First Snow

So just last weekend I was enjoying almost 60 degrees, and now, here we are amidst a little storm that brought us almost 5 inches of white stuff. I get sort of grumpy when it snows. Yes, I appreciate the beauty and wonder of it all, and really, we have such a fantastic view out our back windows--but this all comes with the knowledge that we are in this for the long haul. It very well could still snow in April (or May, so I've heard, but I refuse to believe that). I want flip flops in April. I don't like bundling children only to unbundle them minutes later, don't like the in and out of the car seats/car in all the gear, the slippery roads, the slippery sidewalks, and the huge MESS that melting/dirty snow and ice bring into the garage and house. There. I said it. Consider that my formal complaint for this winter! Carry on.
Matt had to be at work by 6 a.m., and though I offered my 4WD car, he insisted he drive his old faithful. Since no emergency service contacted me, I assumed he made it to work alive. I intended to take the girls to church as per usual, but my gut told me not to risk it. That first snow is always a bit tricky to drive in, and it takes a few times to get re-acclimated to navigating the elements. So, the girls and I were "stuck" at home for a whole day without a plan. There were two problems there, for a type A control freak like me: 1. at home all day, and 2. NO PLAN. Ahhhh! So what did we do? Well, we made pancakes of course. That started us off on the right foot, and then Jillian spent about 2 hours coloring with some "new" colored pencils I forgot we had. The girls were happy to play upstairs while I went through Adrienne's closet/drawers and pulled out small clothing, and added her new current size: 24 months! Oh, my baby is in the last size of onesies now, which really does make me tear up. I love those darn onesies. At that point, I could avoid the inevitable no longer--we had to go outside and play in the snow. Oh the bundling, the searching for hats/mittens,etc that I thought I had already dug out/washed/put in place. About an hour later we were ready!

Can you sense the anticipation??? Adrienne had no idea what she was about to experience

We headed outside and Jillian promptly went into 'wild child' mode--she was everywhere...rolling down the hill, dancing, and eating snow.

Adrienne, however, was another story. Since she was an infant last year, she hasn't had any experience walking or playing in the snow. She didn't look too thrilled at first.

She just kept whining, "No. No. No!"

I finally got a smile when I realized that to her being outside meant swinging. Once I told her we could go swing after she kept prompting "outside. outside. outside", I got a big ole grin

Once she was in the swing, all was well with her. Guess we will continue using the playset all winter long!

After Matt got home, he and Jillian went back out to do snow removal and build a snowman. Adrienne stayed inside with me, and played with her beloved Curious George. At one point she found Jillian's Rapunzel doll, held her up and said, "Georgie's Mommy!"

She said it several more times, so I guess it's official--Rapunzel is the mother of Curious George. You can rest well tonight now that the mystery is solved.