Snowmaggedon

Me: Let's listen to some music
Reese: [glances out the window] Liiiiiike Christmas music?

Looks about right.
What the crap.
Snowpocalypse is upon us.
I haven't been able to leave my house since Monday.

Even though the highway is clear, today, you need chains to get there. It's supposed to be "warm" today, and hopefully, with the sun shining, enough snow will melt for us to get out of the house for a couple of hours.

AND...there is MORE SNOW on it's way!

We're ready for it.

Last week, we kept busy by:

-building a maze in the living room

-making homemade valentines

-popcorn, hot chocolate, nacho cheese dip

-a stack of new easy reader books (thanks, Grandma and Grandpa!)

-a Read In (Mr H's 4th grade class, style) in the living room. We are reading The Doll People by Ann M. Martin (who deserves a special shout out for also writing the BEST children's book series evah (The Babysitter's Club! Did anyone else want to be Stacey? Kristy? I was always a big fan of Dawn, and dreamed of finding a secret passage in my own house.) I finished Perilous and started The Book Theif, the girls are loving The Doll People, Reese has sped through the easy readers, and Reese set a lofty goal for us to read 50 pages in the Book of Mormon together, during our snow days. The Read-In (and necessary junk food) kept us entertained for almost 2 full days!

In the event that we DO get that other 6-8 inches of snow that Mr. Weatherman (who is NOT my friend) predicts "will make last weeks storm look like child's play", we will be ready.

This week, we are armed with:

-a new movie (Alvin and the Chipmunks: the Squeakuel---don't be jealous)

-supplies to make some valentine gifts for the ladies I visit teach and the girls' school teachers

-bubble bath solution, pedicure supplies and the works for a "spa day"

-fixin's (that's right I said "fixin's") for a sweet Super Bowl party--Go Packers!

-heart shaped cookie cutters and ingredients for sugar cookies and pink icing

(PS-Sorry Hays...this much snow really isn't normal.)

Good thing I wasn't naked.

Gather 'round, friends, it's time for a sing-along!
wahoo!

This story would be so much more entertaining with Duran Duran's Girls on Film playing in the background.

But we'll settle for Popcorn Popping.
Join me, will you?





"Oh, IIIIIIIII looked out the window and what did I see?




Ross with his camera, taking pictures of...me???"

Could it be?
Let's take a closer look, shall we?
A-ha! Busted!
Look at that, Rossi...you aren't the only one who knows how to zoom in.

Ew, right?

Granted, he was probably taking photos of the birds or the snow...but it should be noted that I took this photo from INSIDE my house. And before I took this picture, he was facing straight forward, staring right at me. I even waved through the window after I took the picture, and he waved back.

How neighborly.

Ross and Naked Marge are now PapaROSSi and Naked Marge.

I feel like I need one of those crazy Sarah Palin fences, now.

Snow Day No. ?????

The roads STILL have an inch of ice on them.

No one is coming in, and no one is ever getting out of here.


Know what?
I think it's kind of wonderful.


It's really sad when I log onto facebook and everyone's status updates are about how much their kids are driving them crazy. I mean, yeah. I get it. Snow sucks. No one likes to feel trapped, and with everyone cooped under one roof, it's easy to get on one another's nerves. Kids fight, people get frustrated.


But dude. Post after post after post of people saying they 'can't stand their kids', 'the kids are driving me crazy', 'I can't wait for them to go back to school', and 'I've got to get away from these people'...it's getting old.

It makes me feel like screaming, "You've just been handed a whole day to spend with your family! Remember why you had kids? Enjoy them!"



If I'm going to be trapped in the house with anyone, I sooo want it to be these guys:

And because there just isn't enough excitement out there, I'm going to say it again.

I'm GLAD my kids are "stuck home" from school today.

I love them.

I love them.

I love them.

Yes there is arguing. Yes we are frustrated that it is -1000 degrees outside. But we're having a blast doing everything and nothing together, and I will happily take 100 more snow days if it means I will get to spend them with my family. Bring it.

I like that school has been canceled.

Today is a gift.

What She Said

An BIG shout out to my sister, HolleeAnn, who already blogged about my trip to Ca. on her blog, Dandelion Wishes.
And since it's going to take me a year to catch up on posts, just go here to read her post, see some race day pics, and watch the cutest videos of Corbin feeding her pup.

Thanks for posting, sistah! Love you and miss you already!

Cloth Diapering Day #1/60

Whoa! Baby got BACK!

How HUGE is that diaper booty? It's like a regular diaper that's been in a swimming pool and is now swollen to maximum capacity.

It's still pretty cute.

Here he is practicing his Heisman.

Impossible to get a still photo.

That face is so naughty, it kills me.

This kid is soooo cute.

All the time.

Even more so in his rocket ship diaper.

I can do this for 60 days.
I can do this for 60 days.

Cuz after 60 days...it's money in my pocket.

"An Early Spring it will be!"

Happy Groundhog Day!
Can you stand the excitement of the townspeople in the video when they hold up the groundhog? This is what they've turned to for entertainment. Winter has driven them to madness.


Dear Punxsutawney Phil,
I've changed my mind. I think you're alright, after all.
Sorry I killed your sister.

Excited for Spring,
Meg

We've been suffering from Cabin Fever, here in the Willy House, as well. I've made a list of a few things I do to fight the Winter Blues:
-Run
y'all saw the Winter Warrior video...it's pretty acurate.
I meet up with 4 other girls once a week after our kids are in bed and go for a night run. We wear thermals, hats, gloves, jackets, etc. and run 5-7 miles with our headlamps and reflective gear lighting the way. It's a blast. We jam to good tunes, talk about food, and solve the worlds problems while we run in the dark.
Yes. We stick together, and we all carry pepper spray.

-Every day is a party
Really. Our most recent party was a Tangled Party (Reese and Quincy's choice). There were Tangled plates, Tangled cups, Tangled napkins, Tangled dolls, Tangled dresses, balloons, and a heart shaped confetti cake with rainbow chip sprinkled frosting. Why? Just because.

-Host
I love playing hostess. Book club, baby showers, or dinner with my little family. Any excuse is good enough to pull out the pretty dishes, clean the house up a little extra, dress up, or serve dessert. I recently hosted a baby shower (that I have yet to blog about) and made some fun decorations for it. I can't wait to use them again for Easter.
Winter survival means that I always say YES to playing hostess.

Did anyone else think of cupcakes both times they read the word Hostess? just me?

-Anticipate
Having something fun scheduled on the calendar is a winter must have. Looking forward to something fun is a great distraction from being cold in ugly weather. I like to stay busy. "Cease to be idle..."

-Purchase Flowers
I find it 100% worth the money to keep a $5 bouquet of fresh tulips or other bright colored flowers in my kitchen all winter long.

-Play Games
We play games at the table after dinner every Sunday night
Have you played Farkle? I sat at my parent's table for hours over the weekend laughing while we played this mindless dice game. Love it. AND I should add that I scored 6000 on one roll, I did. (lady.)

-Watch Movies
When we are snowed in, Redbox is a lifesaver. I also swap movies around with friends (because it's free) and the kids love having "new" movies to watch on the weekend. I also love having a movie date with Aaron or a girls night out to look forward to.

-Serve
This is pretty much a guaranteed way to cheer up. Making other people happy makes me feel happy, and it doesn't take much to brighten someone's day. An unexpected phone call, a thank you card, goodies, dinner to a sick friend, flowers, shoveling snow, saying thank you, babysitting. Simple things-a package of pens for your friend who can never find one, cleaning up a mess that you didn't make, a note or email telling someone you appreciate them. Emails take what, 2 mintues? less? Great way to fight the doom and gloom of winter.

-Read
This can also be found under the "great ways to avoid doing anything else" list. Once I start a good book, I can't put it down until it is finishes. I'm soooo not a one-chapter-a-day reader.
I put together a book club last year and I loooooove the girls in it. We have a lot of fun, eat delicious food, and unlike so me book clubs I've attended, we actually read and talk about the books. A few books we've read recently are:
A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith
The Help by Kathryn Stockett--loved it!
These is My Words by Nancy Turner
The Memory Keeper's Daughter by Kim Edwards

I'm currently reading Perilous by my friend Tamara Hart Heiner
The girls and I just started reading The Doll People by Ann Martin

-Cook
I love to cook, but thinking of what to make for dinner can be a monotonous task that adds to the dullness of dark and dreary winter afternoons. Planning ahead and creating menus with new and interesting recipes brings the joy and excitement back into cooking meals for my family. I'm very behind on posts, but I plan to have a massive recipe post, eventually. I love to eat, so knowing I am going to eat something really good, paired with the satisfaction of making it from scratch makes me very happy.

-Bake
similar to above. Who doesn't love fresh bread? I recenly made some citrus blueberry muffins that were gone gone in less than 24 hrs.

This would be a good place to plug in...
-Exercise
since we're eating plenty of delicious junk food. I get together once a week with my friend, Darcie and do workout videos. We have fun, the kids play, we laugh, talk, dance, and get fit. It's a great setup...expecially since it is too cold to take the kids outside right now, and having a workout buddy holds us accountable to actually do the workout!

-Purge
Closets need emptying. Often. I feel so refreshed once the kids and I have tackled a messy toy basket or sorted through closets.

-Groove
Spontaneous dance parties in our house happen regularly. Particularly when laundry is being folded...becuase when laundry gets me down, I can always count on Duffy to "yeah yeah yeah" us through our chores. Go ahead. Sing it. You know you want to. "You got me begging you for mercy..."

-Craft
I feel the need to get my craft ON today. Creativity takes time, and time is the one thing we've got goin' for us on a long winter day. The girls and I are going to make some valentines today.

-Laugh
If you're not one of those people who finds humor in everything, well first of all, I'm sorry.
But don't worry, because there is a never ending supply of stupid and/or inappropriate people on youtube just waiting to help you out.
Here's my latest favorite:

she makes me laugh every time!
My brother, Mark, just introduced me to Tosh.0 over the weekend.
My face hurts from laughing so hard.
I need to get a good laugh in, every day....yeah, even if it is at the expense of others.
I'm not above that.

-Celebrate
Gringo Fiesta is only 16 days away, and I need to create a menu. If you have good recipes from south of the border, send them to me, por favor.

What some simple things YOU do to chase the Winter Blues away?

Yes, Please

The little ladies at True Treasures certainly know how to drive a girl mad.
I'm snowed in, and they just posted a few "teaser" photos on their facebook page to showcase the new "stuff" they just brought in.

This little guy would be just perfect at the desk. And of course, it's upholstered with the same Waverly Essense Onyx as my dining room curtains.


How about this little lovely?! I've been searching Craigslists and the local antique emporiums religiously for something just like it for our bedroom. We need something to house our shoes, pants, and folded sweaters. This pie safe is darling, no? And instead of housing goods in the kitchen, I say why not use it as a wardrobe for the bedroom?

It could stand to be sanded a little, but my heart races when I look at it.

Love at first sight.

I'm currently waiting to hear how much it is :/