Christmas 2017

We had a great Christmas this year. The kids scored some serious Lego sets and some fun unexpected stocking stuffers. I always have a fun time trolling Target and finding little stocking gifts for $5 - $10 each. Even Freckles scored some loot this year. 

We did the typical schedule this year. Christmas Eve service at church in the afternoon then the entire family at our house for fondue. Afterwards the kids opened their pajamas, popcorn, and cocoa, and we watched the movie Elf. During the first half of the movie I played around with the big present to myself, a Wahoo Kickr Smart Trainer for my bike. I have been doing a lot of indoor riding on Zwift since "opening" it. Santa, I know him.

After Christmas morning at our house we went over to my parents. We grabbed everyone coffee and hit their house for round two of presents at about 10:30. I say round two, but it was really round one for the adults while the kids handed out gifts.

As I've mentioned before, this year was all about Legos. Julia and Jonathan got several sets, many that included over 1,000 pieces and manuals the size of a typically magazine. It was pretty impressive how diligently they persevered through each one. It was so intense that many times we had to force them to stop building to eat food or simply to just take a break. They are still too young to realize that they need to take a break for their own well being. I was very impressed just how smart and skillful the kids were at putting the sets together. They are now ready for whatever IKEA brings their way in adulthood.

Breckenridge Videos

Indoor Soccer Highlights

I haven't been posting videos on the blog anymore since they don't transfer over to the book that we print.  However, thought I would share some of the videos I took this weekend at Jonathan's indoor soccer game.

He's really fun to watch. This winter he's playing with other kids in first and second grade. So, although some of the kids are a grade ahead, you can't really tell. He isn't afraid to mix it up, and is pretty quick which is beneficial on the small indoor field.  All in all he's having a lot of fun and we're glad it's a positive experience for him.

I have been helping coach when the main coach is out of town. His team is typically winning each game pretty big, say 15 - 5, and he usually bags a handful of goals.  I think in this game he scored 5 goals. He's definitely into the action. I am happy that he's having fun and the effort/hustle that he's showing. Go Buddy!

Daddy Daughter Dance 2017

Another year, and another Daddy Daughter Dance at the Community Center.  Julia was very excited to go again this year. She got an entire new outfit...a dress, shoes, hand band, and magnetic earrings. She was even allowed to do a tiny bit of makeup!  She was so proud and looked really pretty.

We didn't know that they were giving out free pony rides until we got there.  Score! Julia had never been on the back of a horse before. Even though it was a little cold, we stuck it out in line for a free ride. The horse/rider reminded me of the horse scene from the Hobbit.

As usual, the place was packed with other couples, crafts, and yummy snacks and treats.  We danced the night away until the crack of 8 p.m.  Another fun year and another fun night. It will be interesting to see how many more years Julia will want to do this with me. Hopefully she felt as special as she really is to us.

Christmas Morning

This year the Christmas holiday was longer than usual, since Christmas Day fell on a Sunday. We did the usual traditions, and not so usual traditions (I had a certain male procedure done on the 22nd). So, I was off from Thursday to Tuesday without much to do but hang out and spend time with the family and kids. 

We went to Christmas Eve "Mess" at 3 and then can back to our house for our traditional fondue dinner. My parents joined us and watched us open our pajamas. After they left we watched Elf and then went to bed.

We didn't buy the kids many presents. They get plenty of presents from everyone else in the family.  However, we did give them two presents and went with a technology theme. As much as I don't like the idea of giving them these types of gifts, it's inevitable and they are a part of life today...so we might as well start getting them used to them so that they can be properly managed. Plus, they are fun.  

They were both given a kids "smart watch" they had been wanting. It's a just digital watch with a touch screen and small games like tic-tac-toe, fitness apps, and the ability to take low quality pictures, videos, and voice memos. Things like that. The bigger present was that we also gave them our old iPhones. We got new phones months ago but I kept the old ones to give to them for Christmas. Now they don't need to use our phones for games! The phones aren't connected to cell service, so they are basically like iPod touches. They can use wifi for some things, but otherwise have been locked down and only use limited functions.  It's fun to get a text message from them while at work.  They don't know the passcode to unlock the phones, so that's another way we can control usage. We'll see how it goes.  For now they are having a lot of fun with their new big kid toys.

At the end of the video there are a couple clips of a fun little game for Jonathan. The strings are supposed to imitate laser sensors, and every time a player touches a string the countdown timer loses 20 seconds. The goal is to collect all the required cards/items and disarm the bomb before the time runs out!

Julia's 9th Birthday

Happy 9th Birthday Julia!  What a big 3rd Grader.  This year Julia celebrated her birthday with a party at Color Me Mine. She and several of her friends painted pottery together and then picked up the pieces later after they were finalized in the oven.  A couple of girls had never been to this place in the mall, so it was a big hit. I've been there with Julia and Jonathan separately, and even I had fun.  After the painting and pottery she opened her presents and they had cupcakes.

That was on Saturday. The next day we opened family presents at home with Grandpa and Grandma. Although family presents aren't as much fun as toys from your friends, they typically are the bigger gifts, the ones you end up using for a very long time, and the ones you remember when you're older. This year Julia got some seriously grown up presents...a new keyboard for piano lessons, a sewing machine from Aunt Michelle so she could learn how to sew, an apron, and some serious other gifts you'll probably see in the video below.

We love you Jules!  I hope you had as much fun as we did celebrating you!

Peru Inca Trail Cause Trek - Videos from Days 2 - 4

Here are a couple of videos that I took over the past few days on our trip. I didn't have a video camera with me, so the quality is very poor. However, I think you'll still be able to get an idea of what we saw and heard.

Jonathan Dance Party

Jonathan and the Chipmunks. Ending scene in "Road Chip"...

Surfing Video

Here is a very poor quality video of the kids surfing (mentioned earlier).  I am super-bummed this didn't turn out very well, but all we had at the time was my old camera. It doesn't take very good video.  This was the last straw.  I have been pushing off getting a real video camera for a long time and I will now be getting a nice one.

Big Biker Boy

Jonathan is done with training wheels! He has been asking me to teach him, so on Sunday we took off the training wheels and had a go.  He figured it out after about three tries and without any major falls. He is pretty coordinated and had been riding for a while, so I think that helped.

The first 2-3 times I held on to his front handle bars while running next to him. After doing that we tried again, but this time I let go of his bike for a second or two and then grabbed back on. When I did that (without telling him) he initially was scared a little bit, but then he quickly realized that he had been riding by himself for a second or two.  That was enough of a confidence boost for him. I did that again, but then he told me that I was "distracting him" and that he really just wanted me to give him a push.  OK then...he got a push...and off he rode!

Here is a video a few minutes later showing off his new skillz to Mom and sister.

Buddy-Wan Kenobi

Sledding in Frisco

First Cross Country Meet

We signed Julia up for Cross Country this year. It's nothing official, just a running group through her elementary school that meets twice a week before school starts. Stacey and I have been taking turns running with her at practice. It's been really fun to do this with her, not too mention the physical benefits for Julia.  She usually puts in about 2 miles at each practice, so afterwards I get in another mile or so before heading off to work.  I don't remember her grand total, but it's probably somewhere in the 20 mile range.

This is a video of her first "meet".  Her age group ran all the way around the school property once. There was a lot of family support for all runners.  Go Jules, Go!

Izzy and Panda Movie

Written and Directed by Julia Sudduth
Narrated by Lori Sudduth
Filmed on location at Grandma's house and the nearby park

Credits: This is Julia's first movie.  Although she was the brainchild behind the concept/script/filming, she refused to do the narrating because she thought her voice "sounded really funny" during editing.

Slackers

Attack Ninja

The Cupcake Song

Best Messages Ever

Here are some great videos that Jonathan sent me at work the other day. Priceless. Pay special attention to the end of the second video...Stacey and he have a special response to something I sent them.

Daddy Daughter Dance Video

A cute video I took on my phone of Julia dancing...

World's Biggest Fan

We took the kids to their first basketball game a few weeks ago. He really likes college basketball because he gets to celebrate a score often compared to football or soccer. I love watching how into the game he is.  The first reaction is to the other team making a basket, then Air Force misses the shot but gets the rebound.  You'll most definitely know when Air Force makes a basket.  There is a big celebration and then he grabs Stacey to show his excitement.  I can't wait to watch the NCAA Tournament with him this year!