Dawson's Broken Legs

What - Dawson broke his legs? Not really, but you will have to read on for the story....

The view from the Summit at Alpine - what a gorgeous day!

My dad and I - don't we look like twins?

We picked up Dawson an hour early from his class and spent the last hour of the day skiing with him. We all had a blast. It was so fun to see him ski. He has taken 3 days of classes this season and he has gotten really good. He can ride the chair lift, go down green runs, make turns and stops. Dawson LOVES "ski class". I asked him if he likes skiing or loves skiing and he said "LOVE"!

Dawson woke up an hour after he went to bed that night screaming that he had broke his legs. He worked so hard, he had never felt his legs being sore. He honestly thought his legs were broken. I had to explain to him that his legs weren't broken - his muscles were sore from working so hard and next time he would be stronger from giving his muscles a good workout. After Motrin, a massage, Gatorade and a hot shower, he felt as good as new.

Best Buddies - Grandpa and Dawson

Jen, Dawson and Jas

My parents - Dan and Debi, Jason and Dawson

I love skiing/snowboarding with my family. I missed my sister this time. I love to have "girl time" with my mom, sister and I on the lifts. I ran with the boys for half the day hitting some black diamond runs and then my mom and I paired up the rest of the day. Thank goodness I ditched the boys when I did. They wanted to ski/board the back-side and I was ready to take it down a level and just cruise. So, I met up with my mom. The boys ended up taking a new way to the back-side - very bad idea. After a 20 minute hike (some up hill), they had no choice but to ski over a cliff into deep powder through the trees. Jason had a blast. Dad had a very different experience. After about 20 falls and 45 minutes later, he did make it down and is still not sure why he did the three things he vowed he would never do - cliffs, deep powder and trees. We all blame Jason!

Mom and I had our own funny experiences. We have not been to Alpine in years, so we are not really familiar with the runs. I ended up taking my mom on some pretty tough runs. My mom just stopped in the middle of one run that was pretty steep and moguly (I am sure this is not a real word) and said "Ah, No...". I'm like, what do you mean - No? You have to go down. There's no other choice. We had a good laugh and after a few defiant stops, she made it down in one piece, without falling I might add. On our last run of the day, I was stuck behind her on a narrow run and wanted to pick up some speed before a flat spot, I told her to let me pass - thinking she would just continue in her pattern letting me go by her on the side. I was WRONG! She came to a dead stop and I ran right into her. We were both laughing hysterically and my mom kept yelling TREE - as she was laying on her back headed directly for a very large tree. We finally got her straightened around right in time for the ski patrol to come to rescue us. I guess we looked pretty clueless :) Fun times. Thanks for the good laugh Mom.

Dawson will follow whoever is leading. My Dad skiied straight down and Dawson followed. It's pretty funny! Dawson just heads straight down the mountain and then does a pizza stop at the bottom of the hill with his legs shaking (and he wonders why his legs are sore!). My mom was a much better leader - she does great turns.

One Down, One To Go!

We have success with Dawson's first tooth! Read about his big news here. Jason thought he might swallow it, so he convinced Dawson to let him work on it. After 10 minutes of pushing on his tooth, he got it out. Dawson said it didn't hurt too bad and he can't wait for the tooth fairy!

One tooth down, one to go!

Holiday 101

OK, I guess I need to spend some more time teaching my kids about holidays. Unlike my friend Bree, I guess I am not doing a great job at this! Not only did Dawson think the Easter Bunny was coming to the park on Valentines Day, but he was very disappointed when he bounded into our bedroom this morning (at 6:15 am by the way - WAY too early) and announced "Happy Valentines Day!" and I informed him it was actually President's Day. I explained that this is the day when we celebrate the presidents of the United States (I am not sure anyone is actually celebrating this except maybe my friend Bree). He then got really excited and said "Oh yeah Mom, I know - Valentines Day is when we celebrate Jesus' birth!" I then informed him that no, we celebrate Jesus' birth at Christmas, to which he said - "then is Valentines when we celebrate Heavenly Father?" My poor child. I guess it's time for "Holiday 101" class.

Happy Valentines

My Favorite Part of Valentines? The Cards! I love cards from Jason. It takes him a long time to think through what he wants to write and write me a card. So, they always mean a lot. I often cry when I read them. I got a great one yesterday. So thoughtful. Thanks Jason! Dawson and Taya also made me cute cards. Taya is starting to write - it is so cute! This is her first card.

Jason and I celebrated last weekend with a nice dinner at the New Horseshoe Bar and Grill and a movie. Yesterday we celebrated with the family. Jason made a great breakfast and then we went on a long walk to the park with my parents. I told Dawson we were going to the park and he said - "Mom, guess who is going to be there? The Easter Bunny!" I started laughing and then had to explain that the Easter Bunny comes on Easter not Valentines. He was a bit disappointed until he realized grandma and grandpa brought him some cool Valentines presents.

We finished the day with movies and treats and a bubble bath for Jas and I! A great day.

I sure do love my family. Jason truly is my best friend. He knows me inside and out and still adores me after 11 years - at least that is what his card said :). I love spending time with him and I am so glad we enjoy similar hobbies and sports. I love Dawson, Taya and Holden to pieces. There is nothing better than being a mother. I am really enjoying my kids lately. They are happy, good kids who try to obey and please me. I am grateful for that. I love their personalities and their sweet spirits. I love Holden and the cute baby he is. He is so yummy, I could just eat him up. I love this age and I love having a baby again.

What a happy boy!

Taya wanted me to straighten her hair today. She has wavy/curly hair like mine. To get it perfectly straight, I had to round brush it. I guess I should do that more often.

My pretty Valentine

Sleepover

I had a day trip for work last week and got home just in time to tuck the kids into bed. Taya decided to climb in bed with Dawson for a sleepover. We have tried this before and it has never worked out. They just giggle and end up talking and never falling asleep or Taya wakes up in the middle of the night scared that she is not in her room. But, they were so excited, so I let them give it a try and they had their first successful sleepover. Fun times! What a great end of a long travel day. My kids go to bed so great lately - so happy and so early - I love it! What sweet kids.

Dawson's Big News

Dawson has his first two loose teeth! It is a big deal in the Packer household. Unfortunately, his new teeth have already broken through behind his existing teeth. So, the dentist says he has one week to get those teeth out before they have to extract them. So, lots of apples and teeth wiggling. I never knew how easy it would be to convince Dawson to eat an apple every day. I told him the dentist said he had to eat one every day so his teeth will fall out. First he started to cry because he does not like apples. Then, he quickly decided this was better than having his teeth pulled with a string as Grandpa suggested. So, the countdown begins - one week! Wiggle, wiggle, wiggle....

Dawson says now that he is loosing a tooth, the only other things he needs to be a "big" boy is to tie his shoes and ride his bike without training wheels :)

100 Days of Kindergarten

I can't believe Dawson has been in kindergarten 100 days! I think I was more nervous than he was for Kindergarten. Dawson didn't talk until 3 1/2. So, he was behind in letters and writing when he started kindergarten. He could barely write his name. It was not very legible. And the rest of his letters were very rough. Now he is writing really well, he can count to 100 and can read! It is amazing how much this guy has learned in such a short time. We are so proud of him. Good job Dawson. We are so glad you love school!

We woke up to this.....

We had some crazy winds last night! They predicted 80 mph - not sure what they actually were. We got a call from our neighbor this morning that our tent was about to break through our upstairs window. Our boat tent snapped and completely blew over. There was a little damage to the stucco on the house, but it could have been much worse. Crazy! I guess it's time to buy a new tent and strap it down this time.

I Need Headphones!

We went out with friends tonight for Family Home Evening to a great pizza place where the kids can make their own pizzas - fun! We had a great time - but my kids started getting tired around 7:30 (their bedtime) and it was time to head home. Holden lost it and proceeded to scream the entire way home. Taya kept telling him to be quiet because she wanted to go to sleep. Then, she came up with a fabulous idea and asked for the headphones. What a great idea! I think this is what I should do next time Holden is crying in the car.

Holden's New Tricks

Holden turned 6 months old this week and learned a few new tricks. He can stand up all by himself if you hold his hands, he can jump in his jumper and he cut his first two teeth.

Bouncing Baby Boy - he loves jumping!