The Past Two Weeks in Pictures

These kids LOVE LOVE the photo albums that I bought for them. They sit and look at them at least once a day.  Cousin Kevin's pictures, which have been a special possession of Nathan's since we got them... almost a year ago?... made it into his album as well as a picture he drew himself.  The rest of both album are filled with duplicates from my Project Life album.

Nathan loves to play games with me after his quiet time and before Sarah wakes up.  For a while he's been on a big picture dominos kick.  We will play over and over and over for however long I can stand it... 20 or 30 or 40 minutes.  While we're playing, he keeps a running total of how many "wins" each of us has.  I told him that I wanted to take a picture of us playing for my scrapbook but he decided he wanted to video tape some games!!  I decided that this was one video just too dull to post, but I did grab a still frame for my scrapbook and to include here.  (Grandparents, you may be the ones interested enough to watch, but I want to save the novelty for all the games YOU'LL be playing with him on your next visit here or once we move.  Haha!)

Another one of his favorite games is called Hiss, in which he doesn't care too much if he wins or loses but he REALLY wants to be the one that ends up with the rainbow (wild) snake head and tail cards.

This is what the kids look like bundled up against the cold these days.  Sarah cracks me up when I can only see her eyes peering out from all her warm clothes, and since her hat tends to fall down over her eyes, sometimes she's completely covered from head to toe!

On the left is the kids having a typical morning snack for toast (with jam or cinnamon) and milk.  They love to get their (my) yoga mats out of their closet to sit on for snack time.  On the right is the kids at bedtime.  After reading stories we turn off the lights to sing and put the kids to bed.  More often then not, one or both kids will grab a book and sit in the doorway to read one more story while we're singing (the kids are back to going to sleep at the normal time so they haven't been reading my themselves in their rooms most night.)

At the children's musuem, Sarah especially is always eager to climb the giant structure, so I figured I needed a picture of the whole thing (well, as much as I could fit in the frame) to remember the ridiculousness.  You can see Sarah's face about 2/3 of the way up on the left hand side, and next to her is Nathan's rear as he continues his climb.  Also, the museum just opened a room that had been under renovation since we moved here, and the kids have been having lots of fun playing in the giant water tables and the giant blocks located in another part of the room.

I was talking to Brian the other night and he didn't realize that the kids and I go to the Children's Museum almost every week.  I told him that I estimate we've been 10 of the last 12 weeks!

Checking out books at the library.  Nathan was so pumped when we moved here that he got his own library card, but the fact that the kids can check out their own books is a source of constant excitement.  Nathan can do the whole thing by himself, while Sarah needs a little help to complete some of the steps - scanning the library card barcode to sign in, placing the books on the pad to check them out, and then signing out and choosing to have a receipt printed. 

On the left are the kids helping shovel out the car (which I talked about in the last post).  The picture on the right was last Thursday, which was so mild that I wore a sweatshirt with NO JACKET to the library (upper 30s or low 40s when we walked to the library).  The kids were excited to stomp on the snow for a few minutes before the library opened.  We had gotten to the library super early to make sure we got a spot in storytime, but unfortunately there was no storytime this week due to February vacation (some crazy Boston school vacation where some families go skiing and the rest descend on the Children's Museum where we got to see/hear them all on Wednesday).

Some of the kids' artwork.  The dry erase board had to be semi-permenately divided in half so each kid knew where they should be drawing.  Nathan's is on the left and Sarah's is on the right.  The other picture are some of Nathan's newest drawings in his notebook.   Both are his current version of stick people (eyes and nose in a straight line across the face, straight line for the mouth, then arms and body with no legs). 

On the left are the kids jumping in the snow (which I posted a video of lately) and on the right are the kids wearing the contents of a care package from Nana - Winterfest shirts and glow-in-the-dark glasses.  Pictures of Sarah crack me up sometimes - if she's wearing pigtails in the morning, one of them always falls out during nap, leaving her with only one pigtail the rest of the day. Only if we're going out in the evening do I (sometimes) re-do the missing pigtail.

Snow Fun Videos

One of my Boston friends wrote on her blog that we are in the "grit-your-teeth phase" of winter.  I feel like that pretty aptly describes how I feel right now, though if the snow would just melt and stay gone that would make life significantly easier.  But she says that here in Boston we have at least six more weeks of winter, so there goes my hopes that winter was close to over. 

However with the snow we have had some fun moments with the kids, so here are some videos from the different activities we've enjoyed over the past few weeks.

We went sledding again.  This time, unfortunately, Sarah was fussy from the moment we left the house.  It started because she needed to go potty and didn't want to go in her diaper (unfortunately we realized this halfway to the sledding area, so finally, I think, I convinced her that using her diaper would be ok).  However when we got to our sledding hill she continued her fussing.  I think she went on one or two runs, but after that was just laying down crying/whimpering/angry about life.  After a few runs down the hill myself I decided she and I should cut our losses and head home.  I couldn't carry her all the way home, so the times I made her walk she was crying like her feet were hurting, so I decided her feet were probably cold.  And when we got home and her feet were like ice cubes in her boots, I felt terrible but glad I decided to bring her on home.  I got her bundled up under a thick blanket on the couch, gave her a snack and milk (she was definitely hungry too) and then she nodded off to sleep.  Yep, we had hit the trifecta for an unhappy kid - cold, tired and hungry!  (We did order her some wool socks that she wore for the rest of the snow activities I'm documenting here, which definitely made a big difference.  She must have poor circulation in her extremities like me and Pawpaw and my Grammy.)

Nathan and Daddy, however, stayed for over an hour and had lots of fun sledding together.  Daddy took these videos during two sledding runs with Nathan, so if jerky camera motion makes you sick, just skip this video.


One morning, between blizzards, the kids and I headed down to the car to clear off the accumulated ice/snow before the next round was due to start that afternoon.  It actually didn't take me long to clear off the car, but the kids were having so much fun "helping" me "shovel out the car" that I just sat down and let them play for a while.  Here they are, hard at work.


And speaking of hard work, here is the video that Nathan asked me to take of him helping to shovel at church.


This past Thursday afternoon the temperature reached into the upper 40s, but with snow on the ground everywhere I wasn't sure where to take the kids to burn off some energy. I decided we should scooter down to town hall (right next to the library) which had a large, well-cleared paved area where I figured the kids could scooter around for a while.  They had also asked me to dress them in their snowpants, so I guess I shouldn't have been surprised that they spent the whole time climbing around and jumping in the snow.  

Shoveling and Snowmen

More. Snow. Today.

Will this winter ever end?  I am ready for life to be a bit easier with no snow on the ground!   There is rain in the forecast for tomorrow (Wednesday) and Friday AND the 10-day forecast has highs above freezing for almost all ten days.  That's when I've decided that I can rejoice - when the extended forecast shows us breaking the freezing point every day.

However today's snow (what I'm hoping will be the last of the winter... wishful thinking I'm sure my Bostonian friends will tell me) gave us a new experience... shoveling snow!!  We are on the church's snow-shoveling rotation for the next two weeks, so when Nathan told me this afternoon that his alligator wanted to go play in the snow, Daddy decided to join us and walk the family to church to fulfill our obligation.

The snow lining the roadway is as tall as Sarah!

Sarah and I spent a lot of the time playing in the snow in the church's back yard but Nathan worked HARD alongside Daddy for almost the whole time it took Brian to finish the shoveling.  Though his "help" may not have always been "helpful", he was really diligent in working alongside Brian.

Meanwhile Sarah and I took advantage of the perfect snowman-building snow on the ground.  Who knew it would take us all winter to get some built??

Sarah took her job of reinforcing the snowman very seriously.  Can you see that grimace on her face as she forces another handful of snow against the snowman?

Nathan came around back for a few minutes to check on what me and Sarah were up to, but then slogged his way back to the front again... since Daddy was still hard at work, he felt like he needed to be too.  Sarah and I ended up following him.  Sarah wanted to try her hand at helping too, but since she doesn't like to put her thumb in the thumb-hole of the mitten, has difficulty grasping anything in her hands.  Which meant that she would get frustrated trying to pick-up/hold/move the shovel, so after a little bit she gave up and we went around back to play some more.  (I did help shovel a minute amount, but my main task was keeping Sarah cheerful.)

Nathan just kept working!!  I told him later on in the evening (twice) how proud I was of how hard he worked tonight.  I think its so important to encourage a strong work ethic in our kids and from what I saw tonight, Nathan is on the right track.

When Brian and Nathan finally finished their work, they joined us in the back yard for some fun.  Though this picture deceptively looks like Nathan is building a second snowman, it was my snowman and 15 seconds after I took this picture Nathan had toppled it!

Of course, Brian enjoying a bite to eat as a reward for his hard work. 

By this point, it was getting too dark for my camera, which was running out of batteries anyways.  But we did have a small snowball fight before heading home.  It was me and the kids against Brian, though our reload time was extremely long as I was responsible for making the "ammo" for all three of us.  But then Nathan got the hang of it and started pelting Brian from the other side and landed a great shot right in Brian's neck, getting snow down his jacket. 

One more thing checked off our "to-do" list while in Boston (making snowmen, that is, not shoveling snow!).

Some Things We Did Last Week

I think I mentioned a few weeks ago that one thing I really want to do this year is be better about PRINTING a few of the hundreds and thousands of pictures I take every year.  Because the sad truth is that Nathan and Sarah see almost NONE of the pictures of our family that get posted to this blog.  But has all been changing in the past few weeks.  I hope to give a glimpse of how I'm doing my albums, but I thought in the mean time I'd share the pictures from last week that made it into the weekly spread.

Last Tuesday, I got the greatest present - our of the kids' favorite adults from church (J) offered to come over and hang out with the kids to give me some time by myself.  It was a huge success, the kids were SO excited for him to come over and play with them and I was thrilled to get a chance to do some important yet not urgent errands (not urgent errands are rarely getting done this year), as well as have lunch out by myself (probably the first time I've done that since Nathan was born.)

I had already bought my supplies for my Project Life album and started printing photos to go in it.  What I had not expected was for Nathan to start flipping through the album and asking for a copy of this picture and this picture and this picture...  I though that they would just enjoy looking at the album that I put together (which they are doing), but Nathan wanted his OWN pictures as well.  So, during my morning alone, I stopped by Michaels and picked up a photo album for both Nathan and Sarah.  They were ECSTATIC when I showed the albums to them later that day.  I also bought the kids both new church shoes since Nathan was complaining last Sunday about his shoes hurting (he ended up wearing only one sock to church to make more room for one of his feet).  At bedtime Nathan positioned his new possessions very precisely on a stool beside his bed.  It was pretty funny to watch.

The kids and I went out to play in the snow last Wednesday.  We had about four four inches of snow to play in that morning, out of about 9 total inches we got from that storm.  (Incidentally, almost all of those 9 inches are still on the ground waiting to be added to by the storm tomorrow.)   I realized there was a nice little alcove across the street that gave us just enough room to play for a bit without hiking down to the park. I made sure the kids were equipped with adequate eye protection, since neither of them like snow falling in their eyes.  Baseball caps + sunglasses/goggles = content kiddos. 

We got to see the snowplow go by multiple times and also watched a man use a snowblower to clear the sidewalk beside where we were playing.

Always, always, Nathan's favorite thing to do is eat snow.  He and Brian are two peas in a pod on this.  (Also love this shot with the goggles.)

Thursday morning we walked to the library.  I am continually thankful that we can easily walk to the library, because our stroller/wagon/scooters don't cut it when the sidewalks aren't clear.  And this day was especially nice since both kids were eager to pack their backpacks with books and lighten my load.

Craft time at the library.  Both kids always LOVE craft time and we are usually some of the last people out of the room after storytime. 

On the way home from the library we detoured into the snow next to city hall. 

Friday I decided we needed to take a field trip to the Boston Museum of Fine Arts.  (Look!  We actually went to a museum other then the Children's Museum!)

This was the kids' favorite exhibit - a room full of portraits.  I brought the kids' notebooks and markers so that we could create art while appreciating art.  Surprisingly, my plan was met with enthusiasm by both kids (for a while, at least).

Scooter Tricks

Nathan and Sarah wanted me to take some movies the other nights so I got some of their (Nathan's) scooter and trike tricks on video.  These scooters have been the greatest investment ever and winter's not even over yet.  I can't wait to see how much fun they'll have with them once the weather turns nice.  Enjoy!





In the second part of this last clip, Nathan's "new trick" is scooting with his eyes closed. As you'll hear I didn't notice that detail during his first run and with the decreased quality of the videos I upload I wasn't sure if anyone else would catch it either.

This and That (January)

Just get a load of Sarah's curls!!

Unfortunately right now they only last for a while after her hair gets washed, mostly I think due to the dry winter air.  I'm pretty sure I could help them out with some mousse, but I'll hold off for now.  Can't wait to see what her hair looks like as we get into spring and summer.  Love it!

The kids got dressed up "all fancy" early one Sunday, then decided they needed to do some repair work on their little kitchen (they're both holding hammers).  I tried to go in see what they were doing but they said that I needed to leave and that they needed to close the doors to "their house" so they could do some work.  Well, OK then!

Some of our favorite books from this month. A few of these are favorites from earlier in the year that the kids requested we check out again (Spiffiest Giant, Dora's Chilly Day, Interrupting Chicken, Jack and the Beanstalk).  I don't think I've posted pictures, but the "Henri, Egg Artiste" book inspired some egg painting about two weeks ago - I guess we're already practicing for Easter Eggs!

In every book we read, Nathan finds a page/picture that he decides is his favorite in the book.  So this particular day during quiet time Nathan turned all the books to their respective "favorite" picture and then left them arranged on our bed after quiet time was over. 

This is the dirndl that my parents bought when we I was little and we were living in Germany.  Its been hanging in Sarah's closet since she was born but I haven't noticed it months.  Thankfully Sarah spied it when she was looking for "something fancy" to wear.  That is Nathan and Sarah's way of playing dress up - putting on their fancy church clothes during the week.  I wanted to be sure and get a picture of her in it... maybe she'll wear it to church one day after the weather warms up a bit!

Messy Fun!

I recently told a mom friend how much fun kids can have if you can just let go and let them make a mess (thinking about the time Nathan made such a huge mess with the flour in NC, which was YEARS ago - back when Sarah was a few months old in her jumper). Well, I decided to take my own advice this week and let the kids play with the shredder scraps after helping with a big round of shredding.  It started out this big, grew much bigger, they added cars, then clothing became optional and by the end both were down to their undies.  First shirts started to come off because scraps of paper were going down their backs, then Nathan told me he was getting too hot and needed to take his jeans off too.  And, of course, Sarah followed her brother's example exactly, even coming up to me to tell me "Me too hot pants!"

The kids also got some good sweeping practice in - both in sweeping up piles of paper that were thrown in the air and then helping me clean up the mess.  Nathan is actually a pretty competent sweeper these days, though Sarah needs to work on her technique before she's actually helpful. 

Because this is just how I am, I decided to time us cleaning up the mess - seven minutes!  So I need to remember that an hour plus of fun making messes is totally worth the minimal amount of time it takes us to clean up.