days and moments

It's been a while...

... and in thinking about what adventures we've had lately that I could talk about, I realized that despite not having any special pictures or stories to share we have nonetheless stayed busy and happy and adventurous!

We did ski this weekend - day #8! It's been a very good season indeed. Having all four of us on the mountain together has been such a joy! In fact, I did not bring the camera last weekend, but if I had I would have just left it aside to totally soak in the feeling of skiing as a family! The light at the end of the looooooong (7 year?) tunnel has been reached and it's very beautiful. In fact, the sounds of Hamp encouraging his younger brother to "c'mon", and then Sam yelling at everyone "See ya, sucka!" as he zooms past (like he even knows what that means?!?!!) have made my whole winter...

And the best part about this ski season is our new ski storage:

(gotta love living in a small town where your equipment stays outside all season long with no worries!)

Otherwise there have been high school basketball games to watch, friends to play with, train sets to build, movies to watch, Sam's music and dance classes and Hamp's after school program at the Rec Center... and oh yeah did I mention friends to play with!!!

and now for deep thoughts:

So there have been many good days lately and within those days have been so many fun and funny and sweet moments between all of us as a family and as friends that I couldn't begin to know or mention them all - but I do know that when a tragedy strikes in a small community it is exponentially difficult to accept and it weighs on my mind heavy this week as my heart goes out to a mother who lost her son and a family and community who lost a beautiful young man. It it equally frightening and encouraging as a mother to be so harshly reminded at how precious these lives are and how instantly they can change forever. I am encouraged because I know that I do my best to cherish every moment together and create lives for my family that we can enjoy, be proud of, and think back on fondly.

And so, may there be many more adventures...