The End Of Ski School...

This past Saturday was Riley's last day of ski school.  He's sad that he won't get to ski every weekend, but he's also looking forward to waking up and having a lazy Saturday morning.  Poor kid has been out the door by 8 am 6 days a week for 5 weeks!

His instructors were fabulous and he improved so much in just one session.  His instructor said that Riley kept begging to go faster and always wanted to go first so he wouldn't be slowed down by the other kids who weren't as brave!  He also said that Riley is skiing with corresponding edges across the hill almost all the time and has been skiing some rather difficult terrain and he's ready to move on to more difficult trails...Whoo Hoo!  Go Riley!

I'm going to take him skiing on Sunday if all goes well with the weather...I haven't seen him ski yet this year.  He skied with his Dad and his Nanny and Pappy in December so now it's Mom's turn to see what he can do!  I can't wait!

Here are some pictures taken of him at ski school this winter:

Three kids in a class...Two instructors...Can't beat that!

Here he is leading the pack...gotta be the lead dog or the view never changes, right?

Check out the snowball in his hand...said he would eat it while skiing!

I'm so proud of my little buddy.  He's gotten so much more confident on his skis and with who he is as a person.  I never would have gone to ski school by myself.  I would have needed another friend or sibling there to give me the confidence to do that all day without my parents!  I'm so excited that he enjoys something that his dad and I enjoy.  This is going to become a great family activity for us!

It's Showtime!

At the end of each semester at The Little Gym, the kids show off all the skills they've learned to their friends and family...Well, you know we have no family here so I created a video of today's performance.

Enjoy!

Learning How To Ice Skate

I guess I kind of took it for granted that I had learned to ice skate at an early age as a kid...It didn't dawn on me that I should be trying to teach my own kids right now.  I guess when we lived in Florida, it wasn't a big deal and when we first moved to Utah, we were more concerned with teaching the kids to ski, that ice skating got overlooked.

My dad taught me how to ice skate on the pond at Turkey Hill Dairy (the place that makes that awesome ice tea that I'm always craving!).  My grandparents and the family that own(ed) the dairy were the closest of friends so I got spend a lot of time there as a kid.  My dad and some of his buddies from church use to go skate there, play hockey, etc. so I got to tag along.  When I was older, we use to skate at the pond at Millersville University, which was just a few blocks down the street from our house.  I don't think I skated on an indoor rink until high school!  I loved pond skating and feel badly that my kids won't get that experience.

Riley has a school field trip next week to the ice rink...I figured I had better take him so that at least he's familiar with skates and how to get up when he falls if nothing else.  I wasn't sure exactly what to expect with him because he's not as naturally coordinated as Kendall, but has done really well with ski school this year.  He fell in LOVE with ice skating.  I decided not to give too much instruction and just let him explore and find his way.  He improved so much in the short 2 hours we were there!  He started out looking a lot like Bambi, and was clinging to me for dear life, but once he got the hang of it, there was no more holding mom's hand...he was on his own.  He fell...a lot...but that didn't discourage him one bit.  He'd just hop back up and keep going.  I only gave him two bits of advice - to keep his belly button over his feet and to push off and glide on the ice instead of walking...He gained so much confidence and had so much fun.  Here's the evidence of our success:

He kept asking me when we could go again and if we could bring Kendall...She was so distraught that I wouldn't take both of them yesterday, but now that Riley knows what he's doing well enough on his own, I feel more comfortable taking both of them by myself.  Maybe another trip is in order before the month is out.

Things That Make You Go Hmm...

I just read a horrifying article on KSL.com regarding our national debt!  This paragraph below is directly taken from that article:

Here's what then-Sen. Barack Obama said on the Senate floor in 2006: "The fact that we are here today to debate raising America's debt limit is a sign of leadership failure. It is a sign that the U.S. government can't pay its own bills. It is a sign that we now depend on ongoing financial assistance from foreign countries to finance the government's reckless fiscal policies."

It was a blast by the freshman lawmaker against a Bush request to raise the debt limit to $8.96 trillion.

So I guess now that our federal debt is over 14 trillion dollars, we have a serious "sign of leadership failure."  I love how he accused the government of having "reckless fiscal policies."  Ha!  Is that what they mean when the say, the pot calling the kettle black?  

When will we get our country back in shape?  Companies can't operate like this, why is government allowed to?  Our family doesn't spend what we don't have...we make cut backs to our lifestyle when funds are low...Why should government be any different?  And the sad thing is that we (and our children and grandchildren) will be stuck paying for all of this.

Just some of the things that make you go hmm..

Some Things I've Been Working On...

I've taken advantage of some down time over the past few weeks to put my creative juices to good use.  Here are a few of things I've made:

I made this for my little prima ballerina.  All I did was find a ballerina online, print it out, trace it on to freezer paper, then cut it out with an exacto knife.  Then I used fabric paint and once it was dry, I made a ruffle out of tulle and then headed to the sewing machine and VIOLA!  

No, I'm not expecting...but I have a few friends who are and thought these would be a cute little gift for when their bundles of joy arrive!

My niece turns three this month and thought I'd make her a shirt with her name and a cupcake.  My brother and his wife don't celebrate holidays so I thought this would be a cute gift since it's not necessarily a "birthday" gift.

I also made her this picture frame

because she's as obsessed with all things ballerina just like Kendall.  My sister-in-law has some adorable pictures of her pretending to be a ballerina so I thought this might look cute in her bedroom.

And to top off the box of presents for my niece,

a cute rosette headband.  She's got as much (or as little) hair as Kendall.  I made a bunch of these for Kendall and they look so stinkin' cute on her, but she REFUSES to allow anything in her hair except maybe pigtails!  It's so frustrating to have tons of bows, flowers, hats and headbands for a little girl who won't wear them!

Along with the rosette theme, I saw this at Thanksgiving Point in the shops there and fell in love with it, but not the $50 price tag.  

Sorry the picture quality isn't fantastic, I took it with my phone so it wasn't obvious that I was going to try to copy it!

I decided I can make this myself for a fraction of the cost...So I did!

I gave this one to my mom for Christmas and she really liked it.  

I made this one for me and have gotten so many compliments on it whenever I wear it...at boutiques, the mall, from strangers on the street...

Here's the latest one I made...I LOVE this one and can't wait to wear it out!  

I also have a stack of new material up in my bedroom waiting for me to get in a sewing mood.  I think some new skirts and/or pillowcase dresses are in order.  I also have some other ideas bookmarked such as ruffle shirt dresses, bean bags in different shapes and with letters stenciled on them to help Kendall spell her name...Too many ideas, too little time!  Wonder if I could convince my husband to hire us a maid so I could have more time to craft?  Yeah, I know...but a girl can dream, right?

New Things To Be Excited About...

In my weekly "blog stalking" I came across two things that I actually got excited about (It's been a LONG week here at Chez Chunko!).

Here's the first:

Don't they look delicious?  Here's the best part, they are called Chocolate Malt Cupcakes!  Oh My Word!  I can't wait to make them.  If looking at this picture is making your mouth water like it does mine, you'll want to check out the recipe HERE at That Winsome Girl.  I am planning to make these this weekend since I'll have the kids solo again Monday and Riley doesn't have school, this will be a fun project for the three of us.

Here's the second thing I got excited over this week:

If you've never heard of Our Best Bites, you don't know what you're missing.  They have a fantastic food blog and are finally publishing a cookbook called Our Best Bites: Mormon Moms In The Kitchen!  The best part is that I will be able to purchase this book locally and not have to pay shipping to get it from Amazon or Barnes and Noble.  You can also pre-order it from Deseretbook.com and save 15% by using the promo code BESTBITES.

Yes, I know I got excited over two things that have to do with food and I can't even taste anything at this point!  Might that be a sign that I'm on the road to recovery?  I can only hope!

It's Time To Make A Resolution...

I don't usually make resolutions because I know I lose steam and fall back into my old habits anyhow, but this year I'm determined to display LESS resentment for my husband's travel required for work...I type this on a Sunday when my husband left for the airport at 6:30 am after only being home for 36 hours!  He traveled Tues - Fri last week, Sun - Thurs this week, gone next Monday and then gone the following week...If I can survive the month of January, I can tackle the other 11 months, right?

Lord give me strength on this one!  Notice I used the word less instead of no resentment.  This is going to take baby steps and it's not easy when he comes and goes.  The kids take it just as hard as I do and then I'm stuck dealing with their frustrations on top of my own and everything just goes into a downward spiral.  I'm determined to be more appreciative rather than frustrated.  I am thankful that he has such a good job, especially in such uncertain times.  I've had numerous friends lose jobs over the past 3 years and I've witnessed first hand how difficult it is to keep your faith during those tough and trying times.  Andy's job allows me to be able to stay home with the kids and live a very comfortable lifestyle for which I'm totally grateful.  


This is going to be a journey for me this year.  Pray for us if you're the praying type.  I know I can do this, one day at a time and I realize that some days or weeks are going to be more difficult than others to survive.  I keep thinking that if my attitude changes, maybe it won't seem so overwhelming at times.

Here's to a new attitude in 2011!

Nap Time Antics - Part Deux

A while back I posted a video taken of my daughter while she was supposed to be napping...Well, here's part two.

I decided to stay home this morning and get my cranky child who was awake in my bed at 4:45 am this morning, down for a morning nap - well, I put her in her bed after a warm, calming morning bath at 9:30 AM and it's currently 12:10 pm and she's STILL awake!  She's been disciplined, had toys taken away and she still WON'T fall asleep!  I'm at my wits end because this is what happens on a daily basis around here.  I try to put her down after an early lunch and it takes her the first hour or more to actually fall asleep...usually after some discipline has taken place as well and then she's only asleep for a little before I have to wake her to go pick up Riley from school.  The kid is tired...but for whatever reason, she refuses to give in and sleep.  Why, oh why have I been blessed with kids who don't want to sleep?  Riley didn't give up naps until he was 3.  She's too cranky and not sleeping enough at night to skip naps during the day.  What's a stressed out, exhausted mom to do?  HELP!!!

In Her Own Words

Last night while tucking Kendall in bed, I told her it was time to say her prayers.  Typically she says the old "Now I lay me down to sleep..." prayer that I said as a kid.  Both kids have stuffed animals they received as infants that say that prayer so it was easy to learn.

I assumed that she'd just start on her own because she's now old enough that she doesn't often need prompting.  I couldn't have been more shocked when she closed her eyes (and yes, she's like her brother and puts her hands over her eyes too.  Why?  I don't know.) and said:

Thank you God to Mommy.

Thank you God to Daddy.

Thank you God to Ra Ra.

Thank you God to Sissy.

Amen, Amen, Amen, Amen, Amen...AAAAAmen!

I just love the innocence of little ones and how they speak right from their hearts.  

2010 Favorite Christmas Songs

A few songs I'm tired of hearing, but really wish that I could hear again next Christmas...

Kendall's favorites include:
"Ruldoph the red nosed Ruldolph"
"Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells,  Jingle all ya way!  Oh what kun it is to ride in a one two soak and say!"

Riley's favorite:
"...and a Cartridge in a pear tree!"

A Look Back...

As I'm sitting here smelling the traditional PA Dutch New Year's Day good luck meal of pork and sauerkraut, I'm thinking back over the many changes to our little family's life in 2011.  It was our first full year in Utah.  We moved into our new home in January and started to feel like we were "home."

We explored a lot of Utah in the past year.  We camped in Moab and visited Arches National Park.  We spent time checking out Bryce Canyon and Zion National Parks where Riley earned his Junior Ranger badges.  We camped in the Wasatch and hiked a number of trails this summer and fall.  We've visited lots of places in the Salt Lake and Utah valleys as well.

We also went and explored outside of Utah.  We drove up to my cousin's house in Wyoming to visit her sweet family and then headed to Yellowstone National Park and drove through the beautiful Grand Teton National Park on the way home.  We also spent a week in North and South Carolina with my parents.  Hung out at the beach for a week, soaking in the sun and playing in the waves at Kiawah and then a week in the beautiful Blue Ridge Mts.

Riley learned to ride his dirt bike without training wheels last year and spent hours with his Dad riding and learning all he could from him.  Kendall mastered riding a scooter by herself as well...didn't want to be left out so she learned quickly!  Riley also finally learned to tie his shoes this past year...but now for school he has to wear velcro, so all is sadly forgotten!  Kendall has learned another new skill this year.  My baby is finally POTTY TRAINED!  Whoo Hoo!  We still have an accident here and there, but all in all she's done really well.

We had some visitors to see us in Utah as well.  My parents came out in February to ski with us for a week which was so much fun.  Andy's mom came out in August to visit us and explore Utah for the first time.  My college roommate came for a long weekend in September to see me and Kevin.  Then my parents came out to spend our first Christmas in Utah with us.

Riley's been doing very well in school this year.  He's so happy at his new school and looks forward to it each morning.  His teacher is a blessing to us and to Riley.  She's exactly what he needs.  I truly feel that God lead us to Grace Lutheran School and I know that Riley will succeed intellectually, socially and emotionally there.

Riley also learned how to ski this past year.  In March, he took a few lessons at Brighton and this winter he's enrolled in ski school at Snowbird.  Kendall made her first attempt at skiing this winter as well.  We couldn't be more pleased that both our kids enjoy skiing.  Snowbird has a half day lesson for 3 yr. olds that I may have to seriously consider for our little one next winter.

Andy had a fantastic first full year in his region.  They survived the year with NO injuries and stayed under their operating budget...He was so relieved at 12:01 this morning when they finished the year strong!  He's received congratulatory emails from the COO, CEO and president of his company already.  It's great to see all his hard work and dedication to his job pay off!  It makes it easier to deal with his travel and absence from our daily life.  We are all so proud of him and how hard he works so that we can live the way we do.

When I look back and think about all that has happened in the past 365 days, it makes me feel so blessed.  I know we have some incredible things ahead for us in 2011.  Some exciting ideas on the "To Do" list that I can't wait for!  You'll have to stay tuned to see what the Chunko family is up to next!

Happy New Year!

Build-A-Bear Gifts

Since Grammy lives so far away from us, she thought it would be a fun gift to give the kids Build-A-Bear gift cards so they could go to the store after Christmas and create their own personal gifts.

We headed to the mall Sunday after Christmas in the hopes that it would be less crowded and we were right.  The kids each picked out their animals to stuff.  Each kid chose a song to put into their animals that went appropriately with each one.  Then came the time to stuff their choices...Riley had no problem, but I think the machine that the stuffing was in scared Kendall so Riley and Daddy had to help her.

Here is the video for Grammy of them creating their gifts.  Wish we could have been together for this one!  Hope this makes you feel like you were there with us!

Thanks for an awesome Christmas gift Grammy!  We miss and love you lots!

Love,

Riley and Kendall

Happy Christmas!

I awoke Christmas morning to a silent house...that RARELY ever happens.  It was nice to come downstairs to make my morning cup of tea and prep breakfast for my wonderful family while they enjoyed their slumber.

Overnight French Toast made with some yummy Kneaders Cinnamon bread from our awesome neighbors for breakfast!

Riley was the next one up, then Sissy...Then, of course it was the rest of the house because our kids couldn't wait to open their presents!

This was taken before Daddy, Nanny and Pappy woke up and had their coffee...the standard necessary to begin opening any presents on Christmas morning!  Last night Riley was hoping to hear Santa's sleigh bells so Santa left him a jingle bell next to the empty plate and cup by the fireplace so he'd know Santa had really been there!

Here's Riley opening his FAVORITE gift this year:

Riley was soooo excited to get a Wii for Christmas!  He also got a few games: Super Mario Galaxy 2, Lego Star Wars, Wii Sports, Wii Sports Resort, Monster Jam, and MX vs. ATV.  The boy is set to play for the rest of Christmas vacation.  His daddy hasn't tried the motorcross one yet, but I'm sure once he does, Riley won't get the remote back!

Kendall opening one of her many presents from Santa.  She finally has the opening of gifts down pat!

Pretty Shoes!  Santa must have known she needed a replacement pair.  She wore the other ones out completely!

More presents...

"How did Santa know I love these?  They remind me of Pappy Stauffer!"

First of the princess dress up costumes!  Tiana from Princess and the Frog is one of her favorites.

Had to immediately be put on to wear all over the house.  Holding "Shortcake" in her hands...another favorite of Kendall's.

Is that 'Punzel or Kendall?

Sleeping Beauty made an appearance at our house this morning too!

Opening her ballet slippers that Santa left in her stocking.

Our little princess made out like a bandit this morning and last night!  Riley is so happy to have his Wii, games and all the accessories he could want.  And the best part is he's totally cool about sharing it and isn't afraid to tell us how much he loves it!  That makes it all worth while!

Kendall on the other hand is just learning what Christmas is about and in her opinion, getting presents is a pretty cool thing.  She's been asking for more presents all morning!  Thankfully we saved Pappy Chooch's gifts and Aunt Lori and Uncle Jason's gifts this this morning so they did get a second wave of presents after breakfast.  

The turkey is in the oven, dried corn in the crock pot, cranberry sauce chilling, pumpkin pie in the fridge...It's been so wonderful to have my mom to help me in the kitchen.  I don't have to ask her...she just does...and since we do it the same way, it's a great help!  We are relaxing, being lazy and enjoying the time with each other.  Kendall and Pappy had a tea party this morning, Riley's been playing his Wii, Andy's listening to Christmas music and the smells from the kitchen have us all salivating!

Hope you and your family are enjoying the Christmas season as much as we are.  Merry Christmas!

Long Distance Christmas Celebration

Last Christmas we packed up the kids and the presents and flew across the country to visit our families back east.  This year, being the first Christmas to spend in our new house in Utah, we decided to forgo the stress and hassle that Christmas travel through crowded airports brings with two kids in tow and stay here.  The down side of that choice is that we don't get to see everyone or celebrate with them in person.

We decided that Christmas Eve would be a great time for the kids to open their gifts from their grandparents so that they wouldn't be overwhelmed with gifts on Christmas day.

Here is a video of our kids opening their gifts from Andy's sister and her fiance.

Kendall loved the pink horse and kept kissing it!  She also got some really neat butterflies that we can stick up on her walls...they might look great in our playroom too!  Riley loves his new flashlight, army knife, compass and binoculars!  He's excited to go camping and try them out!  Both kids also got "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" to watch.  I think Riley will enjoy that story!

Grammy sent the kids Build A Bear gift cards.  We've never done Build A Bear with the kids before and I think they are going to have a great time picking out their bears, clothing and accessories!  She also sent them the rest of the "What's In The Bible" series of DVD's that the kids had been asking for.  Riley has really been interested in the #2 movie in the series that we have and now they've got the whole set!  Kendall enjoys watching it along with her big brother.  She sings the songs along with the movie!

It's hard to choose what to do for the holidays when you live so far away from family and friends.  We both really miss "home" and our families at the holidays, but it has been so wonderful to just relax this year and enjoy our children's excitement and the wonder in their eyes as Christmas unfolds.

To all our friends and family back east, we miss and love you more than you can imagine.  We wish you all the best this Christmas and in the new year to come!

We love and miss you Aunt Jenn, Uncle Steve and Grammy!  Merry Christmas!

Mommy's Little Skier!

Riley has been taking ski lessons at Snowbird's mountain ski school here in Utah.  He's been doing a fantastic job and has shown great improvement in just two lessons!  I love their program at Snowbird and Riley does too.  He is there from 8:45 am - 3:15 pm for 5 Saturdays in a row.  I was afraid he'd be too tired for lessons all day, but he LOVES it and always wants to do more!  He's such a confident kid on skis this year compared to last year!

Since my parents are in town (and they love to ski even more than I do), my dad thought today might be a good day to take the kids skiing.  We took them up to Snowbird where they only charge $20 for their beginner lift.  I only got to go down the beginner lift twice and spent the rest of the time on the "magic carpet" which is just a fun name for a conveyor belt that takes the kids up to the top of the bunny hill.  (When we first took Kendall out, the magic carpet wasn't running so we had to hike it back up to the top each time with her and all the gear!)

My dad and I spent some time with Kendall while my mom took Riley over to the beginner lift.   After some snow eating and a few tries down the bunny hill, I convinced my dad that we should just take her up the chair lift and see what happens.  We ended up putting our poles under her arms and let her ski between our legs.  She struggled to want to stand up and just sat back and enjoyed the ride.  The faster, the better for her!

Here she is finishing off a hand full of snow!

There she goes!  No crying, no fussing...Love that girl!

After some lunch (and some candy) Kendall and I headed back out to the magic carpet since it was running again.  She went up 7-8 times solo and I hiked it back up to the top so I'd get there at the same time and then we would ski down together.  She had fun, but after two late nights in a row (Monday was girls night at The Nutcracker and Tuesday was family fun at the Grizzlies hockey game) and no nap, we were BOTH done.  I was soaked with sweat and drenched from the wet "Pennsylvania powder" as my dad calls it!  We skied in the fresh falling the snow all day.

Here's some video evidence of her first skiing experience.  Check out her face!  She's so happy!

I think I'm going to have to rely on a few friends to give me some advice on how to teach this little one.  She's athletic enough and coordinated enough, but Momma's just not sure how to get her to want to do it instead of just letting Momma do all the work!  That will all come in time I guess.