Wednesday, March 11, 2020

Hello family and friends--

I wanted to give some Asarian Family updates and not crash anyones computer, so thankfully Erik's great brain remembered we had a blog that I haven't updated since 2011.  

So, here is what we've been up to the last few months...

First off, both boys are doing great in school. Andrew, is proud of his straight A’s, and he has earned them! His two 4th grade teachers take their job very seriously and do not mess around. This year has been busy and he has learned a lot. I’ve heard that 5th grade is not as hard, so he is crossing his fingers for that. The 4th grade does a class trip to Moab in April and I will be a chaperone for that. 

Alex, has enjoyed 1st grade. I’m not sure his teacher will let him go to 2nd. Let’s just say that not all his classmates are Montessori trained and know how to behave in the classroom. Mrs. Coombs, LOVES Alex and is grateful for his example to the rest of his class. His teacher gives him extra work, to keep him challenged, as he has excelled in reading and math. 

Since the boys are doing so well in school this winter, we get to play A LOT after school/weekends. I have wondered if it’s too much at this age, but when I offer a day off, they won’t take it. They love all the skiing/snowboarding they do. During the week, they both cross-country ski 4 times. Two times at school and two times after school. Unfortunately, it’s on the same day for both boys. They are tired on those days! 

Andrew, is on a team called, Devo. He has enjoyed it (one more week). He has not started to race yet, if he ever decides to, as race day is the same as his downhill ski day. As the fastest 4th grader, I get a little flak from his school teacher for this (she is an former Slovakian Olympic ski racer), but at this point, it’s all just for fun! Andrew, will start summer training in May. They hike, bike, run, roller-ski, etc to stay in shape during the off season.

Alex, also skis at school 2x and 2x after school with Kickers and Gliders. He loves it, and quickly moved up to a more advanced group after school. Alex, is the fastest 1st grader and was only beat by one 3rd grader on Monday when 1st and 3rd had a "for fun" race. 

One of the fun things about the charter school the boys go to is they have their own Olympics. A month before skiing is about to end, all the grades divide into country teams (Kindergarten--2nd grade stay with their class). For four weeks they have team meetings, and learn about their country. At the end of 4 weeks, they have a Cultural Day in which each team visits the other countries and learns about it. The following day is Olympics day. They have a biathlon (3rd and up get to shoot the real biathlon gun), relay race, obstacle course, etc. Andrew, was on team Morocco and Alex was team Mexico. 




1st grade biathlon...












Beginning of biathlon race...



Entering shooting range of biathlon race...



Shooting biathlon gun...





On to downhill skiing...








What a season we've had so far! Both boys finished skiing/snowboarding school last weekend. 

Andrew, had a great time in ski school on Saturdays. I wasn't sure it was the right spot for him in the beginning, he seemed more advanced than the other skiers, but his coach was awesome and Andrew loved the group he was with. Andrew's coach joked that he was his right hand helper, and he was able to help with any "yard sales" of the other skiers. The coach really worked with Andrew on his form, pole plant, body position and Andrew improved greatly. Erik and I would take Alex skiing or snowboarding on Saturday's. 






This next video is not great. I had a hard time getting it from Erik's phone to my computer. For those of you that don't know much about skiing, we are in a tough spot on a ridge (double black diamond). There is a little new snow on top of huge moguls that we couldn't see because of low visibility. I was wondering how I got there...Andrew, was in heaven.  





Alex, chose snowboarding school on Sunday's. It has been fun to see him improve so quickly--from beginner to tricks in a short time. His coach said Alex is the first one to try something and has the best attitude. Erik and I would ski with Andrew on these days, and now we have to try and keep up with him. We skied over 30,000 vertical feet (which is a lot) 2 Sunday's ago and I think my legs are still tired. Andrew, of course, says he feels just fine :) 















When we aren't at school or skiing, you'll probably find us at Woodward. Woodward, is the new extreme sport training facility in Park City. Andrew and Alex love coming here and running around, going to the skate park, tubing, skiing, jumping, etc