Mother Nature on Steroids

From sunny and 65 to SNOW SNOW SNOW! Looks like Mother Nature forgot to take her Lithium again. Her mood swings are hard to keep up with around these parts. I enjoy the beauty that comes with all seasons....I suppose I just appreciate the warmer beauty a lot more. Take for example the weekend weather we were blessed with last Saturday and Sunday. Not to mention the gorgeous sunset we spotted at the park.....

Hallie packed up some snacks for her and her best pal before we left to meet Carmen and Katie at the park. She set out the bowls on either side of the picnic table and waited for them to arrive. We practiced a bit of self control as she held off chowing down until they could eat together.....

"Maybe just one piece...."

We didn't stay long because it was starting to get dark and the winds were picking up but the girls packed in a bunch of play while they could....

Hal gave Aunt Katie a leisurely push on the swing before we left....

There was a church league basketball game that night so we went to cheer on the guys. They lost in the last second of the game. Bummer of a loss but as Riley says..."it's just church league." This is a far cry from his enthusiasm at the beginning of the year when I heard him planning and scheming about the dynamics of the team and "recruiting" players. ;) The following morning Lil Red got all gussied up for Sunday school....

That afternoon we had some surprise visitors who came to play at the park. And sidewalk chalk of course....

Nanny, Carmen, Hal and I took a stroll to the neighborhood park and played for a good while and then finished up with a nice little jog back around the block to the house. Yes, the babies jogged. It was their idea. 

Back at the house we played some t-ball, splashed in a puddle of water and watched as the girls put on quite a show....

Fast forward to Tuesday evening. Jai and I trekked to OKC for a continuing education course that started at 8:00 am on Wednesday. Neither of us were real hip on the idea of waking up at 4:00 am to make the drive in the morning so we decided to stay with Chelsee in Yukon. The three of us stayed up entirely too late chatting about our home health adventures before we retired to bed with overwhelming curiosity about how the morning would turn out. There was sleet and snow forecasted for the day but luckily we made it to our course just fine. Let it be known that we sat through seven hours of the most boring course known to man. But lunch at Louie's did put a bright spot right in the middle of boredom. We made it home by 6:30 and I passed out early after getting in some snuggle time in bed with Hallie reading books. I had heard the weather forecast for snow overnight but I suppose I was not quite prepared for this when I looked out the window after my alarm had gone off.....

My first thought was "YES! SNOW DAY! NO WORK!" My second thought was "ARRGGHH! SNOW DAY! NO WORK!" Double-edged sword. Playing makeup in no fun. But I somehow managed to forget all about that once I had fully immersed myself into a day of staying in my pajamas and lounging on the couch. Riley took my car into work and stayed until 5:00. We had a girl's day with lots of LeapPad, books, Dora, dressup and fun in the SNOW. Hal trudged out in the snow after preparing herself in her full snow armor unbeknownst to me. She came out of her room and proudly proclaimed that it was "time to pay in da no!!!"Minnie Mouse nightgown, sweat pants, frog boots, scarf slung on one side, hat and coat. She lasted a good two minutes....

The gal took shelter in her playhouse and started cooking up some grilled cheese and soup. I told her not to worry about making me any but she insisted.....

I'd never uttered the words "I'm glad Hallie woke up from her nap early" before........buuuuuuuuuuut there is a first time for everything. Jennifer called to invite us girls out to her parent's house for an afternoon of fun in the snow. I knew there was no way Hallie would be awake by the time she was planning on leaving but I said we would go in the case that she only took a 45 minute nap. Unheard of. Well....she must've heard my convo because about 15 minutes later she was awake. So I said it. And that's the ONLY time I'll ever say it...."I'm glad Hallie woke up from her nap early". Call me a pansy but after half a day I was already showing signs of cabin fever so I was thrilled to bundle up and hop in the car with Jennifer and Cason. Sarah and Austin met us there and the kiddos added their extra fluff to stay warm before we headed outdoors....

Hal appointed herself as the rope handler....

She had no reservations about hopping right up in the mule with the guys. Heck, she even had a little smirk on her sweet face....

First up it was Sarah and Austin who made the kiddos a nice path in the snow with the sled.....

Up next it was Lil Red's shot at proving she was just as tough as the boys.....

A bit nervous at first

So I held her hand to get her started

Off she goes!

Havin' fun now!

....and this is when she decided that it was no longer fun.

Proud of her for giving it a shot!

Mr. Daredevil Cason loved every minute of his ride on the sled and didn't want it to end. And he certainly didn't want cousin Austin on the sled with him......

Priceless!

I sure wish these pictures could convey how cold it felt outside. Just take my word for it. We had three red-faced babes and four women who were in need of some hot chocolate. What a fun time sledding we had!!!

Surprise of the century: Hal enjoyed snack time a lot more than being outside.....

I know, I know, so out of character for her. Ha! She and Cason devoured a good amount of candy on a poster board card that was on the counter.....

Susan made hot chocolate and we warmed up while the kidlets got warm by running around like crazies terrorizing the house. A child's mentality must be this: how fast can we drag out every single toy in sight and how long will it take to spread said toys around the house in the messiest fashion possible. But just look at these innocent wittle faces......

Don't get me started on how sweet it was to see her pass out within five minutes of being in the car. I poked and prodded to wake her but she was sleeping like a rock....

A great end to a beautiful snowy day. Friday ended up being a snow day again. Hal and I stayed home and had a repeat of the previous day minus sledding with a little extra sass added in. I saw a couple patients that evening when Riley got home, worked on Saturday to play catchup and we've been Sunday preparing for what looks to be quite the snow storm. These blizzard warnings have me a bit amped up. I had a big talk with baby girl tonight before bed. It consisted of a mild lecture about sleeping in tomorrow seeing as how I'm 99.9% certain that we will be enjoying yet another snow day! Hal and I braved the grocery store....TWICE....I hear Woodward is out of bread. Come on over to my freezer because apparently I've been trying to hoard bread without even knowing it. Oh, looks like the snow has arrived. And the dish has gone out. I'm gonna go hunker down with the hubby and hope that Hallie decided to give in and go to bed despite her overwhelming desire to count the money in her piggy bank.

Here's to Snowpocalypse 2013....please be kind!

Spreading the Love on Valentine's Day

Strange to think that it's already been a year since our last Valentine's Day. What a special day that I will never forget. Flashback to our girly heart day at home last year.....

This year we couldn't help but repeat last year's M&M sugar cookies for Hallie's daycare Vday party. She is getting better and better with helping in the kitchen. She pitched in with each step along the way with just a little assistance from me....

The only snag we ran into was the self control it took to keep from picking the M&Ms out of the batter. Someone had some trouble with this....

She was far too tired and excited about her upcoming party that she fell asleep in her new festive pajamas from Jaley before taste testing the goodies....

My sweetie woke up in a very lovey dovey mood. She must've gotten the memo. When I told her that she had a gift to open I thought I was going to have to give her a sedative. She began running in place with a cheesy grin on her face while I went to grab her bag of goodies. She opened up some new jewelry, Dora snacks, Melissa and Doug puzzles (our fav) and some new pjs....

I'll give you one guess what her favorite was? 

Although jewelry and puzzles are high up on her list of favorites as well....

Holy sweetness and ooey gooey cuteness! Here's a shot of my Lil Red on heart day before leaving for her party. She woke up talking about it and left the house still talking about it....

She proudly packed up the Minnie Mouse cards that she had "personalized" a few days prior....

I opened up the card that my Dad had left at our house that previous weekend. It was a great way to start the day.....

That afternoon Riley and I got off work early and left town to head for OKC. We had a date with the Thunder, Kylie and Bill. Bill gave us Heat/Thunder tickets for Christmas so I'd been looking forward to it for awhile. Nanny picked up Hal and her bag on sweet cards and treats from daycare.....

I wasn't sure of their plans for the evening so I was pleasantly surprised when I received this string of adorable and heart-warming pictures from their time at the nursing home.....

Hallie passed out candy hearts and Valentines to each resident in the dining room....

Nanny said "passing out 60 Valentines is a lot of work for a two year old".....

Valentine's Day + Thundering up = 

We met Kylie and Bill at Texas Roadhouse for dinner where I completely blew my diet by devouring at least four rolls. Hmmmph. The game was of course a ton of fun despite a bad loss.