February

Thanks to Papa, we found our new favorite way to burn the kids' energy

The skaters don't seem to mind

And a new favorite date spot - the Martin Lawrence Gallery in the Forum Shops.  We found it by accident and didn't expect much, but were surprised to find works by Picasso, Chagall, Warhol, and Rembrandt! Free admission and had the place to ourselves.

The next night we got to show off our new Broncos shirts at our Superbowl party.  The Garmires, Brett & Sarah, the missionaries and Brandon came - too bad the Broncos never showed up!!

 

Elder Yockey won - by far

Ruthie helped with decorations

The neighbors lent us their bounce house

busted!

 Luke is so delicious right now... we can't get enough

BMRC kid zone (we play in here while Ruth does gymnastics). 

He held this pose for about 30 seconds.

his favorite spot - cozied up with dad

first dance lesson

 The kids won the lottery when Tyler took them sledding at Mt Charleston 

isn't he a sweet uncle?!  love that laugh

 Just a little drama

We picked them up at Tyler's at 9pm - they were exhausted.  Thanks Ty!!

February in Vegas is just right. We spent most of it outside.

hike with dad

 to the top of Black Mtn, overlooking Mission Hills

loves the diamond

after the playground, he likes to coast down to the skate park

meeting Sloan for lunch at the SDM

Next up - trip to Denver to scout out neighborhoods.  We're still not sure whether to rent or buy.  We want to take advantage of low interest rates & house prices, but still figuring out where to settle.

 This is a house we thought about buying in the new part of Stapleton.  It's considered "downtown Denver" but it's a separate 8 yr-old master-planned community with 4 elementary schools, grocery stores, dozens of parks, trails, etc.  The ward is diverse with lots of young families... we liked it and felt we'd make friends quickly.   The problem is Stapleton homes, in our price range, are small with no yards.  There are bigger houses with bigger yards slated to be built in the new part of Stapleton in another year or two, but for now it's all dirt.

The neighboring areas are hit & miss, especially with quality of schools. There's an area called "Park Hill" that has older renovated homes with big yards and ok schools, but ironically you're not as close to parks, which is huge for us.

The other option is Broomfield.  It's north-west of Denver, almost to Boulder, with excellent schools, parks, trails, and lots of house/yard for your money.  We found a couple wards we'd probably like, but they lack diversity and have too many dentists - boring?!  Our kids would have good friends though and we would probably, eventually, make good friends there too. It's harder to break into established suburban wards, but it's worth it once you do. 

The more exciting option is the city, but the more reasonable option seems to be Broomfield.  

Please, choose for us?!  (and whether to rent or buy... that's a tough one too)

hard-earned sushi dinner after 2 long days of house hunting

I'm still eating plant-based/vegan, but took a little break for vacation.  Enjoyed every bite.

a most memorable fried ice cream... mmmm

we were amazed by the rec centers there (in Broomfield and Stapleton)

Back home in time for the Daddy Daughter Valentine's Dance

Ruthie was so nervous.  I asked her a few times why she was nervous and she let me know she was worried daddy would try to dip her while they were dancing and she didn't know how.  (aw!)  I let him know and he made sure they practiced before they went.

nice go-tee!

hula-hooping

the dad's dance off (Sloan had compassion on the competition and opted out)

back to the parks to finish up...

Luke loves to tinker with the sprinklers

I've been surprised by how many skate parks we have in Henderson!

grand finale... a video Sloan put together of the kids from last fall