Aubrey's school parade and our snowman

The school celebrated 100 days of school on Thursday by having the kindergarteners dress up like they were 100 years old. It was really cute. They paraded through the buildings showing the other grades and classes their costumes. They got some good laughs. The teachers dressed up too and had fun with it as they talked and learned about the number 100, how to count to 100 by 1, 5, and 10. It was a fun time. Aubrey dressed up like she was 100 years old by wearing a skirt, and layers of shirts with a sweater like an old lady. She felt odd and embarrassed as she walked to the bus stop. We added a ball in her hose for her tush which really made it seem like she was an old lady. She laughed but wasn't so sure about it. I added glasses with eyeliner and baby powder for her hair. She looked really cute for an old lady. haha!! She said her ball fell out and her hose fell down on the bus so the boys all laughed at her. Her friend covered her. I'm sure it was a hoot.

She was also Student of the week this week where her classmates get to find out more about her. She told her favorites and sent in pictures of her family, her pet and herself. It was fun making the poster for the class. Ethan and I went on Thursday afternoon to read a book to the class. We read "Sammy the Seal", a book I had when I was little. She took her white webkinz seal, Emily to show for her show and tell and told how Emily is her friend she misses from Fort Stewart and when she misses her she has her seal Emily to remind her of her. It was really sweet and she hugged it as if she were missing Emily then. It was neat.

On Friday Phillip got off early as they expected a bad snowstorm. We had fun playing in the snow after Aubrey got home from school. We built our first snowman here in our backyard. It was really cute too. Phillip did the form and the kids and I decorated it. There was alot of snow in the front yard too. We took pictures of the snow on the truck. It is amazing that the windows freeze shut on the truck and car sometimes. It was great to have snowballs and just play together in the snow.

Valentine's Day!

We had a good day. On Friday before we had planned for Phillip and Aubrey to go to a Daddy Daughter Dance and Dinner on post. I really messed up. They got dressed up and went to find out it was the night before. I felt awful. They looked great and Aubrey had really looked forward to it. Instead with a little coaxing she agreed to a night of family bowling and Burger King with kids meals and toys. It was a great night after all. It was quite funny that at the last frame Ethan scored his first spare and got an extra turn to make his score one more than Aubrey's 72. It was funny but we didn't say anything to them about it. It was our little secret until a relative asked and she found out. But she and daddy were on the same team so they won. We enjoyed ourselves but what was really funny was Aubrey in her dress with hose, socks and bowling shoes. She didn't care and danced after each bowl. It was a hoot to see her and Ethan as their balls went down the lane. Okay mom messed up but made up for it and she was fine with a great night together. Ethan had fun at the beginning of the night playing with his bounce bucket on his head as we were preparing for a mom and son chicken nugget and mac and cheese night.

It snowed on Saturday and it was such a nice day to play in it that we went out in the morning after breakfast. The kids had fun playing on the see saw, sledding with each other, and making snow angels. They opened cards from our great friends, Morgan, Mallory, Mackenzie and Rita who made their Valentine's great with candy in the cards. Our cat George has made this his home and relaxing in such strange ways.

Garmish

We had a wonderful time while we were in Garmish. I just wanted to share more pictures. It was snowing when we woke up on Sunday so we were able to play in the snow before we left. We really enjoyed our time there and were able to rest and enjoy. The highest peak is in this area. There is skiing near there. It was neat to see the ski lift and people actually skiing down the mountain near us. They looked like they were so little and it was hard to even think they were skiing. The resort was very pretty and we were able to stay on the resort if we wanted to. The restaurants were nice one was covered with greenery over the archway. It has brick or cobblestone floors which are really neat. One restaurant is like a market place and has a gazebo and park area looking out to the mountains on a painting on the outside wall in the courtyard. The rooms were nice and our double doors opened into the courtyard filled with snow. Aubrey was exctied about our "backyard". It was nice and the kids really had a good time too. We will try to return again for more fun.

Aubrey's Birthday!

We had a fabulous day. When Aubrey got up she looked in the mirror and asked Phillip "do I look taller?" She thought she still looked five. Aubrey went to the reptile center with the kids program. She enjoyed seeing the rattlesnake, teranchala(spider), iguana. I'm sure it was neat to see. We walked downtown that day. She and Ethan are such troopers with just going. We ate at Pizza Hut and they gave the kids balloons. It really did taste like pizza hut. The pan pizza is my favorite so it was great. The shops were neat but we didn't do much looking. Phillip's shins were really hurting. When we got back to the hotel we gave Aubrey her birthday gift. She got a dress up outfit and a word play book with some knee socks. She loved it all and she looked beautiful in her outfit. We then took the kids swimming. That is what Aubrey wanted to do from the first day. She had a wonderful pool party. The indoor pool is shallow enough that Ethan can walk on it and the second section is where Aubrey can even stand. I think it went to about 4 foot in the deep end. Aubrey had to wear her floaty but she loved it. She could go all the way to the deep. Ethan seemed to really like the water too. In the past he was so in and out and in and out but this time he stayed in and liked it alot. We also went to the outside hot tub. It was so nice once we got in. We quickly walked from the door up the steps to the hot tub. It was so cold outside that it seemed it would snow but didn't while we were in there. It was about 23F in our swim suits and did snow that night. We really loved it. It was a figure 8 and very large. It was very warm but not too hot for the kids. Many children liked it there too. Aubrey had a friend who played with her, swam with her and came to the hot tub with her so that was great. She loved it so much and was sad when we had to leave. We had dinner at the resort. We were able to get cake and ice cream for dessert. It was really neat. We took the kids to the carousel near the game room and they played. Each of them got to ride with other kids so they loved it. We stayed a while and she played with a different friend there. When we went back to the room the kids were worn out and went to sleep well. It was a lovely day. She was so excited that it was finally her birthday. We had started celebrating on Wednesday before since we knew we would be out of town on her actual birthday. We had balloons and happy birthday sign. She loved it and was surprised when she came in from school that day. We made mini cupcakes for her school the next day. We had them for dessert on Wed. and Thursday too. We gave her a fairy doll, "The Love Fairy" that night before bed. It has a book and in the back a room that opens for her to play with the doll in. She had seen it earlier so we had saved it for her. When we got home on Sunday she couldn't wait to open her other gift. She knew she had another one because she was with us and I told her she had to wait. It was a fairy wing doll for the bathtub with a seahorse. She also got a tank top, a pink henley shirt, and a wooden puzzle with letters. I think these things will help her develop more reading skills. It was a wonderful day. I will try to post her thoughts later.

Garmish Trip and Aubrey's birthday!

We travelled for a family retreat to Garmish. It is in the mountains and a beautiful area. We left early and got there by afternoon. It was a nice trip and the kids did good. We stopped at McDonald's for lunch so the kids liked that. It is a beautiful resort. The mountains just make you stop and say wow. They are in every direction you look. It is amazing.

We had sessions that evening. We think Ethan got motion sickness right before dinner, took a nap, and felt better. We had sessions the next morning and it was good. I wasn't crazy about the babysitter I got from the CDC list but it was okay I guess. This was Aubrey's birthday. I will share more about it later.

We had a nice time and were able to eat at Pizza Hut in town.

We enjoyed getting to know the other families and it helped make me feel a little more a part of the squadron. We made it home safe and were glad to be home. We hope to go back soon.