We’ve been grateful for these good ole’ elementary school days with Theo (8) and Sasha (6) as we attempt to navigate the turbulent waves of our times. The kids have become tree skiers, snorkelers, and white water rafters! We celebrated my mom’s 70th birthday with a slightly-delayed Galapagos escapade, and despite the more-intense-than-predicted logistics (which were predicted to be intense), the kids proved to be adventurers. The highlight was snorkeling with sea lions in Punta Pitt.
This year we said goodbye to Great Grandma at 99. She leaves a legacy of love, warm hugs, watching her 9 great-grandkids swim in her pool, and always pulling up an extra seat to her table.
Cousins in the FlatironsKindergarten graduationDriving a zodiak in the GalapagosMayer Family in PVBuena Vista, COGarden of the Gods Great Grandma with 7 of 9 great grandkidsGreat Grandma’s Funeral, Nov. 2025
Theo published his first Op-Ed in the Westword today. He’s a 3rd grader in DPS and a supporter of universal school meals based on his first-hand student experience.
He drafted the op-ed in response to a recent article on the two state-wide ballot measures voters will decide on this election cycle to fund the universal school meals statewide.
The op-ed is especially timely given the recent delivery of election Blue Books to households across the Denver metro area.
Theo argues for the importance of school meals and the passage of these measures based on his experience as a DPS student and the evidence supporting universal school meal programs.
2023 was a year of transitions for the Miller-Mayers. Theo transitioned to first grade at a Spanish immersion elementary school in Denver Public Schools and Sasha grew into generally sleeping through the night. Both Dan and Erin started new jobs — Dan at Shopify and Erin at Community Catalyst, having spent 8 legislative sessions passing bills to improve health coverage and equity in Colorado, she is now working on health policy across states and at the federal level. Dan also transitioned from a broken to screw-filled to largely healed ankle bone (broken while bouldering at a local gym), a transition aided by his new Spa Serene 6 hot tub.
The kids transitioned to skiers, and Theo learned to ride a bike and surf, and Sasha learned to swim. The year also included several work trips for Erin and lots of family trips, including to Nebraska, Oklahoma, Mexico, and Hawaii.
We have been into climbing as a nice form of exercise. Theo has been climbing since he was a baby. He first visited this climbing gym at age 3. Now that Sasha is 3, we needed to get her to her first gym as well. It was fun to go as a family, and they have daycare available making it possible to climb with the kids for a while, then have them play with other kids while you get in a few climbs without distractions.
It was good to get them more experience at the climbing gym, as Theo could start youth group climbing classes in just a few months when he turns 6.
Theo climbing a few routes
Sasha, had fun at the gym, but quickly wanted to go to the daycare so she could play with the toys and other kids… She was happy and we were able to focus on ab it more climbing with Theo.
Sasha trying some routes
A great way to spend some time with the family and to get some exercise during the cold and snowy winter months in CO.
2022 started in quarantines and ended in continuous adventures – culminating with a 10-year anniversary couples trip to Puerto Vallarta and a 9-person family trip to Disney World.
Four days of child care between quarantines in January was enough for the whole family to get Omicron. Our post-quarantine 90-day pass allowed us to take the kids to the Children’s Museum and dine inside the first restaurant of Sasha’s memory. With eventual vaccine access for the littles, the adventures continued through the fall with two trips to Oklahoma City, and family trips to Billings, MT, Colorado Springs, Crestone, and Grand Junction. The kids are becoming swimmers and gymnasts. This year, we learned that they love raw oysters — they’ll each eat two dozen in a sitting — vacations, and amusement park rides – especially roller coasters.
We finally got our little family out skiing. We tried two years ago for our first ski trip, and our car broke down on the way to the mountains… After that disaster, we finally built up the courage to try again.
Our kid’s first time on skis.
We go on Christmas eve day to Loveland, a family tradition before kids. We had to bring two duffle bags of gear to have all that was needed, along with backups for any issues that might come up. For a family of 4 renting everything and getting two passes along with a small shared lunch, it costs about $300 for a single day… Which is pretty expensive but much less than the bigger resorts.
The kids going through the lift line and getting sized for rentals
Getting the kids through the lift pass (free for kids 5 and under) line and fitted for rentals was a breeze. Loveland is really well set up for beginner kids, with folks helping size boots, helmets, and goggles, sweetly telling our kids how great they are doing.
Theo made amazing progress on his first day
It was amazing to see how Theo took to it, with no complaints and learning so quickly. He sometimes carried his skis up the bunny slope so I could carry Sasha. He went from his first time standing in the skis to being able to do “pizza pie” stops, riding the “Magic Carpet” lift, and even finishing off the day with two real lift rides.
Sasha also had fun and was excited to join the adventure
Sasha also did amazingly well for a 3-year-old. She did three bunny slope runs before wanting a warmup and snack break. She got comfortable with all the gear and asked to go “again and again.” She got pretty good at skiing down but couldn’t yet master the “pizza pie” stop.
Theo keeps going and going
Theo kept going, and I was looking for a break to get some water while he still wanted to ski more. He finally admitted he might need a break as he was “running low on air.”
After all four of us had a break (in shifts so we could sneak in a few bigger runs), we got everyone out for round two, and Sasha did three more runs, including going up the “Magic Carpet” lift once… They did pretty great for a cold day, with snow and a first time on skis.
Sasha skiing to Erin
I also need to mention the help of having grandpa who would watch kiddos when they needed a break for a bit in the lodge. Erin and I both managed to sneak in a few non-bunny slopes runs. I am not sure we could have pulled that off without another adult.
Overall it was a super exhausting day, and carrying both kids and gear up a hill while on skis is far more exhausting than just going skiing oneself. Still, it seemed like a success and went well enough we will probably rent a cabin for a long weekend sometime. Feel free to check out the full ski gallery if you like.
As we had kids, I set up mounts in the ceiling to attach a variety of swings… Over the years, they have served us very well. Both our 3-year-old and 5-year-old still enjoy a variety of attachments. We even have hanging chairs for adults when we end up playing games or watching movies in the basement.
Indoor Ceiling Swing Hangers Unlock Many Options
The most popular attachments change over the years, with the original baby swing and traditional swing long original favorites… These days the rope swing and trying to jump from and land on various targets seems most popular. It is the most popular obstacle in games of “the floor is lava.”
our kids have enjoyed a variety of swing attachments.
If you have a suitable playroom for something like this… You need a few things to make this work. I am not giving detailed instructions as I am not a contractor, etc… You can find great youtube videos and instructions to ensure you have the mounts in studs in the ceiling. All of my mounts I test with around 150 lbs ensuring when a swing is attached to two mounts, it should be able to handle crazy kids or most adults.
Stud finder, drill, and suitable studs that can take the load.
Adventures of the Miller Mayers 