Monday's Mommy Moment: Snow Swinging

After our fifth winter storm this year, our yard and sidewalks looks like this:

The back of our house .

Our narrow pathway up to the garage.

I desperately wanted to take Little Lewie outside to play in the snow, but what could we do?  The snow was too high for sledding, snowmen, or snow angels.  The walkways were too icy for running or playing with his ride-on toys.  Yes, I ran out of ideas, but my little boy didn't...





"Look at me Mommy!"

"I LOVE swinging in the snow!"

Little Lewie grabbed my hand and pulled me to the swings.   I had to help him walk through the snow first of course, and it wasn't very easy for me either.  Technically, with the snow's height, Little Lewie should have disappeared all together and the snow, for me, should have come up to my waist.  Instead, I was amazed to learn that neither one of us actually sunk to the bottom.  Instead, we sunk in the snow equally--and that is, to our upper thighs.

Once we finally got to the swing set, I brushed the snow off his seat with my lovely dishtowel (that's in the first two pictures), and then, for the first time ever, Little Lewie walked up to the swing, turned around, and sat down.  Normally the swing is about 3 feet above the ground, but now it was only a few inches from the snow floor.  It was an interesting experience, but even with just an inch between the bottom of his feet and the snow, Lewie was still able to swing.  Sure I had to stand thigh high deep in snow as I pushed him, but it was worth it to see that happy ear-to-ear grin light up his face.

Yes, if it were up to boring and 'practical' mom over here, we probably would have stayed in the house another day.  Thank goodness for Little Lewie's ability to 'think outside the box'.

Thanksgiving Thursday

Now I am convinced that we are living in a Snowpocalypse.  We had about 30+ inches of snow outside, and last night we received about 20+ inches more.  Our college has closed or been delayed at least four times since we came back from the holiday break and even on several Saturdays, we've been snowed in.

Our three foot fence in the front yard.

One large icicle on our house.

The largest icicle on our house--probably about seven feet long.

Lewie's little playhouse.

Lewie's playscape.

During past winters I used to complain that we didn't get enough snow or when we did get snow, the sun would melt it all the very next day.  This year is quite the exception, and yet, I'm still disappoined.  This time I'm disappointed because we have too much snow instead of having too little.  The snow is literally taller than my little man, and the icicles on the house have become large, gargantuan daggers to avoid like the plague.  (Being at the wrong place at the wrong time could result in a massive blow to the head if one of those huge, frozen ice chunks ever decided to let go.)

Still, in spite of my disappointment that we don't exactly have sledding conditions, I'm still unbelievably thankful.  This post is being modeled off of the very inspirational Mama Hen and Her Thanksgiving Thursday posts, which are so uplifting.

This week, I'm thankful for...

1) My family, friends, and blog friends.

2) My comfy, warm home.

3) A job/career that allows me to earn extra money for my family.

4) Days off with my little guy.

5) Our safety and security.

Today I'm focusing on being appreciate of our safety and security.  The weather has been scary these last few weeks with howling winds, below zero temperatures, icy conditions, slippery roadways, and heavy, heavy snow.  Everyday, I need to count my lucky stars that everyone in this house is safe.  With these conditions, it's way too easy to get frostbite, slip and fall, slide off the road, get into an accident, or even just have one's roof give way, causing much damage and destruction to the house.  We already have some water stains on the ceiling from problems with our drainage and all the icicles, but these stains are nothing considering the fact that our house has protected us from below negative windchills and 30+ inches of snow.

Today, I'm honestly going to look at my budget once more.  If I have extra money to give, and I know I can find it, I plan on mailing a check to our local soup kitchen, which turns into a homeless shelter during these weather conditions.  I've seen the faces who come here--men, women, and children.  There's something to be said for the gift of warmth...

Top Ten Tuesday: Ten Reasons Why Raising a Two Year Old Can Be Harder

I adored raising Little Lewie as a baby--the cooing, the babbling, the cuddling, the snuggling, and heck, even the gas bubbles that made him smile.  All of it was precious, and yet, it was difficult--really difficult.  If it wasn't the challenge of continually breastfeeding and pumping, then it was the pure exhaustion of sleepless nights, the havoc of watching your house grow dirtier by the minute and not being able to do anything about it, or the simple desire to have just one hour (that's right...just one) to be able to shower and make yourself feel pretty (or at least clean) once again.


So, this post isn't to trivialize being a mother to a newborn.  Oh no.  I still think mothers deserve an award once they've completed that first year--you know, a Nobel Peace Prize or something.  All I do know is oh how I used to fantasize what it would be like to have a toddler.  I pictured long afternoons in the park, conversations at the table drinking hot chocolate, baking and making arts and crafts...And who knows?  Perhaps those days are still coming...but they're not here....YET.

Yes, for me, age two has its own challenges.  Oh, my back might not be sore from being hunched over from breastfeeding anymore, but trust me...it's still sore for other reasons, such as lifting an almost 40 lb. child in and out of his car seat.  You see, I thought being a mom would become miraculously easier once our little ones turned two, but instead, I learned that there are new struggles to face in this uncharted territory.  Here are ten of them...


10.  They are stronger, faster and heavier.  (Yes, to complete my thought from the paragraph above, my little boy is all of these.  When I'm struggling to put my almost 40 lb. child in his car seat, I'm not only struggling because of the weight...I'm struggling because he is now using all of his 40 lb. strength in his arms and legs to resist my hold and keep me from buckling him in.  Of course, that's already after my ten minute sprint where I'm chasing him to get in the car first.


 9.  They are picky eaters.  (My little guy loved his peas and carrots as a baby.  In fact, there were very few foods that he wouldn't eat.  Now let's fast forward a year where my little guy knows how to open the refrigerator, pick out  treats, and verbalize what he wants.  Every day, without fail, he's in the cabinets looking for either cookies or toast.  If he can't find either, and mommy doesn't let him have either, I have a mini temper tantrum on my hands.


8.  Potty training.  (I still haven't entered this phase yet, but I've heard some difficult stories from other moms.  You know the accidents out in public, the accidents in bed, the public restroom challenge, the camping out in the bathroom, etc. etc.  Yes, I foresee a lot of days spent by the toilet in my near future, and they won't be from going out with my girlfriends the night before.) 


7.  They have more stuff.  (The amount of toys in my house has close to tripled in the past year.  Oh, I thought life was going to be better once we got rid of the Exersaucer and the Jumperoo.  Instead, we found large cars, trucks, bicycles, ATVs, (and pretty soon a train set) to replace these items.  Plus, we seem to have thousands of smaller items--blocks, people, Lego's, matchbox cars, crayons, balls, etc. that always seem to find my bare feet during midnight bathroom visits.)


6.  Nightmares.  (Every few weeks, the teachers at our daycare place an article in our box that they find interesting.  The last article spoke about nightmares and how toddlers not only have them but often find it difficult to distinguish between them and reality. Great!  So, now when my child wakes up screaming bloody murder and refuses to let me touch him, I now know that my little boy thinks I'm a monster in real life.)


5.  Language Acquisition.  (Oh how I longed for the days when my little boy could finally say the word "Mama" or "Mommy."  It seemed to take forever, and now, "Mommy" is used all the time in varying contexts---"Mommy, Mommy, Mommy!" as in it's two a.m. and I need you because I just had a nightmare, or "Mommy!" as in I want you to give me the Binky "NOW!!!!!"  Oh, but my little darling knows how to say other words.  He's very good at yelling "no," "mine," and "cookie."  You see, I thought all of these words would be cute until I started hearing them one hundred times a day.)


4.  Tantrums.  (This was going to be the first item on my list, but I didn't want to be too predictable.  Yes, depending on the day, we could have just one tantrum or twenty tantrums in varying degrees.  Just a few days ago, I learned what a two year old tantrum sounds like in public when it's combined with hunger and exhaustion.  Since I'm still trying to erase this memory from my mind, I'll let you picture it on your own.)


3.  Your perceived independence.  (This is a much larger hurdle than I originally imagined.  You see, now that my toddler is able to get around more and seems to have learned "right" from "wrong", I start to feel more confident about leaving him alone for a minute or two here or there so that I can do laundry, wash the dishes, etc. etc.  I place this as a challenge because the temptation is there to leave my little boy to his own devices while I straighten up the house; however, it only takes a second for him to find a bead and stick it up his nostril, take the milk out of the refridgerator and spill it, or grab a marker and color the kitchen table...so in reality this perceived independence is just plain torture.)


2.  Your child's perceived independence.  My little guy can turn into another child at the flip of a switch.  He's sassy, and oh, how he likes to test.  Somewhere between the walking and the language acquisition, my little guy has decided that he knows what's best, and he's constantly pushing the envelope.  If he doesn't insist on feeding himself, then he insists on walking in a parking lot full of cars without my hand or he insists on going outside without mittens. Oh joy!)


1.   They are growing up.  (Yes, this is probably the hardest reality for me to wrap my head around.  My little boy is growing up and so the nursing, the bottle feeding, the cuddling in my lap, the reliance on my hand to help keep his balance.  All of that is gone or else fleeting.  I've now entered the stage that everyone forewarned me about...the stage where you look at the baby clothes and wonder where the time went.  Unfortunately, this reality will not be going away any time soon.)


So, in conclusion, having a two year old brings many new challenges...new challenges that I thought I could somehow bypass.  (Not a chance!)   It's certainly a transition, but I'm up for the task...

Friday Fun Flick: An Unexpected Winter Adventure

Yesterday I had the grand idea of taking Little Lewie to our park to play in the snow.  I had daydreams of us romping in the snow, throwing snowballs, making snow angels, and then playing in the parking lot with little Lewie's new toy--his one mile per hour ATV. 

The excursion sounded innocent enough, but it actually turned out nothing like expected.  First, Little Lewie outright refused to put on gloves or mittens.  Without his cooperation, I knew our frolicking in the snow would be limited...even more, I knew our outside time would be limited, too.

First we attempted to ride his ATV around the parking lot...

However, since the parking lot was not cleared well, his little vehicle kept getting stuck in the snow, and then of course, without gloves, Little Lewie's hands were too cold...

Then we attempted to romp in the snow...To my disappointment, none of our snow anywhere is light and fluffy.  Instead, it's coated with a hard, outer shell of ice.  Even at 40 lbs., Little Lewie's weight could not help him break through this shell.  I couldn't believe it!  My little guy was walking completely on the top surface of about 18 inches of snow.  Just when I pulled out my camera to record the event, Little Lewie slipped on the snow/ice, which made me realize that yes, even trying to walk in the snow (or on the snow) was not a good idea.

So are there any good parts of this adventure, you might ask?  The best part, unexpected to me, was the end... We needed to warm his poor little hands and nose up, so I had him climb in the front car seat with me so we could both warm up with the heat on us full blast.  He took the opportunity to sneak his little behind in the driver's seat so he could play with my lights, windshield wipers, horn, and most exciting of all, radio.  Yes, he didn't have fun outside, but he sure enjoyed warming up in the car...I suppose it doesn't matter where the fun comes from just as long as we're having fun...

Lewie's Pal

Little Lewie received lots of wonderful gifts this Christmas...dancing trucks; a realistic sounding drill gun; an ATV he can ride (though it goes like one mile per hour--thank goodness!); an entrance way with a door, doorbell and light switch that really work; and even his own personal laptop (that would even connect to his own email address--like I'm going to create an email for a two year old...um...no.)

Anyways, these toys are not Little Lewie's favorite...they don't even come close.  Little Lewie's favorite toy in the whole wide world is Mr. Mouse.  Who is Mr. Mouse you ask?  Well, let me introduce you...

Mr. Mouse is shy, playful, funny, and oh yeah, he's also a handmade puppet.  He wasn't a Christmas present...in fact, he wasn't a present at all.  He was my toy from the 70's that made its way down from the attic and into my mom's living room.  One day she introduced Mr. Mouse to Little Lewie, and they've been best pals ever since.

You see, Mr. Mouse will play hide-and-go-seek, he'll chase Little Lewie around the house, he'll encourage Little Lewie to finish his dinner, he'll help Little Lewie clean up, and he'll even take a nap when Little Lewie is tired.  If Mr. Mouse doesn't show up in the morning or afternoon, you better believe we'll hear about it.  "Mouse, Mouse," Lewie will say again and again.  Then, he will physically drag me to Mr. Mouse or, better yet, bring Mr. Mouse right to me.  If he's on my mom's side of the house, then he'll insist that we go there to retrieve him.

Yes, Mr. Mouse, which wasn't my favorite toy when I was little, has become Little Lewie's favorite treasure of all time.  Who knew a little boy and a little mouse could become best friends?

Monday's Mommy Moment: More than Just Dinner

I remember cooking dinners just for my husband and me.  Life was easy then.  I only had to appease two different pallets, and I could almost always guarantee that everything would be enjoyed and eaten--leftovers too.  Now, to say that dinnertime with our two year-old is different in an understatement.  It's turned from a time of good food and conversation to a circus three-ring act.  You see, my little boy has turned from this extraordinary eater to this picky, semi-obnoxious dinner companion.  (You know the kind of person in restaurants that keeps sending their food back.)

Every once in a blue moon, (Have you ever seen a blue moon?  Yeah, me neither.) my little boy will actually eat everything quietly on his plate.  However, for the most part, dinnertime for us has become a circus side show, full of entertainment and surprise.  Usually I can usually expect one of two different demeanors.

Playtime. Yes, this is when my little boy decides it's more fun to play with his food than eat it.  In this mood, he's been know to...

• Dump all his chocolate milk onto his tray and pretend like he's finger painting.
• Notice that his "rubber type" spoon has a little spring action to it, and use it to make flying catapults of carrots, mashed potatoes, and anything else.
• Create his own recipes by mixing say--salmon, yogurt, milk, and rice together.
• Start drumming on his tray to see what he can knock off his plate.

The Revolt.  In this mood, my little boy suddenly thinks he's the royal prince, and I am his lowly servant.  He decides what he's going to eat, how much, and when he prefers his dessert.  In this mood, he's been known to...

• Push all his food away, threatening to send it hurling right off his tray.
• Spit food out, or worse--scrape the food off his tongue with his hands because he finds it just that revolting.
• Yell "NO", and then demand his two favorite foods--"cookies" and "toast".  
• Forcefully keep his mouth sealed shut so that we can't try and feed him.
• Place his arm in front of his mouth to create an extra barrier of making sure the food can't get in.
• Close his eyes and pretend like he's sleeping so that we can't feed him.

Yes, my little boy has really turned into that unsatisfied customer that's never happy with his food.  Even when I think I have made a food that he likes, he'll pick it up, survey it, and flat out reject it.  My only hope is that over time, he'll learn to enjoy eating more foods and dinnertime can be about good food and conversation once more... 

Favorite Words

My little boy is taking a little longer to speak.  It's not that he's afraid of speaking; it's just that he has his own language full of "um gees" and "a diba daba duh" that feels comfortable, perhaps even natural, to him.  Yes, my little boy loves to talk, and when he's using his own made-up sounds, he becomes excited, animated, and dramatic.  Sometimes he even uses his hands for extra emphasis.

In the past few months, however, his speech has been changing.  At times I'll still catch him using his own chatter, but lately he's been experimenting with "real" words and combinations of "real" words.  While his vocabulary seems to get bigger every week, he still holds onto his "favorite words," and now, everyday, he uses his favorite words constantly--meaning they are repeated 50 times per hour times twelve hours in a day.  (Yes, I'm not exaggerating; some of these words will be spoken  600 times per day.)  So...instead of listening to "a diba daba duh," I'll be hearing my little guy repeat "poopy," "poopy," "poopy" (insert fart noise--yes, he knows how to do this) "poopy" all day long.

So what are these favorite words, you might ask.  Well, seeing that I've already shared one of them, I'll list a few more...strictly for informational purposes only.  Oh, who am I kidding?  I'm listing them because they make me laugh, and I'm dying to know if your toddler keeps repeating the same babble all day long too.

Here are some favorite words or phrases:

Family Names:

• Mommy
• Daddy 
• Ninny (my husband's mom)
• Papa (my husband's dad)
• Ma (my mom)
• Re Re and Ki Ki (my mom's two sisters)
• Baby (how he refers to himself)

 Phrases:

• "Mommy home," "Daddy home," 'Baby home," "Re Re home"--yes, he's obsessed with the word home, and I suppose, the concept of everyone being at home.
• "Hi Re Re, Okay, Good, Bye Re Re,"--yes, a dialog he likes to use when he's pretending he's on the phone or even when he doesn't have a phone in his hand.  For some reason, "Re Re" and "Ki Ki" are his favorites, probably because my mom is always talking to her two sisters on the phone.
• "Mommy, fi fi, night-night"--translation: "Mom, I'm just reminding you that you told me my "binky" or "fi fi" is only used for going "night night."
• "Mommy, outside...Mommy shoes...Mommy coat...Mommy shoes...Mommy coat"--yes, this is when my little boy is hinting ever so subtly that he wants to go outside.  If his wish isn't granted, then I can hear "Mommy shoes" all day long.

Other favorite words:

• Phone
• Uh oh!
• Oh no!
• Oh man!
• Cool!
• Bath
• Car
• Cookie/toast

I'm sure I'm missing other words that are now part of my little boy's repertoire, but for now, I've captured the main ones that keep life interesting day after day, hour after hour, and minute by minute.  As his vocabulary grows, I know my little guy will have tons of stories to tell me, but for now, his enjoyment comes from telling me that everyone's home, binkys are for night-night, and that farting noises equal, you guessed it, poopy.

Misunderstandings

My life with a two year old is full of misunderstandings.  For example, this video clip is a short blurb of my little boy getting upset with me because I put his favorite blanket in the wash.

Now he's seen me take clothes out of the wash and put them in the dryer hundreds of times, but he still doesn't have the ability to rationalize that his blanket will also go through the wash, go into the dryer, and come out clean and soft.  Oh, I try to explain to him that his blanket is "dirty" and needs to get "clean," but he still begs me, pleads with me, and then finally screams at me because he thinks I took his blanket away...in his eyes...perhaps forever.

Yes, examples of other misunderstandings include

• when I take food away from my little guy because its hot.
• when I take his binky away from him because it's only for "night-night."
• when I take a wrapped present away from him because it's not his.
• when I force gloves onto his hands when we go outside to play in the snow.
• when I take fruit away from him at the grocerystore because we're supposed to buy it and wash it first.
• when I make him take his "yucky" vitamins.

Everyday I can predict that we will go through at least six or seven of these types of misunderstandings.  Oh, I will do my best to try to explain why I make certain choices or decisions, but since my little guy still lacks real life experience or worldly understanding, my rationalizations often go over his head and spark temper tantrums of varying degrees.

I love this age and all the new challenges that come with it, but it's still difficult to be viewed as a "meanie" in the eyes of your child.  I'll admit that sometimes I'll give my little guy his dirty blanket back (and place it in the wash when he's not looking), or I'll sneak those yucky tasting vitamins into his food.  Other times, I'll just proceed with my decision, knowing that one day he'll start to understand my reasoning.  Whichever decision I make, at least I know, from the bottom of my heart, it was made with love.

Monday's Mommy Moment: Playing Store

At age two, my little boy is the one who calls the shots.  For the most part, he determines what he's interested in playing and how long we're playing it.  Oh, I'll try to pick out fun crafts for us to do, books for us to read, puzzles for us to complete, or construction projects (i.e. blocks) to build, but he lets me know right away whether it's on his agenda and if he has the patience to do it.  I could have a whole afternoon activity planned out, and within the first minute, he'll let me know whether it's actually going to happen.

With that said, I was pleasantly surprised when Friday morning, my little boy actually did like an activity I planned.  My mom bought him a cute pretend cash register, so we set it up on his little table to play store.  I decided to walk through the kitchen and pretend to select a variety of items on my "shopping list," and then I brought them to his little table for check out. 

At first he wasn't sure what to do, but when I handed him each item and then put out my plastic shopping bag so he could drop each item into the bag, he caught on.  It was fun.  He "scanned" most items and then took my paper money at the end to put in his register.  Once the transaction was complete, I shook his hand and said, "Thank you, Sir.  Have a nice day!"

For once, I captured my little guy's attention for a whole hour.  He didn't rush to play with his cars, run to look at what's in the refrigerator, grab his shoes to go outside, or take a temper tantrum looking for his binky.  Nope.  Instead, he got lost in the world of imagination, and he had fun assisting and "checking out" his customer over and over again.  Toward the end, he enjoyed shaking my hand so much, that he skipped scanning the items and working the register altogether.  (Hmmmm, I wonder if I have a mini politician on my hands...)

"Why thank you kind sir.  You're so helpful," I said to Little Lewie shaking his hand one last time.

"Thanks Mommy," he responded, extending his hand and giggling one last time.  (Wish I could have captured that one on film...)

Thanksgiving Thursday

This year I'm going to do my best to stick to my New Year's resolutions, recognizing that at times I may fall off the wagon and need to start over again.  One resolution is to write in my gratitude journal and to remind myself of all the blessings I have in life.  Since Mama's Little Chick does this every week for her Thanksgiving Thursday posts, I'm going to follow her example and express my gratitude on Thursdays too.

This week, I'm thankful for...

1) My family, friends, and blog friends.

2) My comfy, warm home.

3) A job/career that allows me to earn extra money for my family.

4)  Days off with my little guy.

5)  Guilty pleasures. 

If I may, I'd like to explain my last blessing.  You see...we are all hard working mamas.  Whether we stay-at-home, work full-time, or work part-time, we all have jobs that keep us overwhelmingly busy throughout the day without much time for us. 

If I'm working, a typical day for me would be to get my little boy's lunch ready, pack his diaper bag, make sure he eats breakfast, and head out to direct our school of evening and graduate programs (at a college I worked for before I had my baby boy).  At work, I'm answer emails, deal with student complaints and issues, meet with different college administrators, and in short, think of the best methods possible to increase our customer service, make our students happy, and recruit new students.  Since I have been offered my old full-time job back with part-time hours, I need to accomplish as much as possible while I'm on campus because anything that remains will need to be done from home.  Whew!  When I return home from work, it's time to think about dinner, bath time for my little boy, basic chores, and clean-up.  If my husband's home, he will help me quite a bit, but if it's his late night at work or teaching, I'm the "on-call" person.

If I'm at home with my little boy, my day starts with waking up early to blog and answer emails from work.  My little boy and I have breakfast together and then we're out to either do errands, go to the park, or to go on a play date.  (If we don't leave the house, then I'm usually trying to think of some entertaining activities or crafts we can do, while multi-tasking laundry and cleaning at the same time.)  Since my days at home are limited, I usually try to cram in as much "mommy and me time" as possible while still trying to "stay-up" on housework, groceries, laundry, etc.  Nighttime usually has the same routine except that I'm trying to answer more work emails that were sent to me throughout the day.

My days, although a little different from some moms, still have the same components--family, housework, laundry, chores, errands, bills, etc.  So, if I can reward myself with a piece of chocolate once or twice a day, sneak in a favorite TV show in between Little Bill and Blues Clues, or fit in an hour or so of blog time, then I'm happy.  Then I feel rewarded.  These are my guilty pleasures that I'm thankful for.  Oh sometimes I wish they were larger guilty pleasures...you know--having a day out at the spa, meeting up for a girls' night with an old friend, eating out at a lavish restaurant--but when these larger, guilty pleasures are not readily available, I'll be happy to settle for a Kit-Kat bar and an episode of Desperate Housewives to end the day right.

Spending Time with Little Guy

Okay, I've put yesterday up on a pedestal for quite some time now.  In fact, I've been fantasizing about the day since last semester...

Last semester I found myself getting into the "we need more money" rut.  Our bills were tight, and we had a couple of large (both planned and unplanned) expenses over the summer that sunk us financially.  Taking on additional work seemed to be the answer, but suddenly the few extra hours turned sadly into a few extra days per week.  In the end, I would have my weekends with Little Lewie and Thursdays with him, but even on those days, I had to make time for correcting papers, which meant my husband or my mom would have to take over. 

Yesterday was just a plain, ordinary Tuesday (not a holiday or a vacation day), but it was MY Tuesday.  It was my first Tuesday since last semester (17 weeks ago) that I could finally be at home with my little guy again...just me and him and no one else.  This semester I accepted a new position, which will allow me to be home with my little one on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and the weekends again.  (Yes, I will still have to work a little from home and answer emails on those days, but still, it will be such an improvement from last semester.) 

Yesterday was really the start of this new schedule, and I just couldn't be more thrilled.  Being able to watch my little one learn and grow is when I'm at my happiest, and yesterday, I was one happy mama.  Now...if I could just fast forward over this day to Thursday when I'm at home with him again...

Yesterday, I even enjoyed watching my little guy sleep!

Monday's Mommy Moment: Everyone Loves the First Snow

Last Sunday, we had the first real snowfall of the season.  It came in the form of a mini blizzard, with snow difts of 20 inches or more and lost power for many homes.  My husband, Little Lewie, and I, being sick and incapable of doing anything else, watched the snow swirl around outside from our windows. It was a little scary, but still, it was beautiful.

There's something magical about the first snow of the year.  It takes away the dark, naked, barren landscape and makes everything bright, sparkly, and pure.  As we stayed inside to recover from our flu/stomach virus(and Little Lewie to recover from his nasty cold), our little boy stood by the door complaining.  "Outside, outside," he'd moan, grabbing our hands and leading us to the door.  Evidently, he remembered playing in the snow last year, and he was determined to make it happen again this year.

At other times, he'd grab his shoes and put them in our hands.  "Outside," he'd mandate, while trying to make me slip the shoe on his foot.  I loved his persistence.  Since Daddy was the first of us to get sick (and spread it to me), he was the first to feel better, and so he took Little Lewie to the park several days in a row where they hiked and tromped through snow, threw snowballs, and and ran around chasing each other.

Finally this Saturday, almost a full week later, I had a chance to join them.  It was close to 50 degrees out, and even though a lot of snow had melted, our little boy still enjoyed stomping, kicking, and playing in the slush.  We didn't get a chance to go sledding yet, but it's on our agenda for the next snowstorm, which I'm sure will be equally beautiful.  (They always are up until March when I'm ready for the tulips and daffodils to come out.)