Christmas!

This year we hunkered down and enjoyed being in Vermont for Christmas.  It was such a treat to be home.  Bumpa and Grandpa came up to celebrate with us and we had a lot of wonderful "down time".

Ugly Christmas Sweater Decorating Contest-- Cally won ugliest & Hazen won prettiest

Reading "Twas the Night Before Christmas" with Grandma

Bumpa and John trying to put together the marble elevator after Grandma and I gave up

A sunny walk in Mills Riverside Park with Scott and Cynthia

Skating up at Stowe

Otter Slide!

Festive Cement Mixer in Burlington

After a few days without visitors, Nana and Grandpa came up for New Years weekend:

Hazey giving his homemade jam to Grandpa

Cal and Nana

It was so great to spend time with both sets of grandparents over the break.  They spoil the children with so much love and affection.  Cally and Hazen absolutely adore spending time with Nana, Grandpa, Bumpa, and Grandma.  We love having them around.  

Taking advantage of grandparents in the house for an early morning tour

Eight is Great!

This is 8.  Our gal Cal is such a special little person.  She continues to amaze me with her curiosity, courage, compassion, and spunk.  She marches to the beat of her own drummer.  It is so fun getting to know her more and more everyday. We love her with all our heart and can't believe she'll be driving in another 8 years!?!?!?!?

To celebrate 8, we thought we'd do a quick and easy party.  We'd have a handful of friends over after school, take them to see the movie "Sing" and eat pizza before they went home.  It ended up being a little more complicated than I thought it would be-- finding seven car seats, feeding kids with food allergies, and losing my wallet all made for a hectic day.

But it all worked out and Cal felt pretty great on her special day.  Piper, Thompson, Lila, Cadence, Izzy, Josie, and Celine all celebrated with her.  The movie was perfect!

We continued the celebration the next day with Bumpa, Grandma, Tom, Cynthia, Cara, and Scott. Cally is so lucky to be surrounded by so many people who love her and appreciate her for exactly who she is.

And the sun came out for a great afternoon ski before the second celebration began.

We love you so much Macalister Jane!  Being your mom has been one of the greatest gifts I have ever received.  You make me think, but most importantly, you make me a better person. 

It's Beginning to Look a lot Like Christmas......

I love the holidays.  I love all the traditions that we have in our family.  The kids get so fired up about decorating the tree, writing letters to Santa Clause, making gingerbread houses, putting up lights, etc.  THis year we managed to see Santa at the Jericho Store, see the Nutcracker at the Flynn, and cut down a really special Christmas tree at High Meadow. 

This tree was growing on the dam for the pond up at high meadow.  I guess it is not good for a dam to have trees running roots along it.  Cynthia and Scott showed the kid the tree this summer and told us we should use it for a Christmas tree.  John wasn't sure if it would be good enough for our home, but he agreed that it would be a "special tree", somewhat Charlie Brownish.

Sadly, I don't have a single picture of our beautiful Christmas tree (all decorated), but it was a great tree.  There were some large openings, but it looked amazing. 

Every December, I am reminded of the year when Cally was in my belly.  We were living at High Meadow and I was so anxious to meet her.  She liked being in there, because she hung out for an extra 11 days.  In those days, John and I did all the Christmas traditions that we didn't think we'd have time to do--- cutting down a tree, decorating the house, making cookies.  Being able to cut our tree from this special spot warmed my heart. 

December Snow!

Nordic skiing up in Smugglers Notch

We have found the sweet spot!  Upon returning from CT, we hit the slopes and have been hitting the slopes as much as we can.  The kids are doing so well skiing this year-- both nordic and downhill.  They are enthusiastic and passionate about getting out on the snow.  John and I keep looking at each other and the kids in amazement as they keep up with us and challenge themselves with big smiles on their faces.  And most importantly, Vermont has snow!

We even had a snow day!  On that snow day, the kids got up early, we packed up lots of snacks and craft projects and did what Abbott's do.  We got to Smuggs for one of the first chairs, skied first tracks, and spent the entire day enjoying our winter wonderland. John and I even managed to do some childcare swapping with a friend so we could do a little tour in the untracked snow.

Happiness is being able to do what you love with a family that seems to love it just as much as you do!

We also had a fun visit from Jackson.

playing "pig"

Learning about Snap Chat

playing!