Eskimos

Yes, we are becoming eskimos here. Usually when it snows here, we enjoy it for a day, then it rains and the snow is gone, leaving behind only a few piles of brown slush to remind us of its presence. This time, however, the snow has been here for 5 days already, and more was added to it last night, so our life has been very different this week. For one thing, Dobby has been taking our van to work, since his car has not-so-great tires (and also it was frozen shut). Which means Daisy has been staying home (because I don't want our van full of her hair), so she's bored stiff, because Olivia's the only child here who wants to go outside, so we've been staying in for hte most part. Malcolm's got a bit of a cold, so I don't want to drag him around in the cold too much, and Sabrina hates it, so today was the first time I could convince her to go outside for a while since that first walk in the snow on Sunday. Dobby got her outside for a few minutes on Monday which is when this picture was taken...literally a few minutes - by the time I got the camera, she was asking to come in again. Mommy I'm so cold, I want to come in.
Olivia on the other hand has turned into a little snow bunny. She goes out every chance she gets (usually with Grandpa, since he's not working these days). This is the igloo Grandpa built for her with all the snow that he shovelled off of their deck. The entrance is around the back, and just behind where Olivia's standing is the window....
...so she can look out while she sits in her igloo and eats her "snow pies" (hopefully made from snow that Daisy hasn't been near).
 

White Stuff!

Malcolm had his first experience with snow yesterday. It started snowing on Saturday night, and continued all day Sunday. We went for a late morning walk on Sunday, and we had to do some creative thinking to get Malcolm well-situated for a snowy adventure. Yes, he is in a cooler that is strapped onto a sled with rope and bungee cords. He loved it! 

The girls bundled up on the tobogan, and we were off. By the time we got home, Olivia was crying because she was so coldand Dobby was carrying her, and I was carrying Sabrina because she didn't want to be on the tobogan by herself. Malcolm, however, had the time of his life in his little snow shelter. He was well insulated (he was in a cooler, after all), and his blankets made a nice tent.
We warmed up by the fire and drank hot chocolate, and everything was much better.

 

Smarties!

Malcolm discovered Smarties! Actually, all he discovered was some empty Smartie boxes that had been emptied to decorate.... ...gingerbread men! We started our Christmas baking yesterday, with gingerbread men and peppernuts. The girls were very eager to help (mostly in the hopes of catching some stray smarties), so here they are, Olivia's dipping the hands and feet into sprinkles, and Sabrina is helping my cousin Ben apply the smartie buttons.
Auntie Viv made the kids each an initial out of the extra dough (we discovered that if you turn Malcolm's initial upside-down, you can spell "snow" with their letters), so they had those for dessert after our yummy waffle feast (thanks Grandma).
And the finished product - an army of gingerbread! Unfortunately, I didn't take a picture of the mountain of peppernuts on the other table; you'll just have to take my word for it - there was A LOT! Next week, sugar cookies!
 

Today is November 18th - perhaps a bit early to begin decorating for Christmas, but not unreasonably so. These pictures, however, were taken on Monday of last week. Yes, November 6th my daughters were decorating a Christmas tree in their room...thanks to Grandma! My mom has two trees already up and decorated, and the girls really wanted to get in on the action. Since I will have to spend all my time after I put up my tree trying to keep Malcolm from pulling it over, I was not anxious to put it up just yet. This small tree in their bedrom was an acceptable compromise! Malcolm likes blueberries!
What is this gross mess? This is my freezer after three days without power. On Wednesday, a wicked storm blew through this area, and we lost power at 2:00. That first night it was a bit of a novelty; we ordered pizza, ate by candlelight, went to bed at the same time as the kids and read by candlelight. The next day the novelty was wearing off; we packed up some stuff as soon as it started getting dark and went to my brother and sister-in-law's house for the evening. Now for those of you who know our situation, you may wonder why they had power and we didn't, seeing as we live about 3 blocks from each other. Well, their power did go out, but it was back on by 4 in the morning on Thursday. What's worse is that the people kitty-corner from our house had power restored then also. And the people directly in back of us had power restored then also. Everyone around us had power, and we didn't. That was the worst part - when everyone's in the same boat, you kind of grin and bear it, but when you're in the boat alone, it's easier to feel ripped off. So, anyways, our power came back on just as I was packing our bag on Friday evening to go back to Greg and Becky's place. You really appreciate stuff more when you've been without it for a while, even just a short while. And the messes you see here are mint chocolate chip ice cream on the left, and a pink popsicle on the right. Lovely. But apparently it was the motivation I needed to clean out this freezer and my deep freeze, both of which look much better now.
 

Smiles

We'll start with a picture from happier times - this is when Malcolm was having his 7 month picture taken, and the girls wanted their "babies" to have a picture taken too, so everyone got in on the action. Malcolm is still focused on the camera, despite all the love he is receiving - what an ideal model!
Then we move to a shot of the girls peering out of the fort they are hiding in. Why were they hiding in a fort, you may wonder. Well, they were hiding from.... ...the screaming teether! Malcolm has cut his first tooth, and is working the next one out, and is NOT enjoying the process. I spent the majority of last week carrying him around (no small task, I can assure you - he is BIG!) because nothing else made him stop crying. This is a picture I took in the mirror of him in the Snugli....Gord & Bev, you asked in the last post if he ever stopped smiling. This was going to be my proof that yes indeed he did stop smiling, but alas, he thought the camera in the mirror was amusing, and stopped fussing long enough for me to take the picture. You may be able to tell, though, that his eyes are a little red from his previous bout of screaming. (An interesting side note : his shirt says "good looks run in the family" - a nice compliment to all you readers who happen to be related to him!)
And we end with an interesting shot. Dobby's hair is quite long these days, so he decided to try out a new hairstyle. He calls this his "faux hawk," and no, he hasn't actually gone out in public like this (although I suppose being posted on the internet may qualify as "public")

He's Up!

So, first I get up on my feet.... ...then I try to climb right over (notice the blurry action shot).....
...sometimes I go right over, chair and all....
...but I don't mind the fall too much. I'll just try again!

 

Cuties in Disguise

A Bee....
....a caterpillar.....
....and a bunny gathered in our house last night - then they went out and brought back a bunch of candy. And I got to sort through it and take out all the stuff they shouldn't have, like hard candies.....and Caramilks are dangerous for kids, too, I've heard....I better eat all of those.