Girls day...

I am so lucky to have married into such a wonderful family, I adore them all! One of my favorite things to do, however we don't do it as often as I would like is to be with Bev and Jamie. Yesterday we headed over to Boulder for a lovely lunch at Laudisio's on 29Th street mall, and then walked around for a bit before grabbing a Starbucks and heading to our pedicure appointments. It was such a perfect day, with two of my favorite people! Hopefully 2011 will bring more of the girl days I love so much!

Jamie and Bev we clearly need a picture of just the 3 of us! Next time we are together we need to make that happen :)

Snow day!

Finally, we have some snow to play in!! Although when it snows it's cold and not fun to drive in. It is so pretty outside, a winter wonderland! This morning the kids put on their snow gear and headed out to help Joe snow. They didn't last all that long out there, as it's freezing 7 degrees with a wind chill of -14 but they at least got to go out and enjoy it! For now, I am enjoying the snowy weather, next week when I have to get Emma to school and get back to reality probably not so much!

Hot tubbing and Wii playing with the cousins...

As Joe said it, "this has been my favorite day of break other than Christmas!" It was such a great day/night. Joe and Uncle Chad headed out to golf at the Vista Ridge golf course, both got year memberships there for Christmas! Jamie and the boys and me and the kids headed up to the club to meet the guys for dinner. We enjoyed a great dinner and some drinks and then headed back to our house for some hot tubbing and wii action. It was so fun, the adults as well as the kids all got into it! I loved that toot was dressed up like buzz light year pretty much the whole evening! The little boys also did a sword fighting game, and you would have thought they were really competing for some sort of title. It was so fun to watch! So great to sit and have a glass of wine with Jamie and catch up, one of my favorite things to do! Thanks Green's for a wonderful evening, looking forward to many more out at the golf course!

Happy Birthday Elmo!

My mom's birthday is two days after Christmas, so every year we try and make it extra special for her since it has gotten lost in the Christmas shuffle in the past. Not to mention, 3 years ago my grandma Theresa my mom's mom passed away on her birthday. Needless to say this is a hard time of year for her. This year we took her to dinner at a new place in Lafayette called Tutti's. It was wonderful food! The added bonus was it has a very cool play area for the kids, movies, wii, train set and you can even color on the walls. It was hands down the best dining experience we have had with our children. My mom laughed and had such a good night, she deserves a birthday like this every year! Happy Birthday Mom!

Glee!

We got Emma the Glee Wii karaoke game for Christmas, however once I tried it I wanted it more for me than for her! It is so fun! We had a family singing night last night, and Joe, Emma and I all got really into it. Jack is still kinda little for it, so he waited patiently and got to play Wii sword fighting!

Christmas

WOW!! Every year seems to get better and better! The morning started about 6:30am with Joe's parents heading over to watch the kids open their gifts. (I love that Randy & Bev do this) such wonderful grandparents! Then we had a nice breakfast and played with our new toys. We talked to my dad in Glenwood and something I have never done before but was really cool, we skyped with our good friend Dan in England. It was fun to see him and hear about his families traditions. We headed over to Mimi & Poppa's mid afternoon to open gifts with them. Auntie Jamie, Uncle Chad, Clayton & Taylor met us there too. It was so fun!! Watching the kids all get so excited and then play together was so fun! Randy & Bev always do such an amazing job and extremely generous! Joe and I got a gift certificate for new fans, something I have wanted since we moved into this house 6 years ago. I was so excited!!!

After a wonderful Ravioli dinner we sat around chatted and enjoyed some wine and each others company. I think it was my favorite Christmas!! Such a wonderful family I married into!

Christmas Eve....

It's hard to believe it is Christmas Eve 2010. Emma is almost 6, and Jack almost 3 1/2. Time goes so fast.... we did our traditional Christmas Eve (minus moose milk, since we did it on the 23rd) Christmas service at 3pm, followed by dinner at Kate & John's and then gifts with my side of the family. It was nothing short of wonderful. Good food, family, laughter, good wine, and of course watching our kids eyes light up as they tear open their packages. We are all so blessed, not just for the gifts that we open, but the gifts of family and friends. The things you can't put on a shelf, but something that I cherish so much more! Merry Christmas Eve!

Moose Milk....

A Fowler family tradition. We have done this party on Christmas Eve for as long as I can remember. Always so fun. After my parents divorced 8 years ago, my mom kept the tradition going. This year though, Kate and I decided we would be the ones to carry it on. We also decided to include our close friends and our in-laws. Since it has always been on Christmas Eve my in laws have not always been able to come. Since we decided to do it on the 23rd, Randy, Bev, Jamie, Clayton & Taylor were there. (We missed you Uncle Chad, but glad you had a good night) I loved that they were there to share in this tradition that I hold so near and dear to my heart. Joe and I also included some of our very close friends and their kids. Such a fun night, all being together and enjoying the moose milk tradition. Which for those that don't know, it is a very rich alcoholic drink that we only enjoy 1 time a year!

The added bonus was Aunt Kate had a Santa come to the house and visit all the kids, they all loved it! Great idea!

Clare bear's dancing debut..

Emma and I went to my niece Clare's dance recital on Sunday. The boys opted to stay home, as they thought the Bronco game would be more their cup of tea. Emma and I had such a great time. Clare was adorable, dancing around so happy and carefree. Not a care in the world! She loved that people brought her flowers. She held them tight and kept smelling them. One of my favorite parts was watching my sister Kate. When Clare stepped onto the stage, she was beaming with pride, excitement and nervousness. Such a wonderful mother, so loving and caring. When we all left, sweet Clare was nice enough to give Emma one of her bouquets of flowers, which made Emma so happy! Needless to say, once we got in the car Emma asked me when I would call the dance place in Erie and get her back into it. Little girls love to be the star!!

A new desk, for our little girl....

Emma loves art. She colors, draws, cuts and pastes everyday. My desk from when I was a little girl was at my moms. No one was using it, so Elmo was nice enough to give it to Emma. On Saturday, Mimi and Poppa drove up to Longmont and helped us get the desk to our house. Once it was here, the boys hung out downstairs while Bev and I sat in Emma's room and watched her organize and put all of her things into the desk. She was so excited! Since Saturday, she has sat at that desk and made many beautiful pieces of art. I know this desk will be a great thing for her, for years to come!

Christmas parties...

This time of year is so busy, running around buying gifts, wrapping gifts, sending gifts, delivering them, work, school etc... I love even though it is so busy you can take a few hours out of your day to enjoy your child's Christmas party. Jack had his on Thursday, treats and good food followed up some new books from his teachers, making a gingerbread house and I think the best part was Mimi was also there. Bev and I got to go to recess with him and watch him play which was very fun!

Emma's party was no different, filled with crafts, gingerbread house, food, singing and fun! I also think Emma's favorite part was that Mimi was there too. I love that both Emma and Jack have such an amazing bond with their grandparents. Someday they will know how lucky they are to have them! Thanks Bev for taking the time to come to both kids parties, it meant a great deal to them and to me! I am so very lucky that I have a job that makes it possible to be at all of these events with my kids! As busy as this time of year is, there is nothing I would have rather been doing then celebrating at their school with the both of them!

School PJ day...

The week before Christmas break is always so much, parties, crafts, junk food etc... (I think for the teachers, the excitement of the pending vacation and Christmas might make this their least favorite week!) Miss Vorhaus planned a fun PJ and reading day today! Emma is so excited, she woke up, and took off her PJs to just put another warmer pair on. I love watching the excitement through her eyes, something as simple as wearing your PJs to school has made her so giddy and happy. Oh, the little things in life!!

The Giving Tree....

With so many that are less fortunate, I want to be sure our kids are raised to give, and help others. In what every way that it is needed. Christmas is a very good time to teach this to two young children. (Emma understands, Jack is still a few years off.) Emma and Jack get an allowance, and we talked to them about the many boys and girls that Santa won't be able to get to this Christmas, which would lead to no presents for them to open. We as a family decided that Emma and Jack would not get an allowance for 3 weeks and we would take that money and buy some gifts for two children from the giving tree. We got two names, bought gifts, wrapped them and took them to the drop off center. When we walked in, there were gifts everywhere. Emma looked at me and said "Mom, this makes my heart happy!" She is such a kind little girl with such a big heart!

A Daisy Christmas...

Emma loves Daisies! She loves the girls, TJ, the crafts, snacks, that it is at our house and I think what she (and I know I do) loves the very most is it is something we do together! Last night at her Daisy Christmas celebration, she kept coming up and hugging me telling me she was so glad I was there! Those are words, especially from a daughter I probably won't hear forever! We had such a fun time, we made reindeer candy canes, Christmas tree ornaments, had a delicious snack, went caroling with hot chocolate and TJ (the troop leader) made each girl, including me homemade scarves! They were beautiful!! It was such a fun night, the girls were singing and having so much fun! Oh and of course our honorary daisy Jack was here too!!

Christmas in Breckenridge... early

Since my dad lives in Glenwood Springs, every year we all meet half way in Breckenridge for an early Christmas celebration. Every year at this time is so busy, so the weeks leading up I am dreading the packing, and driving and laundry, but once we get there and are with my dad it makes all of that worth it. Emma and Jack adore my dad (Grandpa Charlie), Jack is constantly asking him about his animals on the farm mostly his bucking bulls! Kate, John, Grant, Clare, Emily and Tim were also all there which made it even more fun! You can see my dad's face light up when he is around those 4 kids! All 4 of them are so different, but all so sweet!

We did a lot of hanging out and chatting, swimming and eating. It was a short weekend, but lots of fun! Hopefully next year when I am packing, I will remember how great it is to be with him and not dread the small stuff like packing and laundry! Thanks Grandpa Charlie for a wonderful Christmas celebration!!