So, I realize it has been awhile since I last sat down and updated everyone on our lives so here is a brief overview of the last week or so:
1. Thanksgiving celebrations!! We don't have school this week so we celebrated Thanksgiving last Thursday in style! The first/second grade class had a "recipe party" which loosely translates to potluck!! All of the kids were supposed to pick a favorite dish, copy the recipe, help mom/dad make the dish, then bring it in for the class to enjoy. There was so much yummy food!! Before the party we spent a couple of hours painting hands. The experience was reminisent of my time spent painting hands and feet at the ECC over the years. I love working with kids!!
2. Staff meeting-On Friday the kids had off but the teacher were still at school discussing curriculum and what not. Although it may not sound like the most exciting experience, I did have a good time learning more about school curiculum and upcoming events. It was also nice to spend time hanging out with the people that I simply just pass in the halls.
3. Family in town-On Sunday, Andy and I drove down to Denver to pick up his mom and sister. After finding their luggage we found a quick bite to eat then made our way downtown to watch the Warren Miller film. If you have the chance to watch a Warren Miller film in your area you should definitely check it out. They definitely help you get excited about the upcoming ski/snowboard season!
4. Skiing-I went skiing in the mountains for the first time yesterday (Monday). We were given free day passes to Copper Mountain when we went to the Warren Miller film so we decided to check the runs out. It was definitely an experience I will never forget!!
5. Babysitting-I had an opportunity to watch a 2-year-old and a six-month-old today (and tomorrow). It was a fun experience but we came to the conclusion that a crib does not fit in our room very well. Oh, and it's slightly more difficult to entertain a 2-year-old in a small room when you don't have and books or toys. We must of had a little bit of fun though because when it was time to go he didn't want to leave.
6. Bowling-we haven't gone yet but I have to sign off and get ready so that we can leave. On Tuesday nights the Back Bowl has a burger and bowling deal that we plan to take advantage of tonight. Hooray for bowling!!
Lots of love!
Christine :)
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
Skiing Adventure
Kaitlin and I at the top of one of the runs at Copper Mountain.
Andy looking cool in his snow gear!
Helmets and goggles-brand new and very necessary!!
What a beautiful view!!
Blue sky, white snow-capped mountains--what a beautiful day for skiing!!
Sunday, November 16, 2008
I love sunsets!
After a nice bike ride through a bit of snow--great fun--this is what we were greeted by! Beautiful!! :)
Saturday, November 15, 2008
Where did the week go??
I just can't believe how fast this past week went! The high point of the week for me was probably Wednesday when I had the opportunity to sub in the 1st/2nd grade class all day. I have been working a couple of mornings a week in this class just for the fun of it so I am well aware of how things are typically run and what the kids are like. I was on cloud nine all day.
On Thursday morning, Andy left for Michigan. It is so weird not to have him around. I am very excited about the fact that he has the opportunity to visit with friends and family this weekend.
In his absence a friend and I decided to have a girl's night-aka snacks and a movie Andy would never be caught watching.
Soon I will be heading off for another girl's night. Dinner and dessert--sounds like a good way to spend a Saturday evening!
Lots of love!
Christine
On Thursday morning, Andy left for Michigan. It is so weird not to have him around. I am very excited about the fact that he has the opportunity to visit with friends and family this weekend.
In his absence a friend and I decided to have a girl's night-aka snacks and a movie Andy would never be caught watching.
Soon I will be heading off for another girl's night. Dinner and dessert--sounds like a good way to spend a Saturday evening!
Lots of love!
Christine
Saturday, November 8, 2008
Oh Happy Day
Saturdays are wonderful because typically they are wide open with no commitments. Today was especially nice because I decided to walk to the library rather than taking the bus. Along the way I stopped to admire the beauty around me. With camera in hand, I took a walk along the river that runs through town. If the snow had not been so cold, I might have chosen to sit along the river for awhile and just take a moment to breathe it all in. I did stop to watch a few ducks play in the river and wondered how in the world they could stand to sit in what I could only imagine was freezing cold water. I could see my breath--that was enough proof for me that it was cold out. (At least the temperature was not in the negative figures like it was Friday morning!) At any rate, today was wonderful because I managed to get a lot of errands and such done and still had time to go hiking through the snow along the river for an hour or so. Now I get to look forward to tomorrow. A friend and I are teaching Sunday School for all of the kids in Kindergarten through 5th grade tomorrow. I am definitely excited!
Stay warm and know that you are loved!!
Stay warm and know that you are loved!!
Snowy Walk Along the River
Snowy scene-we basically have four colors around town these days: white, green, blue, and brown.
The river was gorgeous, pictures do not do it justice!
More snowy river rocks.
The covered bridge in town is now covered by a fresh layer of snow!
This is the scene out our back door--I'm thinking that we have it pretty good!!
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
The Week in Review
Sunday turned out quite differently than originally planned-in a good way. First of all, Sunday was nice because of a little thing known as Daylight Savings Time. Who doesn't love an extra hour of sleep once in awhile? Sunday was also interesting because I was given the opportunity to teach the preschool Sunday school class. We played, we talked, then we painted. The theme of the day: God created the birds of the air and the fish of the sea. I love little kids! They are absolutely adorable, excited, and curious!
After all of the kiddos were picked up by loved ones, I walked out into the general meeting area and met a couple of girls who just happened to be from Michigan!! One had just moved to the area and the other had come along for the ride and was planning to return to Michigan in the coming days. Yea Michiganders!! Well, Andy had to work all day so a few of us girls made plans to go out for lunch. While at lunch, the girls expressed an interest in exploring the area so I told them about a hike we had taken a couple of months ago and showed them a couple of pictures I had taken during the experience. They were sold and a half hour later we were changed and on our way to the canyon. We had a great hike and shared a lot of laughs. It was so nice to meet more people from Michigan!! Just another little connection to home. :)
Monday was interesting as well because I was given an opportunity to accompany the Kindergarten, First, and Second Graders to a play of sorts at the local theater. The group of four performers acted out a bunch of traditional fables that had been rewritten by students across the country. For instance, the told the story of the tortoise and the hare as it had originally been written then another 21st century version that the kids could relate to their own lives. What a neat presentation!!
Last night we met with our small group and had a game night. It was a lot of fun to just hang out with our new friends and to share laughs with one another. Nothing like a few brownie sundaes to break down the walls so that even the most macho men and timid women will get up and act like a crazy person to get their team to earn a few points!
The final piece of breaking news I have to offer is our fresh layer of snow courtesy of the storm that passed through last night. Nothing like 6 inches of snow to make one excited about the upcoming ski season. Only about 17 more days until the official opening of Vail mountain! Enjoy your 70's in Michigan while they last!! Your snow is coming too! Just wait!!
Lots of love to all our wonderful friends and family, we will see you again soon!! :)
After all of the kiddos were picked up by loved ones, I walked out into the general meeting area and met a couple of girls who just happened to be from Michigan!! One had just moved to the area and the other had come along for the ride and was planning to return to Michigan in the coming days. Yea Michiganders!! Well, Andy had to work all day so a few of us girls made plans to go out for lunch. While at lunch, the girls expressed an interest in exploring the area so I told them about a hike we had taken a couple of months ago and showed them a couple of pictures I had taken during the experience. They were sold and a half hour later we were changed and on our way to the canyon. We had a great hike and shared a lot of laughs. It was so nice to meet more people from Michigan!! Just another little connection to home. :)
Monday was interesting as well because I was given an opportunity to accompany the Kindergarten, First, and Second Graders to a play of sorts at the local theater. The group of four performers acted out a bunch of traditional fables that had been rewritten by students across the country. For instance, the told the story of the tortoise and the hare as it had originally been written then another 21st century version that the kids could relate to their own lives. What a neat presentation!!
Last night we met with our small group and had a game night. It was a lot of fun to just hang out with our new friends and to share laughs with one another. Nothing like a few brownie sundaes to break down the walls so that even the most macho men and timid women will get up and act like a crazy person to get their team to earn a few points!
The final piece of breaking news I have to offer is our fresh layer of snow courtesy of the storm that passed through last night. Nothing like 6 inches of snow to make one excited about the upcoming ski season. Only about 17 more days until the official opening of Vail mountain! Enjoy your 70's in Michigan while they last!! Your snow is coming too! Just wait!!
Lots of love to all our wonderful friends and family, we will see you again soon!! :)
Saturday, November 1, 2008
Not Such a Boring Night After All
When we sat down with our frozen pizza last night we thought we were in for one of the most uneventful Halloweens on record. After finishing our wonderfully delicious pizza we sat down on our new love seat, put the DVD in the player, and sat back to watch Indian Jones save another priceless artifact while fending off the Nazis who were trying to get to the item first. About 15 minutes into our movie we heard a sound that was not a part of the plot line. It was a sound I didn't recognize but Andy knew what it was right away--the fire alarm. So, in an effort to be safe and not sorry we turned off the movie, grabbed our coats, and made our way down five flights of stairs to the lobby.
We had it in our mind that this alarm may have been a false one but when we opened the door from the stairway and saw a bunch of smoke in the air we began to wonder if our hypothesis had been incorrect. As we walked out into the entryway by the sliding glass door we saw a bunch of people in costumes and a few firefighters not in costume. It's good to know that the fire department can make it to the hotel so quickly!! Now, under normal circumstances we would have gone outside, maybe across the street to get away from the building. The thing is the smoke didn't smell like fire smoke so we decided to go toward the smoke to find out what was going on.
It turns out that the source of the smoke was the restaurant. I guess they figured that a party is not a party without a couple of smoke machines. Shocker of all shockers--the smoke machines set off the fire alarm. So we found a few fans and blew the smoke back into the restaurant and tried to figure out how to turn off the alarms. After awhile someone figured out how to turn off the alarm but couldn't turn off the flashing lights or get the fire doors to stay open. I felt really bad for the couple that came to check in during the whole mess because they were totally concerned with the fact that there were firefighters milling around outside and I felt even worse when we informed them that the elevators were out of order because the building still believed there was a really fire.
Eventually we got ahold of the alarm company, the party guests returned to the restaurant (with the addition of flashing lights which kind of added a strobe light effect to the party), and Andy and I returned to our apartment to finish our Indian Jones movie. What a night!!
In other news, it's my Dad's birthday today so if you see him wish him a happy 50th and give him a hug for me! I love you Dad! I miss you and look forward to seeing you in December!! :)
We had it in our mind that this alarm may have been a false one but when we opened the door from the stairway and saw a bunch of smoke in the air we began to wonder if our hypothesis had been incorrect. As we walked out into the entryway by the sliding glass door we saw a bunch of people in costumes and a few firefighters not in costume. It's good to know that the fire department can make it to the hotel so quickly!! Now, under normal circumstances we would have gone outside, maybe across the street to get away from the building. The thing is the smoke didn't smell like fire smoke so we decided to go toward the smoke to find out what was going on.
It turns out that the source of the smoke was the restaurant. I guess they figured that a party is not a party without a couple of smoke machines. Shocker of all shockers--the smoke machines set off the fire alarm. So we found a few fans and blew the smoke back into the restaurant and tried to figure out how to turn off the alarms. After awhile someone figured out how to turn off the alarm but couldn't turn off the flashing lights or get the fire doors to stay open. I felt really bad for the couple that came to check in during the whole mess because they were totally concerned with the fact that there were firefighters milling around outside and I felt even worse when we informed them that the elevators were out of order because the building still believed there was a really fire.
Eventually we got ahold of the alarm company, the party guests returned to the restaurant (with the addition of flashing lights which kind of added a strobe light effect to the party), and Andy and I returned to our apartment to finish our Indian Jones movie. What a night!!
In other news, it's my Dad's birthday today so if you see him wish him a happy 50th and give him a hug for me! I love you Dad! I miss you and look forward to seeing you in December!! :)
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