Something a Little Different but Still Thankful This Year
I guess I will start with wrestling since those are the pictures that showed up at the top. We have had several JH wrestling meets, and now that I'm finally getting around to posting this, Owen's JH season is done after tonight. I'm not even sure what Owen's record is, but he has won more than he has lost, I think. He is having fun with his friends and is tired every night. Nick is also being challenged this year by the junior high population. He is providing a great experience for these kids, but sometimes I think he is getting more than he signed up for. It has been fast and furious and soon we'll be moving on to the Club season.
Owen in one of his wins.
Wrestling in Eldon, I think.
A different match in Eldon
I don't even know where this is at.
Camdenton maybe???
Finally a home meet. We only have two this season.
Owen after a match.
He wrestles with this kid at CWC and he has beaten him 3 times so far.
They have all been very close matches.
Gracie caught this one before school
I caught a full lunar eclipse one morning when I went running before the sunrise.
The pictures don't do it justice, but it was pretty neat to see.
total eclipse around 5am
This is the moon, just before sunrise during the eclipse.
Ruby found a warm place on the stairs.
Thanksgiving Vacation to Colorado!!!!
This is the first year since we moved to Missouri that we have not hosted Thanksgiving for my side of the family. I will take this trade any year. It was so fun to see the Peters all together out in Colorado!
On the road again....
Leaving home for a few days.
After just over 11 hours of driving, we arrived at our destination in Idaho Springs, CO. It was dark by the time we got there, and Annie and Chad had arrived a few hours before us. It was a long day of driving for both families and we didn't do much that evening.
Outside our cabin with Kaia
Preparing for the cold.
Owen, River, Kaia, and Gracie on the trail outside our cabin
At Echo Lake
Our family at Echo Lake
Nick found a wall to climb
There he is, at the top
Picture opportunities at Echo Lake
Gracie and Owen having fun
Woopsie! Sliding on the ice under the snow.
All good!
Thank goodness there were no injuries over the whole weekend!
All of us
Another pic of our family on the frozen lake
On Thanksgiving morning we took a drive up the mountain to Echo Lake. Nick had been hoping that the road to the summit was open, but it was closed for the season already. It was cold, but the sun felt amazing and the sky was so blue. We stayed up there for about a half hour before heading back down the mountain and into Golden for the family feast.
Thanksgiving at Ben's house!
There were 13 of us gathered at Ben's house to have Thanksgiving dinner together. What a fun day and it all went so well. The food was great and the company was even better!
Being silly at the dining table
Mom and Dad
Nick and his kids.
Somebody was tired
Gracie and Kaia about to indulge in desserts
Posing with the host and chef for the day.
Ben is looking good and it looks like his dog is expecting some dinner too.
One of the views from the car. The picture does not justify the actual scenery.
After fun with family, the adults decided to leave Gracie and Owen with Kaia and River. There was about 1 restaurant/bar open on Thanksgiving evening in downtown Idaho Springs. It was a fun night, but we didn't stay out too late.
Trying new things... Nick found a wine that tasted just like his old roommate's homemade wine.
It was not my favorite.
Downtown was a ghost town on Thursday night.
Much different on Saturday during the day when Gracie and I went shopping.
Learning to play poker. We used cheerios to bet.
Fun times.
Again, we did not stay up too late and the Britton clan had a big day to get ready for. SKIING!!!
Owen woke up on Friday morning not feeling well at all. He had a cough and was so congested. However, we gave him his options of going skiing with us or staying back at the cabin. Of course he wanted to go, so he struggled through the day. It was a little rough for him. We arrived at the Keystone a little after 9am when it opened and skied until almost 6pm. It was a pretty full day.
Getting ready to head up the mountain to ski/board.
Gracie getting her boots on.
Still morning in the shadow of the mountain.
At the top ready to head downhill.
Gracie is ready to go!
Owen needed a break, so Nick and I took turns. His smile is deceiving and he was so wiped out, even after the first run. We made sure to keep giving him advil.
Riding up the ski lift.
Hanging out with Gracie
Owen getting ready to go again.
Gracie and Owen conquering the day!
Owen coming down the run.
Owen after one of his runs down the trail.
Another selfie of my girl and me.
She was pretty happy all day.
Nick got a couple runs with Gracie while Owen took a break.
Gracie....
Riding in the gondola to the top.
Another chair lift ride.
Group pic. I'm so glad Owen decided to gut it out.
I think he had tons of fun despite feeling pretty bad.
At the top right at sunset.
This was our last run of the day.
My summary of skiing/snowboarding: SO MUCH FUN!!! I know Owen would have done way better if he had felt good, but I'm so happy he battled through being sick. He had a steep learning curve, as well, since he hadn't boarded for almost 3 years. The trails/runs are so much longer than the kids have ever seen and I think the first run took Owen almost 45 minutes. Gracie was pretty comfortable from the start and skied a couple of blues before the day was done. She kept up with me pretty well all day. Owen and Nick skied together for the most part. I am worthless when it comes to helping with snowboarding, so I didn't want him to be stuck with me. That is just something I have never done, nor do I want to do. Nick was so patient with him, but I let him go with Gracie when Owen needed breaks.The last run of the day was interesting. I did not know that only part of the mountain was lit for night skiing and Gracie and I made it down to the side of the mountain where our truck was, just before they closed the trails. However, Nick and Owen had to go to the other side of the mountain because by the time they got to the turn to come back our way, it was closed. They ended up in Keystone Village and luckily I had the truck keys so could just drive over to pick them up.
I think Owen slept most of the way back to our cabin. We were all pretty tired, and after ordering pizza, had another pretty uneventful night with the Wearmouth family. They had taken the day to explore the area around Idaho Springs. Hopefully we get to do this again when their kids are a little bigger and can do the skiing part.
The next day Owen stayed in his bed almost all day. He still was not feeling well. Gracie and I went downtown to Idaho Springs and met Chad and Annie for lunch and shopping. We spent a couple hours looking around and found some fun things. Chad and Annie decided to leave that afternoon instead of driving the whole way back on Sunday. Owen continued to be miserable all night, but slept most of the way home the following day with the aid of medication. Poor Owen. I hope we can do this again when he is not sick.
Middle School Dance!
Back to life...
Basketball season is well underway for Gracie. She is playing both JV and sitting varsity. The is a stark difference between the two levels. She seems to be working hard and knows her role on each team. There are times when she gets frustrated, but I think overall, she is having fun so far. Her ankle was still injured during the first couple weeks of practices, so she had very minimal preseason workouts. She seems to understand that she is going to have to work pretty hard to keep up with the varsity players; both her teammates and the opponents.
This is the Sophie Cunningham Classic prior to Thanksgiving.
She went in to play varsity for the first time here.
Playing against Kirksville
With the varsity team after the Kirksville game.
Sophie and Lindsey Cunningham were both very involved in this showcase event.
I think Sophie even remembered Gracie from her time playing at Mizzou. Gracie was pretty young when Nick worked with Sophie's dad.
Getting some instruction from the coach during a JV game at Hickman.
JV placed 3rd in this tournament I think
The girls she plays against are a bit bigger than she is.
She guarded #44 and #32 for most of this game and it was tough.
The 3rd place game against Battle High School
Shooting a free throw (not my picture)
We are not even halfway through the season yet, and there is a varsity tournament during break. So we will stay busy until March. Competitive softball will start working out again in January, too.
Owen and his friends getting ready for the middle school winter dance.
Another pic of the big group.
We finally decorated for Christmas with less than three weeks to go. Nick and the kids had to go by themselves to get a tree this year because I had to work and there was just no other time to do it.
But we all helped decorate!
Owen is feeling festive, too!
Gracie, dressed up for her winter choir concert.
And... another wrestling meet.
Owen won this one.
He actually posed and smiled as he locked up the cradle.
Lots to do means sleep is needed.
It took Owen quite a few days to recover from being sick during Thanksgiving, and then he was sick again last week for a couple days. He can't catch a break.
I'm finally getting this done only a few days before Christmas and even more has happened in the last couple weeks. Gracie's Aces team came over for a party on Sunday and I have taken the kids shopping on a couple of occasions to try to get all of the gift giving completed. We are supposed to get snow in a couple days and Southern Boone has already canceled the half day of school they were supposed to have on Thursday. One extra day of winter vacation for the kids! I might just stay home, too!
Owen has his last wrestling meet tonight and then will start up CWC wrestling again. The weekends will soon be full of officiating for Nick and competing for Owen. Gracie has another basketball game tonight and Thursday, but not sure if Thursday will happen due to weather.
We found out recently that Gracie did not make the USA team for softball. I haven't actually talked to her about it, but I'm guessing she's disappointed. I just hope it was a good experience and she learned a little from it. Even though she didn't come out as one of the top 18, I'm still so proud of her for going down there to give it a shot! She hasn't missed a beat with all the other things going on and has had plenty to keep her occupied. There will be so many other opportunities.
Hopefully everyone will stay healthy for the next few weeks and the rest of the winter. I'm sure the next two weeks will fly by! We are staying home for Christmas and then heading to Muscatine after Gracie's tournament next week.
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