Snow Painting

The snow that has fallen is too fluffy to build anything with, which is disappointing but it means we have to come up with new games.  I filled water bottles with dyed water and let the girls paint our front yard.  It definitely was not precise but it was still fun.  McKenzie had a hard time controlling the paint and instead decided to cover the yard in colorful glitters.  

Cambrie was able to write her name, draw some shooting stars, and be her characteristically creative self.  

And I whipped up a stick-figure skier performing some big air tricks.  (It's a little sad my six-year-old out-drew me).

It would have been nice to spend the next few days admiring our artwork before the canvas melted, but mother nature decided to dump four more inches of snow since then.  Finally, it is winter!  Now it's time to stay cuddled inside with our jammies and goodies to munch.

Snow in Breck

Last year we were so impressed by the snow carving festival in Breckenridge that we decided to go again.  There was a crazy sense of deja-vu as we walked from the car since the girls immediately picked up snow and started throwing snowballs at each other.  

It was different however because I had a warm bundle strapped to me for the whole experience.  Neither Jeremy nor I thought that purple was Kelton's color and had to borrow a snowsuit from a friend.  He was super happy to be out and about and seemed to be super warm and comfy.  

Before we reached the sculptures, we past by the sponsors square.  The sponsors used clear blocks of ice for their carvings.  We found a penguin.  

An eskimo and whale.  

And a great ice throne.

When we found the snow carvings the first thing I noticed was how crowded it was.  I'm not really surprised since it was Saturday and the first viewing day since the carvings were completed, but it was still tricky to navigate with little kids.  More than once I would turn around and McKenzie was simply not there.  Once however we couldn't find her after a quick glance.  I began to panic a little bit as Jeremy and I split up to go looking for her.  It must not have been longer than a minute or two before I heard Jeremy calling my name.  A family had found McKenzie and were just getting ready to take her to the policemen on the side of the festival when we found her.  She was crying since she was scared and it kind of tainted the rest of the visit for her.  I felt bad because really we had just gotten started, but she wanted to go home.  The only thing that cheered her up was the snow slide we found.  This was a very popular attraction.  The slide was so slick that even after the kids got to the bottom, they kept sliding on their bums across the icy pavement.

It was a good thing we took pictures of the carvings because even now I can't remember them that clearly, we must have really rushed through it.  As I look back though the pictures though I love looking at the details the artists put into some of the sculptures. 

This was entitled "The Man in the Moon," and "The Dark Side of the Moon."  The girls didn't like the dark side because the moon looked a little crazy with fangs.  But he was smiling here so that was okay.

A fisherman unaware of the sea monster just below him.

I think this was was "Winter Sun," but we just thought they looked like fun snowflakes.

We thought Kelton would appreciate the dinosaur sculpture best.

This one had a butterfly...enough said.  The girls thought this was their favorite.

Geometric balancing disks and a really buff husband.

Kids tubing down a hill and a silly face from Cambrie.

It's hard to see, but I love the spots they put on this Dalmatian behind Jeremy.

After the girls had their fill of the crowds and the sculptures, we headed to the river bed to play.  The sledding hill wasn't as carved out this year so instead they built a snow tunnel.  It didn't take long before every kid around was trying to help Jeremy and the girls put the tunnel together.  The chunks of snow left over by the plows made quick work of construction.  

Kelton had some freedom to play in the snow too.  He was interested in what he was sitting in, but couldn't grab it because of his snowsuit.  So he improvised and face planted to try to get some in his mouth.  He wasn't even upset that his face had been covered with snow.

McKenzie was all worn out and tried taking a nap on my lap.  It didn't really work but at least she got to rest a bit.

Too soon in my mind it was time to go.  We left behind the snow covered streets, main street shop windows, and mountain views to head for home.  I simple can't get enough of that town.

First Zoo Trip

I decided to take the kiddos to the zoo on Wednesday.  I was just hoping the weather would be reasonable and my kids wouldn't freeze.  Luckily it wasn't bad.  Had they worn all of the hats, gloves, and coats I brought with us we could have lasted all afternoon.  As it was, their stubbornness at wearing winter clothing limited us to barely two hours, but we still had a good time.  We saw a porcupine, which I thought was pretty neat and the girls thought was awesome since in their mind it is pretty close to a hedgehog.

They loved watching the tigers....and Spotty did too.  

The kids' picture next to the giraffe was not super successful..,.

...but I had a little better luck in the tropical rainforest house with at least two of them looking.  

Cambrie spotted every frog to satisfy her obsession, and every turtle to satisfy the obsession of a classmate, Kate.  I am supposed to be printing off one of these pictures of a turtle to give to Kate actually.  

We saw the new elephant exhibit for the first time, and I can only imagine how alive it is during the summer.  It looks great.  McKenzie was baffled as to why there were elephant footprints on the ground that didn't lead anywhere.  

Kelton was a trooper and even though he didn't notice a single animal, he was just happy to be out and about.  

I tried one more time before we left to get a good picture of all three kids, and figured that this was about as good as it was going to get.  The kids were freezing by this point and we were all looking forward to hot cocoa and dinner at home.  

Princess McKenzie

Today was Princess McKenzie's four-year-old princess birthday party.  We have spent all week getting ready and she couldn't wait.  She was up at 6:15 this morning asking if it was time for her birthday party.  Alas, she had to wait until lunch time for the celebration to begin.  All of her guests were invited to come in princess dresses, and McKenzie had just the dress in mind, her Easter dress from last year.  Luckily it fits her better now than it did nine months ago.  

We played all sorts of fun and silly princess games: Kiss the frog prince, 

Rescue the princess obstacle course, Don't drop the poison apples, and we had a castle pinata.  

This was my first time hosting a birthday party at our house and I have to say that it was a little bit crazy.  Good crazy, but crazy.  There were kids all over the place wanting to play the games.  Twirling girls in their gowns, and pleas for birthday cake.  What a blast!  After the chaos of the games subsided, Jeremy showed up with pizza.  Miraculously not a single guest dropped their pizza, juice, or forthcoming cake on the ground.  

McKenzie requested a pink princess cake with a tiara on top, and she was thrilled with this creation.  As a surprise it was also pink, purple, and red on the inside.  She also requested pink ice-cream...which we forgot in the freezer and will now be munching on this week :)  

Then it was on to presents.  When moms would ask what she was into, it was hard for me to answer.  She is so easy to please right now, anything will make her happy.  

I think her favorite gift of the day was her new pair of sparkle princess earrings.  We love our little princess.  

Here are a few highlights about our Miss McKenzie.
~She loves Belgian waffles with strawberries and whipped cream.
~She eats a peanut butter and jelly sandwich almost every day for lunch.  For variety she gets to choose which shape we cut it into.
~When it is her turn to choose a cartoon in the morning, she chooses Cambrie's favorite just to be nice.
~She is learning what sounds the letters make and walks around asking, "What says 'guh,'?"
~She loves wearing her pink princess "swippers"
~She still dances spontaneously when she hears music playing.
~I absolutely love her sweet smile.
~Naturally, her favorite colors are pink and purple.
~She wears a skirt almost every day.
~I paint her toenails more often than everyone else in the house combined.  She loves it when I paint each one a different color.
~She gets so proud when she shows me she made her bed all by herself.
~When she cleans up a messy room she makes me close my eyes before walking me in to show me what she's done.
~She loves hugging Kelton, but isn't afraid to sound the spit-up alert.
~She still loves gymnastics and I love watching her on the beam.
~Most of all, she loves her family and we are so grateful that she is part of our lives.

Rogers Family Pics

Last year when we took family pictures with the Rogers, I already knew that they were outdated since I was pregnant with Kelton.  I felt a little guilty about it until Alysha announced that she was expecting too, and then outdated pictures were no longer just my fault.  It was probably about time that we replace the family picture hanging in Leesa's entryway since Cambrie was only a month old.  So the morning before we left for Utah we squeezed in a family photo shoot at a great little studio at the District.  I was nervous.  Trying to get my three kids to cooperate, plus a little baby....?  But we crossed our fingers, ironed our shirts, and hoped for the best.  Looking at the pictures now, I am thrilled with how they turned out.  At least my kids who know how to smile on demand are smiling.  

Now I can check "update our family picture" off my list.  Whew!

McKenzie's First 4th Birthday Party

McKenzie's birthday was the same day as Stockton's blessing.  While the morning belonged to the Kings, we still tried to make McKenzie's birthday special for her.  She requested spaghetti and rolls for her birthday dinner.  

And a princess cake for the birthday party.  

Faye was able to join us for the celebration.  The girls love spending whatever time they can with their cousin.   

McKenzie was thrilled to see some sparkling new clothes, 

a jewelry box, 

and money.  She still doesn't really know what to do with the money, but she knows it's a good thing to have.  

Birthday gifts.

She looks absolutely beautiful and grown up already.