Keystone

Whew, what a day - a great day, though. Jason and I left Steamboat Springs early this morning at 6:30 to drive south about two hours to go to Keystone (which is about an hour away from Denver). We've arrived back in Steamboat, just before 9:30pm; it's been a full day!

We were meeting up with Jason's aunt and uncle, Scotty and Paula. We LOVE hanging out with them, and hanging out with them while skiing, even better! My parents graciously watched Jack and Lucy so Jason and I could be free - woohoo!

I've never skied anywhere other than Steamboat, so I was very excited to try out somewhere new. I loved it! Keystone has great, wide open blue runs, it's a very well managed mountain, and there were lots of neat little things like music being played on speakers bordering runs, night skiing options, and free granola bars. Isn't that fun?!?

I took an awkward spill when Paula's and my skis interlocked coming off the lift, completely due to my blabbering on and on about something I'm sure. But, as I fell, my knee twisted terribly and I'm feeling it now for sure. Then, a young punk skied right into me on my last run of the day, plowing us both over. Good thing that was my last run anyway, because I was sure shot after that. But it was super fun, I loved skiing somewhere new, and we had an awesome time with our family!

If you're ever out this way, I highly recommend a trip to Keystone!

And, we were so busy skiing and swapping stories, we totally forgot to take a picture. :-(

I missed my kiddos so much, though...I'm on my way upstairs to give Lucy and Jack a "sleepy kiss."

Night!

Lucy and Uncle Brendan

while jason and I were skiing this afternoon...my brother, Brendan, played with Lucy outside :-)

Sledding Encore

So, with Jack too young to ski and the fact that we've yet to enroll Lucy in the $269 buckaroos ski program (which covers only ONE day for that price mind you), their favorite-and only-outdoor activity so far has been sledding.

This time, Daddy enjoyed sledding with the kids. So fun! (Although with the temperature in the single digits, Jack wasn't a huge fan :-)


Check out Jack's apprehensive face :-)

"BUMP!"
Weeeee!
Here's where Jack got REALLY unhappy!


Lucy didn't like the snow "mist" getting in her eyes, so goggles :-)

Working out "out here" takes some WORK!

(above) kind of looks like me, huh? :-) ...


Whew, so working out at over 6,000 feet above sea level is quite different than back home on the plains of Alabama where elevation is not a factor.

I don't have my running buddy, Tiffany, with me, and I'm reluctant to run on these roads out here, which are covered in snow and ice. So, I've been using the Biggest Loser Cardio Max dvd while I'm on vacation to keep the calories burning (and so that I'm not starting over at square one when we get back home and back to running). But, I miss you Tiffany! It's much more fun to talk to you when I workout rather than just focus on how I'm ABOUT TO DIE! :-)

In addition to staying healthy, I've made a promise to myself that I won't get pregnant again until I get back to that elusive "pre-pregnancy" weight. And I can't wait to have another baby, so this should be good motivation. And hopefully, by blabbing about all this on my blog, it'll hold me more accountable - hopefully. Not that I'd ever list my weight (what woman would?!? -- well, wait, I do have a friend that scrapbooked her weight gain in her pregnancy scrapbook, that lucky Casey girl! ;-), but I can still be accountable. :-)

Now if I could just resist all those darn holiday desserts!

Have a great day!

Merry Christmas...

the stockings were hung by the chimney with care...



taking a peek at what santa brought

lucy fed jack lucky charms this morning!
Merry Christmas to you and yours! Wishing all our friends and family a very happy day!

In Him,
Merry Christmas!

Let's go play in the SNOW!

CUTIE-PATOOTIE!

LOOK AT ALL THE SNOW!



I LOVE LUCY'S FACE IN THIS ONE BELOW!



Okay, so Walmart was sold out of snow boots small enough for Jack, so we improvised...




What's going on today?... Jason's out on the slopes right now, taking advantage of the fresh powder from all the snow yesterday and today. We'll swap at nap time, and I'll head out :-) We're going to Christmas Eve Service at 5:30, steaks for dinner, (Call Elaine and find out if they've "found out!") and early to bed for everyone! Merry Christmas Eve!

"She shall bring forth a son,

and thou shall call His name Jesus;

for He shall save His people from their sins."

Matthew 1:21

in case your curious...

A picture Jason took yesterday





view from up top :-)


trail map...

I headed out today for my first day on the slopes -- it was awesome! I got my "ski legs" back with ease, much to my surprise. I went out this morning by myself while Jason watched the kids. Solitude is so very nice, especially when it's just me and the mountain. At one point I was actually a little nervous, for I found myself the single, solitary skier headed down a run. For a moment, I wondered if I had accidentally gotten myself off the beaten path. But the ski tracks ahead of me must mean something, right? ;-)

Another great thing about skiing alone is that you get to meet and chat up folks while you're on the chair lift. One time I was with some young snowboarders who were cursing like sailors and taking swigs of some kind of alcohol out of a flask. Even offered me some...I went up with another snowboarder another time, and she cursed like a sailor too. Maybe there's something to the stereotype of snowboarders being a little "punkish..." who knows? :-)

Jason joined me after lunch while the kids took their nap, and it was so much fun to ski with him. We really enjoyed our time together, and now that I can keep up with him on the slopes it's even more fun.

I'm already feeling the soreness set in, despite the tylenol I took BEFORE I headed out (and despite the Fat Tire I consumed as soon as we got home ;-). But, it's all worth it; I forget how much fun skiing is until I get out there and do it.

The Olympic Trials are taking place; started today and continue tomorrow. It's super fun to watch!

If you're considering planning a ski trip, I highly recommend here...It's super family-friendly (although you could blow some serious money keeping your kids entertained with kids' ski school :-), it's far enough away from Denver (3 hours) that you don't get heavy crowds of day-trippers. I haven't had to wait at a ski lift yet :-), and the mountain is fantastic for skiing. Check out the website for more info if you're curious.

Merry 'almost' Christmas!

Christmas Card Rejects

So the Christmas Cards are in the mail-yay! My friend, Julie, did a post on her blog not long ago of pictures that didn't make the cut. I thought that was a fun idea, so I'm stealing it! ;-) Not all of these were considered for the card, but we snapped lots of other photos after we got the shot we wanted of jack and lucy.

Here are some pics that didn't make the cut...

Monday Meals: grainy mashed potatoes and brownie tart

Okay, lots of holiday meals will be prepared this week for Christmas-Yummy!

And because a holiday meal is not the time to try a new recipe you don't know how will turn out, I'm including two fail-safe, tried-and-true recipes (and videos to watch showing how to prepare it) that I've made at least a dozen times now. You'll love it!

Here's a side and dessert for your holiday meal (But I make these all the time for any occasion :-)

Grainy Mashed Potatoes (Tyler Florence, Food Network)

And click here, and SELECT CHOICE #2 if you want to see the video of this recipe being prepared by Florence...

Brownie Tart (Ina Garten, Food Network)

And click here and select CHOICE #2 if you want to see the video of this recipe being prepared by Garten...

Happy Cooking! Let me know if you try it and how you like it! ;-)

Switching gears, I had an awesomely lucky morning in which we managed to get a pretty darn cute christmas card pic of the kids out in the snow. We waited until everything was absolutely ready, they were perfectly coifed, and the camera was set, then we plopped them down and snapped about 15 quick pics. They were both cooperating so wonderfully, and then Lucy stuck her hand deep into the snow. Jack followed suit, and three seconds later, we had two wailing kids...

"Hope we got a good one!" I muttered, and we hurried inside to warm up by the fire.

And miracles of miracles, it turned out we had several good photos to choose from. No need to try round #2. Wrote our messages, stuffed the pictures, and I dropped them off at the post office just a bit ago!

Sign, sealed, and delivered!

And we found out Lucy is old enough for ski school-AWESOME! There's a program for kiddos two and a half to four years old that meets 9-3. Can't wait to get her enrolled. We think she'll love it! I'll be sure to post about how it goes -- should provide some good stories, no doubt!

Merry Christmas!

Brownie Tart (Ina Garten, Food Network)

Colorado or Bust...

A look at our trip so far...

Flew out of Atlanta Saturday afternoon...Lucy resisted her nap until she finally surrendered...

Jack had a great time on the plane and he slept like a champ most of the way (it was a three-hour flight.)

After we arrived in Denver, we headed over to "Lady's cousins' area of town, Parker, CO. We had a delicious dinner of freshly caught (by Marvin and Kevin) salmon. Such a treat!

The AWESOME view from their house, just beautiful!

We stayed overnight in Parker -- it was like a vacation before our vacation, they were so accommodating; Lucy and Jack enjoyed feeding the horses at the farm the next morning...

Playing in the hay...

Before heading north to Steamboat, we headed out to Littleton to visit our much-loved aunt and uncle, Paula and Scotty, and their adorable kids, Ivan and Lily.

Lucy especially loved playing with Ivan at the park...

Jack and Scotty exploring.

Such a gentleman, holding her hand. He kept saying, "Lucy, be careful! It's slippery!" Lucy didn't seem very concerned.

I mean, how much sweeter can it get?

It's been a WONDERFUL first leg of our trip! It was so wonderful spending time with my mom's side of the extended family; Paula & Marvin, Elise & Sandor are so delightful and fun to be around, and any time we spend with Scotty and Paula just isn't enough. We've taken our time getting up here to "Papa's Snow House" as Lucy calls it, and we're excited to get out on the slopes.

Tomorrow morning, though, the priority is getting the kids' "Snowy" Christmas Card Photo taken, developed in town, so we can stuff the cards with an adorable photo (I'm crossing my fingers ;-), and send them out the same day. That way, hopefully friends and family will receive our cards in time!

cheeky vets

here's something that really "gets my goat" (and if you're curious where that idiom comes from, click here. I always loved our unit on idioms and finding out where they originated from, very interesting :-)...

For as long as I can remember, I bought Toby's (our dog) heart worm medicine online for a MUCH less expensive price than the vet charged. My online 6-month supply was $19.95 for the generic medicine, while at the vet, a six-month supply ran about $50. Total that difference up over the span of years, and it makes quite a difference.

Well, I went to reorder next year's supply last week, and now you have to have a prescription to send in to the online company...hummmmm, that's odd I thought. But I placed my order, then called my vet to get them to fax in toby's prescription.

"Dr. Lindermann doesn't do online prescriptions."

Ah, yes, I see where this is going. So, I ask why...the nurse/vet's assistant tries to convince me that there are several reasons I should buy from their office.

1) you never know where the medicine comes from (that may be true, but unless they're manufacturing the same medicine in the back of the building, then how is their shipment that arrives any different from where I order online?!?)

2) if we always buy from them, and toby does get heartworm for some reason, the pharmaceutical company will cover the cost to treat him. (Nice offer, but what are the chances of that happening if I give him the preventative treatments regularly?)

and 3) it would take too much time for the vet to research the online company I wanted to buy from to make sure it's safe. (wait, don't I pay him to take care of my dog...wouldn't this be considered in the line of work he does!?! Seriously, when I had a student with Asperger's, I didn't tell the parents, "Sorry, it'd take too much time for me to research your son's condition in order to better teach him and meet his needs." Give me a break!

I was annoyed -- highly annoyed at this brash rule I was being forced to follow. I called our old vet (we changed vets when we moved "over the mountain" to a closer vet) and said I'd transfer back if he'd give me online Rx paperwork, but they charged $15 for that. Upon calling several other vets in town, I was uber frustrated to find out they all either charge for that service or don't do it at all!

Have they forgotten that we, as OWNERS of our animals, ultimately have the right to the care and treatment our pets receive! I should be able to order medicine for my dog from wherever I choose, no questions asked! It's MY DOG! If I should make a poor decision in where I buy my medicine, then it's on me, you know. (And not that I take Toby's health lightly in the first place, but I don't loose any sleep at night over the fact that I give him generic Rx. I mean, seriously, don't many of us choose generics for ourselves? I know I do -- saves a lot of money.

So, if human doctors allow patients to have a generic option -- as they should!- it goes without saying that animal doctors should allow the same. This "let's-all-ban-together-as-a-whiny-union-and-refuse-to-behave-decently-AND-get-the-online-companies-in-on-it" attitude is obnoxious.

But back to my phone conversation with the vet lady...I asked her, very politely, to have Dr. Lindermann call me please at his convenience. I wanted to discuss with him my suggestion that he should at least meet me halfway in the middle pricewise between the online price and their office price. Very reasonable suggestion I thought, considering they left me no other choice...

And of course, he NEVER CALLED ME BACK!

So, I, never being one to compromise my principals, found a way around this...

I ordered my generic heartworm medicine from Canada, at PetDrugs.com It was $19.99 for a six-month supply, and free shipping to boot!

Suck it, Lindermann Animal Hospital. ;-)

Jack and Lucy

I promise, I do have intentions of posting about things other than my children, but then I take a few pictures of them hanging around (pics from this morning) and they turn out so darn cute, I have to post them! :-)

We're just a few days away from heading out to Steamboat, CO for our Christmas Vacation. Lucy is very excited to go to "Papa's snow house," and Jason is like a kid on Christmas Eve as he awaits getting on his skis. Me? I'm just excited for a change of pace and new environment. And I can't wait to see Jack's reaction to the snow!





Jack: "Hold my hand?!? Whatever, Lucy!"

"But I still love you!"


"My darling Lucy!"
Watching Barney...what a face! :-)


Have a great day!