Money art...

This is fantastic, and I must have missed it!  It's funny to see things in pictures that I never saw in person. 

Trip to the zoo with the Mama Gimpanzee ;)

Why not pick neon green when you get a cast, right?  That was Gavin's suggestion, and I went with it...all the way to the Denver Zoo one day.  Brent drove us all, and I gimped around on my lifesaver-of-a-wheelie.  The most unfortunate part of this particular trip to the zoo was that we had to walk (or wheelie, in my case) about a mile to the entrance from where we parked, so I was about spent (and sweaty!) before we'd seen a single animal.  

Look at these little dudes!  I could hardly keep up with them on my trolly!  The saving grace of this transportation was the little basket that fit in front so that I could carry any number of random (yet highly necessary) items in it without having to make extra trips (water, phone, Kleenex, paper, pen, Bible, etc.)  Before long the basket resembled the front of my car, which is a bit scary if you talk to Brent, but very functional if you talk to me (and, admittedly, a little scary to me, too, sometimes if I'm being honest).

New Magnatile creations...

Wow!  Gavin (and Gage!) shock and amaze me with their awesome, perfectly symmetrical designs using the Magnatiles.  Those have been such a great thing for both of our boys, if you're looking for a neat building toy for your kids. 

My ankle surgery...

On March 15, I had ankle surgery on my right ankle.  There's no exciting story to tell about the "why" of the surgery, but the surgeon (a doctor and friend that my mom works with) explained to me that he had to go in and clean up the mess.  It was a micro-fracture, and the more technical term was an osteochondral defect.  All I knew was that it had started hurting even to walk around the zoo with my kids.  It wasn't just pain associated with running anymore; it had started to effect everyday activities.  So I'm glad that I had the surgery.  I had this splint (above) for a week and then a hot green cast for two-three weeks, so I didn't drive for about a month! 

We were so blessed by the family and friends that took care of me.  We had meals delivered several times a week for about a month, and my friend, Sarah, took Gavin to school for about two weeks when I couldn't drive.  It's times like these when "It takes a village.." really rings true.  Everyone pitched in to lighten my load, which was such a gift to our family.  Thank you all for your kindness and support. 

I did PT for many weeks, and I've been cleared to do lots of exercise/activities that I enjoy, though I really do miss just running outside, and I don't know when I'll be cleared to do that.  And I miss Zumba and step class, too, but I can understand that those things may not be the best for my ankle.  It's hard for me to accept that the healing is really a process, and my physical therapist told me that it would be normal for me to experience pain and or discomfort for up to a year post-surgery.  I've been bummed about this lately, though I will say that I've really been loving the bike rides that I've been taking on my awesome new road bike.  (Thanks, Hubby, for my great bike!) 

Another snowy day...

It took me a second, but I'm pretty sure that that's me in the blue coat shoveling with Gavin, a rare sight indeed.  Meanwhile the boys could spend hours upon hours outside in the snow if we let 'em.

We have some awesome sledding hills nearby, and on this particular day Daddy was the designated photographer while I was hitting the hill with the boys.  We love to sled!  We just got some "new" sleds at a garage sale that I'm psyched to try out next winter!  One of them seriously looks like it could fit all four of us.

We play musical hats in the Koel household during the winter months.  Brent discovered an interesting thing awhile back--that any of our adult hats will fit anyone in our house--so Gage is wearing my hat in this picture.  Man, he's cute, right?  Doesn't really matter whose hat he's wearing!

Extreme Altitude...

We have a local gymnastics place (Extreme Altitude) that offers "Mommies Mornings Out" for kids to come play for an hour-and-a-half while parents chill on the sidelines or go run errands.  I usually meet up with another mom, and we talk on the side and help the kids on the equipment from time to time.  The boys love it, as you can imagine.

A semi-new discovery is this idea of sitting in the rings and having Mama push.  It's pretty fun, I have to say.

Oh, I'm going to miss this little posse next year when the kids are in different classes or totally different schools :(  These pairs of siblings get along quite well and have a lot of fun together.  Below Gavin is Callie, one of Gavin's best friends, and his little brother, Bode, is sitting below Gage.  Bode and Gage will both be at Apple Tree again next year, but Gage will be in the a.m. class and Bode in the p.m. one.  And Callie will be at a local charter school (Prospect Ridge Academy), and we think that Gavin will be attending our neighborhood school, Mountain View Elementary.  It's been so fun for me to see how hard Gavin makes Callie laugh and how the little guys have become real friends this past year.  I really hope that they will remain friends!

BBQ at the Geibs...

(From left to right:  Gavin, Madison, Sarah and Gage)

The cousins had a nice meal of pizza and fruit when we gathered to celebrate Cousin Sarah's birthday at Aunt Jackie and Uncle Karl's house in Littleton. 

Doughnuts with Daddy at AppleTree...

Among the ten thousand awesome things that they do every year at Apple Tree is the special celebration with daddies called "Donuts with Daddy."  It's a great way to honor the dads in the middle of the year, since Father's Day happens in the summertime. And which father hasn't always dreamed of having their own pet rock?  With red hair and googly eyes?  Check that thing out!

Mrs. Carter is the circus conductor of Junior Kindergarten, and we thought that she did a great job with Gavin and all of his comrades.

The kids all made crowns for their daddies, and Brent was wearing his with pride.  It really is such a special celebration, and not one dad was missing.  I'm so glad that Brent and Gavin will have these memories from his days at Apple Tree.