmmm.... He did, however, introduce not only me, but Grace & Tatum to SmartPop Cheese Popcorn.... mmm, I think I'm going to go get a bowl right now....
Notice Pocky reaching for marshmallows...

He handed them to a three year old and didn't think she would eat them??? he he Notice Lola, laughing... :D

Here are some pictures from the visit! Enjoy!

Now, Aunt Kim and I attempted to take pictures of the four girls together... he he...

Happy Holidays!!!

Who am I? What happened to me? I have been listening to Christmas music since at least a week before Thanksgiving!!! I loved seeing the decorations up in the stores (again, before Thanksgiving), and we went to see a local Santa Parade... again, before Thanksgiving! I have always been one who would wait until after Thanksgiving to decorate or listen to Christmas music, but this year I have been listening to Christmas music since at least the week before Thanksgiving and I just really, can't describe my excitement for this year! I love the holiday season and having little ones just makes it that much more wonderful!

So, my mom was able to come visit for a week, and we enjoyed some lounging time and Matt and I were able to disappear for some breakfast!!! Thanks, Mom! She also taught me how to make some bread, although I haven't attempted that feat on my own yet, but I will... We did visit Garden of the Gods and the Olympic Village in Colorado Springs, and enjoyed a nice afternoon with all of the girls (Mom, Liz, Alivia, Tatum, Kalina, and myself) at the mall. That was such a nice afternoon! Nice and relaxing and with all of us. Something we haven't been able to do in quite some time! All in all, a really nice visit!

This Thanksgiving, our close friends, Jon & Kimberly, invited us to their home for dinner. What a wonderful Thanksgiving! I love being around friends and family for the holidays. It was so nice to spend the day with my sister and niece, Jon & Kimberly and Jon's parents, and our little family. Dinner was delicious and we were able to enjoy a couple of dinners worth of Turkey & Dumplings with the leftovers they sent us home with! MMMMMM... Tatum, though, had the best 'doggy bags'... one with black olives and another with marshmallows.... she wanted to combine them in the car... EWE!