"Just windy enough to keep the bugs down!"

The boys' Nordic meet at Black Mountain was cancelled today due to extremely cold temperatures and extremely windy conditions.  That didn't keep the girls off the slopes though.  They skied and skied and skied some more!

Good morning, Miss Lily!

Lunchtime Ski

We are so lucky to have access to these beautiful trails, close enough to the office that we can scoot over and enjoy the fresh powder on our lunch break!  

Breaking Trail

It's a blizzard out here!

Reading about herself...

...never gets old.  It's great to see our accomplishments recorded in print!

I'm even in there this time since I competed as well.  It really is twice as fun!

Pent-up Energy

She's so impatient, but you know me, I had to have a picture!  Today she went for her first run of the year.  She was so excited when she saw me pull out the harness, but sat right down and held her head out to help me put it on her...then, she came 'unglued' and started jumping and charging around excitedly.  It was hilarious!  And, it reinforced to me how much she really does love this activity...

She did great for her first run of the year - she maintained an easy pace and didn't tire herself out, she listened very well to my commands (except for 1 time!) and was very well-behaved when we had to stop to try and help a guy get his car out of a snowbank after we watched him slide across the ice.

There is never a dull moment around here!

Oxford Hills Sprints & 3k

They raced at home (Roberts Farm) again today, but in a different format - FAST 1k elimination sprints aka: bracket racing for skiers!  Big brother made it through a few rounds...

 

Little brother decided to ski the 3k race because he prefers timed races where you're skiing against the clock, instead of racing 'head-to-head'.

  

They both had a great day and we all had so much fun hosting this event and cheering on our favorite competitors!

Happy birthday!

She missed our Christmas tree...

Nordic Team Home Meet

What an exciting afternoon of racing!  The course was so fast and challenging, but Oxford Hills dominated.  Both the girls' team and the boys' team won overall.  There is a great article in the Sun Journal.

And, our oldest son WON the boys' race!!  He skied just under 5k in 12:51.  Woohoo!! 

Little brother had a great race as well, skiing with a confidence we don't always see from him.  He even had an altercation with another boy who tried to cut him off on a corner and knock him out into the woods.  He held his ground and beat that kid at the finish!

Pre-Engineering Simulators Gold Medal Award Winner

This evening the students of Oxford Hills Comprehensive High School's Technical School were awarded for their efforts on the projects that they have been working on for the past few months. Congratulations to all the award winners!

Hmmmm....

Maybe the black interior wasn't such a good idea?

1st Biathlon of the Season

Maranacook Waves

Red sky at morning...

I was a bit early for work this morning, so I decided to try to find a high spot quick enough to catch the sunrise.  It didn't disappoint me!

His time is coming...

He can still beat him, but it's getting harder and harder!

Coldest Yet

He's getting there...

Family Favorite

Holding the Door

It's great to have a sister.  She can hold your stuff...and, when the latch is broken, she can hold the door too!

Racing Classical Style in Fryeburg today!

It's another chilly day in Maine, thus the fleece cape my younger son is wearing...I want one of those!

The boys did great in their races.  Younger brother doesn't really like classic style races, but he came alive out on those trails and placed 109 out of 141 with a smokin' time of 21 mins 36.5 seconds.  Older brother had a mishap during warm-up and broke the binding on his ski and his boot!  In 34 years, Coach told me he has never seen such a thing happen before.  Very fortunately, he was able to borrow boots from one person and skis from another and race anyway!  He placed 25th with a time of 16 minutes 32.5 seconds.  He was disappointed, but I told him to be proud of himself for continuing on and trying his best.  A lot of athletes would have given up!

It's here!

He just had to prove them wrong!

Two Hearts Into One

My oldest celebrated 1 year together with his girlfriend today!

Happy 15th Birthday!

Mmmm...s'mores!

This almost makes a cold & stormy night feel like summertime. Almost.

Fresh Snow

Amber and the girls had a great time playing in the new snow that fell overnight!  

(Truth be told, so did their father and I.)

Telstar Relays

We braved single-digit temperatures today to watch the team ski up in Bethel this morning.  Relays are sure fun to watch.  Lots of  fast paced action!

Puppy Dog Hugs

I think she missed her!

Yup. He really did it...