and now for my final TRICK: 02/01/2012

Saturday, February 11, 2012

Ritzy Weekend in Vail

Steve, Emy, and Jenny Corsini came out to Colorado for a family vacation and were kind enough to invite us to spend a few days with them in Vail at The Ritz Carlton!

It was ridiculously gorgeous.

Yeah, I will probably never stay somewhere so nice every again...

"We forgot a men's swimsuit"..."We will have one up to your room in a moment sir."

"We are eating hamburgers and forgot ketchup"..."We will have some up to your room in a moment mam."

"The kids need swimmies, please"..."Here are 3 brand new pairs."

"Can we please get 4 more bottles of Bvlgari shampoo and lotion?..."Of course, mam, right away."
or 1 week later when you realize you forgot your snowboarding boots there,
"We will FedEx them to you overnight, Mam."

The kids first gondola ride ever.

Beer consumption is actually encouraged while skiing:)

No one was afraid of heights, thank goodness.

The Adventure Center was located at the top of the first lift and had snow tubing and a super cool trampoline. The kids all went for the trampoline.

This one looked like she was going to puke for the first minute, but then relaxed and enjoyed it!


Ev barely moved, no smiles, just very serious the entire time.

Until he got off and got to eat some snow!

Then even better, we got to eat the most delicious gelato in the world. I am still dreaming about the pistachio...

Check out the cuties in their Ritz robes!

The hot tub was big enough for splashing and fun, and in a blizzard is even better!

The jet bath tubs were a bubble wonderland!

The kids skied, but barely.

H had way more fun making snow angels and whining about how cold she was.

Ian borrowed a sled from the ski school and had some fun sledding with the kids.

We decided to get them both ski lessons next year. I don't think we are the ones who should be teaching them, it never turns out very well.

We had such a relaxing and fun weekend and it was wonderful to spend time with friends we don't get to see very often!

Wednesday, February 8, 2012

National Western Stockshow

We hit the stock show this year with Jeff, Lindsay, and Chase.

We didn't do the rodeo but we did get to see about a million vendors, eat some junky food, pet the sheep, feed the horses, and watch the cows being groomed.

Pizza + corn dogs + popcorn = super healthy lunch

That corn dog was as big has her head and she ate the WHOLE thing!

After making friends with the animals, we learned most of them were headed off to the chop house.


Tofu for dinner tonight!

The kids really wanted to participate and get into the grooming of the cows.

This was after a Saturday night sleepover H had at Chase's place.

We all keep hassling Holden with the question, "Are you going to marry Chase one day?" Wouldn't they have the cutest kids?

Recent Reads

Honolulu by Alan Brennert- 4 Stars
A lovely tale told by a Korean woman who came to America as a "picture bride." We learn of her challenging and oppressive childhood in Korea, her journey away from all she knew, learning the new culture in Hawaii, escaping an abusive husband, becoming an entrepreneur, finding love, becoming a mother, and living a fulfilling life. I previously read Molokai by the same author and loved it, which is why I snatched this one up as soon as I heard of it. I think I enjoyed this one even more! The writing is smooth and easy, the tales are gripping, and the experiences are harrowing which keep you wanting more of this woman's incredible story.

The Book of Awesome by Neil Pasricha- 2 1/2 stars
This book is a collection of vignettes celebrating the awesome things in life. The cold side of your pillow on a hot night, finding money in your coat pocket, popping bubble wrap, when cashiers open up a new line at the grocery store, and watching Price is Right when you were home sick from school. This guy also has a blog where people can submit more awesomness. It was fun to read, but not as great as I was hoping. I will probably read his blog though, because he is pretty witty and definitely made me chuckle and remember to appreciate the small things in life.

Before I Go to Sleep by S.J. Watson- 3 stars
PAGE TURNER! I read this in 1 1/2 days. The story begins with a woman waking up in a bed, next to a man, in a house and she recognizes none of it. Over the next few minutes she learns that she has amnesia and every night when she goes to be she forgets most of her life. She begins working with a psychiatrist who convinces her to write in a journal, so she can reread it each morning and hopefully begin to build memories. The mysteries of how she ended up in this condition and her relationships with friends and loved ones kept me on the edge of my seat.

Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet - 4 1/2 Stars
Another winner here folks. This book was AWESOME (and a bit shorter than Cutting for Stone). This was a new perspective on World War II for me. The story follows a boy growing up in a Chinese household in Seattle during the war. He befriends a Japanese girl, which is STRICTLY forbidden by his domineering and emotionless father. He realizes he is in love with her just as her family is removed to a Japanese Internment camp for the remainder of the war. The stay in touch through letters and his enormous risks to visit her . I don't want to give away any more, but you simply HAVE to read this book. The relationships between the children and their families and even the public during these war years was an interesting perspective for me. The twists and turns kept me up till midnight and the ending was wonderful!

Cutting For Stone by Abraham Verghese- 5 Stars
Oh my! I LOVED LOVED LOVED it. It was long and delicious and I did not want it to end. The premise is a nun working at a clinic in Ethiopia dies while giving birth to twin boys. The story explores the people and relationships in these boys' lives through the eyes of Marion, one of the twins. He grows up in the clinic in Ethiopia with amazing adoptive parents who were friends with his parents and gives us a taste of the culture, food, and everyday life of an Ethiopian. He heads to America to pursue a medical career and his birth father. We read this for book club and had wonderful and rich discussions...I wish there was a part 2!

The Distant Hours by Kate Morton- 3 stars
This was pretty darn good. It took me about 100 pages to really get into it and the ending was a bit too quick, neat, and tidy. But not nearly as terrible as the ending of Handle with Care by Jodi Piccoult (I threw that book across the room and into a wall as I read the last word). I was hooked and couldn't stop myself once I was into it. It was a book club choice and there was more discussion than I remember in 3 years of book club. We were talking over each other and jumping into other conversations. I couldn't even keep up. This story centered around the lives of three sisters who grew up in a castle in England from World War II to the present. They had an eccentric family and extremely odd and famous author father. The mysteries weave through history and the walls of the castle, revealing themselves to the woman chosen to write a piece about the famed play written by the father. It was very good and I would highly recommend it.

Saturday, February 11, 2012

Ritzy Weekend in Vail

Wednesday, February 8, 2012

National Western Stockshow

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