Jack's progress

Jack is really coming along with his strokes and breathing techniques at his swim lessons. Today he learned how to push off for the backstroke. He's learned how to dive into the water, turn his head without losing speed to breathe, and refine his freestyle and backstrokes. His swim instructor, Miss Julia, is awesome!!

Den 2 visits MPD

Dave arranged for our Den to pay a visit to the Police station to fulfill the requirements for Tiger Cubs to advance to the Wolf ranking next year. The officers showed the boys around and talked to them about 911 (saw the call center) and gun safety. The boys even got to go in a holding cell and see how the squad cars work. Thank you, MPD, for a great tour!!

Typical day

Theo LOVES to dress up. He's got a flair for the dramatic and always making up little stories and such. We love our little Theo. He keeps us entertained.

Dreams Come True

Jack and I are learning to play the piano using the Simply Music approach (google it to learn more). We follow lessons on a DVD that breaks down songs, note by note, and then we put it all together. Here is the first lesson, called Dreams Come True. We called the grandparents and Jack played for them over speaker phone :) He practices the piano whenever he can and really enjoys it. Hope this keeps up!

Theo's first movie

Theo got in on the action and came up with a Lego-themed movie. Jack was behind the scenes working the computer for him. Theo moved each little piece and Jack captured the images on the webcam in between.

Now Dave is adding sound effects to the movies. I'm not sure who is getting the biggest kick out of this little project, but the boys are both upstairs and Dave is still working away at the computer ;)

The Accident

Here is Jack's second directorial debut :)

Jack's first movie

Dave and Jack toyed around making a stop action movie tonight with our old webcam. Jack told his daddy that he wanted to make a movie (he has an elaborate plan in mind that will make him fifty thousand million dollars) and Dave, being the coolest dad ever, figured out how to make it happen! They plan to work on Jack's idea tomorrow before soccer.

Katy Rodeo

Mimi got us tickets to the Katy Rodeo last night so we headed there right when we arrived back in Houston. She bought the kids stick horses so they could do the stick horse race and they loved them! Luckily she kept them at her house so I don't have to worry about stick horse combat here ;)

We saw cowboys trying to get their 8 seconds in on a bucking bronco, cowgirls lead the flag ceremony and National Anthem, and the mutton run (where kids hang on to sheep for as long as they can). It was just a little taste of the Houston Rodeo but we sure did enjoy it! Thanks, Mimi!!!

Videos of Jack skiing

Here are the two brief videos I captured when the ski school students were all coming in at the end of the day. The first day Jack was in a group with a little girl who wore a cupcake-looking hat, making him easy to spot. I brought along a red hat and put it over Jack's helmet on the 2nd day of ski school to make him easy to find. I recommend that to all parents! Makes life so much easier :)

Recap of Park City!

Jack and I went on a pre-birthday (for him) trip to Park City, Utah this past week since the boys were off school for Mardi Gras. This is a busy time at work for Dave so he couldn't join us. Mimi graciously agreed to keep Theo in Houston for me so Jack and I could have this fun trip together. He'd be a major drag in the snow! He got to do fun things with Mimi that I will write about in a separate post :)

Jack and I flew out early Sunday morning from Houston and had a direct flight to Salt Lake City, Utah. It was an easy 3 hour flight and we landed right at lunch time! I picked Utah on the advice of my friend, Carrie, for the ease of fly in, fly out. Park City was less than a 30 minute ride from the airport and that ROCKED. Colorado resorts may be nice, but trecherous rides through the mountains for upwards of 3 hours is not for me!

We opted to stay at the Lodge at Mountain Village since it's directly in the resort. I lucked out by getting a condo that was at the steps of the ski school, so talk about EASY. That is nice when you are walking around in ski boots ;) Our room overlooked the ice skating rink at the resort and it was fun to watch the Zamboni machine clean the ice each morning. We sadly never went skating due to either fatigue or snow/rain mix (more so that).

Jack did ski school for 2 days and I planned to do non-ski activities for our 3rd and final day there. Wrong!! Jack took to skiing like a duck to water and there was no going back. We made a run together on Wednesday and Jack zipped and zagged circles around me. I wanted him to get a full day of skiing and not fool with me having to rest (ha!!) so I arranged for a private 3 hour lesson for him. His instructor, Greg, was a perfect fit for Jack. He was just as playful as Jack is and the two of them had a great time. Greg taught him how to keep his skis straight and how to control his speed. They went to the summit of the mountain 3 times and Greg said that Jack was a fantastic skier (never mind that it was only his 3rd day ever to ski)!

I had 2 days of 1/2 group lessons and met some really nice ladies (Emma and Sarah) who also took the lessons with me both days. I can't say that I took to skiing as well as Jack did but I had a fun time :) In fact, I had to take the easy way out (aka, ski patrol) from a run with my local friend, Celeste, on Wednesday while Jack was getting his private lesson. The wind was gusting and I simply tired out at that high altitude :) I like to call it my first (and free) snowmobile ride.

Jack made daily trips to the Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory for confections like chocolate-covered marshmallows or cherries. I loved my daily trips to the coffee shop for white chocolate mochas ;)

When we weren't skiing or eating, we were taking a rides on the Alpine coaster or the Eagle zip line. I wasn't thrilled about having to do the roller coaster (google it if you want more information) but ended up having a blast. Jack hopped off the coaster and immediately said he wanted to do it again. I told him "next year" ;)

Overall, we had a fantastic time in Park City and look forward to future ski trips!!

Class parties

Jack and Theo both had Valentine's Day parties at school and got to exchange Valentine's and make crafts. Jack made this sweet card for Dave and me :) Theo painted a frame and decorated a mailbox for his Valentine's. Both boys scored TONS of candy from their friends at school. What a fun day!!

Happy Valentine's Day!

I know I've said this before, but our boys truly are loved by so many people. They have been showered with cards from loved ones and today special M&Ms came in the mail from Grandvonnie! They loved opening their cards yesterday and discovering that some included $5 :) Jack immediately spent his $15 on Magic Tree House books. Theo can pick out something special next week with Mimi.

Here are all of the sweet cards and gifts that they received this year. I hid the M&Ms in the Love Bugs that Mimi got for them a few years back. They are having a Valentine's Day party at school and will bring home more goodies :) They even got to wear fun Valentine's Day socks to school!