The True Giving Tree (by Kevin)

Emma and I have been brought back to our youth with Sapphire in the family. We are remembering our favorite books and songs. One book that I loved as a little kid was "The Giving Tree" by Shel Silverstein. It was about a tree that grow up with a little boy into his adulthood and ultimately gave itself up to provide for the boy.

I ran across this story in the Burlington Free Press the other day. Check it out. It is an amazing story about a tree called Herbie and a man. The tree is a Dutch Elm that resides in Yarmouth, ME. It is a moving story about the relationship between Man and Tree and ultimately a tree in the town of Yarmouth, ME.

The link below will bring you to the story. I hope you enjoy.

240 Year Old Dutch Elm

29 years at Sugarbush (by Kevin)

I had the chance recently to see my sister at 6 o'clock in the morning. That is a rarity in our family. Imagine seeing a brown bear rise from its den in the Spring Time after a long hibernation, only my sister. Okay got the picture in your head. If not let me help you out.

Grumpy Bear

Happy Bear

Kristen flew in from NYC for Christmas at Sugarbush, the first Christmas at Sugarbush by the Kouri Clan. I must say it went off wonderfully with a tree and all the trimmings, good job mom and dad you always impress. She was not to depart until the Tuesday after Christmas which allowed her quality Auntie time with Sapphire. Monday an unexpected snow storm blew threw the region and deposited 6 to 8 inches of freshies on the mountain. Kristen wanted to hit the mountain before her 12:55 pm flight back to the Big Apple. We opted for the Lincoln Limo aka First Tracks Cat Skiing at Sugarbush or check out the blog from last year called First Tracks to score some POW before she headed back.

Loading Up: "I hope this thing is making a stop at Dunkin Donuts"

Kristen went to bed super early Monday night because she said she was nervous for the First Tracks Tuesday morning. I was excited because I was going to be able to get 2 hours of skiing in before work and spend some time with Kristen. Tuesday morning rolled around we got ready to met up with the 12 other people that would be going out along with Win Smith, President and Owner of Sugarbush and John Egan, Sugarbush Ambassador and extreme skier.

I was a little skeptical we were going to find some POW Tuesday morning but we headed for some sheltered runs on the mountain and soon found what we had been looking for. The white fluffy stuff that sprays over your knees as your feet do a dance in the POW and your favorite songs plays through your head. Unconsciously you have a smile ear to ear as you make turns and once and awhile a yelp comes out of your mouth from nowhere.

Four runs top to bottom is the usual number you get in before they pull you off the mountain so Mountain OPS and Ski Patrol can do their morning sweep to get the mountain cleared for opening at 9 am. At the end of the last run Win Smith, president and owner, personally thanks everyone for coming out and wishes you a farewell. I was waiting at the bottom for Kristen and when she arrived Win went over and thanked Kristen. Kristen's response back was "my brother and I have been skiing here since we were little kids, this is where we learned to ski and the only place we ski." As she told Win, how long we had been skiing on these slopes it dawned upon me, I/we have been returning to this very same mountain year after year as if it was a winter migration. It was also fitting that our last run down for the morning was on our favorite trail growing up "Sleeper". I have great memories riding the Gate House lift as a family and taking runs down "Sleeper". There we were 32 and 28, respectively, skiing down the same trail we used to ski down as 3 and 4 years old screaming and playing like we were 3 and 4 year old again. Somethings do not change. My memories of Sugarbush are great this morning just added to those memories and I know that whatever happens in the future the Kouri's will always have history at Sugarbush and I hope to share those same experiences with Sapphire some day.

Sleeper 28 years later.

First Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Birthday - All in One!

I am SO behind on sharing photos, so this is an all-inclusive update. The months of November and December have been very eventful! We enjoyed a wonderful fall with beautiful folliage, as you'll see in the November photos. Our family photo shoot in the leaves was so much fun, and Sapphie posed like a little queen. Now that she's on the move, I'm having a hard time getting some really good head shots. The dogs continue to be amazing with Sapphie, and play with her all the time. She crawls on them, gives them kisses, tugs their ears, pokes them in the eye (see videos!) and pulls their collars off. They are both so patient and we're very fortunate to have had no problems at all.
So far, Sapphie has 4 teeth. Two front top, and 2 bottom. The bottom ones have one tooth between them that hasn't come up yet, so she looks like a little troll when she opens her mouth! Check out the December photos that Hannah took of her in her sled. You can totally see her bottom troll teeth.
Sapphie isn't walking, but she scales the furniture and loves to climb on (and off of) everything! She's an expert at going up and down stairs, and she slides right off our bed without hesitating. We have a gate at the top of the stairs, and she loves to stand there and wait for Daddy to come home. She also loves to pull all of my books off of the bookshelf, them flip through them and say "oooh"..."huhhhh"... she makes these funny little squeek noises that Nona says sound like a little robot.
We had a wonderful Thanksgiving with both families at the condo. Liz and Kevin had the house all prepared, as usual, and we really were able to relax and enjoy each other. Kristen's bear Felicia got surgery (a fill and a tummy tuck, plus her bow was ironed), and she's looking like a new lady! Needless to say, there was plenty of eating, playing, and resting.

Here are our November photos:

December was another big month, with Sapphie's first birthday and first Christmas! Auntie P and Uncle Ollie got their huge tree right after Thanksgiving, so Sapphie was able to enjoy that one right away. We had some great family nights at their place, and got into the Christmas spirit. Sapphie got to watch her first movie, The Snowman, and I think she liked it! There's no talking in the movie, only music and she watched it for quite a while. I also got her the board book, so she can continue to enjoy the story throughout the year. She had tons of fun opening Christmas presents! It was all very exciting and I think her favorite part was ripping (then eating) the paper. Cabot joined in the fun too.
The Sunday before Christmas, we had a wine and cheese party to celebrate Sapphie's first birthday. Just a few friends, dress-up party, wine and good cheese. It was really low-key and special. I made Sapphie caramel cupcakes and she loved them! Sapphie and Auntie P didn't plan it, but they totally matched. She got her first Burton hat, and it looks adorable on her.
Our first Christmas was on Monday night, the 21st. We went to Penelope and Colin's to do gifts with them, because they were going to Katonah for Christmas. Sapphie enjoyed her 2nd Puerto Rican meal made by Papa LaLa (asopao; the first was Puerto Rican lasagna), and she LOVED it. 3 helpings in one sitting if you please! Colin got 2 more Wii sticks plus Super Mario, so we played after Sapphie went to bed. It was AWESOME. You may not know this about me, but I used to be a video game junkie, and champion. I beat all the Marios, Zelda, Mike Tyson's punch out, just to name a few. I was talking a big game and threatening lives before we started up the Wii. Much to my surprise, my fingers are much slower than they were 20 years ago! I've got to practice a bunch to get my game back.
Next celebration: we spent the week in Newport. It was SO relaxing and enjoyable. Hannah joined us for Christmas Eve, and we enjoyed another amazing figgy pudding. On Christmas Day, we headed to the condo for more fun and presents. Sapphie and I went for an afternoon snowshoe with the dogs, and I told her the story of how this time last year, I had a very spicy virgin bloody mary (thanks Uncle Ollie), and labor started 2 hours later! I told her all about the labor, the delivery, etc. I don't think she was listening, because she was busy watching the dogs wrestle, but it was so fun to tell her the story.
The next day, we celebrated Sapphie's first birthday for real. We had a cake, balloons, family, dogs, oh and a 32-year old wax candle that was used for Kevin's first birthday. Yes, even though she likes to organize and throw things away, it turns out Nona does save some things!! Nona also saved and gave Sapphie Kevin's original copy of Mr. Willoughby's Christmas Tree. We love it!!
Sapphie had her first sled ride in a baby sled that was given to us by the Westons. I think she had fun! She laughed and squealed a lot.
Winston had a photo shoot. Would you look at that face? He should have been named Face. Or Beggar. He's getting better with Sapphie, only humps on the rare occasion. He's also getting better about begging thanks to some boot camp and some training that Nona has been doing on Grandpi.

And here are our December photos:

Happy New Year to All!!!

Pudding 2009

Amazing figgy pudding, Christmas Eve 2009. Well done mummy!!

Cookie Smack Down

Uncle Ollie (that's Colin) makes the yummiest chocolate chip cookies. He likes them very flat, so he smacks them down when they come out of the oven. Sapphie recently enjoyed some of his cookies (just before bedtime!), and did a little song and dance, with our help, to show her approval!