Moving into the New Year

It is only with some reluctance that we got back in our regular groove this past week. We really enjoyed the Christmas holidays and the snow and the cold. We spent the break staying up too late and sleeping in. We made cookies, played games and watched movies once the snow was no longer fun. It really was time to get back on a schedule and get back to school but we loved our time off.

Steven got to play basketball with the deacons in the Frosty tournament. Our Beehive girls were short players so Sarah also got a chance to participate in the scrimmage they set up. Both Steven and Sarah enjoyed the experience and got to learn a few new things about basketball.

New Years Eve was busy. We were prepping Ralph and Steven for a scout camping trip and had to get Lauren and a friend to the stake dance and breakfast. Getting her there wasn't so bad, but I was quite tired by the 2am pickup time. She had good time ringing in the New Year with her friends.

The camping trip went well although it was very cold. Temperatures were in the low twenties overnight and there was a pretty good wind blowing. Ralph's tent got blown down once and he had to tie it up to the picnic table to help it withstand the winds. Fortunately this incident occurred before he was tucked into his sleeping bag so he was able to remedy the situation without having to pull himself out of a warm bed into the cold. Steven made the mistake of thinking his winter gloves provided enough insulation and tried to pick up a pan off the cookstove without an additional mitt. He has a burn across his fingertip as proof that the gloves were not made for that kind of activity.

We welcome the new year and the new experiences that will come with it. It is so fun to see the kids growing, learning and trying new things. William is excited about an upcoming science fair that he wants to participate in. Sarah is joining a community band which will give her a new opportunity to improve her flute playing. Lauren is continuing with cheerleading and stays so busy that I can't keep up with all her plans. Steven should advance to Star soon. Rachel loves preschool and doesn't want to be called a little girl anymore. She has settled on being a medium girl because she knows that she isn't as big as her sisters yet. Geral is just so happy trying anything new and loves to be invited to help.