Family

While there are many, many things we love about Denver, not having family here is one of the things we don't like.  Fortunately, within the last week, we have been able to spend some time with family. Although each visit wash shorter than we would have liked, we cherished every moment. We saw Marshall's Dad and brother for a night (on their way back to Spokane and Brussels) and my sister for a bit (here for her husband's grandfather's funeral).  Seeing family always makes me want to be closer to them. But what a bright spot they brought to our lives this week - if even for just a little bit. 

All the Peavy men

brothers

Sisters!

Sisters

D-man with Aunt Jaima - what a gorgeous day!

Winter Birthdays

One of the challenges of a winter birthday (we have two of them here in the Peavy household) is finding something that the kids want to do. We've done gymnastics, swimming, bowling, and ice skating. This year, we ventured away from the bigger parties and D-man was able to take three friends to the DU hockey game. We had pizza here before the game and headed out to the game. We also had some friends that came along - was great to catch up with them as we watched the  #4 rated Pioneers beat Alaska-Anchorage 5-1.  The kids enjoyed all the scoring, the victory, and of course, the soda and popcorn.

D-man got everything ready for the party

With the doughnut cake

Birthday boy with the "7" balloon

After the win

Victory!

A Ski Weekend

Last week I found out that I had MLK off from work. I immediately contacted our friends in Eagle to see if they might be free for the weekend and would be willing to host some Denver visitors. Luckily for us, they were free and we were able to have a weekend away in the mountains and catch up with some good friends. On Sunday, Marshall was able to take in a free ski lesson from our friend and enjoy the slopes while D-man was in lessons. T-man and I enjoyed a trip to the indoor pool and afternoon naps with the other members of the Smiley family.

Both boys enjoyed ski lessons on Monday (D-man moved up to level 4 and spent the entire day on the mountain) and I enjoyed hitting the slopes with my very own Beaver Creek ski guide (our friend Dave). Dave took us to the slopes out of the wind and we were able to enjoy some blue skies and perfect runs for me. What a great way to spend the day off. Of course, a storm had moved in on Monday and I decided to stay an extra night and avoid the horrendous traffic and road conditions. By mid-day on Tuesday, the roads were clear and the drive uneventful (except for one accident that slowed traffic down for a bit). However, this gave us the opportunity to really scan the license plates for our license plate game. 

Both boys really enjoyed skiing (T-man is ready to move up to the next lesson as he was able to stop "with power" on his skis). Hopefully, we'll be able to get up again soon. We really are lucky to have such world class skiing right in our backyard (and friends that live up in the mountains too).

Cool Uncle Matt

Last week, we were lucky enough to have Marshall's brother visit on his trip back from Belgium. The boys (all three of them) always have a great time when Uncle Matt visits (I, of course, do too). The boys enjoyed playing football, doing yoga, showing off their toys, and talking Matt's ear off.

Yoga

more yoga

and more yoga

Matt was even able to stay a third night and attend D-man's basketball game. D-man scored 14 points and was quite excited to have Uncle Matt there to watch. We'll have Uncle Matt and Granddad here on Monday night before they both fly out. We're so happy we'll see them both before they leave!

taking in the basketball game

the star and his fan

What I Loved About Sun Microsystems

Today I met with Return Path's CEO, Matt Blumberg, to talk about my first few months at Return Path. (He does this with all new employees, how cool is that?) Considering all the hiring that Return Path has done (and continues to do), it's quite a feat to meet with all the new employees. At the beginning of the meeting, I mentioned that I was sad to leave Sun Microsystems and that it was a great place to work. He then asked me what I liked about Sun. And this really got me thinking. What was so special about Sun? Why was I so sad to leave? Has it really been almost a year since I was laid off?

After having plenty of time to think about it on my commute home, I think it really boils down to a couple of things. First of all, getting laid off is not a "feel good" experience (even if seven wonderful months off and landing a great job is the outcome). Being told you are no longer needed, wanted, etc. is never fun or easy to hear. Secondly, I "grew up" at Sun in many ways (I was there almost nine years). I started right after I got married, I had two kids while there, and met many great people and made many friends.

So, besides the sentimental aspect, what made Sun a great place to work? For me, the ability to work from home and the flexible schedule was priceless. The opportunities to take on new roles and being surrounded by talented and smart (and funny and nice) co-workers made it a great place to learn new things and created an environment that encouraged you to do your best. I always appreciated that if you didn't know something - (need help with video production? SEO?) there was someone at Sun who did and you could learn from them. As an innovative company, Sun was the kind of place that was always exploring new things (I never would have started a blog 7 years ago or gotten an avatar in Second Life) and encouraging you to try new things in your own work too. And with a MA in International Studies, having a team across the globe was something I thoroughly enjoyed as well.

Of course, there were some not so great things about Sun as well - regular layoffs, lack of revenue, continuous reorganizations, and all the challenges that come with working for a big company. But, the 8+ years I had there will be ones that I won't ever forget. They've given me an appreciation for what's important to me in my career. They've given me friends across the globe. And, they've prepared me for my new job and all the opportunities that come with this new phase of my career.

King Tutankhamun

Sometimes you need your kids to get you to do things. D-man has been learning about Ancient Egypt in school and has been really wanting to go to the King Tut exhibit at the Denver Art Museum. With the exhibit closing January 9th, we finally were able to go this weekend.

The exhibit was really great and D-man enjoyed explaining some of the things in the exhibit to me (I was very impressed by what he knew). We saw several pharaohs and the exhibit did a great job of keeping it interactive and organized well. I knew very little about King Tut and the discovery of the tomb. They had a nice collection of artifacts: King Tut's bed, a model ship, and a golf coffinette that held his mummified organs. They also had his gold sandals and the gold covers for his fingers and toes, as well as several shabtis and jewelry from the coffin.

After the exhibit, we hit the interactive kids area and had some fun.  It was a great way to wrap up our holidays and ring in the new year.

trying on the costumes

My little tutankhamun

Doing a little archeological work when we got home

New Year's Resolutions for Parents

Today I received the following list from the Director of our Montessori school. There are definitely some things in here I'm going to try to do more of in 2011. My kids deserve it.

Ten Practical New Year's Resolutions for Parents


1.  Say yes more: to spending time and doing things together.
2.  Say no more: to I want, I need, everyone has it, and everyone does it.
3.  Worry less: about all the large and small highly sensationalized harm that exists out there. The overwhelming odds are with you (but drive carefully – without the cell phone).
4.  Listen more; talk at less: Ask what do you think? What are you feeling? Tell me about it. What would you do?
5.  Negotiate less; explain more: Our kids deserve to know the thinking behind our decisions and expectations, but should not be equal partners at the bargaining table. We are the parents.
6.  Read a little more: to your child, with your child, and in front of your child – books, magazines, newspapers, notes. Visit our Growing Readers site for inspiration.
7.  Write a little more: notes of love, recognition, encouragement, responsibility, and daily appreciation of life.
8.  Expect a little more: good behavior, responsibility, manners, kindness, and all of the goodness that lies within our children.
9.  Expect a little less: constant scheduling and enrichment filled days. Slow down, you move too fast. Children need a lot of slow to grow.
10. Connect more: to family, friends, the community, those less fortunate, and the natural world.