+ Its been a big week +

This is what is going on in our house at 1 o'clock on a Saturday afternoon...

... and for those interested, the room sharing is going particularly well!

Have a restful weekend full of peaceful moments amidst the craziness of life.

+ a snowboarding update +

With only a week left of the ski season, we thought now would be a good time to take some video of how far we have come in our snowboarding this season.

Danny is feeling pretty confident with jumps at the terrain park.








We went up to the summit at Solitude & unfortunately it was very icey under the couple of inches of snow they had gotten the night before. These runs were a little out of my comfort zone but I was trying to link some turns until I have a nice stack. Didn't hurt too much...






Another video of Valerie & I trying to make our way down a messy run & not doing such a great job of it. It really wasn't very fun!






Although these video's don't really show it, there has been amazing improvement in my skills even since we got back from our trip to Australia. It's amazing how much difference a couple of sunny mornings on the mountain after some snowfall overnight can make! The conditions really are everything!

+ a room change +

After a year or so of thinking about it & some good experiences in Australia, we've decided to move the boys into the same room. We both have good memories of sharing rooms with our siblings when we were younger & it's always good to learn about sharing from this young an age. The other up side is that we now have a play room! No more toys cluttering up the lounge room. 

Here's the moving process this morning. Changing Jamin's room into the playroom.

The before picture of the boys 'new' room. 

And here is the video giving you the grand tour of our new spaces.

I was so tired after the move that I had to sit on the couch with a cup of tea while we watched two episodes of playschool. But I am a happy mama & am looking forward to tonight first sleepover!

:: baby bellies ::

Jamin & I were having a look back through our photos today & stumbled upon this one of Ainsley & I pregnant with Isaiah & Jamin. Ainsley was overdue by a few days & I was about 6 months along. Jamin gets very excited when he sees this photo because he says "me & Isaiah are in the bellies still. Can I be a baby again Mum?"

Here is their first meeting when Jamin was a couple of hours old.

Look how big they are now.

And I bet they will keep on growing just as fast in the coming years!

:: spring? ::

Last week I felt the giddiness of spring in the air. We played out the back in the very soggy sandpit, went on the swing & rode our bikes.

Then winter decided to remind us that it was not yet ready to loosen it's grip on us. We got a foot of snow dumped in the early hours of Sunday morning & throughout the day. This was great for Danny & I, who made the most of it on the mountain snowboarding & the boys who had fun playing in the snowy park & going sledding with Dad. 

But really, I just want to get back to those 20'c days & play outside.

Spring... come back please

:: jetlag survival celebration! ::

We may have dodged the jetlag bullet upon our arrival to Australia but it hit us squarely in the chest when we returned home to the U.S. This week has been so challenging with 5 nights of being awake for hours in the middle of the night. At times I really was at the end of my coping skills but my prayers for peace & patience & love were answered, for which I am very grateful. 

To celebrate our survival of a very tough week we went out to our favourite Indian restaurant for dinner last night. I really love celebrating things within our little family & teaching our boys that life's hardships are not to just be survived but to learn from & be celebrated as a part of our history. Travel is such a big part of our life (Jamin has done close to 30 plane flights in his short 3 years!) & sometimes I still need to remind myself to take the challenging parts of jetlag & culture shock with the wonderful parts of seeing amazing things & meeting new people. 

Everyone got a special drink - Danny a Taj Mahal beer, a red wine for me & delicious mango lassi for the boys to share. 

Kael loves Mango Lassi!

(check our the empty restaurant - we arrived early!)

Definately the best part of the meal for Jamin.

The 'after' photo of a very good Butter Chicken & Naan bread. 

Hooray for us! Now for 6 months of adventures & travelling. 

{this moment}

A time in our lives that I don't want to forget...

Winter is still here despite the sunshine.

Salt Lake City, Utah