The Countdown

 Ah, Christmas 2012. Blessed, blessed times...notable for the amount of fun and relaxation, though, correspondingly, we missed a few things: no Santa visit. I know, right? No trip to see outdoor light displays, as of yet. So frigidly cold! How could we possibly be in the 50s and 60s the week before break and get pounded with the seasonal temps once everyone was free to wander?

What we DID experience was the Holiday program at Clear Sky...beginning band has this wunderkind on trumpet, he has amazing form.

 We somehow missed the 'Elf-on-theShelf' train up until now, but it meant the world to Grace that Rosa came to visit from the  North Pole...she wrote her on a nightly basis, and though I repinned many a Pinterest idea concerning these magical little folk from up Santa's way, neither I nor the bigger kids set any kind of standard for creativity or accomplishment. The littlest Crawford was oblivious, and enjoyed her elfin friend as much as could be imagined, which is a lesson learned.

 Deckin' the halls. Wonderful ornaments this year from Grandma K...Eve got Holiday Barbie, Grace received Pop Star Princess Barbie, Ty nabbed Cap'n Jack Sparrow, Shane scored Iron Man, and I walked away with a Barbie vintage-shoe tower-thingie. We really need a 12-foot tree. But when  you don't jump right on it, when you wait until the 2nd week in December, you get what you get. And what you get is gorgeous, just, perhaps, not big enough to hold the spoils of Christmases past. Grace was aghast when she observed that other families had trees where all the ornaments were the same and matched each other, and there was nothing personal about them...

 She didn't fall, trip, or hurt herself in any way. Just thought it would be best to lie at the foot of the stairs and make faces.

 I had the grand privelege of planning the activity stations for the 2nd grade party...I didn't handle the cookie decorating, but it's always a good photo op. For Gracie, we beaded chenille stems for ornaments, tried to unwrap Kisses while mittened, and then there was a bookmark coloring station...

 Shane's teacher is more tolerant of crazy activity and noise, so we brought it: we also unwrapped Kisses, but also had to suck these mini-marshmallows and drop them into the cups...

 and pulled out the sugar cubes and chopsticks yet again for stacking competitions. This is, perhaps, the best activity EVER. It kills, every time.

 Oooh, how Pinteresting! If it weren't for the kids in my house, I would never have finished so many of these donette-gem snowmen treats, and I certainly wouldn't have finished them in time for the occasion for which they were created. The youngsters, after racing home from Pack meeting, were indispensable, and our fingernails were ringed with black food coloring for some weeks afterward. They looked like orphans.

 Sugar cookies! And the inevitable competition to see who could create the most out-of-control, absolutely stupid, inedible cookie. It was a four-way tie.

 First place, for no other reason than it did not become smothered with the frosting-gone-wrong, which resembled guacamole more than any other substance.

Stack-a-rific. Ready for Santa.

Best Way to Live in California is to be From Somewheres Else

 Swim is life. Eve was moved up to ROCK's Gold Squad this fall, and earned enough qual times to travel with the team to the Mission Viego Turkey Classic in November...she could have attended in other years, but ma 'n pa feel that too much too early is everything we despise in the world. It was a lucky coincidence that for Eve's first travel meet, I was available to chaperone.

 They all got together and puffy-painted sweats...leave it to my kid to emblazon her derriere. There's a little Beyonce in all of  us.

 Outside the OC aeropuerto...nothin' but trouble comin' with that crew. Actually, just a joy to be with...a tight little well-behaved squad. There's few things I hate more than a 6 a.m. wake-up call, and 8-hour meets aren't high on my list either (seriously, the end of the world comes? Our very last day? Schedule a swim meet. We'll be there forever). But these kiddos made it most pleasant, even when I had to call the front desk to complain about the noise from the other resident swim team, and the pot smoking from the neighbors who were staying for a wedding...what is it about hotels that make poor behavior de rigeur?

 Belly Boo at the Mission Viejo Natadores' swim facility...we got a little teary-eyed with nostalgia, the concept that you could swim outdoors all year long, in a lovely terra-cotta Spanish-influenced facility, bouganvillea trees everywhere you look. Sweet reed-thin mothers huddled around the pool in pea-coats and Uggs because it's dipped to 60 degrees, you trooping around in capris and flip-flops...When you visit, you remember all that is lovely and fun about Southern California. For entire minutes at a time, you question why you ever left in the first place. And then you get in a car and attempt to pick up Subway sandwiches 1/2 mile away, and it all comes back to you: you don't have enough time, energy or money to keep up with the pace. Every guest cottage of a house worth inhabiting is worth a half-mil or more. Oh, yeah. THAT'S why.

 Lounging. Lounging in between events is the best part of the team experience.

I didn't get to lounge, however. I was the chaperone, which meant I procured lunch and snacks, and, when Coach Will lost the keys to the 2nd rental car, I got to leave the pool, go to the hotel (very nice!), take them up to the pool, stay at the pool for 45 minutes, leave to get an early lunch for the kids, then head back to the hotel, accompany the tow truck driver in his trip to the airport, secure a new vehicle (the rental car employee had a great story about meeting Ryan Lochte in Vegas), and drive back. These are the legends from which memories are made.

 The meet is the excuse for the trip. In-N-Out is the reason for the trip. One of the coaches had the audacity to mention that perhaps it was just a burger and that our enthusiasm was misplaced. I was aghast. Then we went to the Spectrum to see 'Wreck-It Ralph'. Always one of my favorite theaters. Ah, memories. Eve even took the team on a pilgrimage to the Turtle Fountains she and her brothers enjoyed in their early years...they weren't as epic in proportion as she remembered. And that's just life, isn't it?

 Morning of the flight home, Laguna Beach. Had myself a lovely stroll through the library used book store (one must have a book for the flight home when one has been trying to read 'The Hobbit' and one absolutely can't bring oneself to do it) and many out-of-reach home decor shops before joining the kiddos on the beach...

 presh.

...and home we go. I'd do it again in a heartbeat.

Merry Orange Crushmas

 Stand ye in holy places.

Please don't be shocked. What's sacred to you and what's sacred to me will probably dovetail at some relatively obvious points...you may not agree, you may not understand, but please don't fear what you don't understand. Accept that I feel this way about a professional sports team and all affiliated with it...things will be easier.

 I scored a killer Groupon for a tour of Sports Authority Field at Mile High Stadium along with an on-field family photo against the scoreboard...like I was gonna say no to that? I didn't. So the youngest three and I met Matt and Eve on their way back home from a meet north of Greeley (is there anything north of Greeley?) at the halfway mark...bliss and joy, all around. The photo above is what every visiting player sees upon leaving their locker room, a subtle reminder to reach for their benchside oxygen masks whenever  possible.

 Stadium catering rocks. And we found that we could use the Quarterback Club's VIP lounge to host any number of events: wedding receptions, proms...I am all aflame with the possibilities. Possibilities open to us only if we were to rob several banks, but possibilities, nonetheless.

 The visiting team's locker room...we penned ourselves in as an opponent. It was voted the best visiting team facility in the NFL by the players. You gotta keep up appearances, because you never know when an extremely gifted free agent will be shopping for a new home. Ahem.

 That goal post-thingie, there? That's where Matt Prater used to be relied upon to ensure wins for the Broncos squad, back when our quarterback was darling and sweet and somewhat unsteady in the passing department and could only be counted upon to secure a tie, if that. That seems so long ago, and on such a distant planet, I have trouble recollecting it. Which is why, of course, it's so handy to keep a blog.

 Goodies.

What we paid for, largely, was the stadium experience. But what would the NFL be without it, the mass marketing and creation of epic environments? This isn't the Mile High of my childhood; it was Elway's playground while I was living in other environs, and have never attended a game here, to date. But with this gorgeously adept squad, led by the ever-intrepid Peyton Manning, the city is all aflame with anticipation: we could go very, very far. Squeal! So very, very far! Giddiness!



Fangs for the Memories...

 Only a little behind...Fall break put us a bit behind the 8-ball with pumpkin patches this year...luckily, the Castle Rock Safeway tricks out their storefront just enough to make it festive on a Saturday night when you're just straight outta luck for find a pumpkin in a timely fashion before the Sabbath is upon you...

 Always have a soft spot for the Great Pumpkin believers out there. Talk about keepin' the faith.

 Not a fan of the gutting. No one quite has texture issues the way I've got texture issues (what a difference it would have made for me as a kid if they knew then what they know now...), but Grace and Ty are reasonably gut-averse. I'm exploiting her pain. Bad mother.

 Shane has no fear of guts or seeds or knives or, anything, actually. That's a boss carving job if I say so myself.

 Took the elder princess two days to create this masterpiece...can you see Cinderella inside the carriage? Yeah, we copied from Pinterest. And, yeah, the Pinterest version was much more elaborate. And, I suspect, posted by someone who doesn't have four kids with extracurricular activities. And a church calling. And a sick dog. Don't forget the nearly blind dog.

 What a beautiful Halloween...we've been spoiled in the 5 years we've been here...didn't even need jackets to go on the neighborhood rummage for sweets. Gracie is Draculaura from Monster High; Eve is Finn from 'Adventure Time', and I put in an appearance as Cruella for the first time in many moons. Grace toured with neighbors, Shane went with a friend from school, Eve and Ty joined friend Corey...and Matt and me? We just took turns answering the door and watching Charlie Brown. Bliss.

 Cavity patrol! That's a pretty good haul, there, fella.

 I let the kids eat all of this. I really do. Just not all at once.

Aw, she's sweet enough already, right?

Florida? Why'd it have to be in Florida?

 Oh, for the love of all that's holy...this should've been the last pic loaded. Who am I, Job?

So, this fall break the Crawfords made the epic trek to central Florida - the greater Orlando area - and though I tried to prep us mentally, we were absolutely done in by the humidity and heat. We're Colorado pansies, and though we attempt summer crowds or temps, it was, for the most part, like walking though heated molasses. We were stupefied by the effect. Wowzers.

Last day of the trip we spent about 5 hours at Disney's Hollywood Studios...which is architecturally fascinating and beautiful, but mostly, for my California readers, just the original version of California Adventure, with a few added attractions: a live stage show for both Beauty and the Beast and Little Mermaid, the Rock 'n Roller Coaster, and a 3-D version of Star Tours.

 This is mentally taxing, working backward...

Day 5: Our second day at the Magic Kingdom, which was horrifying: the amount of people pouring in the gates was a concern. It's mid-October! What ARE you doing here? We felt most fortunate that this was our luxury day, because the lines were outrageous. The great find was Dumbo's Circus water feature in Fantasyland (just a word to those prone to comparisons: Disneyland's Fantasyland, though far smaller, is far superior. However, once Disneyworld opens their fantastic princess extention, there will be no competition). Spraying water saved us all from dropping in a dead faint.

 We're not 'Disney people' in the sense that we attend annually and name our kids after Disney characters and hold season passes, but we're certainly a Disney family in the monopoly we allow the company in entertaining and clothing our kids, and I'm definitely one of those women who skips delightedly through the park. I'm a sucker for theming and detail, and they do it better than anyone. I see little details like this throughout the park and I melt, because regardless of its excesses, and the excesses of its attendees, this mindset explains why it is that you can attend a Disney park on either coast (or continent) and feel utterly great about it. Lighter in the pockets, but great.
Speaking of lighter pockets: not to be missed, even if you have to sell a kidney to do it, is dining in Cinderella's Royal Table in the castle proper - you are ushered in for a photo, a page calls for Lady Grace, Lady Eve and Lady Linda to dine by royal invitation of the princesses, and you are ushered into a buttressed, tapestry- and -coat-of-arms bedecked dining room while treated to meet-and-greets with all the luminaries, a wishing ceremony, and a scrumptious meal. Couldn't score a seat at the Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boutique, for love or money, even months out, but had we known of its existence before it was too late, we would've loved a shot at the Pirate's League. If you can't be a princess, a drunken rogue will do just as nicely.

 EPCOT. You hate to be like this, but what a rip-off. In fairness, I did not feel well. And we made some tactical errors in choosing attractions to visit (we missed Turtle Talk with Crush and the huge new aquarium, for example), but other than the roller coaster simulator and the Mission: Space attractions, we were absolutely underwhelmed by our morning...it was humbling to watch Michael Jackson's 'Captain EO' 3-D extravaganza 20+ years later: that we were ever entertained by that film does not speak in our favor. My kids were just puzzled, and pitied us just a bit. We spent the afternoon at the World Showcase, which was better, but just not a lot to engage...Grace and I ate at the San Angel Inn in Mexico, Matt and the others at Teppan Edo in Japan...wildly priced even by Disney standards, the Japanese delicacies set Matt back about $170...we never recovered. The patisserie in France was to die for, and we did run into Belle and Mary Poppins. There was even a phone booth in England that rang for you - Ty was chatted up by a British operator - but we just weren't heartbroken when the Fasci-Nations fireworks display ended and we loaded on the tram.

 Day 3: this dandy little water park. Nice. Though I didn't get any pictures of the event, the kids got to snorkle with sharks; there were great slides, and a gorgeous lazy river. The wave pool was a blast. Trying to save a buck or two, we loaded up on drinks and a cheap styrofoam cooler at Walgreens...big mistake. About 20 paces from the car the cooler collapsed, spewing ice and pop cans hither and yon...and it was so hot...and we were just so...anyhoo. We gathered what we could, slathered on sunscreen, and tried our best. It worked out. Swimmingly. That night, Giordano's deep dish Italian pizza, cheering for the Packers for the first time in our lives. Wait. Flip-flop Giordano's and Rainforest Cafe. Now we have an accurate timeline.

Day Two: how did I not download a picture of Universal's Island of Adventure? 'Cause that's what we did. How fun was this? The Hulk, SpiderMan, Popeye's Bilge Rat Rapids, Dudley Do-Right's Ripsaw Falls, Jurassic Park, Seuss Landing, and, hand on your heart: The Wizarding World of Harry Potter. Ooooh, baby. Heaven for Potter geeks. Loved every square inch and every square second! Butterbeer, chocolate frogs, Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans, Ollivander's Wand Shop, Hagrid's Hut, the Hogwarts Express...Dueling Dragons, Flight of the Hippogriff, Forbidden Journey...just a joy. Great time. Worth the entire trip. And, by all means, eat at Mythos. Stellar. 

Evening of Day 2: Downtown Disney. Again, for comparison's sake: not as new as the California edition, but like everything else here, far more acreage, far more options, far more croweded. I'm talking Crazy Town. A Disney Christmas store the size of a Wal-Mart, a Lego store the size of an airport. We waited to celebrate Ty's birthday family dinner until we could get to a Rain Forest Cafe, just like the good ol' days, and that was worth waiting for. Particulary when you eat at 9 p.m. and once your entree comes, the joint's empty. Priceless.

Day One: Cape Kennedy and Cocoa Beach. The former was a delight, very well designed and informative. Lots of great interactive displays for our resident rocket scientist and his offspring, and a great attraction describing the Moon Walk and preceding missions...reminded me so of my dad, how fascinated he was by space travel and its endless possibilities. This would've been his Disneyland, so I was a little weepier than the attractions warranted. Then we spent the afternoon at Cocoa Beach. Huntington is prettier. So are most beaches I've ever been to. We've never traveled to a beach town with absolutely no fast food options. We were flummoxed.
Fun memories...the come-from-behind Peyton Manning-engineered Broncos win over San Diego on Monday Night Football - never underestimate the difficulty of cheering for your squad in a hotel room at 11:30 in the evening. Not as easy as it looks.

And so our break ends, our fabulous trip comes to an end. Props to Homewood Suites for hosting (great pool and breakfasts!)...before I forget: amid all the missed-flight drama in Chicago, who should board our plane but Lee Corso? Matt pleaded with me to behave. I kind of did. As far as you know.

Florida 2012, Pt. 2 - slideshow dvd

Florida 2012, Pt. 1 - slideshow dvd

Base Ten

 A full decade of Shaner. What a treat. There are few people in life who have a handle on carpe diem the way our boy does. Game for anything. And we've all survived! New bikes all around!

 Family birthday dinner, Rodizio's Brazilian grill, downtown Denver. LOVE this place. All-you-can-eat grilled meats, carved at your table; you just flag down a wandering server with a skewer the size of Rhode Island containing all manner of delicacies...eat 'til you drop. Shane's favorite place on earth.

 Mom had scored a Groupon to have our family pics taken at Sports Authority Field at Mile High along with a stadium tour, and since we were in the vicinity, and had yet, because of scheduling, to hold our family dinner for Shane's birthday, descended. We were, I couldn't help but notice, the only group brave enough to bring their children, to say nothing of how many children we brought, but we're used to that.

 Hard to believe that once all Shane cared about was Cars. Then Star Wars. Then Harry Potter. Then Roblox. Then Minecraft. Now Halo. Many, many computer geeks and social misfits worldwide are grateful that this child came to earth, I'll tellya what. Shane's got quite the computer proclivities of his own.

 A boy and his donut. Presh.

 Shane's crew at Speed Raceway...another stellar group of young men. Good friends to my fella, and as any mother knows, you'll walk across heaven and earth to find good friends for your kids, and you'd take bullets for them just as surely as you would for one of your own.

Shane's always had a good ear for music: he continues his piano lessons, tortures, I mean, treats us daily to impromptu recorder recitals, and started beginning band this fall at the trumpet. Here, at the Castle View High School elementary and middle school feeder concert. You've never heard a version of "Hot Cross Buns" like this version. Sent chills up my spine.