The Smiths Learn to Sail!

Our next big adventure starts in March with the Little Smiths taking sailing lessons at Treasure Island in San Francisco!  (Mom is going to try wind surfing and paddle boarding, because hey, why not?!?!  Stayed tuned!  Things are about to get aquatic!!!!

The Diva Curl Cut!!!!

 For a couple years I've been taking the girls to La Chaise Rouge for a special "curly" haircut - it's always a fun little mother-daughter day and the end result is that their hair is "healthied up" and more manageable and they feel like pampered princesses!  Friday I took them in - the anticipation nearly wrecked them, they'd been looking forward to this for months!!  Ni'ke doesn't look happy in this particular picture for some reason, but she was all smiles.  Julie let the girls play "beauty salon" and wash each others hair in the shampoo bowl.  :) 

Meet Maddie and Carlos, the owner's dogs!  They provided great entertainment to two little girls who aren't too used to being around dogs!

The "After" picture!!!!

A fun successful outing!  We ended by lunching here:  A perfect ending indeed!

Happy New Year from the Smith Family!!!

 Yes, those noise makers were SUCH a great idea!.....   :)  We had to cut them off after awhile for sanity's sake.  What a fun week it's been!  I was thrilled to have a 5-day weekend off over New Years, and it was a nice quiet, low-key affair.  (Except for the noise-makers of course!)   We played lots of games, watched movies and football and I baked and cooked!  Just like we like it...

 Little hams....  Every day is a celebration with them!!!

 Digging the raccoon slippers!!!

 We spent Sunday with our church family in San Jose - what a blessing!!!  Had to snap a pic of my hubby all "gussied" up!

Baby Amelia Has Arrived!!

 Our dear friends, Chris and Giuliana finally welcomed their long-awaited little girl last week!!  How special that she came on her daddy's birthday!!!!  Miss Amelia Ross weighed in at 7 # and 4 oz and was 20 inches long!  She's healthy and well and beautiful, and she and mommy are both great and home now!  We are so happy for you and can't wait to watch her grow up in a home so full of love for her!

 I love that Chris grew out his beard while his wife was growing their baby.....  Love you guys!!

Ni'ke's Christmas Concert!!!

 Ni'ke's concert was this past Wednesday!  It was a packed house at the school auditorium!  Love watching the kids having such a good time putting on a great show for their families!!!

 Ni'ke in the back row to the right!

David's home!!!  He got home Wednesday afternoon and was able to come to Ni'ke's concert with us!!  We are thrilled that he's here to relax and enjoy the holidays with us - he'll start studying for the bar that he'll take in Sacramento in February.

Ya'shar had his Christmas concert on Thursday!  Isn't he so handsome?!?!  He had a solo this year!!  Unfortunately the camera got left behind, but we got a quick picture before the concert at home!

Ma-lak's Winter Band Concert!

Last night was Ma-lak's concert, and can I just say that he is the cutest little baritone player EVER!?!?!  He's done so well and practiced so hard this year- it's amazing what kids can learn in such a short amount of time!!!  The concert was at Santa Rosa Bible Church, because neither of the participating schools were large enough to hold everyone.  (Mr. Vandeveer teaches beginning band, advanced band and choir at both Matanzas and Village Schools.)  Rea is already in a tizzy over deciding what she's going to play next year!

Going Down the Mountain!

I kept saying all weekend that no amount of pictures could ever do the place justice, so I took a video, hoping that would do a better job!

Ya'shar and the Bungee Trampoline!!

No vacation is complete without doing something a little off the wall...  So why not bungee jump on a trampoline in the snow?!?!    Daryle took the other three earlier in the day and didn't have the camera, so later that evening when Ya'shar took a turn, I was all prepared.  Hilarious good fun!

Heading Home!

 A family picture in the lobby before we hit the road!!!!

 Loading up!!

 Fierce road warriors Ma-lak and Rea.  Ma-lak was Daddy's navigator on the trip there and back!  He has a crazy good sense of direction and is a stellar map-reader!

An actual picture of Lake Tahoe - it was dark and hard to see when we got there Friday, but we got a glimpse as we drive by going home.  Did you know that Lake Tahoe is 99.9% pure, and you can see a white dinner plate on the bottom of the lake from 75 feet away!?

South Lake Tahoe Trip, December 2012!!

 Such a beautiful drive!!  This was a trip that we've been trying to take and looking forward to forever it seems!  And pictures just don't do it justice.... 

 My favorite four little people!!

 I tried not to be on the computer too much!  I was still wrapping up last minute things for my classes and getting my final grades.  (Hallelujah for A's in both classes!)

 Rea was enthralled with our full kitchen (and washer and dryer hiding in those white doors to the left!)  she even asked if she could do the dishes!  LOL

 We ate at Base Camp Pizza Friday night after we arrived.  What a hoppin', happenin' place!!!  They have the BEST pear, gorgonzola, and candied walnut salad ever!

 They had etch-a-sketches and memory games at every table for kids to play with while we waited for our pizza!

 The girls watching the ice skaters, we had to wait till morning... BOO!

This was so pretty!  Everything all lit up at night, and it started to snow after we finished dinner!

 Who goes to Cold Stone Creamery when it's snowing outside?  WE DO!!!!

Can you tell  I was excited that it was snowing?!?!?

The girls played in this little window seat all weekend.  They were enjoying the view that we woke up to  the next morning after it snowed!

 What a way to wake up!

Rea was very concerned about whether there would be a table at our hotel room that would fit all 6 of us sitting around it at the same time so we could eat together.  She was very happy at breakfast...  :)

Finally outside to play in the snow!!

Where's my husband?  Out swimming......  Yep, he's the only one in the pool. But at least the water was 86 degrees!

 Snowball fight!

Ni'ke and Ya'shar worked really hard to make a snowman, but had to settle for a snow pyramid!  The dry fluffy powdery snow wasn't the best for making snow people!

My little snow angel!

Time to skate!  Ya'shar was fearless!!

I gave the boys haircuts Saturday morning before we hit the snow - hard to tell with their "hat heads"!

Yep, this is where we spent a lot of time - on our bottoms!  Oh the bruises....

 I LOVED this fireplace! It smelled so good and kept our boots warm while we skated.

Daryle and me!!

Ya'shar on the bungee trampoline!!!  UP!

UP!!

And AWAY!!!!

We ate at Fire and Ice on Saturday evening. TONS of fun and great food! Sort of a Beni-Hana type of place - interactive dining experience!

 Finally got to do some sledding at Van Sickle State Park on Sunday afternoon which was just a short walk from our hotel.  More bumps and bruises, and more fun!  Rea smashed into a log after this picture and bit her tongue open, but other than that it was a hoot!

Warming up after sledding!

 This picture got out of order but it's a good one to end on!  What a relaxing and fun and MEMORABLE weekend!  Can't wait to go back!!