Anna and her friends wearing their new Nuggets hats

On Saturday night the Denver Nuggets basketball team held a special Scouts Jamboree night and Anna’s girl scout troop was invited. I went along as a chaperone. There were probably around 500 girl scouts including several from Anna’s troop. After the game the girls were all invited down to the court to shoot some baskets. It took forever and by the time Anna got close to the front she was getting really tired so she opted out and we went home.

At the Nuggets game with my girl

Apart from that it was a pretty quiet weekend. Anna had gymnastics, Jude and I went for our Saturday run around the park and we watched some football. Jude was delighted that the Packers won and move on to the NFC Championship game next Sunday.

Anna did a shadow day at ISD on Friday so it was Jude, Anna and Elise in the car. On the way back from school Anna and Elsie decided to dress up Olive. While she doesn’t seem that happy about it she does look adorable.

Olive being dressed up by Anna and Elsie

Celebrating the New Year with confetti

We brought in the New Year in Iowa and as usual Baba supplied the confetti, balloons and special drinks. The kids all had a blast and were delighted to find some cash hidden in some of the balloons. Jude and Anna wanted to stay up until midnight so I stayed up with them. We watched some Curious George and then the Dick Clark New Year’s Eve special. Anna stayed up to watch the ball drop in New York and then decided it was time for bed. Jude stayed up until midnight and then went to bed immediately.

Anna enjoying the New Year’s celebration

The twins and Anna had been working on a surprise for us for weeks. On New Year’s Eve we found out what the surprise was all about. They were not just making us all one meal, they were making us breakfast, lunch and dinner. They printed a menu, Anna took food orders like a real waitress with Ella and Chloe hard at work in kitchen with an assist from Anna. They did a great job and everyone complimented them on their hard work.

Hard at work making lunch on New Year’s Eve

We left on New Year’s morning much to the chagrin of Anna and especially Jude. He really didn’t want to “ruin” his New Year’s Day by driving back home. But after a late start we made it home in good time.

Snuggling on the couch with Grandpa

Marcy had Ridhwan on the weekend starting on Friday afternoon. So, Jude, Anna and I decided to see the new Star Wars movie on Friday night which we all enjoyed. I thought it was much better than the reviews suggested. On Saturday we had a quiet day then on Saturday we drove to Keystone for our first ski day of the season.

Anna racing down the mountain

We had a full day of skiing from 10am until 4pm, although we did have a long break for lunch. Anna did a couple of extra runs during our break while Jude and I watched the end of the Saints-Vikings game. Both kids skied really well and despite some of the typical bickering the kids enjoyed their first day on the slopes.

Selfie on top of Keystone mountain

Christmas morning and ready to open presents

Christmas day arrived in Denver and the kids were excited as usual. After a flurry of present opening we spent some time outside. It was another relatively warm day in Denver so Jude and I went for a run and then we spent some time in the park in the afternoon.

Enjoying the park on Christmas Day

On Boxing Day we packed the car and started on our trip to Iowa. We stopped halfway in Kearney, Nebraska and arrived in Des Moines in the afternoon of the 27th. The kids were so excited to see their Des Moines family.

Sharing presents with the cousins

With just over a month to the Iowa caucuses every Democratic politician is coming through Des Moines right now. We saw that Pete Buttigieg was in West Des Moines on Saturday night so we decided to go and see him speak.

Waiting for Mayor Pete to come on stage

Marcy was really keen to get there early so we ended up with a spot right near the front. We all enjoyed his speech and afterwards he came around and shook hands with people at the front. Both Marcy and I got to shake his hand.

Listening to Mayor Pete in West Des Moines

Yesterday was a day of watching football for Jude and I, the other kids went to see a movie. Today, all the kids went to an escape room and managed to make it out with a few minutes to spare.

Making it out of the escape room

Olive being cute

After our long weekend away in Mexico we decided to have a very low key weekend. We spent pretty much the entire weekend at home, stayed in each night and watched a couple of movies (Breakthrough and Sleepless in Seattle). And, of course, spent some time with the wonderful Olive and Pickles.

Jude and I went for a run yesterday, mailed our Christmas cards and we watched a bit of football. We volunteered at the local Unity church today and that was about the extent of the weekend.

Pickles taking it easy

Happy to be at the beach again

This weekend we spent in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. Sunday was Marcy’s birthday and a few weeks ago I asked her if she was interested in going somewhere warm for a birthday. After a couple of Denver snowstorms she was fully on board, so I cashed in some airline and hotel points and we were off Cabo.

We played a lot of football on the beach (and in the pool)

We stayed at the Sheraton Grand Hacienda Del Mar right on the beach. We had a fantastic room, thanks to a lucky upgrade, that had separate bedroom for the kids. But we didn’t spend much time there with the kids making the most of their beach time. They went swimming in the ocean (it was really calm when we we there, and warm), played football, played games they just made up and raced after waves. And we spent quite a bit of time by the pool and hot tub as well.

Jude and Anna playing a game on the beach

As is typical in Mexico, there were all kinds of people selling their wares on the beach. Marcy got some great jewelry and Anna had her braided.

Showing off her new braids

On Saturday night we decided to go into downtown Cabo for dinner. We wanted to get off the resort and we found a popular restaurant on Yelp. Afterwards we walked around town and both kids, particularly Jude, was struck by the poverty with old people trying to scratch out a living selling cheap trinkets. We also found a guy with an iguana who let Jude put it on his head for a dollar.

Jude making new friends in downtown Cabo

One of the highlights of the trip was the turtle hatching. The hotel nurtured some turtle eggs through hatching and kept them in a covered box on the sand. Just in front of the hotel is a natural egg-laying location, and the hotel has protected that area and help get the turtles to the sea. They tried a couple of times to release the turtles into the ocean but they weren’t mobile enough. Then on Sunday night they let the dozen of so hatchlings out and they slowly made their way into the ocean. This was about a 30 minute process, and at least 20 people were watching and cheering on the little guys.

A baby turtle trying to make it to the ocean

Speaking of Sunday, it was Marcy’s birthday. Unfortunately, I picked up a bout of food poisoning on Saturday night so I spent most of the day in bed. We had an afternoon activity planned of snorkeling, kayaking and standup paddle-boarding. I could barely move so I had to skip it but the kids and Marcy had a great time.

Water sports with Cabo Adventures

They got back to the hotel quickly because they wanted to make it for the 5pm turtle release. Then we had Marcy’s birthday dinner at the hotel, I was able to rally for that.

After Marcy’s birthday dinner at the hotel

The trip was over all too quickly but we all really enjoyed it. We have had a cold fall with more snow than usual in Denver so it was great to get to the warm weather (it was 80 every day) and beach. The kids were especially sad to leave but Marcy vowed that we would try to have another beach vacation for her next birthday (a big one).

Our new Christmas tree

The first part of this week I was in Miami for our Latin American conference, I got back late Wednesday. The highlight this weekend was actually Marcy and I going on a date to the Ridhwan Christmas Party and, for the first time ever, we did not get a babysitter. Anna had a birthday party to go to so Jude was home by himself. He actually played with the neighbor kids for a while and spent the rest of the night watching Minecraft videos on YouTube. He was happy for us to leave for the night.

This morning we went to get our Christmas tree. Jude, Anna and I went to Whole Foods and Home Depot (we chose Whole Foods) and then and Marcy decorated it beautifully as she always does.

Anna getting some makeup at the Waldorf Holiday Fair

Yesterday was the annual Waldorf School Holiday Fair and Anna really wanted to go. So, Marcy and her spent most of the day there (stopping for gymnastics but then returning). Jude was even open to going so he and I stopped by for about an hour in the afternoon.

Jude playing with Olive in the snow

Anna had the entire week of Thanksgiving off school but Jude was supposed to go on Monday and Tuesday. On Monday afternoon a big snow storm came through, dumping over a foot of snow – the biggest storm in three years in Denver. This meant a snow day for Jude on Tuesday which he was thrilled about.

Anna doing some shoveling as the storm continued

After the storm the weather continued to be cold and cloudy most of the week. So while the kids spent a lot of time indoors they were also able to get out and do some sledding at the park. They also took Olive out a lot who just absolutely loves the snow. The neighbors also came over and played on the trampoline after Jude shoveled all the snow off.

Heading off to do the Turkey Trot 4-mile road race around Wash Park

Thanksgiving morning was another cold and cloudy day. But before we feasted Jude and I had a race to run. We entered the Turkey Trot which is a large road race around our local park. It is a big race with close to 10,000 people and it was a little bit treacherous given the snow and ice on the roads. But we both finished well with good times.

Then it was on to Thanksgiving dinner. Marcy spent a good part of Wednesday and most of Thursday preparing the meal. My job was the turkey and gravy. We sat down to our first family Thanksgiving dinner in Denver since 2013 and it was really nice to spend the holiday at home.

About to dig in to our Thanksgiving feast

We didn’t have a whole lot planned the rest of the weekend and as I said the weather was not great. Anna and Elsie had an entire camp planned with the neighbors with a range of activities so that occupied quite a bit of the long weekend. One of the activities was community service which involved us taking trash bags out and cleaning up trash in the neighborhood. It was not an easy task given all the snow but we did manage to half fill a couple of trash bags.

Doing community service over Thanksgiving weekend

The other big job this weekend was hanging our new TV. We bought a new 55″ OLED TV last weekend and installed it this weekend. We had a couple of issues with the installers so Marcy and I ended up doing it ourselves. The TV looks fantastic hanging on our wall now.

Jude being a teenager next to his mom

Yesterday Jude turned 13. He has building up to this day all month and he woke up very excited. He got to choose how we celebrated. He decided a pancake breakfast at home and then on to his favorite pastime, Minecraft on his Nintendo Switch. We watched some Premier League and Jude played with Olive in the park.

Showing off his birthday present, an iPhone 8

The big gift that Jude got for his birthday was a brand new smartphone. We bought him an iPhone 8, something he has been really wanting. He is the second last kid in his class of 25 at school to get a smartphone and at 13 we feel like Jude is ready. He has had a flip phone for a couple of years now and understands the importance of looking after it. We have a long list of rules for this phone, it is not a play toy, it is to be used primarily for communication.

Jude decided for lunch he wanted to go to Mustard’s, a hot dog place right by DU that is walking distance from our house. We played some table tennis at home and then some tennis at the local courts in the afternoon. And we went and bought an ice cream cake which we had in the afternoon. For dinner Jude wanted takeout Noodles & Co. and then we watched Monty Python and the Holy Grail. He said it was a very satisfying birthday.

Singing Happy Birthday to Jude

Today, we spent the whole day at home. No one had any commitments so we used this time to switch out Anna’s bed. She wanted her old bed that she had on Fairfax Street which had been in the basement. So, we switched beds, which took most of the afternoon and into the evening with Marcy doing the bulk of the work.

Anna working the store at her school book fair

I was in Philadelphia for a conference Wednesday to Friday this week so I missed a couple of things. Anna had a book fair at school and she helped to staff the book store. There was also an open house at South High School I missed as we continue to explore high school options for Jude.

We didn’t have much planned this weekend. Anna had gymnastics on Saturday, I took Jude to putt putt and both of them played with the neighbor kids. Last night we had family movie night and Anna chose Oceans Thirteen.

Anna and Elsie drawing caricatures in the park

Today, Jude played an epic game of football in the park with the neighbor boys while Anna and Elsie decided they would try to raise money for girl scouts by drawing caricatures. So, they set up shop in the local park and solicited business from the people out walking. They had one nice customer who was a good sport and waited around quite some time while the girls finished her portrait.

Snuggling with Olive on the couch

This past week was a big one for Olive. She had her surgery to make sure she can never have babies. She has to take it easy for 10 days so no walks and no running or jumping. And she has to wear a cone to bed. But the surgery itself hardly phased her. She slept great the first night and she seemed to be in no pain at all. The only trouble is she REALLY wants to run and play, she is still a puppy after all, but we have to keep her sedated much of the time.

Olive tries desperately to get Pickles to play with her

Jude racing in the Halloween school cross country at St. Mary’s dressed as Thing 1 & Thing 2

The week started off with the last school cross country meet of the season. This was the Monster Dash, a costume race and all of Jude’s school team dressed up as Thing 1 and Thing 2. Jude ran well, coming in fourth, despite not having his regular running shoes (they were misplaced).

Yesterday, Jude was invited to his first Bar Mitzvah service and party for one of his school friends. Jude went to the service at the Jewish Community Center in the morning and even though it was two hours long he said he quite liked it. In the evening they had a party at a really fun place with indoor beach volleyball courts, table tennis and pool. Jude had a blast and didn’t want to leave until the bitter end at 10:30pm.

Doing piggy back races at her friend’s birthday party

Meanwhile Anna had a birthday party at Xtreme Challenge Arena, a kids fun activity place where they do all kinds of challenges including “flying” through the air in the Superman challenge. After an hour they went back for more games and dinner at her friend’s house.

Jude enjoys a quiet Sunday watching soccer and football

Jude had low energy today after his late night. So, he spent way too many hours watching soccer and football today. At least he was able to spend some quality time with Olive and Pickles. We did get to the park once with Olive and both Jude and Anna raked some leaves in the afternoon. They also spent some time on the trampoline with the neighbors this afternoon.

Pickles found the perfect hiding place

We end with some cutie animal photos.

Olive looks so cute after her time at the groomers