Thursday, December 31, 2015

Canvas and Cocktails


 I have done several sipping and painting classes and have been anxiously waiting for the day that I could take the boys.  Landon and I looked earlier this month at the paintings available during the classes that kids could attend.  He was very excited about one that was during the time Nicholas was in town and so we made it a big family affair and took 7 of us to paint a snowy owl.  

 Adler patiently waited for the instructor to guide us.

 The class/instructor goes a bit slow for a 6 year old (or even a 12 year old) and after a short while, the boys began personalizing their paintings.
 The instructor did her painting with a blue background, but Ads decided gray was a better color for owls that are nocturnal.  I love his thinking.
LT added in santa and his sleigh and made his bird green rather than orange, so fun to see their creativity come out.  Nicholas put his owl on a rainbow!

Wednesday, December 30, 2015

Blane has friends too

My college (and post college) roomate was in town for the holidays to see her parents in the mountains.  Blane and I were lucky to be able to see her and meet her sweet pea on her way out of town.  I think Blane likes her.

Tuesday, December 29, 2015

nuclear family photos



In addition to the extended family photos we also recently took did a portrait of our little family and of just the kids. 

Monday, December 28, 2015

Mid Air Adventure

 My brother and I took the boys to mid air adventure while Nicholas was in town.  
 Fearless Adler flying high.

 And LT.
Blane's first trip.
Landon went a few weeks ago with his friend Levi.  We weren't there, but his dad sent us this picture. 

Sunday, December 27, 2015

my little helper



Little Blane sitting with me at work a couple of mornings and also helping me set up and test out the lights for the recent family photo shoot.


Saturday, December 26, 2015

Cousin and Sibling love


 We are so lucky to once again have my older brother in town for the holidays.  At Nicholas's request, we had dinner at Benihana which is a big hit for everyone.  


 Oldest and youngest cousins.
Brother and Sister.

Friday, December 25, 2015

Hotel Adler


I'm pretty lucky that my work takes me to some interesting places and one of my favorite things to do when I travel is take my camera with me on long walks around whatever city I'm in.

I was in Germany last week and I knew I'd be spending most of my time with some other nerds in a small conference room at the huge Deutsche Telekom facility in Darmstadt, which was good from a work perspective but not so much from the getting to see interesting places perspective. I had to go though Frankfurt anyway and I decided to spend the first night there and take an early train to Darmstadt the next morning for my meetings. I knew I was done looking when the Hotel Adler, a budget hotel with good reviews right next to the train station, popped up while searching for a place to stay in Frankfurt. It was a far cry from the Ritz-Carlton or even a Holiday Inn for that matter but it suited me just fine for one night in Frankfurt. I got out for a walk along the river to take this picture of the city skyline and this one of a bridge over the Main. And, while admittedly a bit silly, it was still kind of fun to stay in a place that shares its name with our middle boy.


Tuesday, December 22, 2015

extended family photos

 For the third year in a row, during the holidays when lots of family was in town, we took some photos. I guess that makes it a tradition.  This year's pics are below with last year and the year before linked for posterity.  







Thursday, December 17, 2015

More Snow Day Fun

 We decided to brave the cold for awhile and head outside for some fun.  First we made snow volcanoes.




 The snow angels, followed by an obstacle course through the snow which finished by building a huge pile of snow and jumping in it!  Even I got to participate in the obstacle course which is why there are no pictures.  
 And painting in the snow, which inevitably turned to hilarious "peeing" in the snow with the various colors.  


Wednesday, December 16, 2015

Snow Day!

 The boys had a snow day yesterday!  It was so fun to wake up and not have to go anywhere.  In between Blane napping and me working with everyone home, we did a few fun activities.  One was putting wax paper under their feet and "ice skating" indoors.  So funny.





Friday, December 11, 2015

Santa Letters 2015

 Landon's letter, 2015.
 Adler's letter, 2015.
The big boys wrote this one for Blane.

Wednesday, December 9, 2015

Sunday, December 6, 2015

A fort to sleep in

 Last weekend was cold, really cold.  Three boys stuck in a house on a cold night can lead to trouble (fighting).  We decided to build a huge two room fort (my pictures don't do their hard work justice).   They even had a sleepover in it!