Veterans Day Fun {November, Part II}

Over Veterans Day we had the pleasure of seeing my brother Matthew, better known as Uncle Q, when he flew out for the weekend from California. It was a great visit packed with lots of fun, and as I looked back through the pictures it made me realize why I'm always so tired - we just kept going and going and going!

The kids, of course, were elated to have Uncle Q in the house...

And so was I, friends. So was I.

On Veterans Day itself we headed to the Avs game - we had gotten free tickets through the kids' hockey program and decided to go while my brother was around. There was an incredible tribute before the game with Veterans from every campaign since WWII. They started with the most recent and ended with a man born in 1919 who survived D-day. He got a thuderous standing ovation and was still able to drop the puck. It was awesome and I cried.  

And after I shared this picture, lo and behold I got a text from my old West Point friend/classmate Brittany, who's currently residing across the country in Philadelphia, saying "hey, where are you?! We're here too!" So we found each other and got to chat during the third period - so fun. 

The kids behind us were photobombing masters.

The most fun was just watching Peter and Marie bonding over hockey together. He has totally been in his element since she started playing. [The kids' original program ended after six weeks, but Marie wanted to keep playing and was able to start on a team right away. The boys will pick up with more classes after the holidays]. The two of them were just so entertaining to watch as they sat next to each other during the game, cheering and badgering each other and just being downright adorable. The boys had a pretty good time hanging out with Uncle Q, too. The Avs won in overtime, and even though we got back two hours past bedtime it was a great night all around!

Tired Ookie.

The next morning Marie had hockey bright and early of course, so Uncle Q got to see her in action.

I accidentally caught her scoring a goal right as I snapped the picture!
(Far left in the gold - looking toward the stands
where we were obnoxiously cheering) 

That afternoon, we took advantage of the nice weather and hiked the long stairway up to the Mother Cabrini Shrine - just in time to visit a set of Holy Doors in the nearby chapel, too, before the Year of Mercy closed- whew! I hadn't made it to any other sites this year so I was thankful we made the trip. No pictures of the doors, though, as there was a private service being held in the sanctuary at the time. 

We caught the Supermoon rising over Denver on the way home
I space geeked out a little and wished I had my good camera.

On Sunday I visited with one of my dearest friends, Tera, who was also in town for the weekend (clearly Denver is the place to be!). I got to flirt with her adorable littlest Mister while we sipped tea at my favorite tea house and then walked around Target, as two moms who suddenly have time to themselves will naturally find themselves doing.

And finally, on Monday, I talked my brother into self-torture by inviting him to a barre class with me while the kids were in school. He was a total champ having never done it before, especially considering that it was a more difficult class than usual. We took a little walk in the afternoon when Ethan was home to make sure all our muscles were still there/stretch out the muscles we didn't know existed before he had to fly home the next day. 

The weekend was full of wonderful sibling bonding -- we got to relax a little between the stress of daily life and had some of our usual laugh-till-it hurts moments (specifically playing The Meta Game). We all agree that we can't wait to have Q back in town again soon!