Lucas may or may not have stayed up almost all night to finish his recital project. He asked for a 4:30am wakeup and missed school to put on the final touches.
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This past weekend was spent with brothers for life in Vail. Although the tradition goes back at least a decade, this was only my second trip. It’s not easy to herd this many cats on a mountain as big as Vail, but we did our best.
It’s easy to see the routine: Loaded Joes, skiing, hot tub, dinner and cards, with some other activities sprinkled in between. There were some high speed crashes, but everyone went home in one piece. As always it was great to reconnect and catch up with each other throughout the trip.
Lamar and I broke our perfect record of losing in Euchre, but one of those wins was against a team who had no idea what they were doing. Allard and Durbin are unbelievably undefeated and couldn’t be less gracious about that fact – worst winners ever.
Thanks to Brad who organized a special dinner in a private room at Elway’s. His only request was that everyone share a toast. I had a conversation last year about learning the importance of never missing an opportunity to let people in your life know what they mean to you. This group already gets it. Many beautiful words were shared to attest to the gratitude we all share for our decades of friendship.
I’m already looking forward to Super Bowl weekend in Vail next year (and every year thereafter).
GO BLUE!
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Matt invited the west coast crew back up to Lake Tahoe for a ski trip. It’s just as beautiful up there in the winter, just snowier. I rode up with Ben on Thursday evening and Matt and Dukes were already up there.
Friday, we skied Palisades, which was the first time for me in years. Because I last skied there when the kids were very little, I don’t recall the big mountain aspect if this resort. It was a welcome change. We met up with Greg and his friends and skied together after lunch.
On Saturday, we avoided the crowds and skied at Matt’s home mountain of Homewood. This was a first for me. I always thought Heavenly had the best views in Lake Tahoe but I was wrong. Homewood is right on the lake with spectacular views everywhere. It was well groomed and quiet. The plumbing is not modern.
Great weekend away with the boys. Hope we do it again soon. Thanks for having us, Blaine!
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Olivia hasn’t had very many birthday parties with friends over the years because her birthday lands during the holidays. Her very thoughtful and sweet friends threw her a surprise birthday party. She was in on some discussion for an impromptu party a couple weeks ago, but that never materialized.
On Sunday, while her friend took her to lunch, a bunch of friends came over to the house to decorate and set up. There was enough misdirection that Olivia really had no idea. When she came home, she was truly surprised and overwhelmed.
We can’t thank her friends (and their parents) enough for making this happen. We’re all very fortunate that she has such a kind friend group and we love having them all over. Happy Birthday again, Olivia!
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We had a quiet even planned for New Year’s Eve. The Lees joined us for dinner. Mary Ellen braved the rain to stop by and visit Jen and us.
Happy New Year!
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We celebrated this sweet 16-year-old at home this year, which is rare as we’re usually traveling somewhere. It’s hard to imagine that Olivia would need anything just a few days after Christmas, but her generous family always sends her such thoughtful gifts. It was extra special to have my mom, aunt Jen and Blue here to celebrate together.
We braved the rain and took everyone to Che Fico in San Francisco. I thought it was even better than the first time and every dish was amazing. While not a big party with her friends, we hope she enjoyed spending the day with her family who loves her very much.
Happy 16th Birthday, Olivia!
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The kids got out of school early this year, so we decided to go on our annual ski trip before the holidays. Even though they weren’t going to ski, we asked my mom and Jen (and Blue) to join us to experience mountain life for a week. To keep things familiar, we went back to Beaver Creek, though we stayed at a different hotel for the first time.
After all flying into Denver, we drove up to the mountains together. Things went a lot more smoothly with our flights and bags compared to last year, so we had that going for us. The snow was also the best it has been for us this early in the season, so we were also thankful for that.
Even though we took mom and Jen to some of our favorite places, we tried some new ones together, too. We took a one-day excursion to Vail, which really meant a couple of runs and lunch. The weather most of the week was pretty good. Some bluebird days, some new snow, and some bomb cyclone wind and snow.
All-in-all, it was a fun Rhee family trip, despite the 7-hour delay getting home from Denver. We all flew back to SF to spend the rest of the holiday together. Everyone was super excited to see Luna, except maybe Blue.
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The holidays are extra special for our U of M friends this year because the football team is 13-0! The calendar was extra challenging this year to get everyone together and some couples already had a full dance card. One surprise was that Theresa and Matt finally completed their decade-long assessment that the Golden Gate Bridge was indeed safe enough to cross!
Due to schedules, the White Elephant gift exchange was conducted before dinner. I think Theresa was traumatized by the brutality of all of the gifts she lost. This group is ruthless. Jenn and Michael said they had another party to go to, but who knows if they made it after they scored the Viagra (smuggled from London).
The older we get, the earlier this party starts. That said, it went pretty late this year, complete with an impromptu holiday musical concert that sounded so so bad. Thanks, Tam and Ben, for hosting us at their beautiful home.
Happy Holidays and GO BLUE!
