In February the family took a trip to Montanan to visit my parents and my brother Tim and his family. We had a great time visiting and hanging out with everyone. We also had the chance to visit with my grandparents, aunt and uncle, and cousins. It was a quick but enjoyable trip. The kids had a great time sledding, playing with their younger cousins, and of course skiing at Bridger Bowl and Big Sky. I spent a fun day on the ski hill with the family. I rode the lift up to the lodge and because the lift was shut down I got a snow mobile ride down from the midmountain lodge. It would have been a fun ride if it hadn't taken two and half hours to get the ride. The next day I chose to stay with my Mom and go shopping instead. It was great.
Megan, Sam, and Mollie with the twins and new baby Brandon.
The gang heading out after lunch.
Megan is as busy as ever. Probably her biggest highlight was getting her drivers license about two months ago. Of course it makes me nervous but she is a great driver and actually ventured into Seattle on I-5 this last week. High school softball started a few weeks ago so that is taking a lot of her time but she enjoys it. She is playing catcher this year. She manages to fit in a little time for homework, church and of course always has time for her dear friend, Sammy, who is sick with cancer. Please send your prayers her way.
Sam is definitely a teenage boy. I love him but he can drive me crazy. I am not sure if it is his mission in life to annoy me or make me laugh but he is good at both. His latest crusade is to become my "trainer." I might have to take him seriously since he is now taller than I am. He decided to join the swim team over the winter and did great. This is the first time he has done any organized swimming and really enjoyed it. The coaches are attempting to turn him into a butterflier (is that a word?) He ended up swimming in some varsity heats by the end of the season. Remember that elbow injury that we posted a picture of last spring. Well it never healed correctly and he is having elbow reconstruction surgery. It sounds like a grueling surgery and a long recovery. He will miss several weeks of school. He will be very busy with physical therapy and homework but seems to be taking it all in stride. I better start brushing up on my geometry skills. Maybe send a few prayers his way as well.
Mollie played basketball for the first time this winter. In my mind she was a great little player but she found the sport to be very frustrating. She wanted to revert to soccer where she could sneak in some shoving and body contact or softball where she could have a collision at home plate. Not being able to grab (which she did several times) the person she was guarding was very frustrating for her. She started softball a few weeks ago and is looking forward to a great season. I am coaching her team and I love being on the field with her. She is dabbling with the piano but took time out to play the trombone in the 5th grade band. Tonight was the band concert. The family went and listened to 14 songs in 21 minutes. It was AWESOME! One last thing about Mollie, she has become a phone talker. When I can't find a single phone in the house I head to her room and usually find three.
Just for fun, the other night I took my shoes off on the porch after softball practice. A few hours later Mike saw something when he was going out to the car. A frog in my shoe. A little excitement before bed.Lets see, as for Mike and I. Mike started his new job at American Seafoods March 1st in their IT department and is really enjoying it. He commutes downtown on the bus but doesn't seem to mind. He doesn't have much time for umpiring anymore but is hoping to find a little space to sneak in a few games. We celebrated our 20th wedding anniversary and my 40th birthday. Like I said time is marching on. I am basically just trying to stay sane as I jump between work, kids activities, church, and home. Needless to say I always have something to do.
Hope all is well with all of you! HUGS TO EVERYONE, DEBBIE.