Christmas in Cali

This year we traveled to Temecula for Christmas. Sunny 80 degree weather was a nice break from the single digits in Colorado. On Christmas Eve we went ice skating down town and out to dinner at one of Jane's favorite vineyards. On Christmas Day we opened gifts and spent some time with extended family.

Girls Ski Day!

This year for my birthday I invited my best friend up to Loveland to go skiing! We had a great time! Cathy and I spent all day racing down the mountain. I was snowboarding and she was skiing. More than anything it was a great day for the two of us to just hang out and have some girl time. It was a great way to celebrate my big 3-0 by acting like kids again.

Christmas Carol Classic 10k

     We ran in our first 10k! After completing 5 or 6 5k races we have moved on to longer distance. For a little more of a challenge and in preparation for our half marathon in April we went for a 10k race. Our friend Kelli came too. There were carolers singing and Santa to cheer us on. It was a chilly day around 28F, but a fun way to get in the Christmas spirit.

Parking Lot Birthday Bash

     This Thursday Amanda turns 30! Since there is so much going on we celebrated a little early. It worked out great because Russell was actually home to join us for a dinner out and presents in the parking lot. We went out to Rock Bottom Brewery for dinner and had some fudge we had brought back from New Zealand for desert. Although a little cold we had a great time opening gifts in the parking lot and laughing about how silly we must have looked.

Denver Botanic Gardens Blossoms of Light

    Last year we had gone to see the trail of lights at the Denver Botanic Gardens at Chatfield, where we were married. This year we went to the Denver Botanic Gardens in the heart of the city to see Blossoms of Light. We had a great time seeing all the lights with our friends Joe, Sheree and their kids.
     There were some beautiful ice sculptures throughout the gardens and more lights then anyone could possibly count.

Sigma Theta Tau

     Our first day back in the states was a cold one! We had temperatures below zero and it was quite a shock. Thankfully we had something fun to attend. Amanda was inducted into the International Nursing Honors Society for scholarly achievement in her graduate program. At 2/3 of the way through her program it was the perfect boost to keep her motivated. She is looking forward to wearing her honor cords at graduation next December.

Canyoning Kiwi Style

One of our last high adrenaline activities was canyoning. We hiked up the canyon and used zip lines to reach the top of waterfalls. To get back down the canyon we rappelled, jumped, swam and slid. The water was a balmy 5 derees centegrade. We had a good time and learned that we could go canyoning in Hawaii as well... planning for the next trip already.