Skiing in St. Louis

Sophia's fifth grade year has been a bit of a downer. Her expectations were very high. She was hoping for a year on top of the world to finish out a great career at Captain. The realities have been less than stellar. However, yesterday included one reality that lived up to all her hopes. 

Every fifth grade group takes a field trip to Hidden Valley, in Eureka, for a day of learning to ski. She has been looking forward to this since she first learned of it a few years ago. Erick and I were both unable to go along, but I think that turned out to be a good thing.

Apparently, she sailed through ski school, and started trekking around the little ski resort in no time. By the time we were able to get there to pick her up, she was hopping off the ski lift like a champ.

Six hours of skiing on her first day to try, and this was still her face at the end of the day. Today is less of this and more tired and grumpy. But I'm glad that it lived up to the hype!

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It's that time of year again. Basketball has landed in our midst. Sophia prefers soccer, but she is probably a more naturally gifted basketball player. She likes the rough and tumble aspect of being one of the bigger kids on the floor, down by the basket.

Even though these girls are in 5th grade now, it's still so fun to watch them play. Each time they get on the court, they learn something. And they are so lucky to have one another. The team is made up of fantastic and fun girls. They also like to be competitive. The coaches have their hands full during practice with all the secret handshakes and silliness, but they do get serious when it counts.

It's a good way to spend a cold, dreary weekend afternoon.