Ten on Tuesday

In efforts to catch up...

1. Christmas. It went really well and was declared "the best yet" by the younger two. :) I already covered most of that but wanted to mention also that this is the year I renewed my clothing tradition. Growing up, my mom always got us all new Christmas pajamas each year, to be opened on Christmas eve. I continued that with the boys for years. Then, they stopped wearing pajamas, lol. (They sleep in their clothes because they're weird like that. Don't say anything. I've given up trying to convince them otherwise, lol.) So, I stopped with the pajamas and was sad. 

This year, though, I changed it up and got them each a new shirt...one that speaks to something about their individual year or personality. Noah got an archery technical tee (from one of his preferred archery brands/companies), Asher got a ninja tee (of course), and Micah got a tee that we had made just for him that simply says "hug?" on the front. ;) (The boy adores hugs and asks for them without reserve, lol. He LOVES his new tee. In retrospect, we probably should have made one for Noah that said "no hug zone" or something similar, lol...but he wouldn't have worn that.)

2. Anniversary. Nathan and I celebrated our 17th anniversary! Though Nathan did have to be reminded of the number of years, lol, we had a lovely time celebrating a day early on the 30th...spending the afternoon hanging out and shopping in Boulder then enjoying a seriously wonderful meal at The Melting Pot in Fort Collins. (Big thanks to Nathan's parents for entertaining boys that day!)

Here's a picture of the dessert portion of our evening...bananas foster with dark chocolate. Oh. My. Yumminess. (Plus, since it was our anniversary, they put out rose petals everywhere and had little floating candles and all...fun!)

3. Archery. As is becoming tradition, we took John & Nancy to the archery range while they were visiting between Christmas and New Year's. 

Asher and Nathan stuck with their compound bows but the rest of us shot with recurves. Noah challenged me a few different times and, well, I won. ;) Ha! Afterward, he made excuses about how he was using a smaller target, so it shouldn't count. But. At the start, he made a point of telling me that the smaller target would "simply offset his awesomeness" or something very close to that. Smartypants. ;) 

4. Pyros. After we got home from archery, in true boy style, my guys set about trying to burn things in the driveway. (Back story. For Christmas, Noah and Micah each got lighted magnifying glasses to keep in their quivers...to help read/score arrows when they're on the line. Reminded of this at the archery range, they set about to see what else they could use them for, lol.)

Um, okay, this picture is of Asher and does not use the lighted magnifying thing I was talking about. But. Look how pretty it is. ;) (Here's something similar to what we got them if you're curious.)

5. New new year's eve tradition. During our scrumptious dessert at The Melting Pot the day before, Nathan and I decided we need more fondue in our lives. ;) So, on New Year's Eve day, we set out about town to find a fondue dealio. Ended up in Loveland but scored this:

Yup. We started a new tradition of chocolate fondue on New Year's Eve, and it was awesome. We dipped strawberries, apples, asian pears, pineapple, pretzels and ruffled potato chips. The strawberries and potato chips emerged as the favorites. ;) 

6. Snow. After John & Nancy had flown home, we got more snow. Yay?

Well, at least a couple of us thought it was good. ;)

7. Wunderlist. I started using this app in the new year and, so far, am ridiculously happy with it. I, um, make a lot of lists. ;) To date, I've had varying versions on my computer, my phone and my planner all simultaneously. I didn't really mind (I like lists) but am now realizing how much time I was squandering trying to synchronize them all. With Wunderlist, I can see the list on my phone and on my computer and can print it out if I need to keep it in my planner. Sweet.

8. Boot camp. Yup, still going. Still pretty darn happy with it. If, though, you see me today and I attempt to wave and grimace while doing so, know that it's not personal. I just can't lift my arms since yesterday, lol.

9. Break. For what it's worth, our homeschooling is still on break even though most of the local schools started back today. We'll start back next week. In the meantime, I'm thrilled with this particular perk of homeschooling. ;)

10. Word. I'll be back tomorrow-ish with my word for the year and all that. ;) In the meantime, you can revisit my previous words here. 

Whew. I think that's mostly caught up now. Mostly. ;)

Comments

[Jen]

Thanks for the Wunderlist recommend! My previous list app (Teux Deux) started charging regularly (beyond the initial purchase) which I wasn't a fan of. I switched to another app but it never clicked. Off to download Wunderlist!

[Kaitlin]

I just started using Wunderlust too :) It is a great app for list making.
Love the fondue idea on New Years- I might have to copy if I can remember.