Friday ski day

We took advantage of the stars aligning for us to have the perfect big mountain ski day:
we are in between HS sports - so no meets, games, practices or events committed,  and a predicted perfect weather day. 

So Friday we bypassed our usual ‘local’ ski hill and went all the way to Vail for some pretty amazing skiing. It truly was an epic day of back bowls and blue skies. The skiing was great, but for me the best part was spending the day just the 3 of us and watching the boys ooh and ahh over Vail's vast terrain and gorgeous views.
Pictures don’t do it justice.... and we didn’t take very many as we were too busy skiing! 

We may hit up Sunlight for another fun ski day with friends, but yesterday definitely goes in the record books!

JV Basketball

It was a good winter season of time in the gym.... and Hamp played some really great basektball!
He had a winning season with the JV team and most of all, loved playing with these guys.

If I knew more about the game I would report on some of Hamp's stats, what position he usually played, or maybe anything interesting about how this team played.
But all I can say (as his biggest fan!) is that I LOVE watching him play and I LOVE how much he enjoys being a part of the team. 

So while the Varsity team is still practicing for post-season tournament play, Hamp is enjoying his week off with some High School play rehearsal, some open gym for baseball, and a Friday ski day!

Fundraising

15 years ago, one dedicated Meeker High School science teacher and conservation enthusiast starting taking students on summer trips through a program called Ecology Project International. Trips have involved studying wildlife in Costa Rica, Belize, and the Sea of Cortez.

This summer, Hamp will get to be one of those students with a new leader who is equally as enthusiastic and happens to be a great friend, too! A small group of 8 MHS students have signed up to go to the Galapagos National Park for 2 weeks to study the island and marine wildlife.

In order to help pay for the trip, the group of parents and students involved hosted a fundraiser dinner in Meeker - including a silent auction and fun entertainment. The event was a huge success, in most part due to the generosity of our community and so many people who participated and donated. It was great to see the kids all help prepare, serve and clean up from the dinner and I think they all got a sense of just how lucky they are to be a part of something so exciting.

Hamp will be headed out on June 8th and I could not be more excited for him...

The Galapagos crew in front of one of the silent auction items - a helicopter flight!

Birthday week

This was Sam's idea/creation for a birthday cake...
so fitting for my yin & yang boys!

This year, Hamp spent his birthday on the basketball court helping his JV team to win in Vail. He was happy to be with his friends and playing ball and not at all impressed with my efforts to call attention to him with a birthday balloon! Later in the week he passed his driver's test with flying colors...

Sam's enthusiasm for baking didn't end with the cake - he also made dozens of cupcakes for the middle school dance. Between gymnastics, math club, weight lifting, pep band and the dance - Sam had plenty of after school fun this week!

I swear he only ever makes that face when I ask him to smile for a picture....
despite appearances he was pretty happy to get his "official" birthday gift - registration & insurance for his car!

Our dear friends were kind enough to hand down a car for Hamp - a '97 Nissan that has seen some road wear but also has great tires and is perfect for a town car! He's pretty excited to not bum rides off friends anymore...

But Hamp wasn't the only one cruisin' around for his birthday...
The week culminated with a snowmobile trail ride at Sunlight Mountain for all three of us!
It was a perfect day of sunshine and speed and snow.


On top of everything, we quietly noticed the 5-year anniversary of losing Jason.
While Hamp was playing basketball (again!) and Sam was playing in the pep-band I was thinking about how much Jason has missed these last 5 years.... and how happy and proud he would be with how his boys are growing up. He would have loved the snowmobile ride and the birthday cake and would have beamed with pride as Hamp drained a 3-point shot and Sam played his trombone.
Most of all, he would have been so proud of his boys driving off together in that little car...

Merry Christmas

We started our holiday season off the same way we plan to spend it - with friends!
Our annual tree hunt was marked by warm weather, good friends and just enough snow for a quick snowball fight. Not a better way to spend a Sunday afternoon in December than wandering in the middle of nowhere and finding the perfect tree...

From there we enjoyed the usual Meeker holiday traditions:

~ A band concert by Sam where he had a flute solo and a (somewhat impromptu!) trombone solo. He loves music and works hard in the band to master two instruments. But really... he enjoys being with his friends.

~ A JV basketball game (go #12!) where they played hard and it payed off with a win.
Oh, and Hamp loves his team and being with, you guessed it, his friends!

~ An inaugural day on the slopes at Sunlight Mountain! The snow conditions are still pretty meager, but when the weather is warm and there are plenty of friends to take runs with it's worth it!




~ And perhaps my favorite holiday tradition is the 6th annual Framily (friend-family) gathering and photo! It's just a potluck dinner party, but it's with some of my favorite people who I hardly get to see throughout the year. So we make time to all be together in December and try to document it. With babies, kids and dogs it makes for some fun attempts at a group photo...

This is pretty unusual for us - staying in Meeker for Christmas. We have almost always made a point to travel during the holidays to be with family... which has afforded us some really amazing memories, both of sweet family time and crazy holiday travel adventures! The crazy holiday travel, I won't miss. But the cherished moments with grandparents, cousins, aunts and uncles are what have always made our holidays special. So this year we will cozy up around our perfect tree, have Christmas dinner with dearest friends, and make new memories with just us and our Meeker people.... which is pretty much like family anyway!

raison d’etre

As winter settles in, we move on to a little basketball.

Hamp kicked off his sophomore JV season with a 3-day weekend tournament where he played really well. But what I noticed was that while the free throws were going on, he was visiting with the other team! He says that he has played against these same guys for years and they were just reminiscing about past games.... but I realized that between his teammates and the guys on the court, Hamp loves the people as much as (maybe more than?!) the game itself. As long as he is happy - either rebounding or chatting up the defense - I am happy! And for the next 3 months you’ll find me in the gym.... 

Thankful for family

This was one lucky holiday...
Not only did we pull off a great surprise for Grammy and the cousins, but our travels to and fro were right on the tail of the bad early winter storms! I think it was meant to be.



We pulled up Wednesday evening to a houseful of family - some of whom were expecting us and some of whom were NOT!
It was a great way to kick off 3 days of fun family time... including lots of amazing food, music, games and birthday well-wishes.

Our visit was in honor of Grammy's 95th birthday last week!
She is amazing, and so sweet to all her great-grands.


On top of Grammy's big birthday, we celebrated another gorgeous girl - sweet Charlotte Rose turned 3! She was showered with fun presents and a beautiful cake and of course, plenty of attention from all her family.


It was a quick trip for sure, but it felt like a shot in the arm of good family time until we can get together next summer! And it only seemed appropriate that it was the Thanksgiving holiday because we were full of gratitude for our safe travels, our good weather, our delicious feast, and each other.