Family Ski Day!!!

So, after ALL this snow we received....what better way to enjoy it than to take the family SKIING!!!  So, last Tuesday, we decided to play hooky and do just that....we took the family skiing!!! It was an AMAZING day!!! The weather was perfect, blue skies, 40 degrees, no wind!!! The snow and the slopes were perfect and the skiing was just fabulous. It is just a really special, fun, exciting way to spend the day together as a family!!!  We can't wait to go again!!!

The kids.....Ready to Hit The Slopes!!!

There They Go!!!

Samone...ready to head back out there after stopping for lunch at the upper lodge! Beautiful Views!

Adrien always looks so little in line with all these "big" people!!! 

The girls at the top of the mountain!!

Adrien at the top of the mountain!!!!

DAD!!!!! The one who got us all skiing!!!

WHAT A GREAT DAY!!!

Snow Storm 2010

So, after all that snow yesterday.....WE GOT EVEN MORE!!!! Close to 4 feet total now I believe!!!  Words and Pictures just CAN NOT even begin to describe or do justice to all the snow we have gotten. You really have to see it to believe it. It is like being in another world.....It feels like being in a snow globe!!! We were outside most of the day today. It really is just beautiful and magical...so quiet and peaceful!!!  Like I said, the pictures don't really do justice to what we really have here....but it's a heck of a lot of snow!! It is gonna take awhile for Flagstaff to really get moving again after this...We still have not been able to even drive out of our neighborhood. There is too much snow on our street and no plows yet...could be a few days til we see the plows cuz they are so busy with the rest of the town. So, until it is time to get back to life and reality, we are just enjoy this and taking it all in!!  Enjoy!!!!

Our poor little car is completely covered in snow. This will take some work to get out!!!!!

The snow is up to Adrien's waist here, and he sinks to his shoulders in some parts!! Crazy!

Samone and Adrien sledding down our driveway!! A steep driveway comes in handy after a snowstorm!!!

Our little snowed-in neighborhood.....And not a plow in sight!

THE NINJAS!!!  The kids got these Under Armor masks for Christmas and they sure have come in handy!! I am so glad we got them!!!

Because of all the snow, they closed down I-40 last night at about 8pm and still haven't re-opened it!! So, David is stuck in Winslow for the time being. He will have to go back to work tomorrow afternoon, so there is no point in him driving home for a few hours tomorrow just to turn around and go back. So, we won't see him until Monday evening sometime!! It sure stinks to be here in the middle of this storm and not have him here with us!!!!!  But at least he is safe!!!!!

SNOW DAY (WELL...WEEK!!)

There is something "Magical" about a good Snow Day!!! When you step outside and everything is so quiet and peaceful and white and beautiful !!  Today, we finally had a great snow day. Sure, school was canceled on Tuesday and Wednesday, but only because of the snow the evenings before...not during the day. Today, Thursday...we woke up to a Winter Wonderland!! And I just can't get enough of it!!!!  By the time we woke up, there was about 18 inches already. Snow fell all day long....If I had to guess I would say there is probably about 3 feet total from the entire week of snow!!!

The kids and I had a wonderful snow day!!!

We did some puzzles together, played some board games, made lunch together then watched a movie. After the movie, we bundled up and headed outdoors.

We played in the snow for about an hour and a half...until it started to RAIN!! Yes, you heard me right...RAIN!!! Just the strangest thing. It rained for a few hours, too.  Then the wind kicked up. So now, all the beautiful fluffy snow has fallen off the trees !!!  It started snowing again, so maybe more fluffy stuff tomorrow!!

One of the things I really love about a Snow Day like this is that it just slows the whole pace of life down !!!  Everything feels so peaceful.  You can't go anywhere, so you just stay home and hang out with the family.

And today, my precious, beloved children, we had a peaceful, special snow day together...just hanging out and enjoying each other!!!  Now, just lots of prayers that Daddy makes it home safe tomorrow to join us!!!!!

GYMNASTICS

So, On Monday, January 4th, I enrolled Kendall and Adrien in gymnastics at Flagstaff Gymnastics Center. I was thrilled to find that they had a Girls Level 1 class for Kendall and a PreK-K class for Adrien both on Mondays from 4-4:55!! So they could both go at the same time!!  Worked great for me and they were both SO excited !!!  ALL DAY LONG that Monday, all Adrien kept asking me was, "Is it time for gymnastics yet, Mom?"

So, we picked up the girls after school and headed straight to gymnastics!!! Kendall got off into her class and Adrien into his!! It was so fun to watch them out there!!! Both instructors told me that since this was the first day they were just getting the kids used to the routine, equipment and eachother. As soon as we walked out the door after that first class, Adrien asked me "Mom, when do I have gymnastics again?" And he asked me about 500 more times from that day until the next Monday.  He kept telling me how much he loves gymnastics!! "You didn't know I was going to like it this much, did you, Mom?" he asked me...so cute!!!

So, the next Monday comes along and Adrien is excited all day long. We got there a little before 4 and Kendall and Adrien headed right off to join their classes!!  I really enjoy watching them both from the upstairs viewing area.  Adrien was doing such a great job of sitting and waiting his turn, following the directions, and paying attention. And, he seemed to be doing a great job. Watching Kendall, she too seemed to be doing a great job with all the skills they were working on.

The hour went by quickly and I met the kids downstairs. Adrien's instructor came up to me to talk about Adrien. She said he was AMAZING (her exact words)! She said he did every skill perfectly and that he is so strong. She asked how old he was, and I told her he would be 5 in a month. She said she doesn't normally see kids this young that are this strong and that do the skills so well!! She commented again about how strong he is and how well he held himself up on the bars!!!  She said he is definately on the young side, but she feels like he needs to be moved up to the Boys Developement Level 1. All this after only his first real gymnastics class!!! She said that this class won't be challenging enough for him. She has to talk to the owners, but she feels strongly about moving him and is sure they will agree!!!  WOW!!  Exciting news!!

Then Kendall's instructor came out to tell me how well Kendall did!!!  They get a star for how many skills they master each session. Today they worked on 7 skills and Kendall got all 7 stars. She was the only one in her class to get all 7 stars!!! 

Walking to the car, Adrien said, "Thanks for signing me up for gymnastics, Mom."  Then Kendall added, "Yah, Mom, thanks!! I love it!!"

I am so glad they both like it so much and are doing so well!!  I will take my camera next week to get some pictures!!!!!!

SOCCER

Samone on a soccer field with a soccer ball....it really is a magical thing. I never tire of watching her play soccer. And these days we certainly watch her play a lot of soccer,...

It all started about 4 1/2 year ago, shortly after her 5th birthday, when we signed her up for AYSO for the first time. Of course we were excited...our oldest child playing soccer for the first time. It was a family event....We bought her the regulation-sized soccer ball and a water bottle, dressed her in some "practice clothes", loaded her up in the car with our 2 1/2 year old and our 4 month old and headed off to her first practice. Little did we know what we were in store for.......

So, she ran out on the soccer field, that day of her first practice, with her new team and coach and started doing the drills with the other 5 year old girls. David and I just sat and watched in amazement. She was manuvering that ball and running around like she had been playing soccer for years!!!  After that first practice, the coach came up to us and asked us how long she had been playing soccer. He was quite suprised to learn that this was her first time even playing with a soccer ball.........

From that day on, Samone has dominated every rec soccer team (AYSO and MicroSoccer) she has been on (boys and girls). What parent wouldn't be proud??? We have had so many people come up to us and comment about her and her natural abilities!!  During one particular game during a MicroSoccer season, I remember a man (another player's grandpa) coming up and asked me her name. He said "I'm gonna have to remember that, because we're gonna be reading about this girl in the paper one day." Turns out he was a retired high school soccer coach and he said, "What she has is something you can't teach. You either have it or you don't...and she has it."  Obviously, his comment really stuck with me. I was so PROUD!! This was the year she turned 7....

So, we started hearing a lot of talk about "Club Soccer" and had we thought about it.... What is "Club Soccer" I inquired. Well, this is a year-round soccer club made up of age-based teams that travel all around Arizona to play soccer. At the time, that just sounded crazy to me...Really? TRAVELING to play soccer??!! And YEAR_ROUND!!! I thought a parent would have to be crazy to even consider such a thing.

I decided Samone needed a break from soccer, so we took that Fall off . I figured we would start up again in the Spring and see if that "magic" was still there for Samone. Well, Spring came and we signed her up for another session of MicroSoccer and, wouldn't you know it...the magic was there and stronger than ever.

There was no way of denying that Samone had something.  We were approached by Michelle Novelli after one of her MicroSoccer games. Michelle was the coach of the U09 Girls Flagstaff Soccer Club Team and she was very interested in having Samone on her team. I talked to her about the commitment, the traveling, the practices. She assured me that at this age they don't travel much, it is really just about teaching the girls the fundamentals and getting them exposed to competative soccer.

David and I discussed it at length!! This would be a big commitment for our family. But we knew that Samone was ready for the next step with this. So, we signed her up for Flagstaff Soccer Club!!!!

And, here we are, 1 1/2 years later, completely consumed in Club Soccer. It has become a part of who and what our family is.  And Samone just continues to amaze me. We have been fortunate enough to be part of a great team with a lot of talented girls and some really dedicated parents. We are Flagstaff United 2000.  The team began as a Division 3 team, but after the first year we were put in Division 2, which is where we started this year at. Now, only half way through our 2nd year as a team, the girls have advanced to Division 1 and are consistantly being placed in the the Gold Bracket for tournaments. We are traveling a lot, which I am not always thrilled about. But we have a great little team that is out there kicking some serious soccer butt!!!!!

Samone plays forward about 99.9% of the time. That is her position and she dominates it!! She is responsible for at least 3/4 of the goals our team has scored, either by scoring them herself or assisting in the score. 

At the end of last season, Samone and her team were at Skills training one day after a 1st place win at a Las Vegas Tournament. Skills training is put on by the NAU Women's Soccer Team where some of the NAU players actually come work with club players on their skills and footwork. Andre Luciano, the NAU Head Soccer Coach himself, happened to be there that day.

He actually went right up to Samone and said to her, "You're #5, arent you?"  She said, "Yes."  Then he said to her, "I saw you playing in Las Vegas. You're really good!!"  Holy Moly!!! That the NAU Head Soccer Coach noticed her at a tournament, then remembered her and came up to talk to her at Skills training. She was on cloud 9.  He went up to David and said, "Is that your daughter?"  David said yes and he told him, "She caught my eye at that tournament. She has a lot of potential!"  That was such a confirmation that we are doing the right thing!! It's not every day a college soccer coach notices a young soccer player!!!

Then, Samone went to an NAU Soccer Camp over summer break that was put on by Andre Luciano and his soccer team. The first day there he came up to Samone and said, "Hey, Samone!! I am so glad you are here. We are gonna have a lot of fun."  She was so excited he rememebered her. David and I were watching some of the camp one morning and he came up to us and was just complimenting her skills and telling us how good she is and that she has something that just can't be taught  (hadn't I heard that before!!). He said she has a really understanding of the game and it just comes naturally to her.  He said she is one to watch for Olympic Soccer Development!!!

She is good, alright!!! But, as her mom, I still try to keep her grounded and not let soccer overtake her life ( or our lives') completely. Though that is harder than it sounds. She loves soccer, her teammates, her coach...... she loves everything about it. It has been a crazy ride and I must say, I am excited to see just where it takes us.

Here are some pictures from last Saturday's game against San Tan. We lost 4-0, but they are ranked the #1 team in Arizona, so, even though we lost, we still held our own!! One day we just may beat San Tan!!!

Christmas 2009

Christmas Eve

2009

 

We started our Chrismas Eve celebration at church!!!  Samone Kendall and Adrien all participated in the Christmas Eve play at our church, Trinity Heights. The play was called "It's a Wonder!"  Kendall was a non-speaking sheep, Adrien was a non-speaking king. Samone had a speaking role as a shepard!! She was great! Quite the little actress. Now she wants to take some acting class!!!!!!!

In their Christmas outfits at Grandpa Mark's house (David's Dad)

Christmas Eve at Grandpa Mark's with (almost all of) the Marquez cousins!!!

Christmas Morning at our house in their Christmas jammies opening presents!!!!

Christmas Day at Nonnie's house(David's mom) with all of the Marquez cousins!!!

OKAY !!! This isn't a Christmas picture. This is from Thanksgiving in Tucson with all of the Ramirez cousins (my family)!!!! But I had to throw it in with the whole "cousin" theme going on!! We are very blessed to have large families on both sides that are all so close!!!! 

Four months ago, I had all the best of intentions of starting this blog....but I just never got around to it...busy, ya know??!! Anyhow, This is actually a great time to start my blog...The
beginning of a new year!! WOW!! I can't believe it is 2010!!! 2009 was a great year for our family and I am excited and ready to see what 2010 has in store for us!!! Right now, every thing about our life revolves around our three amazing (and sometimes difficult) children: Samone, Kendall and Adrien!!!

Samone is in 4th Grade and is still VERY active in her Soccer Club!!! She is quite an impressive little athlete and a very good soccer player. We travel down to Phoenix quite often for Open League games and Tournaments!! And, NO, we would not do it if we didn't think she had potential in the sport. Last Session we played in Division 2 and ended up taking first place, so we are now starting in Division 1 !! This is exciting for our team, since we will now be competing against the best teams in Arizona!! And it is exciting to know that our Flagstaff United Team is among the best teams in Arizona. Samone plays forward and she plays her posistion AMAZINGLY!!! Aside from soccer, Samone continues to be at the top of her class in school. She has been in the gifted program for 4 years now!! She loves to read and is an excellent writer!!! She also loves to draw, and is pretty good at it, too!! Last year one of her drawings was chosen to hang in the office at her school. They only choose one a year, so this was exciting and a really big deal!! We are so proud of Samone!!

Kendall is.....well, Kendall. And anyone who knows her knows what I mean by that. Everyone loves Kendall!! She just has a way with people. Every where we go she makes friends...and sometimes we even get calls at the house from these friends that we have no idea who they are!!!! Kendall wears princess dresses and climbs trees. Kendall is the sweetest lover-girl and the meanest angry-girl you will ever meet. The thing about Kendall that is so fascinating to me is just how comfortable she is in her skin. She is just "Confidence". Everything about her is strong, bold and proud! She is in 1st grade this year and just started her first year in the gifted program. She is a smart little cookie, though in a very different way than her big sister. Where Samone is a Type A personality, overachieving, highly competitive, ambitious, perfectionist; Kendall is a Type B, relaxed, easy-going, non-competative, and generally lacks any sense of urgency!!! But I love that they each have such different strengths. Kendall really hasn't picked her "thing". She has played soccer, and is really good at it, too. But she just doesn't care about it to much. She would rather be on the sidelines socializing!!! Kendall is starting gymnastics this session and will start softball in the spring. She is very excited about both of these activities!!! So we will see how it goes!! She LOVES to sing!! She is always snapping, dancing and singing along to the radio. She also makes up some very impressive songs of her own!!! She has rhythm, she has a strong presence. Maybe she'll be the next Taylor Swift,,,,hey, that wouldn't be too bad!! She is just a joy and delight!!!

Adrien!!!! Oh, Adrien!!!! It will be five years on February 2nd that God blessed us with our little boy!! LIttle did we know then that: 1) Going from 2 kids to 3 kids would turn our world upside down and 2) this LITTLE BOY would turn our world upside down!!! Adrien is ALL boy!! He loves to tackle and wrestle and play baseball and football and soccer and box!!! He is NON-STOP from the moment he wakes up until we put him to bed at night!! He wants to do it all and keeps asking me when he will be old enough!! He played soccer last summer and I stepped up to be his coach...quite an experience!! But he definately proving to be quite the little athlete, also!!! He and his dad like to practice baseball (David played baseball all through college, so he is definately a little biased to this sport) Adrien is a pretty impressive batter. He can really slam some of those balls!! He is starting T-ball this spring and David and I are worried that he is gonna get on that field, see the T standing there and be like "what the heck is this thing? I need a pitcher!!" But we are both so excited to see him out there. He watches sports on TV all the time. He would rather sit and watch a football game than a cartoon. He knows more about football and baseball than I do!! All at 4 years old!! He loves Hot Wheels....He always has one in his pocket or in his backpack!! He is in his second year of preschool. He goes to Alpine Academy Preschool and is doing so well there. At 4 years old, he knows all his letters and sounds and is already reading at about a mid-kindergarten grade level!! Samone and Kendall were both early readers also, but neither of them read as well as him at such a young age. He is a smart little fellow!!! He is really good with numbers, especially when he is keeping score of a sports game on tv or a game he and his dad are playing!!! He can always tell you the score and he even knows which number is higher and which is lower - cuz he has to know who is winning. Another passion, OBSESSION I guess we could say, of Adrien's is torturing, teasing and PESTERING his sisters!!! Oh, he just LOVES to drive them crazy...in turn driving me crazy!!! The screaming and yelling and chasing and doors slamming.....I know all you moms out there are nodding your heads.....But as much of a ruff, tuff crazy little boy he is, he can be the sweetest little guy ever!! His loves and hugs and cuddles can just make your day!! We really do cherish our little guy!!!!

We have our up days and we have our down days...but they are all worth it. With all three kids in school twice a week now, David and I have been having regular "date days". We go out for lunch or breakfast, play some tennis, some golf....just hang out without the kids. This alone time has been very nice for us, especially after so many years with out it. And it really is different then getting a sitter to come over to sit with the kids! We can come and go from the house as we please because no one is there!!! Definately one of the perks of his job, being able to have these "alone" weekdays together!!

OKAY!!!!! So, future posts will not be this long. I just wanted to get the ball rolling with a little bit about what our family is all about!!!! I plan on posting blogs and photos (and videos) regularly so I REALLY HOPE you will follow my blog, and just stop in for a visit evey now and then to see what our "Party of Five" is up to!! There is always something going on. If you have a blog, please send it to me!! I would love to follow blogs of my friends and family.

So, I am signing off for tonight to go start folding the 4 loads of laundry that await me!!!! AHH the Joys of Motherhood!!! Thanks for visiting my blog....and I hope to talk to you soon!!!!!!!