Fancy Nancy New Years Eve 2013

Fancy Nancy New Year's Eve lives on!

Once again, in the spirit of the kids book series called Fancy Nancy, the kids were able to dress as posh as they could imagine and help me and dad do the same for our New Year's celebration. There were glittered eyelids and nails, sparkly dresses, and hats, and dad sported his tuxedo.

After we got dolled up, we headed out to Old Ebbit Grill for dinner. I packed little fun bags for the kids and decorations for the table. After doing this for several years, the staff now recognize us and treat us so kindly.

It was a little too cold this year for playing around the White House tree, but we were able to enjoy the area a bit and everyone had a ball at dinner. Happy New Years!

Wintertime

Here are a few tidbits from this holiday season…

Chanukah was way early this year and so we started celebrating early.

Uncle Brad fed a dangerous habit with gift cards to the American Girl Store. These dolls are like a drug. To say that Zoe, Mia, and Sophie loved shopping would be an understatement.

Grandpa Barbara and Grandpa Ed sent live lobsters which was both horrifying and delicious.

There were several holiday outings with face painting involved.

 Zoolights was especially fun this year. It was the first time we went tubing and rode the carousel.

The kids were disappointed at first not to see the giant panda inside his usual bubble with falling snow, but when they realized that instead they got to visit with the panda directly, they were relieved.

Brookside Gardens was as beautiful as ever. We went on a relatively warm night so we were able to stay outside and visit longer.

We all agreed that the sea dragon with her baby sea dragon was our favorite light displays.

The Botanical Gardens is always a treat. It is amazing what the craftsmen and women create out of exclusively plant material and the night concerts are wonderful.

We had some special dinner guests that the kids adopted immediately in to the family. Thank you Pearl and Seymour.

And, we mastered the 1,000 piece puzzle, and more importantly, reclaimed our dining room table after weeks of puzzle making.

Breckenridge, CO - December 2013

We made it out to Breckenridge, Colorado for a ski trip this winter after a quick stop in Denver to play with some friends. 

We used to live in Breckenridge, and it has a special place in our heart. We got engaged while we lived there as well. We were eager to go back and visit all our favorite spots. We were also so excited that Grandpa Steven, Grandma Bette, and Uncle Brad were all able to come play with us!

 

 The kids went to ski school while the grown ups skied. The weather was great, the snow was great - I was so happy to be back on skies. 

And, so were the kids! Everyone skied although there's no pictures of Sophie on skies because we could never catch her in time. 

On our day away from skiing, we went ice skating, tubing, and swimming.  Tubing was seriously fun and we'll definitely do it again next time we visit.

If only our hotel reservation wasn't screwed up on the last night, forcing us all to sleep in one cruddy hotel room and leading to a cranky plane ride home the following day, it would have been a perfect trip. Can't wait to go back!

Great Wolf Lodge - 2013

We finally graduated to the Howlin Tornado water slide this visit, and it's fun! We're also finally figuring out the MagiQuest game and how to avoid the lame restaurant on-site. (No pictures of Mia this trip - we were too busy having fun to take many.)

 

Zoe Speak

When coloring holiday cards, "I'm going to first pick blue. What other color should I use? Hmmm. I choose green because blue and green are friends."

Kid Speak

Zoe: I’m really good at accents. I can do regular and baby and both at the same time.

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Mia (on the airplane): Zoe, if you don’t throw up and I do, can I borrow your throw up bag?

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Zoe: Let’s eat up peeps so we can take our cans outside.

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Sophie: When we were at grandpa's house and we were driving, I saw a deer.

Dad: Was it a reindeer?

Sophie: No, it was sunny.

Launch - Vandenberg Air Force Base 2013

I feel so thoroughly blessed to have been invited to attend a rocket launch by a client this winter. I drove out to Vandenberg Air Force Base in California with two company executives. Throughout the drive, we were getting regular updates about the likelihood of the launch given the conditions. The launch window was scheduled for near midnight, and so we headed down to the base after dinner to follow the pre-launch feeds and checks. It was very touch and go whether or not it would launch as planned given the colder than typical temperatures. The sky was crystal clear, but if the temperature falls below a certain point, the vehicle can't fly.

But, it did! It was a complete thrill for me. During the pre-launch, we watched a screen like the one below while we listened to the various checks. 

We went outside at take off to watch the sky-line explode at T - 0. It was incredible. It was also very quiet. It wasn't until the rocket got to the edge of the atmosphere that we heard and felt the sound rumbling towards us from across the field. 

As it exited our atmosphere, we could see the plume spread out like wings lifting the rocket up and out of our sight.

After, we came back inside to watch video of the vehicle in space beginning it's orbit. It's watched very closely to ensure everything progresses as anticipated. Then, there's an after party for those involved. It was a very long night, and I'd happily do it again. 

The icing on the cake: as we drove off the base in the wee hours of the morning, I saw a shooting star - my first.