The photo that broke our camera....

...or, so it would seem as our camera is now completely out of commission. And the above is the last photo it took. Yikes! This is Kate discovering make-up while I was in the shower...personally, I think she's either: (a) on her way to audition for Toddlers and Tiaras (b) on her way to audition for some KISS cover band or (c) on her way to one day perfecting the smokey eye. She looked in the mirror and announced, "I look like a crazy person," which just about summed it up. Fortunately, she has shown no interest in getting into the make-up again (good thing because it was VERY hard to get off!) What she has shown interest in lately is playing "bad guys" which has come about from playing with boys at school, and from our Super Bowl outing to Josh and Jen's house where she was the only girl amongst 5 (mostly older) boys. Ryan and I looked up once to see her coming down the stairs with a sword in one hand and a gun in the other, announcing "get the bad guys!!" She had never before seen a sword or a gun or played "bad guys" but she adapted quickly. The other day she wanted me to lay on the floor while she pounced on me, yelling, "I deaded (she, thankfully, hasn't learned "killing") you, I deaded you!!!" And then she got really sweet and said, "Now I am a prince and will awake you with true love's kiss and we will live happily ever after!" If that isn't the epitome of boy/girl play, I don't know what is. So, anyway. Until we get a new camera, I won't have any photographic evidence of our antics but I will still try to document (as rare as that seems to be these days!!)

Happy Valentine's Day!

On this day, and every day, we love you family and friends!! Ryan, Kate, Will and I are blessed to have such a wonderful community of family and friends that we can count on always--thank you! (And, just a bit of bragging here, Kate wrote that all by herself!! She's getting good!)

First ski: the evidence

Thanks, Grandpa Mac, for snapping some pics with your phone!

First ski!!

And, of course, the batteries on our camera were dead when we got to the mountain (and, actually, it was so bright that it was hard to get photos anyway), BUT, despite these disclaimers, Kate did indeed go skiing at the mountain for the first time last weekend. What a big day, right? Even better that Grandpa Mac and "Aunt" Louise were there to witness it! The ski area near our house has a lift that's perfect for beginners (or skiiers like me....) because it is practically flat. Kate went up the lift with Ryan and he said she was a little nervous when it got up high, but he managed to distract her enough that she enjoyed it and wanted to do it again and again. It was completely awesome watching Ryan ski down with her; he's the perfect teacher because he's an expert skiier and he makes sure she's so safe. I'm so grateful he's teaching her this skill she'll have her whole life! After they'd done the lift a few times, Kate noticed that Grandpa Mac and Louise had started tubing down the hill next to the lift and, naturally, she couldn't be left out of that fun. I took Will to the car for a bit and when I returned, I saw Kate sailing down the hill all on her own!! I think watching Kate sled on steep inclines is an event best left to Grandpas and dads because it sure made me nervous! Kate loved it, of course, and insisted on doing much of it "by herself" (even head first--eeek!!) I'm just glad she was wearing a helmet (something I'll probably be saying about virtually everything Will does in a couple years). It was a great day in the sunshine at the mountain with family, couple it with a trip to the brewery afterward and days don't really get much better!! Thanks Grandpa Mac and "Aunt" Louise for entertaining the kids so well--Kate's still asking when "Donald Duck" is coming back!! :)