Conquering the Manitou Incline

Jude had the week off and he enjoyed a pretty low key week. He went out to his favorite breakfast place one day, and spent a lot of time playing with Olive and Marcy. Then on Friday he and Marcy drove down to the Manitou Incline, the 2,000 foot stairway near Colorado Springs.

Our young lady all dressed up for the school social

I had to pick up Anna from school that day and take her home to get ready for her school social. She was really excited about it and ended up having a great time. Then, right afterwards she went back to a friend’s house for a birthday party and a sleepover. She stayed up most of the night, saying she got to bed around 4am. Needless to say she was tired on Saturday.

Having fun at the sleepover

On Saturday, with Anna out after her sleepover, I gave Jude the choice of skiing or doing the Manitou Incline again for the second time in two days. He chose the Incline. It is such a great workout, Jude bolted up the 2,744 steps in 39 minutes, two minutes faster than his time the day before; I lumbered up 15 minutes behind him. Coming down the trail was tricky, as it was very slippery in places with the snow so we took it slowly.

It feels great to reach the top of the Manitou Incline

Today, we didn’t do much. The kids did their chores in the morning while I caught up on some work. This afternoon we went to Dave & Busters. Anna wanted to go there to celebrate the grades she received last semester. We took the neighbor kids and they all had a blast.

Lighting Anna’s amazing candle she made at the Waldorf Holiday Fair

This evening Anna decided it was time to light the candle she made at the Waldorf Holiday Fair back in December. She made a candle shaped like Santa’s sleigh and it burned brightly.

Jude about to shovel snow off the trampoline

Jude started refereeing kids soccer games last season. He really enjoyed it and was able to earn over $150 over the course of the season at $8 a game. Well, when you turn 13 you can become what is called a “certified referee”. With this extra training comes a big pay raise, to $20 a game.

So, we signed Jude up last week and he did his certification this weekend. This involved about 6 hours of online learning that he did during the week and then a full day on Saturday for the certification. He passed with flying colors and is now a certified referee with U.S. Soccer. He is playing soccer for the Rapids this Spring season so he won’t be able to referee a lot but we should be able to work his schedule so he can do a few games.

Anna making friends at the Cat Cafe

This afternoon Anna went to the Denver Cat Company, which bills itself as a “cat cafe”. This is a cafe that has about 15 cats up for adoption. Of course, Anna called us during her visit begging us to allow her to bring two cats home with her. We said no, one cat is enough for us. But she had a great time playing with all the cats.

Speaking of cats, with our neighbors away this long weekend Anna has been on duty to look after their cat. She takes her job seriously and goes over to feed and play with their cat every morning and evening.

Enjoying the snow day in the park

A couple of snowstorms rolled in this week and it meant a late start on one day and then Friday was a snow day. The kids, of course, were delighted. They spent some time sledding in the park and taking Olive out who continues to just love the snow. We had about a foot of snow for the week.

Olive in full flight at the park

Saturday was actually a nice day, it was sunny and warm so Jude and I were able to get out for our weekly run although it was pretty slippery and slushy. Anna had gymnastics and then we had food group on Saturday. For the first time ever we left Jude and Anna at home as they are both qualified baby sitters now. They did fine, just watching a movie and tv shows.

Absorbed in their devices

Today was another snowy day so after chores we decided to go down to Urban Putt for lunch and some putt putt. It was really crowded so it took a while but we were able to play a basketball game and skee-ball while we waited.

At Urban Golf indoor putt putt

Anna was not feeling great on Friday night so everyone, including Olive, piled in to bed to help her feel better.

Party in Anna’s bed…

Marcy and Anna at the Art Museum

This past week Anna had two days off school so on one of the days Marcy took her to the Denver Art Museum. They wanted to go to the Monet exhibit but it was sold out so they went to the light exhibit and some really cool pieces.

Light effects at the Art Museum

This weekend the weather was gorgeous, unseasonably warm for this time of year. So, we were able to spend a lot of time outside. The kids played in the park with Olive a lot and Jude played football with the neighbors and came home claiming it was too hot. Then they all got set up for a water gun fight, so it almost felt like summer.

Getting ready for a water gun fight

Today was Superbowl Sunday and we had the annual party at our house. But several people were away or sick so it was our smallest gathering ever. It was still a lot fun and it was much easier to manage with fewer people.

Anna gearing up to sell Girl Scout cookies

It is that time of year when the Girl Scout cookies are out. And given Anna is now a Girl Scout she was very keen to begin selling them. She went to her troop leader’s house and ordered 50 boxes and within 24 hours she was nearly sold out.

In Paris for the Paris Fintech Forum

I was away for much of the past two weeks. I spent five days in London and then four days in Paris for work. I managed to get a nice walk around Paris last weekend and sent this photo to Marcy and the kids.