Superhero Day

A and J's school organized a Superhero Day -- check out the results.

Green Lantern and Flash strike poses.

Facial expressions somewhere between hilarious and terrifying.

Iver thrown into the mix.

A and J just started t-ball.  Iver sporting their team cap -- Go Barracudas!

Easter egg hunt festivities.

Checking out their loot.

Last day of 2013 skiing!  Posing with their awesome instructor.

Skiing with mommy...

and Tiff.

More Skiing

A and J's 4 weeks of skiing has morphed into 8 due to popular demand.  By popular demand I mean throwing oneself onto the snow and pleading for "more skiing -- puuuh-lease".  We don't normally meet every request the twins present, but considering how much they've enjoyed skiing we signed them up for another month of lessons.

J chatting on her ride up the slope.

A sitting with his instructor.

Off they go.

Making their way down.  A is off in the distance with his arms raised to the sides of his helmet.

Lovin' it -- Part One.

Lovin' it -- Part Two.

My goofballs.

Reading -- a favorite activity in our home.

Cuddle time with Iver!

Opportunities

I feel like the doors of opportunity for Anders and Jorja have been flung wide open.  There seems to be something special about being "5 and a whole lot more" with regards to getting out there and trying new activities.  They've performed in two musical concerts -- a Winter Music Festival and a Lunar New Year Celebration, begun swimming independently in the deep end with a front crawl, flip, back stroke pattern, started skiing, competed at a chess tournament, and discovered the magic of reading a book by yourself.  Watching them discover is awesome.

Waiting to buy lift tickets on day one of skiing.

Ready to head out.

Starting out on one ski alongside her instructor.

Finding balance.

In line for a trip up the magic carpet.

Day one complete.

Tired, but accomplished, skiers.

Waiting for one of five chess rounds to begin.

Teaching Iver how to play chess.

Iver's introduction to solid food.  Despite what this picture may evoke, he seemed to enjoy it.

Holiday Festivities

Our December was packed.  Meg and I -- and the kiddos in one way or another -- are still trying to exhale a little slower.

We hosted our first annual Cookie Exchange Party.  This is something I've wanted to do for a long time, so it was great to see it come to fruition.  With nearly 35 people in our 1,600 sq ft house, the energy was nearly palpable.  Tyler and Iver embraced their holiday spirit with festive tops.

While Eric embraced his fatherly instinct and watched over the majority of the younger guests -- mesmerized by A Charlie Brown Christmas video.

Then the twins and I headed south on Amtrak for our annual Family Fun Day.

With a quick return back home -- with Grandma -- to celebrate Christmas.  Some of our Christmas bunch looking, um, festive (?).

The Sparkling Upside-Down Clementine and Blackberry Coffee Cake Crew.

Gailyn and Julie working on final touches in the kitchen.

Followed by a trip to Sunriver -- with sooo much snow.

Taking a pass on snow tubing.

Anders and Jorja descending the snow tubing hill.

 Big smiles at the bottom. 

Meg coming into the home stretch.

Ready for our one (or two) horse sleigh ride.  

Garry, Linda, Meg, and Iver settle into the sleigh.

The scenery was stunning.

Post-ride good-byes to the horses.

And a thank you.

Checking out the ride in Bend.

Jorja greeting the "chickens" in Maupin.  Despite it's small size, this town offers a lot in terms of natural beauty.

Anders petting the "horse".

Meg and the trio of kiddos in Hood River.

Happy New Year!