Snow Days

On January 22nd we were hit by a blizzard that lasted 2 days. 12 inches is pretty deep for our area. 

 (Owen)

The kids missed 4.5 school days so I had to get creative after awhile. Homemade puffy paint thanks to pinterest,

 Flower power

 Silly Daddy

For the most part I really enjoyed all the time they had off from school. Not as much "me time" of course but not doing homework and packing lunches, etc. is nice for awhile.

Snow Days

I have not been inspired to be on the blog. Chalk it up to the cold weather. I think I am supposed to be hibernating, but my children wont' let me ;) Last week was a doozy. Monday was a holiday and the forecast was calling for snow. I don't usually get caught up in the madness but EJ urged me to go since I normally go to the store on Mon anyway and we needed quite a few things. So did the rest of our county!

 I am so glad I did because I didn't leave the house again until Thurs.

 

We got 6 inches of fluffy snow. The kids were out of school ALL week. 

 

It was great snow for sledding and building. 

Avery and Ryan didn't last long outside on the first day, but the second day was great.

 

By Thursday we all needed a change in scenery. It's tough finding a decent priced outing with our age range. Despite having gone recently, we went bowling. And then I treated them to lunch out. A place they all like ;) They were awesome and I couldn't have been happier. What a treat!

 

If only Daddy could have joined us!

  

Friday, our church had mercy on the exhausted parents and opened the gym for free play for a few hours. The boys were happy and Avery settled in as we were leaving :(

All in all, it was a great 5 days with my kiddos. EJ was good to jump right in when he got home from work, assuming that I'd had my fill. Smart man! Our weekend was packed. More on that later.

Family Fun

We took another road trip this weekend. After the older 2's basketball games we headed to my parent's mountain house. I couldn't resist taking a pic of her. The only time she is not moving ;)

 

On Sunday a majority of us went skiing. Ryan was only out there for about an hr. He is young enough to be considered free and my dad had OLD used skis, so he played around a bit.

EJ and I haven't been on the slopes together for a long time! It was fun to reminisce about our dating days, back when we rocked snow boards. It's too hard to help new skiiers on snowboards. I haven't skied in SO long that I was nervous, but it was just like riding a bike, phew!

I barely went down any runs with my sister, but she was there :)
I did a lot of checking on the boys in their lessons, or "teaching" Ryan. My body is so out of shape that it's probably just as well, or I might not have been walking today ;)

Owen in the bright orange, made some major progress this year. It's his 3rd time, Mason's first. EJ enjoyed having Owen on the slopes with him.

My dad graciously paid for the boys. He has always loved skiing, I learned when I was 5! He is pretty determined to get the boys out there. They don't seem to mind and we are grateful for his generosity.

Ryan rocking the too-long-vintage skis for about an hour. 

The rest of the time he hung out with Grandma, Avery and Trip at the house.

We returned home right before the super bowl. EJ quickly got to work on dinner. Philly Cheese Steaks (his idea) and Owen was pretty pumped.

Owen got our "party" set-up in the living room.

 It wasn't a fancy party, but the sandwiches were yummy!

We were all a little disappointed at the outcome of the game, but it was a great ending to a fun weekend.

1st Snow

Someone was a wee bit excited to see the snow. Did you forget something, Avery? Brrr!!

 Just enough snow for some rides down our hill. Good thing we don't care too much about our grass ;)

 Not much for snowman building.

Leafboarding, it's the newest fade

After a 4 day weekend, this momma was glad to be back in a routine today!

Kickin It Camo Style

Yesterday, was our first "snow" day. More like an ice/cold day. I didn't take any pictures,but it was full of games— board and electronic, plus Grandma was here for the first half and we braved the roads go out to lunch :)

Today, we had a late start. Lots of arguing and walking around not knowing how to spend their time. We all walked to the bus, that doesn't usually happen. We needed to be in the light dusting of (1st) snow that had fallen overnight.

 

The only real girly thing about Avery is she loves shoes. Even more she loves being like one of the boys. So imagine her surprise, when she got to wear (new to her) snow boots, camo style :) Even on the wrong feet, she loves them!

Hitting the Slopes

My parents hosted my family and my sister's family this weekend at their mountain house. My dad would love if we made it up there more often, but between everyone's schedules it's difficult. We had a wonderful time and are very grateful for their generosity and patience (with my 4). 

My sister and I grew up on skis. We both became snow boarders in high school and never really went back to skis. EJ was also a snow boarder and we had many great adventures together :) I haven't gone since I became a momma. Pregnancies and motherhood and struggles with chronic pain have made me quite gun shy about getting back on a board.

I thought this was the weekend. I was nervous but willing to give it a shot. Then Mason woke up on Sat morning throwing up. I was not about to leave him behind (he was disappointed) and leave my mom with 4 kids, one with a stomach bug.

Owen had a blast.

 He is already trying to convince us to go again, this upcoming weekend

I played taxi driver back and forth to the slopes (5 times). One of the trips, I took the younger two so we could have a peek on Owen's progress. He had a 1 hr lesson which really helped. EJ skied in order to help Owen more.

On Sunday, we decided to go snow tubing. Mason was feeling better and we could include Ryan too. The weather was perfect (I do not like being cold). We had a great time being together.

Avery stayed with my mom. She didn't meant the height requirements. It was fun hanging out just the 5 of us, but it definitely felt incomplete. It's amazing how natural/normal 4 kids feels now.

Each run down was a "race" of course. Always so competitive ;)