Thanksgiving (part 1)

 We spent our Thanksgiving up in the beautiful mountains of Colorado with Daniel's family.  I know I've mentioned this before, but I'll say it again - we really treasure family trips like this where everyone is on vacation!  There's something so special about spending un-pressured time with no schedules.  I'm so thankful we all had this opportunity!

This was my first time in Colorado during the colder seasons, and of course Elli's first time ever!  When we were driving up through the mountains, she kept saying, "So boo-uh-ful, Mommy!"

I couldn't agree more!  The cabin we stayed in had tons of huge windows all around, so there was beauty everywhere we looked.  And snow.  Something we don't get to see a whole lot of here.

Elli LOVED the snow, and wanted to get out in it as much as she could. Most of the time it was pretty cold, but one day the high was in the 50s, so we took advantage and partook in some wintertime activities. Elli had a blast on the sled, both riding and pulling.

 Another blessing of being in Colorado was getting to spend some quality time with Daniel's grandparents.  They got to meet Caroline and very graciously helped watch all the kiddos while a group of us went skiing.

 Caroline soaked up all the loving from her family.  A huge thank you to our friends Chris and Alli for letting us borrow some ski gear, and to their little man Des for letting Caroline borrow his cold weather gear.  She was warm and toasty and somehow even more squeezable.

Hopefully someone (cou-brian-gh) will send me some pictures from skiing.  Daniel and I had never been together, and I'd never been "real" skiing.  The guy helping me rent skis actually laughed when I told him I'd been skiing in Kansas.  Yeah, Colorado skiing is a little different.  Fortunately the basic mechanics are the same, because I felt like it came back pretty quickly.  Daniel and I had a blast together and hope to go again soon! 

 

Of course, the trip would not have been complete without Elli's first snowman. She had been talking about it for weeks leading up to the trip, and it did not disappoint!

We have so much to be thankful for, and this trip was such a special way to celebrate God's goodness to our family!  We can't wait to see them again soon.