Moore Skiing

Steve's brother Doug and his family talked about coming out at Christmas to go skiing, but their schedule didn't allow it. Then for Doug's birthday he decided to come out with his three older kids over President's weekend. We were excited to have them come stay with us and made a big push to make sure there was carpet downstairs so we had a little extra room. So the carpet was laid on Monday and we let the girls sleep downstairs Monday and Tuesday night before they got here late Wednesday night (Feb. 14th). We were seriously pushing it. Steve was screwing in blinds and towel rods right before he left to go pick them up from the airport and I was changing sheets and washing new towels to make sure we were ready for them. We didn't have the counter top for the bathroom vanity yet (they said they could do it in the time frame, but like typical construction it took longer than anticipated and it will be installed Tuesday after they have left, but at least the shower and toilet were working).

Thursday they slept in a bit since they got in late. I let Andrew stay home from preschool to play with Ethan and Kyle--he thought they were the bomb and they were so sweet to play with him. They brought Valentine's for the kids and Marcus's birthday present from Grandpa and Grandma Moore that was having a hard time finding us (the first time she ordered it it went to their house, the second time it got lost in transit).

Then I checked Ellie out after her early morning ballroom and SEM so she could practice the piano before going skiing with them then I went and got Lila after her SEM (she was so excited to get invited to SEM they start it in 3rd grade and she has seen Ellie do it every year so she was stoked and didn't want to miss the first day). Good thing the school is close. Steve took Doug and crew to go rent their gear while I got the girls ready then off they went to Brighton. It was snowing and we knew it would be cold so I added an extra layer to the girls and then I made a run to Big 5 to buy them mittens after getting a text from Steve that their hands were cold.

Friday we went to Snowbasin and Mimi watched Marcus for me so Andrew and I could ski Little Cat for a bit. Dad came with us and was helpful to chill with Sydney after lunch who was tired and didn't want to ski any more. Stephanie and her twins, Gabe and Oliver came too and Ellie had fun skiing with the boys. It was a long crazy day and I tried to take a picture at the top of Strawberry but it was windy and the weather didn't permit it. That evening we had crockpot chicken tacos that were delicious and then we watched a movie downstairs in the new theater room.

Saturday Ellie was invited to the UVU ballroom competition so I lined up a sitter for my little boys because Steve and Doug went skiing at Powder Mountain (Doug traded his snowboard for skis when he turned in the kids equipment) and they had fun skiing between the trees in powder. 

Doug's boys had planned a trip with some older cousins on Joddy's side to ride the Front Runner down to the temple and then hang around Salt Lake. They had some funny experiences with people thinking they were missionaries and asking to pray with them and then missing the tram. I took Sydney and my girls to the ballroom competition. Unfortunately they were running an hour behind schedule which through my plans for lunch off and we forgot the snacks in the car . . . it was a long day, but Ellie did great and got a gold ribbon and Sydney was a good sport. 

The girls and I grabbed a really late lunch at Chubby's and ate on the way home so we weren't really that hungry later (I had smoked a turkey for dinner that night).

My kids did not want to go to bed and say goodbye to their cousins. Andrew got up twice during the night and Lila ended up sleeping on our couch and at 5:40am she said, "Dad, Dad." I told her they had already left for the airport and she burst into tears so sad she didn't get to say goodbye again. It was a packed weekend, but we had so much fun with them and are grateful for the relationships we are building with each other and to see our kids develop bonds.

Now it's snowing more this weekend and we were tempted to go skiing on Monday, but alas Steve has to work and we need a recovery day to relax and clean and catch-up. I guess winter is going to make an appearance again.

Roses Are Red

Violets Are Blue
And I Love You

The kids didn't think that was terribly creative, but I tried. We did have fun being creative with some Valentine boxes this year. This is the first time any teacher has asked us to make a box at home (Lila's class decorated bags at school).

Here are the kids signing their names on their Valentine's. I made little train tracks for Andrew to trace and Lila practiced signing her name in cursive.

This morning I had their little Valentine's present from us set out. Andrew gave each of the girls one of his Valentine's which he was super excited about.

And we of course had heart shaped pancakes. Then we got Ellie off to early morning ballroom with her violin which is after ballroom on Wednesdays and her box of Valentine's--her hands were full.

While Andrew was at tumbling class I ran to Wendy's and picked up lunch for everyone. Then the boys and I met the girls at the school to eat with them. Andrew thought it was awesome to eat at school with the girls and Marcus was thoroughly entertained and did really well sitting there for almost an hour (I of course strapped him in his stroller).

Ellie missed her recess to come eat with us (they have recess before lunch). So after we were done eating she offered to take Andrew out to the playground which he had been asking to do so he was pumped. It was very thoughtful of her and she looked after him and walked around with him, such a good attentive big sister.

Steve was working in and on the basement so I put the boys down for a nap helped him with a couple of projects down there in preparation for his brother Doug and his three older kids arrival tonight. Then I went back to the school for Lila's Valentine party where I did a craft with them (I forgot to take a picture with Lila). Then after school I ran the girls to dance class, made fondue for our fun dinner, and managed to sneak Steve a "for your eyes only" card. We ate and talked and laughed and cried and just showed our love for one another.💘

Zoe

Passed away at approximately 7:54pm. We noticed things earlier in the day that made us a little nervous. Steve said after he let her outside he noticed her just wandering around in a circle so he took her back to her bed then at about 4:30 I noticed other things and knew that the end was probably near. So I gathered the kids and we said a special prayer for her that she would pass in peace and then we all took a turn being with her and petting her. We've been crying on and off all evening (even Steve).

I know recently I've mostly complained about her because she was having accidents all over the house multiple times a day, but I still loved her and she has been a wonderful dog, so much so that I'm afraid to get another pet because nothing will ever be as kind, patient, kid friendly, and sweet as Zoe. She's been in our lives for almost 10 years and we have had some great memories with her.

She definitively had a soft spot for Steve. Probably because he would let her snuggle him at night while we watched a show or let her ride in his lap on drives or even hang her head out the window. She was super patient with all of our kids. She would let them chase her around. I remember Lila as a baby would crawl into the closet where we kept her bed (she loved the smell of Steve and so preferred his closet which we realized one day after we got her because we found her snuggled on top of one of his shirts one morning instead of in her bed). Anyway, Lila would crawl to her bed in the closet, Zoe would see her, hop out and go out to the sunny spot on the carpet in our home in Tucson and Lila would crawl over there and then Zoe would go back to the bed. It was a simple game of chase that Zoe patiently played with all of the kids never snipping or barking at them.

 













She loved to go for walks and I couldn't even put on my tennis shoes without her running circles around me in excitement. I have missed that, since she went blind walks were not her favorite and she could never see me put on my shoes to get excited about it (it was probably time for her to move on, but that still breaks my heart).

She loved to explore and would find ways out of yards like nobody's business. I remember sitting in the front room of our current home and looking out the window and seeing Zoe trot along on the sidewalk out front. I opened the front door and yelled, "Zoe Carole Russel Moore you get back here right now." (Oh, did I mention that when she would get in trouble I would call her Zoe Carole Russel Moore because you know I call all my kids by their middle names and well since Carole and Russ gave her to us I thought it only fitting that be her middle name.) After being yelled at she promptly ran back to the spot she crawled under the fence and went back under and came to the back door like, I didn't do anything I've been sitting here the whole time. She was an explorer so here's to your next adventure Zoe. We love ya!

It's My Birthday I Can Cry If I Want To

you would cry too if it happened to you. . . I don't know why I know that song, but I do. And on occasion I sing it to the kids when their being dramatically sad, but today poor Marcus got sick on his birthday and it seemed fitting to sing it to him.

Early this week, we had big plans of celebrating with Mimi and Panca and Nessa and crew and then going to the Chinese New Year celebration at the school, but then we got news of Uncle Grants passing and the funeral plans and birthday plans were put on hold.

I had also planned a ski day with some friends weeks ago for today. I felt a little guilty planning it on Marcus's birthday, but Steve quickly said, "Don't you think he would love to spend it with Dad." Which is totally true Marcus adores Steve and will follow him around and loves to say, "hi Dada" and run to him when he comes home from work. So I went skiing. And Steve handled everything great here. In a text I asked how Andrew was feeling and that's when Steve admitted to me that Marcus was running a fever, but he told me it was under control. He gave him some Motrin and put him down for a nap and that I shouldn't worry. So we finished out our ski day

 and then I came home to a sad fevering birthday boy.


I had decided on a Sesame Street birthday a long time ago (using some old decorations from Ellie's 2nd birthday). Then Marcus started really liking cookies and it sounds so cute to hear him say "cookie". And last Friday I had lots of cookies leftover from our Activity Days recognition night so we went with a cookie tower for his cake and had lots of fun making decorations and coloring in new Sesame Street coloring books.

The kids helped me make the decoration balls.

I should have known from that sad face and early morning snuggling that something was off. He wasn't even interested in his new little toys there that Andrew could not stop playing with.

I had prepped dinner yesterday, Hawaiian haystacks and had some fun designing it to fit the theme:

Andrew and I also made Cookie Monster ice cream for dessert to go with the cookie tower.

The whole time we were singing Happy Birthday to Marcus, he was shaking his head screaming, "No. No. No." I didn't video it. . .too many things going on. We watched a little Olympics while we at dessert. Then everyone brushed their teeth and went to bed. Well except Marcus I snuggled him a bit longer after giving him another dose of Motrin (poor kids fever spiked to 102.4 with Tyenol in his system). Now he's sleeping. Hopefully he'll get a good rest and can kick this thing quickly. . .or I'll happily snuggle him more tonight, but I would have done that for his birthday without the fever. . .thus is life.


Marcus, I love you! We love watching you grow and know you are a very important part of our family. You always have an enthusiastic, "Hi!" when you see us and we love to watch you try and say, "ok google" to get our new Google Mini to talk to you. And you always stop and pose for a picture when the camera is out, "Cheese!" Here's to you baby! Happy 2nd Birthday!

Joy Cometh in the Morning

After President Nelson was announced as the new prophet, a sister on a blog I follow set a goal to read all of his Conference addresses. I thought that was a good goal and challenged myself to read one a day and see where I got. I remember waking up early one Saturday, going out to the couch, getting under a warm blanket, and I pulled up his very first talk. Just as I was about to start reading Andrew and Lila came down the stairs. They snuggled up next to me and then I noticed the video at the top and thought we can all watch it together so we did. We even watched a second one. Then I've been randomly selecting one a day to read and I have to say I have felt an increase of the Spirit. I'm more patient, little things don't bother me as much and I find inspiration coming more frequently. Words cannot express how grateful I am for that dear sister who in her every day posting inspired me and even more grateful to a Father in Heaven who pours his Spirit out and helps me through my every day struggles.

It's been an interesting week. Andrew got a little stomach bug that caused several middle of the night emergency clean up sessions from both ends. Marcus has had a little stuffy nose for several weeks which causes him to fuss a little at night and require a little attention. Needless to say sleep has been scarce and precious, but we've found the strength to keep going and I've still managed to find a little quiet moment to read some talks. This morning I read 
Joy Cometh in the Morning and found several inspirational thoughts.

"You need to feel good about the people with whom you live and work—your companions in life. You must feel good about yourself—not in any sense of conceit, but simply a proper esteem for yourself, well deserved. And possibly most important, you must feel good about your relation to God and sincerely love him.” 

Each individual should understand the nature of his or her own soul. Profound insight is provided by this revelation: “For man is spirit. The elements are eternal, and spirit and element, inseparably connected, receive a fulness of joy; “And when separated, man cannot receive a fulness of joy” (D&C 93:33–34).
Therefore, spiritual and physical elements each must be nurtured if we are to earn proper self-esteem. Spiritual self-esteem begins with the realization that each new morning is a gift from God. Even the air we breathe is a loving loan from him. He preserves us from day to day and supports us from one moment to another (see Mosiah 2:21).

Therefore, our first noble deed of the morning should be a humble prayer of gratitude. Scripture so counsels: “Pray unto God, and he will be favourable unto [you]: and [you] shall see his face with joy” (Job 33:26; see also Alma 34:21; Alma 37:37).

The crowning attribute that leads to joy is love of God. Even that first look in the mirror can be more enjoyable knowing we are created in his image. Each of us can say, as did the Apostle, “Thou hast made known to me the ways of life; thou shalt make me full of joy with thy countenance” (Acts 2:28; see also Ps. 16:11).

God, who gave us life, also gave us commandments to live by, that we might have joy. They have been revealed periodically by prophets from Adam to President Benson. One wrote this expression: “Consider … the blessed and happy state of those that keep the commandments of God. For behold, they are blessed in all things, both temporal and spiritual” (Mosiah 2:41).

The dawning of a brighter day heralds a time of forgiveness. Shadows of yesterday’s grief melt in the rays of early morn’s opportunity.
These experiences, glorious as they are, become but prelude to that great day ahead, when the faithful will stand at the latter day upon the earth. They shall abide the Second Coming of the Lord and shall stand with him when he appears (see Mal. 3:2–12; 3 Ne. 24:2–12). On that joyous morning, the mirror will reflect the miracle of the first resurrection. The faithful shall be crowned with glory, immortality, and eternal life (see D&C 75:5; D&C 138:51).

Dedicated to my Uncle Grant who passed away yesterday. What a reunion he must have had with my grandmother, Fern. He will be missed here, but we know we will see him again.

Andrew and Mommy Ski Date

We took the whole family skiing Saturday at Snowbasin. We had signed the girls up for their class pass program (which is an all day lesson and lift ticket for $49--it goes up every year--it started out being free, but still a great deal). Anyway, you have to sign up early or it sells out so we had this date on the calendar for months and it happened to be their Winter Carnival so the day was super busy. We put Andrew in a lesson too and he had a blast. The girls ended up in the same class and they rode the Needles gondola 3 times and Wildcat express 2. I was impressed. And Andrew said he worked on his turns a lot. Grandpa Stan spent the morning with us then went back to his place in Mt Green for the afternoon to be with Mimi and Marcus. We picked the kids up and went there. Mom had prepared a dinner and we hung out for a bit.

My parents planned to stay in town for the weekend because Rita and Jolie were coming into town so they planned to ski again on Monday. I thought it would be fun to take Andrew and ski Little Cat with him then spend the afternoon skiing with the group which ended up being my Dad, Uncle Kirk, Aunt Rita, cousin Jolie and her husband Joe. Andrew and I were having a blast on Little Cat. At one point he said, "can we ski this lift until it closes?" I said, "that's all day. you think you can do that?" He said, "oh that means I couldn't play at Mimi's house with Marcus?" Then he had to think about it. 

We did probably 12-15 runs and I had just texted my Mom to meet us in about 20 minutes when Andrew said, "I think I'm running out of energy." I love his cute wording. Not I'm getting tired, but I'm almost out of energy. So we did a couple of more runs then saw Mimi pull into the loading zone on our last run and waved to her from the mountain. After loading Andrew in her car I met up with the rest of the crew. My first run with them Dad took us down Two Bit which ended up being a bunch of rocky moguls. We all survived and laughed about it. Then we skied and skied. Dad said he was done about 1:30 so we skied him down to the base then went back up the Gondola. After one more run Kirk wanted to go to the base and at that point Jolie and Joe said they were going to sit too. So Rita and I rode the Gondola back up and did Dan's Run and had a blast. We sat down with the group for a bit at which point those four decided they were done and heading back to my parents house, but Rita and I did one more run. It was so much fun! I love these memories with my family and I really enjoyed my chats with my Aunt. After we got back she said, "we should have done one more run to check out Becker that would have been fun." I had told her I wanted to look at it before trying to take Andrew up there and it was so thoughtful of her to say that. We were having a good time and it was obvious because we both would have continued. That is what skiing is for me. . .a family activity we get to chat on the lifts, laugh when we get stuck on some crazy run like Two Bit, and get a little exercise in. Good good times!

Winter Fun in the Summer Sun

We planned a skiing trip to Sun Valley over 10 months ago when we bought our Mountain Collective passes (because we can ski there twice with our pass). My Dad's Snowbasin pass also includes several days of free skiing at Sun Valley so we invited them and he invited his brother Kirk who also has a Snowbasin pass this year and his sister Rita who frequently skied Sun Valley with her family. 

The kids have eagerly been anticipating the trip. Every day Andrew would tell the girls, "Today's number 10 so cross it off the calendar. Now only 2 more days until our trip." and so on every day. It was cute. 

Not gonna lie the day before we left, Thursday was a rough day. I had been working really hard in the basement with Steve and had set aside Thursday to finish prepping for the trip and I was tired and cranky. Bless the kids for just shrugging it off and helping me get everything done that evening which included taking a meal to a family here in our neighborhood.

We were planning on leaving early Friday around noon, but Lila's last Chinese Calligraphy club was moved to that Friday and Steve got called into work and wanted to do some more painting in the basement before we left. So we didn't hit the road until 3pm. We pulled off in Rupert and had dinner at Burger's Etc. with Mimi and Grandpa then Andrew got in with them and we kept driving. In Twin Falls we traded around so I drove Mimi's car and Dad rode with Steve it was good to visit with Mom. It was dark by the time we started driving through the cute little towns there and they still had their Christmas lights up which made it festive and a bit magical for the kids. When we got to our rental place the kids excitedly ran around looking at everything and saying, "This place is awesome!" "I love this place!" I thought we would never get them settled down. Finally I snuggled Andrew and watched a Netflix show on my phone then put him to bed.

Saturday morning we woke-up ate some breakfast and headed over to Dollar Mountain with the kids to get everyone's passes and ski a bit with the kids. We were all having a great time until we took the big lift up and got Andrew on a fairly steep bowl like run. . . oops, we didn't know the mountain that well and a map can only tell you so much. After that he wanted to be done so we took the kids back to the vacation home where Mimi was watching Marcus and she had heated up some chicken tenders for everyone then Dad, Steve, and I headed over to Baldy to ski with Rita and crew (Kirk left early because he had skied hard the day before). We had a fun afternoon skiing and visiting with them. Dad and I were tired at the end and on the last run we ended up by the Gondola and Steve asked if we wanted to ride the Gondola down and I said sure. So Dad and I took our skis off, the nice gentlemen at the top helped us on and we enjoyed a nice relaxing trip down (it was a good idea by Steve and my Dad even commented on how Steve thinks outside of the box).

We came home and Steve got in the hot tub with the kids while I made dinner and a cake for Dad's birthday. We invited the whole crew over for cake and ice cream. I finally started taking pictures that evening.

It was fun to visit with them, they didn't stay long because they didn't want to interfere with getting the boys to bed. We told them they'd be fine to get in the hot tub and hang out for a bit, but they went back to Rita's family's cabin and hung out.

We were all glad to have Sunday to relax and recover from a long day (I went to bed at 8:30pm Saturday. . .I was exhausted from packing, traveling, and skiing all day). We played games in the morning and just lounged around.

At 1pm Kirk had arranged for a hayride with our cousin Paul Buckley. The kids had a great time. We learned a little about Sun Valley and saw the first ski lift in the world, a little one person chair not near either of the resorts now.

Steve didn't go on the ride with us because Marcus was sleeping at the time. So we went back and the girls played outside in the snow and I took Steve for a ride to see the lift and the lodge area. Then we walked around the lodge and shopping/dining area there. Then drove to downtown Ketchum and walked around a bit. It was good for Marcus to get out.

Monday we started the day off at Dollar again. We did quarter dollar lift and found some fun terrain with bumps all the kids enjoyed. I even have a video with Andrew saying, "weeeee. this is awesome as he goes over the bumps."

Mimi brought Marcus up for a bit and that was fun to chill with him there. It was a beautiful day and we just sat at the outdoor seating and watched the kids ski for a bit. 

We skied there until after 1pm then we went back and grabbed a quick lunch then took the girls to Baldy. Grandpa took the afternoon off and helped Mimi out with the boys. Lila was super nervous to go to Baldy, but after a little bit of the first run she was going to the sides and going up and over jumps and was skiing faster than Ellie and I. She had fun and said, "I'm really glad I went." So was I. I love visiting with my girls on the lift and having fun with them. Nothing makes me smile more than to see Lila dance with her fists pumping in the air as she goes down the mountain or watching Ellie follow Steve into the trees to catch some powder or hearing Andrew say, "weeee" with a huge grin on his face as he goes down.

We of coursed hit the hot tub again and then had dinner and the kids talked Mimi and Grandpa into playing Ticket to Ride with them while I made yummy chocolate cookies. Andrew loves playing games and even had me play the "drawing game" (Telestrations) with him once before we left.

That night Marcus did not sleep well. So I was tired. I sent the girls with Steve and Grandpa to Baldy while I packed everything up and made lunch for them and sandwiches for the drive home. They came back just before 1pm. We loaded up the van. I was going to ski the afternoon with Andrew and everyone at Dollar, but Marcus was super fussy and I hit my head so hard on the van loading up that I got a huge goose egg, I was hurting and tired and just told them to go. After things settled down, Mimi and Grandpa took Marcus and I for a little drive then we went to Dollar to watch them ski again. It was a little colder on Tuesday because the sun wasn't out, but they were having a blast. At 3:58 Andrew said, "I'm done." And Steve and the girls quickly caught the lift one more time before it closed at 4pm. We took everyone's gear off in the parking lot and got settled for the drive home. Andrew wanted to ride with Mimi and Grandpa again so he got in with them and I got a text from Mimi before we even left Ketchum that he had fallen asleep. We got in late last night 8:30pm. We quickly brushed teeth and put the kids to bed because this morning real life started again with early morning ballroom and an IEP meeting with the principal for Lila's speech therapy. The girls managed to wake up happy and got their bag unpacked before coming down for breakfast. Steve was a great help with finishing the girls lunches and making breakfast while I ran around organizing for the day. When Andrew woke up he said, "The next time we go to the vacation home in Sun Valley I want to use the hot tub more." So I guess we're going back. ;)

Shows

Andrew had a little singing program with his preschool yesterday. It was cute and he was surprised that I knew so many of the songs (I grew singing some of them. . ."Sharing, caring that's the thing to do" or "I'm a VIP in My Family"). It was fun.

Today Ellie was supposed to have a "drive-in" movie at the school, but the teachers told them earlier this week that they couldn't show them a movie because of a district policy so to bring their cars and games to play. Steve and Ellie had fun making her car during her bonus time last Friday and so movie or not it was a fun experience.

Andrew was certain we could take her car to Sun Valley this evening. . .I guess we'll have to watch a few Flinstone movies for fun. :)