March

This winter Luke played basketball up at church and had a great time. It is a very laid back league- definitely just for fun, which we loved! He happened to have his two best friends, Porter and Tey, on the team with him, which made it even more fun.

Creed and I took the boys to Colorado for one last ski trip this season. The week prior to our trip, it snowed so much that there were numerous avalanches and even I-70 closed the day before we arrived. Because we wanted to make sure we made it to Aspen that weekend, Creed white knuckled it from Denver all the way to Glenwood Springs. A normal 3 hour drive ended up taking us way longer since I-70 looked like this...

The snow-covered roads started before the tunnel and lasted past Vail. It really was insane driving conditions...

Passing by Vail...

At around midnight I started calling hotels and we found one with a room available. We pulled in around 2 am (4am Eastern!), got about four hours asleep, put on our ski gear, and then hit the road for the last 45 minutes of our trip. Thankfully it was a beautiful drive!

The boys and I had to rent our skis, but we were on the slopes before noon.

The first hour was rough. While Luke skied two years ago, he just couldn't get the hang of it- barely able to even stand up. We were hot, sweaty, and frustrated, so Luke and I took a break to get a drink, cool off, and so I could give him a pep talk. :) After Creed and Caleb skied a few runs, Creed came back and took Luke just the two of them. An hour later, he was a pizza pro. It just clicked...and then he was just SO, SO happy.

This video was right after it clicked for him.

Sidewalks in Snowmass...SO MUCH SNOW! Our Uber driver even referred to this winter as "Snow-mageddon."

We skied til the lifts closed, did a little hot tubbing, and then ate dinner at our hotel's restaurant. We were exhausted and all slept really well that night.

The next day we were back at it. 

While we skied lots of runs as a family, I skied with Luke on green runs while Creed would take Caleb down blues.

Luke and I took a late morning snack break. His goggles were bothering him, but it was SO sunny, so we had to also find him sunglasses.

Caleb

Luke

Nothing beats lunch slopeside. :)

While we finished up our lunch, Luke went and laid in the snow under the ski lift. He waved at skiers going by over head and just played in the snow. He was so happy! 

Nothing tops spring skiing conditions...powder days when it's sunny and 40 is perfection! I think this trip spoiled us with that. :) (I am definitely a March skier!)

Luke improved so much and even ended up skiing a blue by the end of day 2. Caleb was a trooper, as he usually flew down the mountain and then had to wait on us at the bottom. :)

Caleb is SO crazy. Haha! And, was sporting a perfect goggle tan.

 It was SO hard to pack up and head back to Denver the next morning. I would be lying if I said we didn't try to fit in just one more ski trip this season. Looking forward to next year. :)

Happy 11th Birthday, Ava!  We love celebrating you!

Board games at "Our Happy Place"

Jamestown Elementary is only about a mile from the cabin so we took advantage of the beautiful spring weather and went over there to play on their (awesome) playground and fly a kite.

I was in the kitchen doing dishes and saw Luke out the window dragging this huge tree limb. I LOVE memories our boys will have of time spent at the cabin. When I asked him about it he answered "Fire wood!"

Post-flooding muddy Lake Cumberland

I was thankful when a friend texted me these pictures from awards Chapel...

She actually said "I think I embarrassed your oldest when I took his picture." Yes, that is his embarrassed face. ;)

 

February

For the most part of February, our conversations centered around missing the cabin and anxiously awaiting lake season. We laughed when a friend sent us this:

Creed spent the beginning of February back in Colorado- skiing Breckenridge this time with guys from work. 

Back at home, we had unseasonably warm weather and spent as much time outside as possible.

I kept a friend's little girl one day, and when the boys got home from school, they were excited to play with her.

Caleb got two of his front teeth fixed and smiled big for the first time in years!

I spent over two hours in Luke's room one afternoon and cleaned out 3 garbage bags of garbage, old stuffed animals, and toys he doesn't use. He is so happy with his clean and organized room...hoping it stays that way. (Although with his hoarding tendencies, I have a feeling this is something I will need to do in another 6 months or so.)

Caleb is still LOVING his gaming PC and "earns" his daily screen time through keeping his grades up, the bathroom tidy, and his room clean. It's been a great motivator!

Lots more rain and cold weather...

This year we opted for a "fancy" valentine's dinner at home. Creed cooked steak and we ate in the dining room...something we never do. It was a prefect evening.

Luke celebrated his birthday a week early with his best friends. He decided that he wanted to go the see Lego Movie 2, so I found the boys matching movie t-shirts and picked up their favorite candy. (The birthday boy choose the Skittles.)

Oakley, Tey, Porter, and Luke

They got their snack packs and were ready to go!

The movie was super cute and just as good as the first. Everyone gave it two thumbs up! (While they were perfectly behaved during the movie, the candy and soda caught up with them after!)

We came home and had pizza- Luke choose Papa John's

and sang Happy Birthday over a cookie cake.
It was the perfect way to begin celebrating our Lukey Baby turning EIGHT!

Creed and I spent a weekend in Cincinnati and had tickets to both shows of Eric Church's Double Down tour. Friday night we ate dinner down near the arena and then went to the Tin Roof to see The Highway, our favorite radio station, broadcast their live show.

I got to meet Buzz Brainard, our favorite Highway DJ. :)

Friday night's concert was awesome. He played for right at 3.5 hours!

Saturday Creed and I hung out in Cincy, trying a few different restaurants before night two of the concert. Saturday was our favorite night. He played right at four hours and it was just insanely awesome. He even covered a Snoop Dog song. Haha!

Back at home, the boys were happy with PeePaw, Grandma Beth and Hallie Girl. :)
On Saturday, PeePaw took Caleb to see a UofL game and I ended up with a Cardinals sticker on my car. Thankfully it was only a magnet and was removed as soon as I got back to town. ;)

On Sunday the boys went out to brunch after church with Marshma and Papa and Luke got "the best breakfast ever."

He ADORES Hallie!

After Creed and I got back home, we had some family over to celebrate Luke's birthday.

Good-bye hugs before school the next morning

The Birthday Boy!
I surprised Luke and had lunch with him. He melts my heart...

That night we celebrated one last time...

The following few days all after school time was spent on Lego sets...

As February came to an end, Lake Cumberland suffered horrible flooding- even reaching the highest water level ever. Jamestown Marina is only accessible by boat, with roads totally underwater. Some marinas have even had to simply close. While the flood gates are open on the dam, it is still going to take months to get the water level back to normal. It's going to be a big mess...