We made it through January, I guess it's time to update the ol' round up post! Happy new year! Happy new decade! I think we can sum up this month as: lots of skiing, lots of reading. I guess I could have broken those topics into their own posts, but then there would be nearly nothing left on this one! For being such a long month, I feel like my total number of photos taken has dropped off a bit. Oh well. Enjoy it while it lasts! ;)
 |
| 1.1.20 (Callie had another at-home STEM project to work on - this time it was to make your own game from only recycled things. She came up with a board game based on the book Squirrels on Skis and it was darling!) |
 |
| 1.1.20 (Sam drew this one evening: "This is me and Gracie playing in the snow. And that's Terrell. And it's the end of winter so the snow is melting and you can see the grass.") |
 |
| 1.2.20 (chilly sunrise) |
 |
| 1.2.20 (Finished our first book of the new year: Skunked! While I checked these out originally for Callie to read, I ended up reading the first one aloud to both Cal and Sam and we all loved it. Already started the second one and have the next two on hold at the library. We're fans!) |
 |
| 1.2.20 (When you only bring one bag to the library - oops!) |
 |
| 1.2.20 (Gregg and I got a bit carried away with our holds this week!) |
 |
| 1.3.20 (This book was weird. The writing is excellent, but the story is totally unique. Like nothing I've ever read before. But I couldn't stop! And I weirdly enjoyed it. Haha.) |
 |
| 1.3.20 (broke out the bike for a ride to the park!) |
 |
| 1.3.20 (I read this one during Sam's nap today. It's written in verse so it goes extra quick. A lot of Laura Ingalls Wilder vibes with this one. I liked it a lot.) |
 |
| 1.3.20 (I had to document the adorable ornaments that Erin (and Charlie) made for Callie and Sam (of Callie and Sam) for Christmas this year. She's so talented!) |
 |
| 1.4.20 (one of our best ski days yet!) |
 |
| 1.4.20 (I love my evening views from the kitchen!) |
 |
| 1.5.20 (first Sunday of the new year!) |
 |
| 1.5.20 (Sam gave his first primary talk today - Can you guess what Book of Mormon story he told?) |
 |
| 1.6.20 (it was clear and beautiful on our walk to school this morning) |
 |
| 1.6.20 |
 |
| 1.6.20 (and then we ran into a traffic jam on our way back from dropping off Cal) |
 |
| 1.6.20 |
 |
| 1.6.20 (Two faves from this week we returned today. We have listened to the first two all-of-a-kind family novels and loved them, so when I saw a picture book adaptation, I had to snag it! And I always love me a good picture book biography - about dinos is a bonus!) |
 |
| 1.6.20 (more blue sky scenes from the afternoon walk to school - those clouds yonder caught my eye) |
 |
| 1.6.20 (I loved the color scheme in this scene) |
 |
| 1.7.20 (Sam had I had our first ever Mom and Sam ski morning on this lovely warm bluebird day) |
 |
| 1.7.20 |
 |
| 1.7.20 |
 |
| 1.7.20 (we love our hill!) |
 |
| 1.7.20 (Sam is doing awesome on the skis - but we definitely need to work on the whole getting on and off the lift thing when its the two of us (understatement of the year: we struggled with the lift today!)) |
 |
| 1.8.20 (When I first started reading this I wondered if it would be a waste of time since I already love where I live. But I really enjoyed her personal stories and research and learned a lot about to keep loving this place I already love.) |
 |
| 1.8.20 (Cal got home from a ski day with Gregg and came up with this promotional poster for her own ski area concept) |
 |
| 1.9.20 (trying some snow boarding in the back yard (on his spooner board)) |
bonus video!
1.9.20
 |
| 1.9.20 (we haven't been to the deep back of the yard much this winter so Sam and I did some exploring one morning after shoveling the deck and driveway) |
 |
| 1.9.20 (this is our random bench back there - a good amount of snow, I'd say!) |
 |
| 1.9.20 |
 |
| 1.9.20 |
 |
| 1.9.20 |
 |
| 1.9.20 (he sweet talked me into pulling him around the yard - how could I resist that smile?!) |
 |
| 1.9.20 |
 |
| 1.9.20 (the kid LOVES ice) |
 |
| 1.9.20 (I mean seriously loves it - he would have eaten this entire icicle if I would let him!) |
 |
| 1.10.20 (Cal had a day off from school and the weather was sunny/dry so we trekked to Heber to have a play day with Heather and Grace!) |
 |
| 1.10.20 (I love that this pic captures the hard core kid in the background who just kept lapping his little ski jump ramp over and over and over and over while we sledded nearby - he even had Christmas tree branches scattered at the bottom/landing like the real deal!) |
bonus video!
1.10.20
 |
| 1.10.20 (then we hurried home to hit up Nordic for some family skiing and pizza night) |
 |
| 1.10.20 (plenty of heart eyes for this view!) |
 |
| 1.10.20 (the crowds were crazy at the resort (good for them, but we love our "private" ski times) but luckily we found a few open seats in the lodge so we could chow down on our Friday night pizza!) |
 |
| 1.10.20 (I asked for some Zoe picture updates and Ky sent me this one - look how cute and big she's getting!) |
 |
| 1.11.20 (and then she sent me these the next day of her starting to smile!) |
 |
| 1.11.20 (awwww!) |
 |
| 1.12.20 (another Sunday snapshot - think we can keep this up all year? nah, I didn't think so either!) |
 |
| 1.12.20 (I've read a handful of these types of memoirs, where the author has terminal cancer and writes about his/her experience with that and facing death. All have been really good and really sad and this was no exception. I feel like this one was really real, too. She didn't shy away from showing the dark side of what she was feeling and thinking and I actually really appreciated that. She also has a crazy immigration/blindness back- story which was pretty interesting and unique. Definitely recommend if you're into this sort of narrative.) |
 |
| 1.12.20 (a few of my all-time fave winter picture books, including three different versions of The Mitten (which one is your favorite?!), plus a nice collection of snowflake pics to go with Bentley, and a brand-new-to-me story about a scarf and some forest animals that was darling!) |
 |
| 1.12.20 (Heather brought this one to my attention and I'm so glad she did! It's just what it says it is and it is so well done, I think.) |
 |
| 1.13.20 (our first audiobook of the year! It's been on my list for a while since it's a Newbery winner, but I'm glad we listened to it - the narrator was awesome! Cal asked if there were more in the series after we finished and I told her this was the only one. But then I found out a sequel is coming out this year Can't wait!) |
 |
| 1.14.20 (I blame/thank Heather for this) |
 |
| 1.14.20 (front porch views) |
 |
| 1.14.20 (just a litte more icicle documentation - can you see that one to the right of the shovel that is flat against the wall and as tall as the doorway?!) |
 |
| 1.14.20 (wonky gutter situation, but it's holding!) |
 |
| 1.14.20 (here's a close-up of that wall one) |
 |
| 1.15.20 (I've been meaning and wanting to read this for a couple of years now and I finally did it yesterday! It was SO great! Looking forward to more from this author that I have on my shelf/list.) |
 |
| 1.15.20 (we're flying through this Calpurnia Tate Girl Vet series! The kids and I love them. We missed one book that falls right in the middle of the first two and these two, but our library doesn't have it for some reason. We'll have to track that one down somehow!) |
 |
| 1.15.20 (lovely day in Tahoe for Gregg at the NSAA West conference) |
 |
| 1.15.20 (lovely day in Eden for the rest of us at the North Arm Trailhead) |
 |
| 1.15.20 (we love the sunny days!) |
 |
| 1.15.20 |
 |
| 1.15.20 (you wouldn't know it to look at them, but at least one was grumping about coming on this hike in the first place - happens every time!) |
 |
| 1.15.20 |
 |
| 1.15.20 (we took a detour off the regular nature trail, following some snowshoe tracks down along the river - it was magnificent!) |
 |
| 1.15.20 |
 |
| 1.15.20 |
 |
| 1.15.20 (ha! this was totally spontaneous posing and cheesing) |
 |
| 1.15.20 |
 |
| 1.15.20 |
 |
| 1.15.20 |
 |
| 1.15.20 (stick dragging a la The Snowy Day) |
 |
| 1.15.20 (I actually think teasel are lovely most times of the year, but in the winter they truly are the loveliest) |
 |
| 1.15.20 (and it took me till this picture to actually type "20" for the year on the first try!) |
 |
| 1.16.20 (Gregg snapped this at the top of Donner Pass? while he was on his trip to NSAA West Conference in Tahoe) |
 |
| 1.16.20 (one of the most clever dinosaur books we've checked out! (And we've read A LOT!) Awesome illustrations made with letters, and plenty of alliterated dino facts! I'm psyched there are at least two more animal and bug books by these people!) |
 |
| 1.17.20 (The sort of sequel, more like a spin off, of Wednesday Wars - I might like this one even more than the first! Read them if you haven't yet!) |
 |
| 1.17.20 (I thought I should include some reads from Gregg's book stack this month. He was on a record reading streak this month! He asked for recommendations on Twitter and put everything everyone suggested on hold at the library. I brought home five at the beginning of the month and he's already blown through these three! A record! I think his fave of this bunch is American Kingpin, but you'll have to talk to him for more particulars.) |
 |
| 1.17.20 (some cozy winter reads from this week's stash. On some of these the art is better than the story and on others it's the opposite, but I think they're all worth a read-through with a snuggly little someone close by.) |
 |
| 1.17.20 (pre-pizza ski night - Cal is getting speedy! We had to wait here for Sam and Dad to catch up and since the sky was lovely, I decided to snap a pic) |
 |
| 1.18.20 (poor Sam caught a stomach bug and was in sad shape for the day. good thing dad snuggles and naps make a boy feel better!) |
 |
| 1.18.20 (Cal and I took the opportunity on a sunny Saturday (when Sam was sick) to cash in on her ice skating mom date. We rented skates from the little shack at the park in Huntsville.) |
 |
| 1.18.20 (it was a little sketchy at first! definitely harder than skiing, at least because we're so used to skiing lately. but by the end we could skate around the whole rink and had a great time together!) |
 |
| 1.18.20 |
 |
| 1.18.20 |
bonus videos!
1.18.20
(cal fell down lots of times on our outing but always
popped right back up and tried again. I loved her
determination!)
 |
| 1.18.20 |
 |
| 1.19.20 (after Maggie's blessing and lunch, most of the fam went to visit (great) Grandma and Grandpa Thornley) |
 |
| 1.21.20 (Baby Brother is born to Heather and Terrell in Heber. 6 lbs 13 oz, 19 inches long. Name TBD) |
 |
| 1.21.20 (a family of four!) |
 |
| 1.21.20 (I just love this look on Gracie's face - she loves her baby brother Cooper) |
 |
| 1.23.20 (she had ZERO interest in dressing like a 100-year-old for the 100th day of first grade, but she was all over the poster making assignment for the day - she opted for the math version picking 10 groups of 10 things to glue on) |
 |
| 1.23.20 (a few MLK-inspired picks fitting for this time of year) |
 |
| 1.23.20 (I have been reading some blogs that have their lists of possible Caldecott winners for this year, so I've been trying to read as many as I can get my hands on before next week to see if any that these random lists chose and that I read get any medals. (This is definitely the time to say: #nerdalert) Here's the first set I've read through. Definitely liked the little libraries and motorcycle ones.) |
 |
| 1.23.20 (and here are the random leftovers that we liked this week. I really got a kick out of the goldilocks retelling (the endpapers may have been my favorite part!) and it was fun to see a picture book about Ivan since we recently finished the novel.) |
 |
| 1.23.20 (Sam and I had a date to McDonald's playplace and it was just delightful!) |
 |
| 1.23.20 (thanks to Heather for suggesting this one! For being such a skinny little book, it's sure full of excellent information and suggestions. Now to remember and implement them in my day to day "survive and thrive" moments!) |
 |
| 1.24.20 (A great little biography of Louisa May Alcott. I liked how it was told in a very story-like way, saving all the dates and facts for a timeline in the end. I learned a lot about her! And then a few days later, Read Aloud Revival published a podcast all about her! Next up: the new Little Women movie!) |
 |
| 1.25.20 (another cookbook that reads like a memoir, completely delightful. I found it interesting that her story of her magazine closing and then having time to cook again and leading (eventually) to a cookbook/ memoir was so similar to Ruth Reichl and her My Kitchen Year that I read last year!) |
 |
| 1.26.20 (I checked out a book called the art of snowflakes and I really loved the photos of the snowflakes and this quote) |
 |
| 1.27.20 (the view from the bike racks at the elementary school where I drop off Cal every morning was just stunning today! yes, I still love me some cloud pics!) |
 |
| 1.27.20 (a bunch more published in 2019 and being talked about for potential caldecotts. We especially enjoyed Stone, Fry Bread, Scarecrow, and Nest. Spoiler alert: none of these pictured won the big C, but a handful did come away with some less well known prizes. I am still waiting for all the official Caldecott winners to come in on my holds (they were the ones that had longer wait times when I requested them a couple weeks ago . . . hmm, wonder why?) |
 |
| 1.27.20 (two more from Gregg's stack. He liked both, but thought Music was better written/easier to follow and get into. He also said it was a similar vibe to Kingpin from earlier, which he liked.) |
 |
| 1.27.20 (a few read read to celebrate Chinese New Year (even though Umbrella takes place in Thailand).) |
 |
| 1.27.20 (and to round things out - a few more random faves from this week that didn't fit any other category. I was excited for more of the letters and numbers formed into creatures books and they didn't disappoint!) |
 |
| 1.28.20 (Cal's turn for the stomach yuckies! She woke up at 3:30 throwing up and spent most of the day on the couch, poor girl!) |
 |
| 1.28.20 |
 |
| 1.29.20 (I've only read three of her novels, two short story Christmas story collections, one collection of essays and speeches, and one picture book, but I love her writing and I always love getting some personal stories and behind the scenes info in books like this.) |
 |
| 1.29.20 (we had a visitor to our deck last night! and it came back the next night with a friend - they even snuck into our garage and Gregg had to scare them out by tapping the garage door opener, which made them zoom out the way they came) |
 |
| 1.29.20 (some cute ones we happened to find on the library shelf (a rarity! usually I get all my favorite picture books from online lists that I put on hold rather than random browsing through the stacks)) |
 |
| 1.29.20 (who the heck is Andre?) |
 |
| 1.31.20 (the boys needed some space to run and play, so Erin and I walked laps around the gym while Sam and Charlie ran and drove the remote control truck and bounced balls and swept - who knew a dust broom could be such a fun thing to play with?) |
No comments:
Post a Comment