Snow in Flagstaff

We spent the day in Flagstaff last Saturday. We took the dogs with us since we can't quite trust Sammy in the house. He likes to chew still. Both Henry and Sammy had never experienced snow before. It was kind of funny. They both walked around licking it. Our son has grown. He is no longer a boy. It is almost like having another man in the house now. Sam discovered quickly that he just wanted to run as hard as he could. His legs were much shorter than the depth of the snow making it comical watching him leap up and sink under the surface. He just didn't want to quit. While Henry was freezing his patootie off, Sammy was warm and full of energy. We actually traveled to three different spots. We usually stay in one spot for a couple hours, eat lunch and call it quits. But this time we were enjoying being out in the fresh air and were pursuing the ultimate hill for great sledding. I like this picture with the sun sparkle. That is Kaleb way out there. It is so like him to just walk straight out somewhere. He couldn't resist the fact that he was walking where there was only fresh snow...no prints. I wonder what he was thinking about. A rare occasion. A picture of Kirk and I. I am so thankful to have such a hard working husband and a great Father to my children. We make a good balance. He tones down my energy. This is what happens when the big sister bombs the little brother with a snowball when the little brother is soon to be bigger than the big sister. Never underestimate the strength of the little brother. Victoria and Kaleb took over the fort that Jared and Kirk were building. Sometimes you win just because you're little...and cute. So we found this great hill to slide down. Kirk and Jared did a great job of making a path for the saucer. Sammy and Henry had the greatest time chasing eachother and racing the kids down the hill. It was the funniest thing to watch...snow flying. They were running as fast as they possibly could and then wrestle together at the bottom. It was like parting the seas for whoever was on their way down. Several times they almost got run over. The two maniacs! Sam could have lasted all day. Henry on the other hand got cold and needed to warm up in the van. Kaleb hanging on for dear life and racing the doggies. This is what you look like when you are 5 and not too scared to go down the hill alone but scared enough because you are sliding pretty fast. If you keep your eyes closed you may survive. Daphne...flying through the air. I wish I could have gotton the picture of her actually in the air. I guess I missed it. This was a little harder on this 40+ body than what I remembered. Kaleb was just heavy enough that Kirk could barely pick up his feet so he drug them all the way down...which didn't slow them down a bit! It was great. Jared spent his time between sledding building a snow shelter. I guess all of those Man vs Wild shows inspired him. We were very impressed. He wanted to try spending the night in it. It was pretty sturdy. The setting sun topped off our day. Jared's shelter is the cave to the right in the next picture. Once that sun started going down it sure got cold. We didn't want to go home. We were having just too much fun. A great way to just get away from it all...until you get cold and wet and then home sounds really nice.