Whitefish

We went up for a long weekend at Whitefish. It was surprisingly uncrowded, especially for the MLK weekend. Crowded is a relative thing, though. Montana generally doesn't have any lift line longer than a few minutes, but we had basically no lift lines. We've also graduated to the point of all being able to ski together down the blue runs. We have to wait for little Annie some, but that's okay. We just watch her make her wide turns down the mountain;it reminds me of how my mom always skied. And we have a new obsession - monopoly. We've become quite addicted. That's pretty much all there is to report from here. We're back to the same-old-same-old. P.S. Jake is the spot on the slope in the scenic picture.

Ski, Cookies & Christmas

Merry Christmas! The past few days have been filled with lots of winter and holiday activity. We spent two days at Discovery ski area with our friends, the Nabozney's. The kids got along fabulously and we had sun and uncrowded slopes. We came home to Christmas Eve, where we sledded and then went to the neighbor's for a small party and caroling. Christmas morning was filled with opening presents and playing with them! Thank you to everyone for your holiday wishes and generous gifts.

Cutting Christmas Tree 2011

We've continued our Christmas tree cutting tradition. This year we returned to Lolo National Forest to chop down a 10-foot Douglas Fir. We have a vaulted ceiling in our living room, so we decided to choose a tall one. It's decorated, light-up, circled by the Christmas train and with a few presents underneath. It smells like pine and feels like the Holidays. P.S. There was a formatting error in my Christmas card order, so they are being redone. They may arrive late.

Thanksgiving 2011

We had a great family Thanksgiving. Aunt Annie came up from Arizona, leaving a rather idyllic November climate for the winter of Montana. Grandpa & Grandma McVay came all the way from New Hampshire, and we had a great time. Lots of hikes, eating, drinking and board games. I guess that is Thanksgiving! We skied on Sunday for the first time this season, and Annie and Jake easily picked up where they left off. Hopefully we'll be going lots in the months to come!

Halloween & Griz Game

Here are some pictures from Halloween! It was a fun night and the kids got lots of candy. We went to the Day of the Dead parade downtown the next evening, and I was remiss not bring my camera. The 2nd graders made a block print and walked it in the parade. I thought the parade was more for college kids and would be scary, but it was much more of a community event. We also went to the University of Montana football game and got to see the Grizzlies stomp on their opponent. Before the game, they have skydivers land on the field; except this time, one got blown off course, hit a tree and slammed into the stadium. That was a bit hard for the kids to watch. The skydiver was flown to Seattle, and he is badly hurt, but living.

Video from Birthday Party

The corn maze, where Jake had his party, is held at a former school, and it still had the old-fashioned teeter-totters. You don't see them very often, as they are no longer put on playgrounds: too dangerous. But, they sure are fun. Little Annie is in the yellow sweatshirt; Jake is wearing his birthday crown and maroon fleece. Thanks Pum for taking the video!

Jake's Birthday & Other

Just a few pictures to upload. Jake has his 8th birthday at the Missoula Corn Maze, which was a lot of fun. It is a pretty extensive maze made out of hay bales and also cut into a corn field. We also went to a local fishing lake, Beavertail Pond, and had a nice fall afternoon. Jake caught a large trout and one small pumpkin seed. Annie and I talked, read, wrote and enjoyed the sun.