...for some carpel-tunnel in your fingertips because we went to Utah for spring break and my finger is still sore from being on the shutter button for so darn long.
I kid a little bit, because Dave wouldn't let me bring my big camera on the slopes. It goes without saying that it's not nearly as fun for me to take pictures with my little camera as it is with my "sixth child" (my big camera). But I still didn't spare any freezing icy fingers to capture quite a few moments in the snow.
We packed in not only some ski time, but also some great time with extended family. We stayed with Dave's sister and her family the first couple nights...and kidnapped a few of them from school to go skiing with us.
I was mostly Claire's partner as she got quickly got her bearings straight with skiing again.
By the end of the trip she was practically skiing circles around me.
It was a good thing that that girl is flexible....
She was smiling like this pretty much the entire time.
Max and his cousin were pretty great partners too...at least I think they were because they left me in the dust from the very beginning.
These guys loved the gondola at Snow Basin.
What a nice brother.
...and what a nice husband.
Just as I have a dream to traipse around India with my children all in tow some day, Dave has a dream of having all our kids flying down the hill with him some day (Dave will be embarrassed I'm saying this but he is a GOOD skier). And at the rate they are going, the flying down the powder with smiles stretched across all their faces will certainly happen.
Except I think I will be sitting in the lodge sipping hot cocoa because they're all passing me up fast. Maybe Lu will hang with me...
We got to celebrate cousin Isaac's birthday with him and go to one of his games.
We got to hold and snuggle baby Macey and go out to dinner with Julie & Seth who we adore.
Then it was on to my sister Saren and her family who have moved quite freshly into a new home in Ogden. I wish I would have taken a picture of their cool new house, but alas, I did not.
I did, however, take a few right after we surprised their kids:
(my kids were excited as could be to not tell them we were coming and just show up in their world unannounced...I must admit that was pretty fun...)
And I caught some pictures at the cool tree house museum we went to:
(are those twins cute or what?)
At the Tree House museum we participated in a rodeo:
dressed up as characters from Alice in Wonderland:
put on a full-fledged princess play:
...and even visited the Oval Office:
Lucy loves her cousin Ashton who takes such great care of her:
We played a riling game of "Pass the Pig,"
and had a great dinner together:
Love that Saren...
...don't love that camera so much.
One morning we skied with just our kids (except for Lucy who I begged to take along to see if she could handle ski school until Dave looked at me like I was a crazy woman. About the seventh time I got that eye-roll-you're-crazy look I gave in. She had so much fun with cousins and her Grandfather while we skied).
I can't really explain how my heart melts to watch Dave teach these kids a thing or two. We all fit on the ski lift together.
And I just really, really liked being together.
But I must admit it was also nice when we met up with friends.
There's nothing like a little peer pressure to help kids throw their hesitancy to the wind and just bomb down those hills.
Grace had so much fun with her "pink" friends who were all skiing through all the trees they could find by the end.
Dave and I didn't give in to any peer pressure to snow board though...
But I wouldn't be surprised if Elle tries to sweet-talk us into it next year.
One night we got to go out to dinner with friends:
...while our kids played some fun games:
No doubt about it, Utah is beautiful any way you look at it.
(Except for the train track areas around the airport but we won't talk about that right now.)
We had to break out the sleds at Grammie and Grandfather's house too.
I had to sweet-talk Lu to come out with us, but it didn't take her long to fall in love with the snow.
Literally. She ate gallons of it.
Max was enjoying the sledding and snowman-making from the inside of the house while sipping hot cocoa, but he joined in the next day:
My parents have a lamp post from Wellesley College thanks to my brother Jonah.
It seems fitting since they have three daughters who graduated from there and one who named her daughter Wellesley (that's Elle for short).
The girls imagined they were mermaids in my parents' huge tub.
They thought it was one of the best parts of the trip.
Ok phew (how the heck do you spell that??), that's a LOT of pictures. Believe it or not, I have more, but right now I'm late for a meeting and must run.
Plus I'm sure your fingers are ready for a little break. :)
By the end of the trip she was practically skiing circles around me.
It was a good thing that that girl is flexible....
She was smiling like this pretty much the entire time.
Max and his cousin were pretty great partners too...at least I think they were because they left me in the dust from the very beginning.
These guys loved the gondola at Snow Basin.
What a nice brother.
...and what a nice husband.
We got to hold and snuggle baby Macey and go out to dinner with Julie & Seth who we adore.
(my kids were excited as could be to not tell them we were coming and just show up in their world unannounced...I must admit that was pretty fun...)
(are those twins cute or what?)
put on a full-fledged princess play:
...and even visited the Oval Office:
Lucy loves her cousin Ashton who takes such great care of her:
We played a riling game of "Pass the Pig,"
and had a great dinner together:
Love that Saren...
...don't love that camera so much.
I can't really explain how my heart melts to watch Dave teach these kids a thing or two. We all fit on the ski lift together.
And I just really, really liked being together.
There's nothing like a little peer pressure to help kids throw their hesitancy to the wind and just bomb down those hills.
Grace had so much fun with her "pink" friends who were all skiing through all the trees they could find by the end.
Dave and I didn't give in to any peer pressure to snow board though...
But I wouldn't be surprised if Elle tries to sweet-talk us into it next year.
...while our kids played some fun games:
No doubt about it, Utah is beautiful any way you look at it.
(Except for the train track areas around the airport but we won't talk about that right now.)
I had to sweet-talk Lu to come out with us, but it didn't take her long to fall in love with the snow.
Max was enjoying the sledding and snowman-making from the inside of the house while sipping hot cocoa, but he joined in the next day:
It seems fitting since they have three daughters who graduated from there and one who named her daughter Wellesley (that's Elle for short).
They thought it was one of the best parts of the trip.