Look Who’s 40!

This guy!  Yep, the giddy guy in long johns after a day of skiing who still worked out to a YouTube video.  This was the last night of his 30's, and evidently he wasn't going over the hill without a fight.  Honestly, this guy is somethin' else.  He is a go-getter and a man of many talents, but most importantly, he's a great friend, father, and husband.  I'm so happy that we were able to celebrate you with such a fun weekend!

Sunapee is a quintessential New England town in New Hampshire.  However, it's unique in that is has both a beautiful lake and a Vail Ski Resort right next to each other!  With our Epic passes, we'll be able to ski there multiple times this season.  Plus it's less than 2 hours from Boston!  Score!  I should mention that it was the coldest weekend of the year, and we skied in 0 degree weather!  Thank God the sun was out!!!

Jamil spent half a day with Mariam on the practice slopes while I skied with the boys.  At the end of the day, he decided to take her down a Green.  After Gabriel, Abraham, and I waited for what felt like forever, Mariam and Jamil finally made it down the mountain.  As you can see from her eyes below, and from the soreness in Jamil's arm from picking her up, I believe she needed a little more time on the practice slopes.

On day 2 of skiing, Mariam was thrilled to join our neighbors and friend from kindergarten on the bunny slopes!  Jocelyn and Evelyn spend many weekends here at the mountain and motivated Mariam to be much more independent.  However, after not quite enough practice, she thought she was ready for the lift up to the big Green.  I'll spare you the details, but it was brutal.  Thankfully, Mariam only remembers how awesome it was to ski with her friends.  Me, on the other hand, I'm spent just thinking about it.

Day 3! While Mariam and I perfected her turns and getting up on her own after falling, the boys worked their way up to the Black Diamonds with Jamil!  Jamil and I are constantly in ahh since we didn't ski until our senior year of high school and college!  They are so fortunate!

We ended our 3 days on the slopes by skiing a Green all together!  Mariam made it down the mountain faster than me with only a couple of minor falls.  What a difference a couple of days makes!  Of course, this was a breeze for the boys and the perfect scenery for me.

After changing out of our ski gear, we walked across the street to a frozen Lake Sunepee.  Wildwood Smokehouse was just down the road, and we barely made it in for Jamil's birthday dinner (a quaint BBQ joint with no reservations and limited seating due to COVID).

It is a running joke in our family about how Jamil never owned a pair of Girbaud Jeans.  40 year olds, tell me you remember the Girbaud era!  Well, thanks to Ebay, our kids no longer have to hear his sad saga.  We just need a 90's party to bust these bad boys out in style!

Back at the cottage (Airbnb), we enjoyed banana walnut cupcakes (one of Jamil's favorites) and listened to Mariam play "Happy Birthday" on her guitar.  Somehow I only have a picture of Jamil with the guitar.

By accident, a tradition began back when Jamil and I were high school sweethearts.  With the help of friends and family, I gifted him a book of letters on his18th birthday.  It was such a treasured gift, that we did it again for his 30th and now for his 40th.  Thank you to everyone who has contributed to these books.  Your thoughtful words and memories on paper are the best gifts of all!  Happy 40th, Jamil!

We love you!