Ophelia

Cambrie has grown from simply enduring playing the cello, to enjoying playing the cello, to loving playing the cello.  She has asked to have lessons in addition to her work at school.  She also told us that she's been saving money so she can buy her own cello, and had about $1500 set away.  I had no idea. We went into Music & Arts to look around and see exactly how much more money she needed to reach her goal.  We were surprised to learn that we had nearly $2000 in credit accrued from all of our years of renting!  With the credit and with the money she had already saved, she was actually in a position to buy her cello immediately!  She started testing out the cellos to see which one "sang" to her.  That night she tested out three and we went back a few times to test out others they had shipped in.  Finally she found one that was perfect, Ophelia!  

To hear her play this instrument is awesome.  It has such better sound resonance than her rental.  She is in love with it and I just love hearing her play.

Two little friends

Some moms might worry when they see their kids laying like this in the living room.  It definitely looks strange.  But this is the preferred Moki & Bob play time viewing spot.  

Those two (the animals or the teenagers, you choose), are the silliest duo to watch hang out.

National Western Stock Show

As a Coloradoan I felt like it is my duty to attend at least some of the major rodeos in the area like the National Western Stock Show, the Greely Stampede, and Cheyenne Frontier Days.  We had four tickets to the pro rodeo at the National Western Stock Show and I was so excited to go.  I absolutely adore the rodeo.  I was looking forward to the fair food, the exhibits, the western wear, and of course the bull riding.  The night of the rodeo was a little chaotic as we worked out which of us would be going.  Ultimately it was decided that Jeremy, Kelton and I would go.  We arrived in time to explore a bit before the rodeo began.  In one of the barns we found a bunch of baby animals.  Watching a dozen piglets nurse was fascinating!  

We had a few photo ops with Kelton, then made our way to the arena with cotton candy and a fried Twinkie in hand.

Our seats were incredible!  They were only two rows back from the chutes which meant we could watch the cowboys all prep for their events.  We were front and center!  So many of the cowboys are young and it was so fun watching them pose for pictures as pros.  

Kelton has never been to a rodeo with so much hype.  The top pros were highlighted with lasers and spotlights.  The music was blaring and Kelton was enthralled!  

I wish I knew the stories behind each cowboy and how close they were to qualifying for their championship events.  As it was, it was still awesome to watch them do what they do.

Daxton's birthday

Daxton was a pretty lucky kid when it came to the timing of his birthday this year.  It was on a Friday where they didn't have to go to a full day of school, they only had assessments.  That meant the boys had the entire day free for adventuring.  Daxton's day began with a ride in a rocket ship down into a pile of balloons.  The boys rode down until the balloons all dispersed.  

For breakfast we feasted on green crepes, because just regular crepes wouldn't do.

  It was his year for a family birthday party, and for his activity he opted to go down to the Lego store and choose a new Lego set.  These boys don't remember ever being to a mall, so when they walked into Park Meadows their jaws were hanging open.  It was so big!  It had so much food!  It had so many stores!  There was a fountain in the center!  (This is how they chose to stroll through the mall.  My heart may have melted a bit.)

We found the Lego store pretty quickly and Daxton couldn't believe how awesome it was.  All of the sets he had just been admiring in the catalog were there right in front of him.  We spent some time just walking around looking at all of the sets, both the ones still in the boxes and the ones that had been assembled.  There's something about a Lego store that makes you feel like you can do anything!  

Since it was his birthday one of the associates let him build his own mini figure.  It was tough trying to decide what components to use!  

He eventually found the set he wanted and we decided to go explore the mall some more.  

The boys threw coins into the fountain and made wishes.  

We bought hamburgers and milkshakes.  The French fries were covered in cheese and were delicious!  

We were also lucky enough that the Cheesecake Factory was at the same mall so we could pick up the cake Daxton wanted.  Doesn't that look delicious?  It was!  It was party flavor all the way through, topped with a chocolate Happy Birthday plaque.  

He finished off his day opening presents in his rocket ship.  

One of the most adventurous gifts was his pogo stick.  Now he and McKenzie can (and do) jump on their sticks all throughout the house.  It's a good thing they have so much fun with them because they are not quiet toys!  

Happy birthday to my favorite Daxton!

Westlake Star

McKenzie has started something of a new tradition; being chosen as student of the quarter for her Core at school.  If you ask any of her teachers they will tell you that McKenzie is exactly the kind of kid they wished they had more of in class: cheerful, friendly, responsible, kind, a leader, punctual, and stays on top of all of her work.  They honored her at a pancake breakfast and I was so proud seeing her up there receiving her award.  

She is such a fabulous kid!

New ride

Jeremy has been dreaming of upgrading his little Veloster for years, but never knew exactly what he wanted.  When we stumbled across the new Ford Bronco he suddenly knew that was what he had been looking for.  It has a soft top which he can retract and cruise convertible style when he wishes.  It has incredible features for off-roading.  So many in fact that he has been reading the user manual from cover to cover, laughing with joy as he learns some new tricks.  He is guilty of taking it off of every curb, median, and snow bank in the neighborhood as he experiments with it.  He is also guilty of turning back to smile at it whenever he walks away.  He is in love with this Bronco.  I should really have made him pose next to it, but instead I snapped a quick, "first day of work," picture.  He is so ridiculously happy. 

 

McKenzie is 13!

Happy birthday McKenzie!  We officially have another teenager in the house.  Wow, that is weird.  The poor girl had to go to school on her birthday, but she still got her banana chocolate chip scone for breakfast!  

We even squeezed in time for her to open one of her gifts before she left for school.  It's a heavy box to be bopping her on the head with, but she didn't seem to mind.  

She got a pogo stick.  She practiced all morning, determined to hop through her wall of balloons.  

She didn't get a chance to open any of her other presents until after gymnastics.  She got some new glow-in-the-dark stars for her bedroom, a donut baking kit, and a new fuzzy rug for her bedroom.  She definitely has one of the most styled rooms in the house now. 

It was her year for a friend party and she chose to go to an escape room with her friends.  About half of them have done escape rooms before so they knew what to expect.  It was the first time for the other half.  The girls had one hour to solve all of the riddles to unlock the door.  I waited out in the front room while they worked at it so I didn't get to see how they did, but I heard occasional conversations with their front desk helper.  That particular room only has a 37% success rate and I honestly wasn't sure if they would be able to make it out in time.  They did, with only 16 sec. to spare!  As we were driving back home, the girls wanted me to turn around so they could attempt another room because they had so much fun.  

Back at the house we kept things really simple: food and hanging out time.  I set up everything I thought the partying girls would need then I went back upstairs to let them party.  I came down for cake, which was delicious.  

And for presents at the end.  McKenzie has such a gift for being a gracious gift receiver.  She makes you feel like you give the perfect give every time.  She went around and gave each one of her friends a huge heartfelt hug and thank you. 

 The friends she invited came from church, school, the neighborhood and gymnastics.  There were five middle schools represented among the seven girls.  McKenzie was an amazing hostess and made each one of them feel welcomed and included.  Her gift with people is astounding.  

Happy birthday sweetheart!  I can't wait to see who you grow up to be.