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Dear Lucy,

Today was Snowflake Day and the delicious smell of pancakes had to be the best “alarm setting” possible.

Tom takes after you, sis, in being able to grab a few ingredients and create meals worth the wait. I’m not a foodie but am starting to be able to tell when fresh herbs have been used instead of the dried stuff.

It would be nice if happy bellies equaled happy moods but judging by the commotion upstairs this isn’t the case.

Apparently, Mark walked in on Abby finishing her shower. Hard to tell if her yelling at him to GET OUT was louder than his complaining about her but being the smart guy that I am, I left them to sort things out.

Soon after, David suggested going to the festival. Nothing like being outdoors on a winter’s day to cool down some hot heads. Or so I thought.

Not sure who came up with the idea of competing on the halfpipe since none of us had ever done it before, but I’m sure sibling irritations and rivalry had something to do with it.

We drew straws to figure out the order and away we went!

Tom was the only one to stick a successful landing but all of us were impressed with the height and risks Abby took!

Since everybody had smiles on their faces, it seemed like the perfect time to grab a family picture from the photo booth.

Smiles are fleeting things. Quick to appear and just as quick to disappear.

Upon exiting the photo booth, Abby spied Ethan and called out to him but he didn’t respond.

Tom and I quickly herded the twins over to the ice-skating rink before they noticed anything amiss.

I kept an eye on the situation without drawing attention to it.

Ethan was busy chatting with someone and was soon surrounded by several others so perhaps he didn’t hear Abby. It didn’t help matters that he walked away as Abby joined them.

It must have been embarrassing, but Abby held her head high and chatted with the others for a short while before she excused herself. I’m proud of her for doing that and think you would be too.

When we returned home, I had the boys help me with the dogs so they weren’t listening in while Abby called Ethan.

Whatever was said gave her things to think about. I wanted to let her know I was a good listener but she obviously needed a woman to talk to.

A subdued Abby said goodnight and headed up to her room. Seeing her quiet, solemn face made me sad.

The quiet didn’t last long when Abby caught David in her room, painting on her easel. Her scream of GET OUT could be heard throughout the entire house.

Guess I better close here and go have a talk with those two about respect and privacy.

Love,
Luke

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