Ski Season 2009

Eric was able to get quite a bit of skiing in this season. There were some Friday ski trips with Tyler, taking Gabe out of school for a day, and a couple more Saturday trips with the kids. I even decided to try it out (I haven't been skiing since before we were married).

Eric-- rippin' it up.

Gabe and Eric skipping out on school and work. Way to set your priorities!

I thought I was going to be a good sport but I enjoyed it so much that we went up again 2 weeks later and I purchased my own season pass! Crazy.

1st day ever for some, 1st day in a looong time for others

Jan. 17th, 2009

Eric was really excited this year to start up skiing again after a long hiatus. He bought himself some gear and hit the slopes with some friends. I think he had been skiing once in our almost 11 years of marriage. He loved it and went a ton this season.

Eric decided that ski school would be the best way to get the kids good at skiing.

They loved it...especially the hot chocolate the ski school provided.

Eric really wants the kids to love skiing so for the first trip out he was shooting for a non miserable experience...he just wants them to WANT to try it again.

Using that criteria the ski trip was a smashing success.

Christmas Morning

Packing up Christmas was a pain but turned out just fine. This photo shows where we set up, Jamie and Jed, Jamie and Kirk, Eric and I, Mindi and Dave, and my Parents all had our Christmases in the big family room so it was quite the sight to see...presents everywhere!

EMMA really liked her music box that was filled with jewelry.

ISAAC loved the rock polisher, he even got a book all about rocks and minerals to go with it.

GABE was super excited about his Ipod! The boys both loved the Nerf dart tag they got to share.

Our little babies slept in so we didn't open their presents until later that morning, so the adults got to go next.

ERIC was thrilled and surprised by his IPhone. I was really happy about my new black skirt and black boots. (even though there are no photos to document it, this photo of the babies and me was all we ended up with.)
When Elijah and Meg finally woke up they were more interested in breakfast than presents so after they were fed they finally got down to business

ELIJAH Loved both his toys, the dump truck was a huge hit and the little radio kept him entertained the whole car trip home.

MEG didn't know quite what to think but she still had a good time!

Everyone who lived nearby had their Christmases at home then made there way to Grandmas when they finished up for more gifts from Grandma and Grandpa.

The kids had quite the stash this year!!

The boys also loved the marble maze from our other Grandma and Grandpa. They had a ton of fun putting it together and even more fun watching the marbles go through it.

What a great Christmas!!

PS--all these pics were taken in the PJ's Grandma and Granpa Gave them, Here are the PJ's from Eric and Me:

Eric's trip to India (by Eric)

India was unlike anyplace I have ever visited. It is impossible to really describe and so I hope that a few photos will at least give an impression of our experience. Above is the Taj Mahal. It was amazing to walk around it and consider that it was being built in the early 1600s a few decades after the English set up their first establishment in the Americas at Jamestown. It was impossible not to be amazed.

Here are some pictures of people and places we visited.


I love people watching anywhere I go, even somewhere like Kmart. So you can imagine I had plenty to take in on the streets of India. The people were some of the most friendly I've met anywhere.

This is Sarnath, the birthplace of buddism.

Sandstone windows at Jodhpur fort.

Riding camels in the desert outside of Jaisalmer.

Humayan's tomb and precursor to Taj Mahal.

Ruins in Lodi Gardens, Dehli. On the banks of the Ganges River before our dawn ride.

Eric's "little" project

Eric was really feeling the need for more gardening space and so he decided to transform our side yard into his gardening haven. Here is the beginning of his labor of love. After he cleared everything away we had to have the sprinkling system in that area changed a little bit and then Eric got to work on the garden boxes. After lots of research and price comparisons of different options, and a few trips to Home Depot he got to work.

Step 1: Finish building the garden boxes (Nov. 7th)

After all the boxes were built and lined up (if you click on the picture you can see the string he used to make sure everything was straight), he spread bark in between the boxes.

Step 2: Spread bark in between the boxes (Nov. 8th)

Step 3: Have a dumptruck deliver a load of top soil (Nov. 8th)

Step 4: Move Soil from driveway to boxes (Nov. 8th...it was a long day)

It was fun to watch the pile of dirt shrink, but it took all day and I was getting worried that they wouldn't finish. We were also expecting rain which would have washed the soil away.

Step 5: Plant bulbs, rake dirt to smooth it out (Nov. 8th..a very long day)

This was Gabe's Job mostly and he did GREAT! He worked so hard and was Eric's right-hand man until the job was done. They were out there until 9:00 at night and all the other kids were in bed...except poor Gabe he was such a trooper!

Here is Gabe still plugging away the sun has gone down but not our Gabe. He told Eric toward the end of the day that he was feeling "flat", Eric thought that was a very good description. Later on he said that his legs felt wobbly. Poor kid...maybe there were some child labor laws violated here??

Step 6: Add some "fertilizer"

Eric thought this would be a good way to get rid of the pumpkins on our porch from Halloween...who knows maybe we will end up with a accidental pumpkin patch.

So here is the pile slowly shrinking away. The last load was definately worth documenting!

The Final Wheelbarrel

Good job Guys. What a day. Eric started out the day by asking Gabe if he wanted to earn $6. But it was such a long day and Gabe did such an awesome job that Eric gave him $20.

These guys never took a break...I brought out lunch and dinner, and lots of gatorade.

Looks good!!!

Before----------Mid-project-----------After

Before------------------------------After

Before----------Mid-project------------After

Mid-project------------------------After

Eric was finally finished but even with all this done he still felt we were missing something so just over a week later he decided to add...

Step 7: Make a compost bin (Nov. 16th)