Leah was at a sleepover on New Year's Eve, so the boys and I had our own celebration at home, watching football games, eating a fancy dinner, and staying up til midnight to watch the ball drop. I haven't stayed awake to ring in the new year in over a decade, but this year I insisted on welcoming 2023 and toasting to a healthy year ahead!
Leah's 12th birthday fell on the first day back to school after Winter Break. This birthday girl had a great day filled with favorite foods, an ice cream outing with her sweet friend, and presents:
We booked a last minute trip to Snowshoe Mountain for Martin Luther King, Jr. weekend, and took advantage of the extra day off school to enjoy a winter vacation. We had the most gorgeous views from our hotel:
We drove into town on Saturday in the tail end of a storm, and woke up Sunday morning to snow-covered mountains and beautiful blue skies. The village was adorable and had lots of cute shops and restaurants:
Even in the cold weather, ice cream is a must!
Leah and I had perfect ski conditions on the slopes and adored our ski-in, ski-out hotel location, while the boys went tubing, got pizza, and watched sports:
The end of the month included more skiing as we drove to Sugar Mountain on a teacher workday:
A highlight of this day was stopping at Appalachian State on our way back to see Maya!
Luke auditioned for/made All-District Band and experienced another first when he stayed in a hotel overnight in Durham with other musicians (without us chaperoning!). We are proud of this kid and how hard he works in his musical endeavors. The concert was lovely and our high school had the most students selected from any school in NC's Central District- Go Vikings!
Leah was recognized as a January Spotlight Student for exemplifying the character trait of the month: Courage. Interestingly, Luke won this award in 6th grade (for the same character trait), and it was the last school function we attended before COVID. We told Leah if the world shuts down again in a couple of weeks, that it's her fault!
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| We love you, Peanut! |
Welcome, 2023!
We look forward to all of the memories and celebrations that this year will hold!
