Preston and I met when we were kids on the ski hill in Alta, Utah. Our families met up to ski together each year, and we got to know each other.  After college, we reconnected and eventually got married.  We still love to ski together.  We have four great kids.  Thompson, our oldest, will be a freshman at Dana Hills High School this fall.  He loves tackle football and plans to play on Dana’s freshmen team.  During Covid, Thompson spent a lot of time mountain biking.  He has mastered the wheelie.  You may see him riding on his back tire down Abalone Dr.  He also surfed on the Niguel Hills surf team this year and has recently started spearfishing.  He is a fantastic snow skier and has finally landed a backflip on skis. Thompson loves to play, but he also holds down a year-round gardening job. Thompson is a great brother and spends countless hours teaching Finn all sorts of tricks that most 6-year-olds shouldn’t be doing (biking off ramps, back flips, etc.).

 

Coco is 12 and will be in 7th grade at Niguel Hills Middle School this fall.  Coco loves to have a good time and always wants to be where the party is. Coco has a big heart and makes friends with anyone. Coco loves music and knows the lyrics to every song that comes on the radio. She just started playing the guitar and loves to play for anyone that will listen. Coco is a great snow skier and loves to slalom ski in the summer. She has been swimming for Dolphin aquatics for three years now and is quite the swimmer.  She loves the ocean and is usually first to the water. Coco is always looking out for Nellie, her younger sister, and always puts her on the back of her bike.  

 

Nellie is 10 and will be in 5th grade in the fall at John Malcom Elementary. Nellie was born with spina bifida and makes the most out of life. She doesn’t let her disability stop her from doing anything.  One of Nellie’s best qualities is her strong determination.  She never gives up and will always try anything, even when it’s difficult for her.  Nellie is a talented artist and loves to draw.  She has beautiful penmanship.  Nellie also swims for Dolphin aquatics and has enjoyed doing that with her sister and cousins.  She recently competed in her first swim meet and raced against Coco.  Nellie loves the water and has been a great little swimmer since she was 2.  She wrote a paper in 2nd grade and wished the whole world could be water.   She has taken up surfing at Doheny and surfs on her knees or stomach.  Nellie is tough in the water and doesn’t mind getting in the bigger waves. She also participates in wheelchair tennis, which she may love most of all.  

 

Finn (6) is the baby of the family.  He does a great job keeping up with all of his older siblings and has learned a lot of things at his young age.  Finn loves to run down to the community pool and put on his snorkel mask to dive for toys in the pool.  He sets up ramps in the driveway and spends hours riding off them.  He plays little league baseball and basketball and wants to start on flag football in the fall. He loves to mountain bike, surf, and snorkel.   He also works on his fort in the backyard often. Finn collects plastic bottles weekly from the neighbors to recycle and turns them in to make money (Thanks, Wayne). Once he gets a paycheck, he heads right over to the Hive to buy himself a popsicle.

 

 A few things our family loves to do together … Catch the sunset on e-bikes down at the bluff. We all snorkel regularly at Treasure Island in Laguna Beach.  We take a trip each winter to snow ski at Alta Ski resort.  During the summer, we head back east for a few weeks to a lake in New Hampshire, where Preston grew up spending his summers.   There we get up early each morning for waterskiing while the water is smooth; we also enjoy wake surfing, tubing, and fishing there.  Our family is also very involved in our church community, both on Sundays and Tuesdays, with the youth group.  Preston and I help to plan and carry both service opportunities for the youth at our church and fun activities that help them to get to know each other.  This summer, part of our family will be going to Tijuana to help build homes for families with our church youth group.