Thanksgiving, dance parties and....skiing!

 Dylan loves to paint. We do this almost everyday, usually with fun songs and lots of hand prints. In this picture he was telling me exactly how to do what he wanted for this picture with several details that all ended up looking like hand prints. Dylan says everything takes "forevah" and loves puppet shows with Ava, other Ava, horsy shark, puppy and two-can. They all like to eat the alligator. He still likes to do his "bottom dance" and hosts dance parties whenever possible.



Costumes are again a major form of entertainment around here. I love it. For several weeks after Halloween, Dylan did not leave the house without his muscleman suit, superman or soldier costume. This night we were having karate/tackle/ninja sword fighting.

 And then there is real kempo karate class------they have started sparring. Colter quickly declared this to be his favorite thing EVER! He was so excited that he sat still and paid attention the entire time, that says something. He is doing really well with this class and seems to enjoy karate. He says that he wants to compete, especially in sparring, in a few years. His teacher is amazing and has a great way with all the kids.

 Seriously, do you see the smile on his face? Not sure where Loudon's helmet was in this pic. Loudon is one of Colter's new buddies. He lives across the creek from us and the boys now have walkie talkie that they can use to talk to each other from house to house. So funny to hear the "Loudon, are you there, OVER 10-4 buddy"

 We went to Durango and rode on the Polar Express train. It has been a few years since we have made the trip and I'm glad we did. It is so cute and I'm not sure how many more years we have of Colter thinking it is fun.

 Dylan was so excited when Santa gave him the silver bell from his sleigh.

 This is Dylan's buddy Ryder and his mom Annica. Dylan is loving all of his new friends. He is planning this amazing sleep over with his friends Ryder, Magnus, Porter and Gideon (maybe in a year or two?).

Dylan and Noah in the little Jeep. I remember when Eli, Colter and Gideon fit in this! These two were whipping around the yard and playing together so nicely.

 At Uncle Rob's house there are several levels of driver's license: student license., solo license. and passenger license. (meaning you can have passengers). This picture is Colter with his solo license practicing so that he can earn his passenger license. He is very proud of his progress.

 Gideon and Dylan had their first sleepover together at Modee and Pappy's house while Colter had a sleepover at Eli's. Everybody had fun and it was a great bonding time for the these two.

It is that time of year again. Cold and snow are not always my best friends, but we do have fun together most of the time. This is the next step in sledding at Modee and Pappy's, first was the front yard, now it's the hydroplant hill. Great teamwork and a couple of good wrecks made for a fun afternoon.

Next up was snowmobiling at Rob and Sheila's. Colter has been solo and passenger approved since last year, and Dylan was doing his student training with Daddy. "Look Mom-No Hands" over the jump was the last step to solo status.

He was so excited to drive by himself, we couldn't get him to stop! He did a great job and I think both of my boys will be great drivers like Daddy, maybe a bit crazy for Mommy to watch!

Turkey Carving class was cute and since it involved large knives, all boys were interested. They all took turns and did good.

 Dylan takes his hide and seek very seriously, Noah is along for the ride on this one. Noah had declared that couch the Moab boat and anyone that sat on it was on his trip to Moab. He and Dylan are both very excited to get back to the desert as soon as possible, of course so are we!

 As Dylan says "yippie, shippy" it's skiing time! We are having a super fun time so far. Dylan declared "no harness, I ski mine own self" and he is. He is skiing great and can do The Meadows like a champ. He giggles when he falls and says "wipe out". He has great speed control and can turn when he wants to. AHHHHH.....FREEDOM! This will be the first year in five that we won't be bent over with a kid between our legs or running a harness down the slopes. Don't get me wrong, I am glad we started them at such an early age, they love to get out and it saved all of our sanity to get out of the house and on the slopes in any capacity these last few years. It is so fun to watch them learn. grow and enjoy their time skiing and so much easier to get everyone going when they can be a bigger part of process. Colter is a great skier and is jumping, racing and even doing runs with friends by himself. He and Rocky made laps all day today while Anneliese and I skied with the littler guys.

 Dylan has a little "hot chocolate" dance he does on the last run when he knows it is time to go in for a little break, I will have to get that one on video.

 One of Trevor's friends is Danny Thompson, son of Mickey Thompson of Mickey Thompson Off Road, and he lives in Ridgway. He has a great shop that is basically a museum of cool race cars, trucks and motorcycles. This is the unofficial fastest car in the world (unofficial because it only ran one time down the track instead of two because of weather). Danny was nice enough to let the boys sit in it and let Colter ask all the questions he could think of and believe me he kept Danny busy. The boys loved it and Dylan thought it was an airplane. I think Trevor was happier than the boys!

Colter's room Christmas tree. He chopped it down, hauled it to the truck, set it up and decorated it. He is so creative and resourceful! He decorated it with some of his artwork, gave it a tree skirt and put a stuffed puppy under it to guard it (and because he wants a dog under the big tree Christmas morning......maybe next year buddy).

Dylan and Ryder waiting for Santa. Now it is on to Christmas season. Wow, where did the year go? It has been another whirlwind of activity. I am soaking up every precious moment with my family and doing my best to enjoy and remember all of the sweet, fun, cuddly, entertaining, and beautiful things that occur every day while my boys are young. I can't believe how fast the boys are growing and changing, I love them as my babies and also love seeing them grow, explore, learn and gain their independence. This Mommy thing is such an amazing journey of holding them close and letting them go at the same time.