Snapshots ~

This week has been long.  Not the average long.  Really long.  I was downloading pictures this morning and decided to post the happier moments, because it honestly didn't feel like there were too many!  Even Michaela thought it was the neverending week.  We sent her down to her happy place yesterday afternoon (the Maixner ranchette) to play with the horses and at least she returned rejuvenated.  Now, the rest of us have to lift out of this funk! Looking back at pictures always makes me realize that life is indeed good.

Hmmm ~ there just isn't anything to say ~

Emptying Joshie's pockets ~ 

no wonder he has a difficult time getting his chores done,

he's weighed down!

Replicating the breakfast burger he had in Hawaii ~

They're ginormous!

Blowing bubbles in frigid weather ~

Making cupcakes for Tristen, 

because everything is for Tristen ~

Sibling rivalry ~

And little Massimo, lovin' his new toy ~

Katherine ~ You're the Bomb!

Yesterday was a ski day.  Nicholas still needs a bit of help on the ski hill, so while I sat in the lodge with Maximo, I let Kath skip her lesson so she and Grandma could ski with Nickles all the morning.  At lunch he was doing so well with Kath that she agreed to teach him for the afternoon as well.

So I must confess, my kids seem to fight amongst one another a lot.  It drives me cra.a.a.zy.  It's probably why Shannon thinks I belong in Warm Springs some days!  Alright, most days.  Witnessing two of my kiddos enjoy one another so completely did my heart good.  Watching them hop on the chairlift did my heart no favors, though!  Once, as I watched helplessly from the lodge, Nickles lost a ski.  Luckily, it was tethered to his other ski.  Seeing it swing back and forth wildly, all I could picture was the extra weight on one leg tipping him off the chair.  Kath had it all under control, grabbing it with the tip of her ski and pulling all back onto the chair.

I would watch as each time they came zippin' into the lift to make another run, but one time it seemed as though they had been on the hill for ages.  At last a black coat and white helmet appeared, but it was holding a little boy instead of skiing behind him.  Katherine came flying up to the lodge carrying one tuckered out little 4-year-old!

Grandma & Nickles

The servant ~ 

Kath had it handled, but oof ~ I struggled not being in control!

Waiting for the troops to ski in ~

 

"Katherine, you're the BOMB!"

Apparitions

Some claim to have the Virgin Mary appearing in the frost on their window.  We have the Ghost of Christmas Future making an appearance on our living room glass.  Ugh.  It totally creeped me out, especially when Annika and I saw "IT" at the same time.

Eric ~ Senior Server

Eric has been serving Mass since late 2nd grade, at a mature 12 years old this is an eternity.  All the cool guys that he knows are older and have long since become Senior Servers, an honor that Eric was counting the days to despite not knowing when that day would be.  Senior Severs also are privileged to serve at the Bishop's Masses and Eric so wanted to serve Mass for the Bishop.  When he received the call a few weeks ago that his installment as a Senior Server would be on January 25th he could barely sleep he was so excited.  The big day arrived and he was so excited to be able to serve Our Lord in a new way!

Eric, I am so proud of you!

Maximilian ~ Two Months

We had Max's two month check up.  He is not on the growth charts yet.  He is a whopping 9 lbs. 5 oz. up five pounds from his birth weight.  Before the appointment I was so excited because I truly thought he was doing really well and had certainly gained some ground in the growth department.

Not so, darn it.

The doctor is not concerned, but thought we should try to get some extra calories in him to see if we can encourage him to grow a bit faster.  So, back to boosting his milk...yippee...I love bottles!  Now, we're just recuperating from immunizations.

Max loves sleeping in the sun ~

If we can find a spot with the sun 

streaming through a window he is in heaven....

definitely my boy!

Ski Days ~

We went on our first family ski day Monday.  I LOVE ski days.  It is so refreshing to totally unplug, even if I'm not skiing.  While hanging out with Max in the lodge, I was eavesdropping on a conversation between a man and the lodge owner about how the absence of wireless really made it difficult for the gentleman.  He uses too much data on ski days.  It saddened me and I hope to heck they don't add wireless service any time in the near future.  Sitting in the lodge simply enjoying the silence of the day is too treasured!

The day was bluebird skies like none I have seen for a long time.  Others at the hill were even commenting on the color of the sky against the white snow and crisp, green trees.  It was magnificent. My heart longed to swoop down a couple runs, inhaling the frigid, sprucey air but I had made the decision to keep this ski trip simple and sit at home base for the kids to come and go...besides Grandma was there to ski with the kids. With the sun beating down and people running around in sweatshirts no one would have guessed the day began at a scant five degrees.  Typical Montanans!

In the peace of the quiet lodge Max was all smiles relaxing in the sunny windows.  I love those first little baby grins and would love to catch one on camera, but am soaking each one up, loving that they are pretty much just for me.  Finally, on my eighth child I no longer care what people think of me seemingly talking to myself. Max and I visited all day long.

For some reason whenever we are at Disco Theresa is on my mind. She would have been all smiles and rosy cheeks on Monday!  Watching the kiiddos love the snow so much makes me happy that they were able to learn to ski while T was still around to ski with them a bit.

Nickles finally "got it" this time.  I signed him up for ski school and he had a guy instructor.  This dude was am.a.zing.  He had three little boys with him, managing to get them up the chairlift, off the chair and down the hill with no major mishaps.  By noon, Nickles was rockin' out the bunny hill.  It was hard watching at first when Nickles would fall.  I wanted to run out and rescue him.  It's all about learning to let them fly and he certainly didn't need rescuing.  I thought about that letting-go-thing since Michaela wasn't with us.  She had a chemistry class and had decided to remain at home.  I knew if I leaned on her hard enough, she would choose to come skiing, but she had to make this small decision herself despite loving each and every run down a ski hill and decided she could not get behind on her class.  It will feel kinda empty when she's gone next year, but certainly we'll be able to talk her into playing hooky a time or two!

I had forgotten that Nickles had decided to skip breakfast that morning so at lunch he was famished.  He was barely chewing before swallowing as he scarfed his food down, tears brimming over, he was so hungry. And cheese fries were waiting!  Another mother-of-the-year moment.

After a couple runs on the Magic Carpet, 

Nickles was ready for the bunny hill

"And I went soooo fast."

My little snow angels ~

"Say cheese fries!"

Nicklisms

Nicholas has been cracking us up lately.  It is his age for sure. I would love to bottle his energy and record every entertaining thing he did and said, while happily forgetting his naughtiness.  Today I was trying to track down a burning smell in the house when I happened upon Nickles with the plug removed from the bathroom sink, the drain filled with pistachio shells, (thank you Grandma) while he tried to dig them out with my curling iron.  It was a mess.  I may or may not have uttered a profanity, which may or may not have been repeated the following day by Nicholas.  And the burning smell....that was never located.

Dom and Nickles love their cousins Kolby and Tristen, but Dom has learned to not ask me quite so much about having them over. Nickles, not so much.  

"Mom, Aunt Chummer isn't calling me, so I need to call her.  I wiwy need to.  Twisten is coming to the beach with me and sweeping in my bed. I need to talk to her."
This conversation goes on all day long.

At night, wandering into the kitchen right before bed, "Mom, I'll have a peanut butter sandwich, banana and coffee."
"Uh, no you won't.  This isn't Perkins."

Randomly stated in the middle of the day, "Mom, I wiwy wike you.  Actually, I wiwy wike girls."

Since Nicholas received a Captain America costume for his birthday, he believes he has acquired super powers.  He has also realized that when Mom is nursing he can pretty much get away with anything because Mom isn't going to (typically) disturb Maximo to discipline someone.  While I was feeding the little guy the other day, I asked Captain America to use his humongous muscles to scoot the laundry basket into the laundry room.

He responded, "Captain America doesn't do dose things."
When I insisted that he did so do those jobs he told me to count to 10 and he'd be back.
Unfortunately, at that moment Captain America's nemesis arrived on the scene....Dad.
Captain America was stripped of his superpowers immediately.

"I can't wait to be just like you, Nickles."

As frustrating as it can be to raise this little guy, I do realize how finite this time is....okay, okay, maybe not in the moment, but shortly thereafter.  The hilarity certainly makes up for the little tornado that he can be!