Oh, We Have a Fever

Of the cabin variety.

Now, we have plenty of toys at our house, but sometimes you just need:

the same thing in a new location,

or a video game bike,

or real bikes,

or some cool music to get your groove on,

or an airplane ride with a friend



to get a fever under control. Yes. That is just what we needed.

Need Entertainment?

Look what showed up at our house today . . .

Yup. Diggers, and dumptrucks, and workers. Oh my!
We've been watching them cut the asphalt and dig it up to lay new pipes all week - working their way down the street. Today they were right outside our door. The boys couldn't have been happier. Mesmerized, I tell you. After the pipe had been laid and the hole was ready to be filled, the dump truck did this . . .

And Matthew yelled . . .

"AWESOME!!!"

Ahh, the simple pleasures.

Happy Birthday, Valentine!

And many more . . .

We love you!!!

Snow Day - Part 2 (and hopefully the last installment)

OK, I know I was complaining about the overly cautious schools around here only a couple of weeks ago, but now I wish that skiff of snow was all we had to look at. Snow days are fun . . . until you have four feet plus of snow, driveways to shovel, and sidewalks to clear within 24 hours of a storm (township safety code). I'm so thankful for a good husband who is willing to work so hard with the shovel out there! Just a word of advice - if you ever get a chance to buy a corner lot and you happen to live in a winter storm prone area, DON'T do it! You have twice as much sidewalk to clear as all your happy-go-lucky boxed in neighbors who were building snowmen with their children or sipping hot cocoa in their warm kitchens hours ago. Ahhh. . . something we certainly didn't think about before purchasing our home.On the upside of things, you also get to meet neighbors you have never met before as you all dig out together. As the girls and I looked at a nearly five and a half foot snowbank plowed onto our corner, we were perplexed as to how to clear the sidewalk there . . . (it is the bus stop after all for Matthew and the rest of the neighborhood kids. How were the kids going to scale that mountain to get to ghe bus? Or how the heck were we to pick through that iceberg to create a passageway to the bus?) Enter previously unknown neighbors Richard and Scott - one toting a shovel and the other with the most monstrously amazing snowblower I have ever seen. They finished up my sidewalk and carved a path through the iceberg! Thank you, thank you, thank you! Uhh, does a loaf of banana bread pay back that debt?Matthew and I had a great time building a snowman yesterday . . . only to have it mostly buried under more snow. Matthew did a great job of cleaning Mr. Snow off today.
Sarah and Megan went to hang out with friends on Tuesday and ended up being stuck there until today. I think they had a great time though. It's nice to have them back.

The kids played outside for a little while earlier today, but tired quickly as the snow engulfed them with each step.

When Matthew, Megan and Lucy went out for a second round of snow fun, Jake opted for a cup of hot chocolate instead.

At least it's sunny today! Here's to hoping for at least one storm-free week. . . I know there's more in the forecast for next week. Sigh. I think a trip to Longwood Gardens is in order for my sanity. Hopefully they've plowed the paths to the Conservatory. . .

Snow Day - Part 1

Wow! What an awesome snowstorm we got this weekend - about two feet! Aside from the shoveling (which Darin did most of - THANK YOU dear), we had a lot of fun playing in the snow. I'm hoping to get more pictures of the kids playing out there before it all melts.

These girls were amazing at building snow forts and tunnels. It was so much fun to watch them working together.

The boys making "hallways" and pathways through the yard. Check out Matthew's feet up behind him! I don't know how he managed that move!

Peek-a-boo! Jake loved the tunnels Megan and her friends made. He kept popping his head up out of this "skylight".

You'll have to turn your head sideways to watch this. Matthew was doing really well "snowboarding" down out little hill yesterday. This is not his best run, but believe me, he is GOOD! I want to take him to a real hill with a real board someday.

Sarah was busy making hot chocolate from scratch in the house while we were all out getting frosty. YUM! Thanks, Sarah! She then left for a tubing/boarding expedition with her friends which I, unfortunately, have no pictures of. She has plenty of bruises to prove that she had tons of fun, though.

We are expecting another storm tonight through tomorrow night. They're predicting another 12-18 inches! More fun. Part 2 on its way!

The Dog and Her Boy - Part 2

Darin (aka Alpha) has also found a friend in Lucy.

The kids are pretty impressed at how well he can play with Lucy. You can hear Matthew squealing in delight in the background. Darin truly is a man of many talents!

The Dog and Her Boy - Part 1

Lucy and Jacob watching squirrels.

Still. Watching. Squirrels.

"It's ok, Woosee. You can catch doze squirrows anudder time."

"Mom, Woosee is so cute. Can she stay wif us toever?"