2105 Behind the Scenes

It's been a few years since I've sent out real Christmas letters.  In the age of Facebook it seems a little redundant to recount the happenings of the year in an annual letter when it's all been broadcast across the internet. 

But as I was downloading all the photos off of my phone, it occurred to me that 2015 was more than the nicely posed family photo in front of Half Dome.  There was a good collection of photos I found that weren't necessarily "framers" but do tell the story of who we were, where we went and what we did in 2015.  So, here is the backstory of 2015, as told through the random photos on my phone.






I kept running in 2015.  Occasionally my junior pace car joined me on her bike.  Gone are the days when I can walk while the kids ride their bikes.

   

These kids are still kids.  Silly ones.  Big hair bows and coming up with creative games in the backyard are all the rage.  Here you see them playing the "flush the toilet" game where they take turns "flushing" their sibling into a 5-gallon bucket. 

  We are minus a lot of teeth this year....seven to be exact. 

While visiting Banff, Alberta for a conference, I had the opportunity to purchase a coffee at the highest Starbucks in Canada.  And then I took that coffee on the gondola right up to the tippy top of Sulfur Mountain.  Best cup of coffee I had this year.








My kid started putting words together into sentences.  She now pens creative literature such as this....

This happened.

Yup.  This happened too.  Praise Jesus!

We now have two out of three kids in the pool without a life jacket.  Small victories. 

Thanks for keeping it real, Runkeeper.  "Your 75th fastest".  In other words, "You're slowing down, old lady." 

I posted these car seats on Craigslist in August.  They are still sitting in my garage.  Anybody interested?

Here's my selection for "Most Unflattering Selfie of 2015."  Wow.  That's a lot of chins. 
Also, go Giants.

Orthodontist told me 18 months. 
Two and a half years later... BEST SELFIE EVER.

Castle Lake. The kids and I spent the morning here right before my husband told me he wanted to admit himself to an alcohol rehab facility.  This was the calm before the storm.  It was a brutiful day, start to finish.

First year we let the kids do the carving themselves. Look out, Picasso.

 

My daughter got this tunnel for her 2nd birthday.  Still going strong 5 years later.  #WorthTheMoney.







Sorry for the graphic nature of this photo.  But I'm kinda proud of the toddler-sized hairball I pulled out of the shower drain all by myself.  Shout out to the$2.50 Zip-It drain tool that saved me a plumber house call.  I also replaced the moisture sensor on our clothes dryer this year. Look for my new TV show coming soon from the producers of Handy Manny.

Valley of Fire State Park was spectacular.  And offered oodles of prime photo opportunities, including this beauty.  Look at this rock I split open with my bare hands!

Stuff like this goes on pretty regularly.  Those are "pony tails" that they made out of their pants.  I don't even know....

We finally got some decent snow in the mountains around here.  Fun to be close enough to pop up the hill after school on a minimum day for a quick snow-fix.

And 2015 will be (fondly?) remembered as The Year of the Karaoke Microphone.  There is a whole lot of Taylor Swift going on. 

So, that's my story of 2015.  Not all glamorous or perfectly posed, but a good year nonetheless.  Now you'll have to excuse me while I go clear off the 734 photos from my phone so I have room to capture the essence of 2016.  Happy New Year!