Rachel and I were in bed already when the call came in. "Hello, this is the sheriff over in Coeur d'Alene and I am here with Evelyn, who I found driving your Subaru"

"Is everything okay?"

"Well, she's fine, and the car is fine. What is not fine is the young man car-surfing on the hood while she drives around a Jimmy Johns parking lot in front of a large crowd."

In the end, things will be okay, but it is a little stressful in the moment. She didn't get a citation; She got a court summons for a misdemeanor crime. It'll likely be knocked down to a lesser offense, but her insurance will go up and she'll have a hefty fine to pay. It's going to require her to get a job. That's kind-of a bummer, because her current lifestyle doesn't allow time for a job between school, family, extracurriculars, and friends. Something is going to have to give, and that sucks.

Honestly, I feel put out by the whole thing. A misdemeanor? I mean, sure, scare them a little. Give them a ticket for their stupidity and a stern talking to. Whatever. But escalating this into the court system seems excessive. Nobody was in any real danger, and I believe their biggest mistake was simply getting caught. I suspect they were profiled due to their appearance – long hair, baggy clothes, visible chains, and edgy clothing choices – and that other teenagers might have received a mere warning for the same behavior. The punishment seems disproportionate to the offense. Their actions, in my opinion, fall within the realm of typical teenage behavior – somewhat reckless, yes, but ultimately fun, mostly harmless, and a common part of growing up. These kids spend time with our family and are respectful and cool to hang out with. They excel academically, actively participate in extracurricular activities (primarily in the arts), and dedicate their free time to music. They are not criminals.

This well-timed Christmas present from Jackson had to poke fun of the situation just a little.

*****

Lindsey was happily shaking a little sandwich bag with some coins and small bills in it.

"What is that from?"

"Addy and Evelyn"

"Why?"

"Because I sold stuff for them."

We look at Addy. She looks back, a little bit guilty, but also smiling.

"What? Don't you know how corporations work? Our entire system is built on the exploitation of the weak!"

Background: Addy and Ev needed a bunch of money to do ski and snowboard club. The school had fundraising activities, but Addy didn't want to spend her time going door to door. Solution: she offered to pay Lindsey a quarter for every $10 that was sold on her behalf. Lindsey had a fun afternoon and made some money. The older kids got to ski. Everyone was happy.

No harm, no foul.

*****

Rachel and I have both had time skiing with friends. Rach planned a whole ladies weekend where they went to Wallace and stayed up until like 2am like little schoolgirls. As for me-we just skied. Nothing else needed. Ev and Addy went up together one day, and the whole family put some time in on the mountain together. It's been an amazing early season. Yesterday was a particularly good day with hero snow on every run.

*****

We are finally through all the holiday concerts and presentations and events. The last one was a combined choir concert with the elementary and middle school. At the end, all the kids sang together, so it was a rare time for Lindsey and Maren to share the stage.

*****

In other news, Merry Christmas!

It has been a very busy time for us. Well...for me, specifically. Last week, I did not eat lunch at all at work, just because I was seeing patients that whole time. In the evenings we have had Christmas presentations and concerts from all the kids, and the weekends have been busy shuttling cars to/from various destinations. It's been wild, and is finally showing signs of slowing down. Here is a brief highlight list of our last little while.

1) Gingerbread contest. Whoville won by a landslide. It wasn't even close. Good job to everyone, but especially to team Whoville.

2) My knee is finally feeling better. I mentioned it a little bit in the last blog, and I was originally more worried than I let on. It's taken a couple of weeks, and it's still a little sore, but I skied yesterday and I'm back to full-on leg days in the gym. A week from now I think I'll be a hundred percent again.

3) The kids have all been annoyingly under-the-weather. Not like super sick or anything. Just coughing. A LOT. Our house sounds like a hospital. 

4) Lindsey choir concert. This was an outdoor concert at the Post Falls Winter Festival at city hall.

5) Church potluck and chili cookoff. Rachel defended her title from last year and came away a second time with the winning dish. 

6) Skiing with friends. 

We forgot forks. No problem.

Addy and Jace

Evelyn and Josh

7) High school band concert. Both girls did great.

9) Unpagent. It is a Sunday devoted to a reenactment of the nativity. Lindsey was a wise gal. Addy played in the ensemble. 

10) Maren Voice recital. She did great. I am always a little bit surprised at how big her voice is when she sings. 

First things first. Gingerbread house contest. We do this every year. At first, it wasn't competitive at all- it was just a thing that Rachel and I did for fun. Then we started doing it with extended family. Then kids got involved. And now, Rach and I stand aside pretty much completely and just watch in on the action. It's a fun tradition.

Not everyone. We had around 20 people working on houses this year. This is just the beginning.

We do need some judges though, and that is where, if you are reading this, I will ask that you let us know your vote. Leave a comment, send a text, call us up...whatever. 

Here are the contenders:

 This creation features a vibrant coral reef teeming with life. Colorful, candy-coated rocks form the base, while intricate sugar-spun seaweed sways in the current. A school of gummy fish swim among the coral, enjoying their underwater habitat.

Here we have Whoville, from the Grinch who stole Christmas. Classic. The Whos are standing outside of their whimsical houses, holding hands around the tree. The Grinch (and Max) look down on the scene from the top of Mt. Crumpet as their hearts begin to grow.

The Banana farm, with banana trees and bananas everywhere.  A playful shark family makes their home here, and their peculiar appetite for bananas adds a quirky twist to this sweet and sunny creation

The candy shelter. This one is a little bit sad. There were big plans to do a ski resort. They tried real hard and had many committee meetings along the way. It didn't really work out in the end, so they just cut their losses, made a teepee, and stuffed it with all the candy they wanted to eat later on. It's not a bad strategy. In the foreground, the skeletal remains of a parking lot serve as a poignant reminder of the dream that once was.

The bowling alley. This was a side project, but I promised I would put it on.

So...Which one wins? Let me know!

*****

Next up: Thanksgiving. To be honest, the day itself was a little "meh." We sat around the house, watched some football, made some food, and sat around the house some more. I think there were people who really appreciated the laid-back day. I'm not great at sitting around, so the other days of the vacation were a bit better for me.

Of course we went skiing as part of the break. I was hoping to get a full four days in over the course of the week, but an ugly fall and tweaked knee forced me to take a couple of rest days. Nothing serious except for a damaged ego, and I'm already looking forward to being back on the slopes next weekend. We have had an amazing start to the season.

Also, Rach and I took an overnight getaway to the Wallace house and completely finished the next phase of the attic project. So far we have the subfloor, walls, and ceiling all the way finished. Windows are scheduled for installation later this month. Carpet and lighting will be done in January, and we are already discussing furniture and décor. We'll for sure have a little electric fireplace and are aiming for a cozy nook with maybe some bedding options. It is exciting to see things actually happening here and will make our little vacation house that much more versatile. 

Since it gets dark so early we are usually able to enjoy some spectacular sunsets before going back down to reality.

*****

There have been a few performances that we should mention. The first is Maren's showcase for a drama class she has been in. She got a central role in the play (a fairy-tale mash-up where she was the blue fairy), and she did a great job.

The next is just when Ev and I played at church last week. It's not the first time we've played together, but it was probably the best for me so far. There was a magical moment when the band was totally in flow together, and the congregation was obviously connecting with the music, and we all just looked at each other, smiled, and nodded, then kept going like, yeah, this is pretty sweet. I think it's really cool and rewarding that Ev and I get to share this music thing.

*****

Finally, a few more photos of the gingerbread contest. Don't let the teams sway your opinion.

The festive season between Halloween and New Years, for many people, is full of traditions. Foods, activities, decorations, maybe travel. All the things. And our family is no different, though as we grow up the traditions tend to change a little bit. Put all together, meshed with all the years past, these little habits and rituals weave their way into a strong and lasting family narrative. They become part of us. Who we are.

Over the last few years, there is an additional holiday for our family that has become every bit as import and ritualized for us as Christmas or Thanksgiving. Opening Day. Just saying it out loud makes my heart skip a little. It has a feel to it. There are certain smells and tastes and sounds that go along with the day. Certain customs. But first, the lead-up...

Here we are, two months before, checking our gear and making sure we have our passes. A month- checking our clothing. Two weeks- make sure the cars are ready. A week- try everything on, last minute checks, go into emergency mode over lost or damaged items. A day- fill up with gas. Charge our phones and Bluetooth helmets. Pack our bags. And then we are loading up the car and pulling out of the driveway. It's snowing.

We drive up to Wallace where we start the fireplace and turn the lights down low. We bake pizza and play games as a family while music plays in the background. And then we are heading up to watch The Movie. "Better Off Dead-" a ridiculous little tradition, but we can still quote every word and laugh at every punchline. We have dessert, and then we are laying out our clothes and trying to get some sleep, which is difficult because of the excitement. 

Let's interject here to make one thing clear. All of this is not simply about one day. It's not even about skiing. Rather, it's about an entire season. It's about road trips, and frozen faces, and hotel stays, and chair lift rides and eating lunch together. It's about challenging ourselves, and getting lost, and having hard days and doing hard things. It's about being completely absorbed in a single moment, whether that moment be joyful, or proud, or congenial, or scary, or somewhere in between. And really, in a lot of ways, Opening Day feels like it's a celebration of us- as in capital "U" Us- the Hazard Family, being together and being ourselves and having both of those things balance in a way that seems to work better in these settings than almost any other. 

Morning of- we make a nice breakfast and eat while at the same time putting on layers. It is controlled chaos for a while, but we each take a few quiet moments for ourselves to watch the large snowflakes floating lazily onto the streets and rooftops below. We sip warm beverages. It's going to be a good day.

The drive from our house only takes a few minutes, and then we are walking to the gondola. The falling snow, the music in the village, the outdoor fireplaces, and the people milling about in clunky boots all seem warmly familiar. Welcoming. We give little nods of recognition and acknowledgement to people we remember from last year. It's here.

We do the first run as a family. A groomer. That is also part of the tradition. We wait at each pitch and check in on each other before going all the way down. And then we are off into small groups. From all over the mountain you can hear woops of unrestrained glee. Something about the movement makes you into a kid again, and you can see it not just in yourself, but in the people around you as well. Lunchtime is jovial, and you eat cosmic brownies while replaying the highs and lows of the day. And then back for more. 

And the next day... And the week after that... And the week after that...

It's going to be a great year and we couldn't have asked for a better start. We had to wait until January last year for conditions like this. On this Thanksgiving season I am so glad and thankful for that November day back in 2017 when we were going stir crazy with small kids in a small house and we only had 12 hours of cold daylight and we decided to go to a ski-swap just so we would have something to do to pass the time. We spent like a hundred bucks that day and outfitted the whole family with janky gear. And the rest is history. 

This is what started it all

Look at this ragtag bunch!

Happy Opening Day! 

Last minute adjustments

The excitement is real

Have a good week!