This Is Us

It's that time again!  Here is a snapshot of what each of us has been up to.

Logan

Some people say that it is all downhill after you hit your 30's. These people have never met Logan. He is currently living life in his prime! Logan has been rock climbing since he could walk and the sport has definitely played a large part in his life. That being said, he is in the best climbing shape that he has ever been in. He is stronger than ever and is currently sending in the V8 range within a single session. He on-sights most climbs up to about 12b and has a prepared list of projects in the 5.13 range (read Jedi Knight crazy magic skills). Logan has also gained a bit of a reputation in the local climbing community and has often been recognized by name from people who have never actually met him.  He is making some good friends in this community and is busy planning weekend trips to send some difficult and classic climbs.

He has also taken up another sport in recent months- freestyle skiing. Although he has known how to ski since he was a kid, he has been actively preparing for this season with the specific goal in mind to hit the jumps and rails in the park. In preparation for this new adventure, he has also invested a bit into getting the gear that would pad those falls that were sure to come in the learning process. As with most things, he has excelled in his pursuits and hasn't had many times that this gear was actually needed, although I'm sure it goes far to help in the mental game.

As far as day-to-day life, some people say that their job is the place where you go from 9-5 just so that you can 'get done' and escape to whatever it is you actually want to be doing. If you're lucky though, then work can become very fulfilling and the people there can turn into a sort of second family. Logan has been extremely lucky to be in this second group.  His team is amazing, and the connection and caring is palpable when you walk into the office. Also, I do not think there are many weeks that go by that colleagues don't see each outside of work just for fun. There is magic in Post Falls. Logan is loving everything about his team, enjoying the connections and relationships he is creating with patients, and doing the type of dentistry that he continues to enjoy.

Rachel

I began this year with a big goal. I wanted to do my first triathlon. I have done multiple long distance bike races, but there were two flaws in my triathlon plan. The first was that I hadn't run in 15 years at which time I had trained for a 5K and upon completion I swore I would die with the knowledge that I had run one race because it surely wasn't going to happen again. The second road bump was the fact that I had no idea how to swim.  Sure, I can do some kind of frog motion and not drown, but the action of actually doing a freestyle stroke/kick motion was not something I had ever tried. Fast forward a few months and I was lined up ready to compete in the Post Falls Sprint tri.  My goal for the swimming portion was to not drown. SUCCESS! But it wasn't pretty.  My goal for the biking section was to pass all of the people who passed me on the swimming part. SUCCESS. And my final goal for the running section was to run the entire length of the race. SUCCESS.  In the end I was saved by the bike because if I was two years younger I would have taken third place in the age group. Why did women my age have to be so competitive!

When Logan and I met we lived about five minutes from an excellent local crag (thanks Utah!) and we went climbing together in Rock Canyon 2-3 times a week.  Then, we moved to Cleveland for Dental school (no climbing to speak of) and I had five kids.  Needless to say I felt like I had to start over from square one and that was intimidating.  This year I decided to get back into it.  I have my first alpine multi pitch under my belt (Irene's Arete in the Tetons) along with many days at some local and not so local crags with Logan.  We are making plans and looking forward to many bucket list climbs in the near and not so near future.  Along with this change I have also began bouldering at local gyms.  Can I just say that bouldering is a completely different sport, but I am enjoying the challenge.

The Seahawks have been a part of mine and Logan's winter routine for the past few years.  Every year I want to create a fantasy football team and be on a league with Logan, but he has never been really into it.  This year I decided to go for it and do it on my own!  I had a great time, and am looking forward to doing it again next year.  I generally listen to Seahawks podcasts, and this year I spent additional time enjoying the Fantasy Football radio station. I think Fantasy is here to stay.  I would like to take a quick moment to apologize to my Uncle Burt.  I never understood his love of football, but now I totally get it.

Evelyn

Evelyn is quickly blossoming into a great young woman! She and I are both excited for our trip to Bolivia, and she has been forcing us to go on dates so that she can save up her share of the cost. I can't say I mind being forced out on a date... Especially when she is so responsible and even cleans the house while we are out! I even have the other kids ask me to go out so that she can babysit because she plans games and activities for them.  Again, I have mixed feelings. :)

Ev is still hanging out with her fabulous group of friends. She rides her bike, skateboards, or walks to school with them everyday. I have been impressed with her riding her bike or long boarding without complaint through sleet and bitter temps. The snow finally arrived in January and she has taken it in stride and walked to school.  I do have a heart, and will drive her when there is rain or crazy slush.

This year has been a roller coaster for Evelyn when it comes to middle school. She does not have any love for this new environment and thank goodness that she has good friends to get her through.  The schedule has thrown her off, and she has decided that middle school is not her thing.  This year I saw her for the first time coping with stress.  She had two projects due, a writing assignment, and a band concert in the same week.  For the weeks leading up to these events she was constantly nervous and had visual stress. At the same time she was procrastinating getting the work done.  After some crazy catch up she finally got through the week.  I hope this experience will make her avoid procrastination in the future!  This morning she informed me that she pulled straight A's this semester, and that two weeks ago she had an A- and after approaching the teacher she was able to bring it back up.  I don't have any worries about this girl!

Adalie

Our little ray of happiness and sunshine has been flirting with the idea of having an attitude. Occasionally she tries to be obstinate, but I don't think she has it in her!  She does, however, have a pretty good eye roll!

Addy LOVES school and has even had tears at the thought of long stretches away.  I think she thrives in the school environment academically and socially.  She runs around with a pretty good group of girls, and she loves having sleepovers and having friends over.  Much to the chagrin of other members of the family she is still excellent at attracting siblings' friends when they come over to play. The kids recently had a day off of school and I let each of them invite a friend over to play. It came out that Adalie had a crush on Jackson's friend that had come over, and there was a bit of drama! It has begun! 

Adalie, of course, is the first one of the kids to show an interest in and pursue snowboarding. It fits her.  She does a great job and even manages to stay up for long stretches of time!  She is improving every time we go and she looks like a natural.  Speaking of looking natural, she has just the right amount of sass and skill that her hip hop class is a natural extension of her personality. She is doing great and she loves it.

Jack

Jackson is the most dedicated kid I have ever met.  If he wants something then you better get out of his way. If he is saving money for something I know I had better have a job list ready for him because he will constantly be asking and will do pretty much any job required.  Also, if he has an invention or creation in mind I had better get ready and hopefully set some boundaries before it gets out of hand!  His room constantly has a creation in progress, but I know that the second I say room cleaning he will have it spic and span before I have the other kids off of the couch!

Jackson has recently begun attending boy scouts. Can I just say that scouts is a full time job and can take over your life if you let it! He loves every minute and has been checking out every survival book known to man from the library.  He is absolutely full of information and facts about any non fiction subject that he has curiosity about.  When he was learning to read he wanted absolutely nothing to do with it until he discovered non fiction books. Since then it has been impossible to stop him from finding out about the world around him.  I love it! I am, however, a little bit concerned for summer time. I would not be surprised if Jack tried to get himself lost so that he could prove his skills as a survivalist.  I will make sure to keep a close eye on him. 

Jack has a great big dose of confidence that I hope he never loses! He will take on challenges (as long as they are interesting to him) and work to be the best.  He has taken on the challenge of learning to ski.  He is a maniac on the hills and he has a deal with Logan that if he takes on 10 black diamonds without falling that Logan will take him on a double black.  Jack already has one in the books.  Another sport he has become interested in is rock climbing.  Last week at the gym he tackled his first 5.11 climb.  He worked that climb over and over again without a rest until he sent it from start to finish. I was pretty proud of his hard work and dedication.  Now I have to convince him that it is not beneath him to climb other routes that are rated lower. He is convinced that he is a "5.11 climber" and routes below that level are not worth his time!  

Maren

Maren has grown so much this year! She is blossoming in school and is starting to make some close friends.  Her confidence is growing and she is so fun to chat with! She is very insightful and knows herself extremely well. She has a mischievous and intelligent spark in her eye that I can't help but LOVE!

Maren began the year in ballet class and quickly decided that ballet was not for her.  We decided to switch her to Jazz class and we found out that her last year's teacher recommended that she skip a level and join a more advanced class, so she transferred classes late into the year.  After her first class I asked her how things went, and she responded that she ABSOLUTELY loved it!  I asked her what her favorite part was and her eyes glittered when she responded that she loved the challenge! She is definitely a girl after my own heart!

Maren loves to play teacher with Lindsey. One of the first, and most important, things she taught her was to write "I love Maren."  Oh my heart!  Another recent interest that Maren has involves football. She has always been Logan's "TV watching partner," and she is now our football watching partner.  She likes to learn about the game and to watch the Seahawks with us. She now is the proud owner of a Seahawks shirt so that she can dress up and watch the games with us.

Lindsey

You may think that our youngest daughter's name is Lindsey, but you would be wrong. Her name is Elsa, and she has snow powers and will dazzle you with her many dress changes throughout the day.  She is constantly in a magical world and she will enchant anyone who is with her.  This includes Todd, our painter who has been spending some time at our house. She constantly requests for Alexa to play Frozen songs, and Todd will automatically request a music change when she enters the room so that they can sing duets together (I think he missed his calling as a singer!).  One day I heard them chatting and he asked her what ten times eight was.  Without missing a beat she answered him.  He was trying to stump her and it didn't work! I am not even sure how she learned that, but she continued to answer all of his difficult math questions. She is pretty sharp, and I think Maren is doing a good job as her teacher.

I work three days a week while Lindsey is at school, and we have two days a week we get to spend together.  I love these days and we always try to do something fun together.  I have noticed, however, that Lindsey does NOT like going places to play when she does not have a friend there. If we head to the bounce house without inviting a friend she tends to be visually uncomfortable and want to leave after a few minutes.  She loves having familiar friends, but shies away from asking others because she is nervous that they will not want to play.

Lindsey's little body can hold quite a lot of sass!  She is practicing the sassy hip action and "whatever" look.  It comes a bit too naturally for this little!  She knows what she wants and she isn't afraid to show everyone that she is the boss!  At the same time she is a sweet snuggler who I can count on for a hug every time I leave the house... even if it is only to get the mail. She also gives excellent hugs to Logan whenever he walks through the door. I would take a hug from this girl any time!