Winter Books

we decided to gather all of our winter and Valentine books….i love doing this because we find so many of our favorite books that get lost on the shelves…sometimes i find, especially with Cooper, they want to read the same books over and over.  It was time to focus them a bit.

 

The Snowy day and The Three Little Kittens are my two favorite.

and with the wind chill below freezing the last couple of days…we can SO relate to Brave Irene by William Steig.

 

**too bad the kiddos freaked out because i took books from their room and screamed at each other because they both wanted the same book! And now the only book Cooper wants to read is Arthur’s Valentine….every.night.

we can’t be inside anymore!!!!

who knew that the 10 degree temperature on Saturday was considered a heat wave compared to the –30 wind chill of last night….so cold the buses wouldn’t start Monday morning….many schools closed….ours only a 2 hour delay.

with the winter we are having…we were even lucky to have the sun shining!!! we headed to the lake for some outdoor fun!!!

 

yes…i admit..they are spoiled….and they have the best grandparents who have fun toys at their house!!!

they rode for hours!

and when Cooper wasn’t riding he was taking care of Cruiser, their cousins’ dog who joined us on the ice. 

 

This was Cooper’s first time driving by himself…getting faster and faster every time….Caroline would run with him…and Cruiser, a very protective dog, followed the kids around too.

another great winter day!!

just got finished shoveling the 3 inches of snow that fell overnight…more snow coming?…yup!

night skiing

our local ski area does $10 Thursday night skiing

we headed up to the hill right after school

Caroline pulled Cooper over to the little hill…..

showing off….great form Caroline!!

   

he showed us that he could ski!!!

so we headed up the chair to big hill!!!

it was about 10 degrees when i took this picture…but i was determined to get a picture of Caroline and Cooper on the chair…….not easy to do!! my hands were freezing and i was not only afraid of dropping the camera but i did not want to drop my mittens!!

last picture…hands cold…and i needed to keep up with Caroline!!

so after having a Monday holiday, Tuesday snow day and Friday snow day…we are now expecting another storm!!! oh my goodness…..we are having a WINTER!!!

a family day

 

this is how cold it was Saturday morning

it was cold, negative cold…. and we wanted to try a new ski area…and ski all day.

one of those days that could go really badly or really great.

we started out on the rope tow and Caroline was in tears after falling off…..complete frustration…complete meltdown….it wasn’t looking good.

so we went to the chairlift…..we found out that the lift operator couldn’t slow it down (our other ski hill they would slow it down to make it easier for kids to get on) it was running fast and Caroline could tell i was nervous about taking her up…..AND it was Cooper’s first time on the the chair.

we got on! but i was still nervous about getting off!! i chatted with Caroline all the way up….i knew she was nervous too and feeling sad about the rope tow…but we talked about family and how we could do anything as long as we had each other…lots of “i love yous” a good pep talk…for her AND me.

when we got to the top i had to physically lift her up to get her off the chair and the ramp was steep….but we cheered getting off….we did it! together!

and to my surprise…Caroline went back to the rope tow….fell a few more times….but my very determined little girl figured it out all on her own. I was so proud of her!!!

starting out the day, Cooper was a wild card….we figured he would last maybe half a day and then want to go in or just play in the snow….but he surprised us all and skied all day…after each run he would say with a smile…. “again!!!” I was so proud of him!!!!

it was a great day that i want to remember forever….a great family day, we skied ALL day together, we conquered the chair, Caroline conquered the rope tow, Cooper went on the chair for the first time….a perfect day.

now if i can just figure out how to get the pictures off my phone to share with you!

chocolate cake with peanut butter frosting

Cooper gives this cake a thumbs up…actually, “a thumbs up to the sky!” i guess that’s really good.

and your going to need a tall glass of milk with this cake….so good!

someone told me or i read it on a blog (please come forward who ever you are!!!) to mix a box of devil’s food cake and one 15 oz. can of pumpkin and voila! i think its a Weight Watchers trick….and for some crazy reason i added one egg…because to me a cake is suppose to have eggs…i might even get crazy and put in 2 eggs next time!

so that's it!  cake mix and a 15 oz. can of pumpkin…pour into any pan you want and bake according to the box.

peanut butter frosting:

• 4 oz. of cream cheese
• 1 cup of creamy peanut butter
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 2 cups of powdered sugar
• 3 Tbs. milk

cream together first 3 ingredients, then add in sugar and milk.

so easy…so good!

i even had a piece for breakfast….yes i did. ;)

hello winter!!

yesterday went by so fast!

as soon as the clothes were dry and warm…back out for more fun!

our neighbor captured these shots of the kiddos…thanks Jess!!!

  and our snow covered street

she really captured our winter wonderland!!

they tried sledding down the street…but couldn’t go fast enough!

that’s me trying to get Cooper to shovel…he had no interest…although who could blame him…it was hard enough for me to shovel the snow over the 4 foot banks!!

 

he would rather eat the snow….don’t worry, he knows the rules…ONLY white snow.

and we ended the night with this yummy cake, chocolate with peanut butter frosting….i had 2 pieces actually, oh yes i did!! I’ll post the recipe tomorrow! super easy!

this morning…hello sun! the world is really bright when the sun is shining on all the new snow….and oh how is sparkles!!!

with the help of our neighbors the kids made the best sledding hill in the backyard……they started at the neighbors house and going right to  our garage! 

a rainbow made by coop

snow tunnels!!

and don’t forget climbing the biggest snow bank and feeling like “king of the hill!!!”

Got Snow?

we woke up to a winter wonderland!

at 8am

by 10am we were bundled up and exploring

light fluffy snow!

  i am not sure what the final amount is….my guess is 20 inches.

 

 

we are taking a short break before we head out again!

endless hot cocoa today!

i might need 2 Advil and a glass of wine after i get all the shoveling done!

i’m freezing

i’m really not a complainer….really i’m not ….but,

January is a tough month for me.

after all the wonderfulness of the holidays is past

and i realize that winter is here to stay,

and its cold….and freezing out,

and I am freezing…..i am not happy.

most days you find me sitting next to the fire, with my hat on, wrapped in a blanket.

the number one “must have” on my new car was heated seats.

i go to bed early so that i can be warm under my down comforter.

i’ll bake more to keep the oven on…which keeps the kitchen warmer,

and i’ll eat…yummy comforting warm foods.

it snowed again over the weekend………this i do look forward to.  If its going to be winter i want LOTS of snow.

because it gets me out of the house

shoveling, sledding, skiing, snowshoeing

i love a good snow storm.

before we had kids, hubby and i would bundle up and go walking at night during a storm….on snow covered roads, and the whole world seemed silent and calm.

 

there is nothing like the look of excitement from a child when they see the snow that has fallen over night……they won’t even bother to get out of their jammies….on goes the snowsuits, boots, mittens and hats….they will play for hours!

and come in all rosy cheeked (or screaming because someone threw a snowball)

looking for some hot coco

i love the kind of snow that sticks to everything outside.

it really is a love/hate kind of relationship…winter and i

and once i embrace it…i will be ok.

AND booking our spring vacation to South Carolina always cheers me up!

and talking about retirement (like a gazillion years from now) when we move to South Carolina REALLY cheers me up!

until then….i’m freezing.