Skyler’s First Year IMD Championships!
I have had SO much fun going to Skyler’s races with her this year. There have been three in Utah and one in Wyoming. All but one we went alone - just the two of us. It has been quality time I will always cherish. She is so fun and she has come a long way this year being able to enjoy herself at these competitions.
Her race season exceeded all of our expectations (except for hers of course). There were many ups and downs and we are realizing that ski racing is just as much about handling disappointment as it is handling winning. She got better every single race, which was amazing to watch. Her best race by far was in Park City this year where her brother and Sy (Liam’s friend) got to watch and congratulate her. It was one of the highlights of my year.
The championships were in Jackson this year. Day 1 was the Super G training run, which she crushed. Beat all her teammates except for a couple and looked SO good on the course! Day 2 was the Super G comp and she came out of the gate like a bat out of hell! She was flying. And then she got thrown into the backseat, fought so hard to stay upright, even turned her skis to make the turn before her legs just couldn’t hold her anymore. She went down, spun out of the course, was super disappointed but not hurt.
Day 3 was GS. I was so nervous. Just didn’t want her to fall as I worried that would crush her confidence. I also didn’t want her to hold back since she had fallen the day before. And she didn’t! She impressed the hell out of all of us - coaches included - and put together an amazing run. Beat all her teammates and ended up 11th out of 69 girls!
Day 4 was terrible conditions. We literally walked through slush to get to the course. She did not ski her best and yet, no one really did. Unless you got to go towards the front, the snow conditions were so sloppy it made it almost impossible to get any speed.
All in all, she was proud of herself, I was impressed by her tenacity and we had a great time. I am so excited for next season!!
Liam’s First Job
Liam has started working and Apples and let’s just say he is not disappointed with his new found financial freedom! He buses, does fishes and assistant cooks. He loves it because he is treated as an equal amongst his coworkers and he is getting great experience learning to interact with adults along with keeping a schedule and organizing his time. I am so stoked for him!
Still friends
It’s not often that they hang together anymore and they are at such different stages of life that they sometimes find it difficult to relate to one another but every once in awhile, they remember how much they actually do love each other.
Liam learning (and mastering) yet another sport
Taking after his dad and always stoked to learn something new, Liam has been picking up snowboarding. He did it twice last year and, given his background is wakeboarding and skateboarding, was competent within an hour. This year he has been going with Leif every Thursday after school - they have so much fun together and he has gotten so much better. He’s battling knee pain right now due to growing so insanely fast so has not been able to ski. Thank goodness snowboarding doesn’t hurt him as much so he has been able to be on the hill. Always fun to watch him shred! And really cool that he and his dad have this to share. ♥️♥️
Presley’s first official gymnastics meet
While it seemed crazy to drive all the way to Utah for Presley to compete for all of (maybe) 5 minutes, I realized that that is exactly what we do for every ski race as well! Some would say Leif and I are crazy but to be honest, it is so fun to road trip one on one with any of the kids. Leif and I rarely get one on one time with the kids, so we cherish these times when we get to be with them - away from the business of our lives at home.
Presley was the super star today. She performed beautifully on bars and took 2nd place. Beam was a little shaky but she made up for it on floor with third place. Vault was solid and she walked away with one 4th place. All around, she was 3rd place out of 13 competitors and has had a HUGE grin on her face all day long!
Gettin ready to race
She learned to wax and tune her own skis at camp last summer and is putting her new skills to use!
Yalda 2021
This year’s Yalda celebration topped them all with the winter solstice celebration out Croy Canyon. About 200 people gathered to watch the Willow woman - an enormous art structure made by several local artists - be burned to celebrate light over darkness. It was really incredible to see. We were all awe struck and vowed to make this an annual event!
Don’t Blink People…
Don’t blink people because of you do, your sweet innocent little girl will turn into a middle school beauty before you have time to say “slow down!” Skyler’s first trimester of middle school has come with its ups and downs, as middle school does for everyone. She has days when kids are nice, days when kids are mean, days when she feels cool and days when she doesn’t knower Dr where she fits in. It can be hard to watch as a mom and to hold my own emotions at bay while hers are running haywire but she is maneuvering through and soccer has helped tremendously.
As a 7th grader, Skyler made the Varsity team, which was awesome. She practices every day and loved almost all of it. She was hurt for a good portion of it and I know that was frustrating to her (she has severs in her heel - growth plate irritation given she is growing so fast) but by the end of the season she was rocking! It is so fun to watch her and her team, who have been playing together since 4th grade! She has great friends and a hilarious coach who refuses to cut his hair because it makes the girls cringe! ????
Presley’s First Gymnastics Meet
I’d be lying if I said I didn’t geek out watching Presley in her first gymnastics meet. She shined on bars and floor, stayed on the beam and put together two great vaults. The best part of all of it is that she truly LOVES gymnastics and it has built her confidence and regulated her emotions more than anything else we have done. I love watching her strut into the gym each day excited to be with her friends. Her coaches are really encouraging and do such a great job creating a team environment where the kids cheer for each other and get excited for each other. While Idaho gymnastics looks a lot different than California gymnastics, I feel like it’s hitting on all the positive aspects of my experience.
Look at that form!!
