We had our very first experience with snow today! Aaron has had a couple of experiences but this was amazing to do this as a family. The kids have never seen snow, and I haven't stepped on snow since I was in the 8th grade! This was something we were sooo looking forward to!

First, we went around town shopping. We got to go to one of my favorite antique stores. We all like to go because you never know what kind of treasures we will find. Derek found a really cool beanie, Georgia found a monkey, I found a soon to be surprise for JD (shh don't tell him). I found a cool towel to go with my new kitchen.

Then we went to all kinds of shops. I found a hoodie sweatshirt I wanted and the kids found other treasures too.

Next, we decided to drive up to the ski lodge and see what it was like and be familiar with the area. We noticed an area we could pull over and just play in the snow--for free!!!. We had a blast!! We found broken pieces of disks to sled on. Derek was brave enough to do it without a shirt. I was terrified of the roads. They are so windey and Definitely the best time so far! The laughter never stopped. I have pictures to share and hopefully some video!

Thanks be to God for the creation he has made. Thanks be to God for the provision of money to afford it. Thanks to Aaron for working so hard to pay for this trip. We are truly thankful.

Road Trip

Well, it has been a long wait but we are finally on the road! We saved for a ski trip in Ruidoso, New Mexico! Aaron's Uncle Eric and Aunt Deborah live there and offered us a place to stay. No arguments there:)We love being with family!! We waited till Derek got out of school to leave. He is already missing all of next week so we didn't want to take one more day but we also didn't want to take up a whole Saturday to drive. So, we took off around 3:30.

Everyone settled in for the drive. We had a busy day of getting the van loaded and other last minute details. School would have to be done in the van. So we took advantage of the daylight. Derek started off the drive- boy is it nice having a third driver! Aaron worked on his paper for his school work. Once Georgia was done with her work, she settled in with an audio book( I've said this before,it is a mom's secret weapon) she was set up pretty nice. Audio book, teddy bear, clock (why?) made her a happy traveler. I sat in the back with her. I put on my ipod and quickly realized that the tunes I have downloaded are not easy listening. I have music to jam out with! Can't do that with four other people concentrating on their own activities. - when I'm alone with my ipod, I am Mariah Carey, Martina McBride, and Carrie Underwood! I waste no time belting it out...lol. Oh well, I'll have to wait till I need to make a trip for something on my own:)

It was a long trip but halfway along the kids fell asleep and Aaron had no choice but to hear my chatter ALL the way...lol. Not really. We listened to a couple of pastors that Aaron thought would be neat to hear. Great choice! We finally got to Aaron's aunt and uncle's house around 12:30. (1:30 our time) We felt asleep as soon as our heads hit the pillows.

Fiesta Texas

Thanks to my Mom and Chuck, we received season passes to Fiesta Texas this year! What an awesome gift. It truly will make our summer great! There was one week left in the season for 2010 so we made sure we took full advantage of it. The tickets also came with a complementary ticket for each pass. We had four extra tickets for FREE admission. Aaron did not get a season pass because he just wouldn't use it that much. He wouldn't like to go a bazillion times and he is really busy with work so, he wouldn't have time anyway. We used one of the tickets for Aaron, then Ian, and Mikey and Mikayla. It was great having most of my nephews and niece with us!! Nana (Aaron's mom) already had a pass so, she came along too.

It was super crowded. During this time of year they only have 4 big rides open. Two of those broke down in the beginning of the day so you had hundreds of people in lines for the remaining large rides and there are plenty of small rides for Georgia and Mikayla.

I LOVE roller coasters. JD is like a kid in a candy store. He really has a hard time focusing on anything else. (this is why these passes are truly awesome!) Derek has done this a hundred times. He loves it but he loves the freedom of taking off with his friends. Georgia was excited but not big enough to do the big stuff. The one ride she is big and brave enough to do broke. Oh, well maybe next time. Ian was courageous and rode all the big rides we did. Mikey was brave too!! Mikey was terrified of some of the rides. Aaron was determined that he would at least ride them all once. It was a true test of what he was more afraid of...lol. Aaron or the roller coasters. After he rode each ride he loved it! I guess Aaron really knew what he was talking about:) Mikayla is like Georgia, she is not big enough yet for the big rides but they had plenty of fun on the smaller ones. Nana rode everything!!! Some of her favorites were close:( Aaron loves all the rides too!- with the exception of a boat that just swings back and forth. My favorite is the Scream. It shoots you straight up in the air. It holds you up there for a few seconds, long enough to see the city, identify the highways, and see the whole park-then it drops you so fast you feel like your insides could come out. Aaron told me to keep my eyes open the whole time! That was FREAKY!!! Ahh!

Even though the lines were long a good time was had by all. We got to spend time with all the kids and Nana. Definitely a day to remember. AND a tiny peek of the fun we will have this summer.

Thanks Mom and Chuck! Thank you God for keeping us safe.:)