FlowRider

With $25 burning a hole in Megan's pocket by the next day, she talked Jeff into doing the FlowRider with her. We are just grateful he is willing to give into her whims so we don't have.

We made an appointment for them at 6:00 on Saturday. We rushed down there only to find the session didn't have enough people to begin. We decided to go to dinner and then try the 7:00 session. That proved to be a great option. Somehow Jeff and Megan ended up being the only 2 people on their side. The other half had been rented so they let just 2 come on.

They basically rode the waves until they were worn out. Megan even had sores on her hips from going so often. Thanks Jeff! We had a great time watching.
Here is video of Megan showing off her moves. She got better as the night went on, but our battery went dead when she "was really good."

Hooray for Hoops!

Last Friday, Wendell was able to get tons of tickets to the Weber basketball game. Tyler always finds his seat of choice---away from the crowds at the very top.

Megan and Emily like to be in the thick of the crowd. At the beginning of the game, a blimp came around and Megan chased it down. It dropped a Visa gift card at one point and Megan fought off about 3 boys to claim the card. She was thrilled to suddenly go from no money to $25.00.

Wendell also had a productive night. His named was called to shoot a basket from the free throw line at half-time. He sunk the shot with nothing but net. Now he gets the chance to shoot on February 13th and win a gift certificate to a jewelry store. No one is pulling for him more than me. He did a great job under pressure.

Tyler finally moved down by us by the end of the game. A fun night that actually proved profitable.

Inspirational!

The charter schools hold an Inspirations contest which is similar to the Reflections contest held in other schools. I was on the committee to help and the kids saw that they could win a medal if they won. Emily and Tyler were all over this. Megan, Tyler, and Emily decided the easiest way to get a medal would be to enter the photography category. Emily came in 3rd place with her entry. (By the way I wasn't involved in the judging.) Emily also entered the visual arts with a great picture she drew and ended up getting a ribbon for Honorable Mention. That was almost as cool as the medal to her.

I think she is trying to make her fellow Kindergarteners jealous by flaunting her medal. Maybe that is what it takes to get more to enter next year.

Megan won second place with her entry. The awards were given during a talent show and Megan was the co-host of the show. When she announced her own name as winning she just picked up her medal put it on and moved on with business. She did a great job as the MC. I think she loves to hear her voice in the microphone.

Tyler's entry won 3rd place and Megan got to hand him his medal and certificate. I think he was embarrassed it was his sister that presented it to him. Even with that aside, he finally has earned a medal that he can display in his room. Great job!

This is Emily's entry to describe the "Power of One."

Tyler thought a clock represented the "Power of One." He said just one inventor made a difference in time. Pretty good. I think they were just looking around the house for something easy to take a picture of.

This was Megan's entry. She said the light from just one lamp can light up an entire room.

Day Off!

Martin Luther King Day is a great day off of school and work. Megan planned the day. She wanted to head to Salt Lake to look at motorhomes, of all things. She is obsessed with motorhomes after going this summer to Jackson Hole. We looked and found a lot of really dirty r.v.s, but nothing we were really excited about---especially since we are not buying.
After looking at motorhomes we went to eat at the Mayan.
The food is o.k., but the kids really like the restaurant for the divers and the atmosphere.
And then to end a great day together, we went to Fat Cat's to spend the tokens they got for Christmas. It's always fun to have a calm, low-key holiday.

Family Night!

Once a month we get together with Mammy and Jeff for game night. This month Mammy was in charge and decided we should all go ice skating. Megan had been one other time and this was the first for Tyler and Emily. Just getting the skates on was an ordeal.

Emily wasn't quite sure about the whole slick thing.

Tyler started off in hockey skates, but we soon realized he needed the toe pick of figure skates to keep from going backwards. He had a rough start, but the new skates did wonders.

Megan hit the ice like a pro. Her legs must be strong from tumbling, because she had no problem going around the rink.

Emily spent a lot of time worried she would fall. She cried a few times, but kept on sliding.

Tyler got the hang of it pretty quickly and took off like a maniac around the rink. He didn't mind falling and I think he actually liked when he fell.

Emily did venture out from the wall on occasion.

I love this picture. Emily fell right as I was taking this and then had a melt down. Tyler said she was so embarrassing. The rink closed at 8:00 and Tyler and Megan could have gone longer. Who would have guessed ice skating would be a huge hit? The best part for Emily was the hot chocolate and scones at Mammy's after.

Welcome 2010!

We started New Year's Eve off with pizza and then on to see "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs." Emily liked the candy more than the movie. She told Megan half way through the flick that it was the "boringest" movie she had ever seen. Tyler seemed to like it and Megan was just happy to be watching with cousins. Wendell liked that he could rest his eyes before the long evening ahead.
After the movie we all went back to Mammy's for games and more food.
Then finally, the moment of truth came. The kids donned hats, horns, and blowers to await the ball dropping. They were more energetic than the adults at this point. They loved counting down with the TV and then all chaos broke loose.
There were streamers and balloons flying. We love New Year's Eve. What a fun way to bring in a new year.

Christmas Break!

What a whirl-wind 2 weeks of partying. We had sleep-overs, went to movies, out to dinner, Wii championships, and of course lots of fun. The kids tried their best at Band Hero, but we are definitely lacking in musical skills in our family. Thanks to Natalie and Doug they were able to unlock a few songs for us.

Wendell's parents treated everyone to a night out in Salt Lake and a sleep-over at a hotel during the break. We went to the Spaghetti Factory, the Planetarium, and Temple Square.

Emily insisted on seeing the Christus. We waited in the long lines to get to the top and then Emily looked for about 1 minute and said she was ready to go. I'm not sure what she was expecting, but it didn't live up to her time in line. We all thought it was great, though. It's always nice to take time out of our day to be reminded about the important things.

A fun night looking at lights.

The favorite part of any hotel is always the pool. With all the cousins in the pool, it was almost filled to capacity.

Megan also tried her hand at skiing over the break. She was very concerned about looking cool on the hill. She went with Wendell, Grandpa Tom, and Jeff and did her best to keep up. She was so excited that she made it down a black diamond hill---I was impressed she came home in one piece. She now keeps asking to go every weekend. Tyler and Emily decided it sounded like more fun to spend the day at the Treehouse museum. I was more than happy to oblige. (It was a lot warmer.)

What is the break without some sledding? We tackled the hills at El Monte Golf Course. The hills were lots of fun to sled down on, but really hard to get back up. Emily only lasted a couple of runs.

Tyler and Wendell went down as fast as they could get back up.

Megan was also a die-hard. She tried some of the jumps and tried to find the slickest runs.

This picture says it all about their energy levels after an hour of sledding and the entire break for that matter. It was a lot of hard work, but really fun. It will take us a year to recover enough for next Christmas.