Telluride, how I love thee

We had a blast in Telluride the first week of February with almost my whole family.  We sure missed Uncle Craig, but it was pretty awesome we were almost all able to get away for a week together in the mountains.  The fact that Telluride got dumped on with three feet of snow a day before we got there wasn't so bad either.  Here's my best attempt at a recap in pictures:

We successfully got all 5 on a sled.  Ha!  Poor Noah had enough.

Pretty Val and precious Blake

Heading in for some hot-tubing 

I LOVE Blake's smile in this picture.  I had to post it even though he was the only one enjoying the photoshoot :) 

 Luke and Noah dug the sledding

And so did Aunt Lisa ;)  Ha. 

Kendall really enjoyed herself too

 Walking in ski boots is tough stuff.  It's much better on Dad's shoulders

 Billy being a good sport

 DeeDee, Billy and the grands

 A little down time with the iPad

 Noah even tried a little skiing :)  

 found a little hiding spot,

 and cuddled up next to Blake a few times.  Blake was less than thrilled.

Luke really took to skiing this year.  It was so fun to watch him fly down the mountain.

Some ski lift fun

 Getting some pointers from Billy

After a successful run

 Thanks to Mom and Val for watching all five kiddos one afternoon we got to do a little couples boarding/skiing. 

And another night the guys let us go into town for a girls' night!  What a treat!

 I'm pretty sure this is my favorite kind of vacation.  The perfect amount of activity and relaxation all wrapped up in the most beautiful scenery I could imagine.  It was a fantastic trip! 

Winter fun

We have not been lacking in the way of snow over the last couple of weeks which has provided for lots of winter fun!  

The big kids heading off to the sledding hill

this little pumpkin and I stayed warm at home

 a little backyard sledding

 Luke's been asking to build a snowman since before Christmas and he finally got his wish yesterday!

observing from inside

He was thrilled

Snuggling in Gigi's afghan to warm up

Five

Feels like quite a milestone to have a five year old!  We're no longer rookie parents, although sometimes it still feels like it.  We have a soon to be kindergartner for crying out loud!  We had a blast celebrating our special boy this year.  He woke up this morning and asked, "Mom, are you happy I am 5 today or are you sad I'll never be 4 again?"  If I'm honest, a little bit of both, my sweet boy.  

We had a party at the gym we belong to on Sunday to celebrate with a bunch of Luke's buddies.   They had a blast bouncing in the bounce house, playing games, and eating cake.  

 Chatting it up with his friends 

 Singing to the birthday boy. 

And today, on his official birthday we started the day with a balloon filled room, chocolate chip pancakes

took cupcakes to his friends at school

opened presents

and capped off "an awesome birthday" with a fun game of Trouble.

 And in keeping with tradition, here's an interview with the five year old:

What is your whole name?  Luke Willard Merrick

How old are you? 5

What is your favorite color?  Blue

Who is your best friend?  Cash

What is your favorite animal?  Dragons.  Wait mom, are dragons real?  Do they really shoot fire?  Oh okay. They are my favorite.

What do you want to be when you grow up?  A doctor like dad so I can work with him.

What is your favorite movie?   Mario movies

What is your favorite book?  Curious George

What makes you happy? Singing songs

What makes you sad?  Being alone, but God is always with me.  So only when the lights are out.

What is your favorite food?  quesadilla

What is your favorite song? Jesus loves me.

What games do you like to play?  Chutes and ladders and Candyland and Twister

A Merry Texas Christmas continued..

We stopped over at my mom and dad's a few times throughout the week for some more family. 

Michael finally got to meet Blake.   They were both pretty jazzed.  :)

The bro-in-laws (plus Blake)

Billy and Kendall chatting

These two were so cute to watch.  The age gap between all of them is shortening quickly.

The younguns.  3 babies in 11 months.  A prolific crew.

After a fun Christmas morning at the Merricks we were able to run over to my mom and dad's for some more fun. 

The chaos.

The best we could get of 5 under 5 

Grandaddy with some of his granddaughters and great grandkids

Wrestle time

Christmas jammies

My sweet friends, Kelly and Michelle, came over with cupcakes to celebrate my birthday. Love them.

On my actual birthday mom treated the three sisters to a day of manicures, a lovely lunch out, and a makeover for this almost 30 year old.  And the best treat of all was she lovingly wrangled all 5 of her grandkids at home!  It was a very special day!  

The diva getting ready to fly home

It was such a special trip home this year!