Arroyo Sledding, Anyone?

In New Mexico, "arroyos" are constructed of cement to channel the infrequent but violent rainfall we get every so often to prevent flooding. They are narrow with steep sides, and are found all over the place here! There is an arroyo near our home, and on either side of the arroyo is a city-maintained grassy field and walking path that runs parallel with the arroyo. Last Saturday on our way home from playing soccer in the grassy field we stopped to notice the snow left on the south wall of the arroyo. The north side had melted away completely. Kaitlyn crouched down anticipating to run down the side of the arroyo, but because of the snow, started to slide a little. Jared thought this looked fun and plopped right down on his bum and slid right down the side of the arroyo. Pretty soon all the kids were "arroyo sledding"--no sled needed! We couldn't believe how fast they were sliding down. It was fun, at the expense of worn-out pants! I'm sure New Mexico officials would not be thrilled at our new found use of the arroyo. At school, the kids are taught not to play in arroyos, because when water is flowing they are quite dangerous.

Sledding in sandals is the way we do it in New Mexico!!

Soccer Mania

Saturday Scott took the kids on a bike ride, and then we went to the grassy field close to our home to play soccer. The kids love to play soccer, and Jared is especially fun to watch. He clenches his mouth and makes a "tough man" face as he intently kicks the ball around. He loves to score a goal! Soccer practice starts again next week for the girls and when I mentioned this and asked the girls if they were excited Jared was the first to pipe up, "Yeah! I can't wait!" He loves to get out on the field and kick the ball and shoot it in the goal when the girls are having their breaks.

Happy 5th Birthday Brynn!

Brynn's birthday was on Thursday. On Saturday we had a "craft" party with 8 little girls! We decorated foam tiara magnets, made stepping-stones, and decorated little canvas bags with ribbon, felt shapes and small pom-poms. It was a dream come true for Brynn and Kaitlyn--non-stop crafting for two hours! Scott and I were tired afterwards.

As you can see, Brynn's birthday cake was nothing fancy (but better tasting than any
"cute" cake we've had lately). I made a Texas Chocolate cake and decorated her name and flowers on it with M&M's the night before her party. The next day when the girls saw the cake they were so excited, and thought the M&M decor was the greatest! I smiled at their excitement and felt grateful that they didn't need an expensive cake decorated with the latest character or even an elaborately decorated homemade cake to be happy.
Children can be happy with the simpiliest things, and sometimes we parents make it harder on ourselves than we need to--or create un-needed expectations in our kids. When Kaitlyn turned two we had a big "ladybug" birthday party. I spent hours making a ladybug cake and individual ladybug cupcakes. They were cute as can be, took forever, and since I had to use so much red food coloring--tasted horrible!

You Know You Live In Albuquerque If . . .

You get a "snow day" off from school for this much snow!

Last Monday we woke up to a dusting of snow, and no school! The kids had a blast playing in the dust. They insisted on decking out in all their snow gear despite the absence of much snow. They surprised me by staying in the backyard for longer than it took to suit them all up!

We really do love the mild winter of Albuquerque. It's fun to still have some warm enough days to ride bikes and go hiking.