A Team Week 130: Snow Much Fun

This winter snow was a rarity.  We had a couple of snow storms at the beginning of the season, but then we got NOTHING.  It was a good thing that we went up to my parents' house twice this winter because it gave the boys a chance to use their new sleds that they got for Christmas.  From mid-December through January and February the only precipitation that we received was either too minimal to accumulate or in the form or raindrops.  Even so, I knew that this year would still give us one last snow storm, as it seems we ALWAYS have one last winter storm before spring official arrives.  This week, was the week.  Starting at the very beginning of the week, we got constant snowfall for more than two days straight giving us a grand total of somewhere around 15" of snow!  To say the boys (well the little ones at least) were thrilled is an understatement.  For me, this week was awesome because every day we would get home from work/daycare, I would help the boys get into their winter gear and then they would play outside until dinner giving me a chance to catch up on some other things inside.

Eric wasn't nearly as excited by the snow as it resulted in him having to plow out the driveway several times over the course of the week, but he did at least get some assistance from Asher who loves to help out outside whenever the opportunity arises!

Asher & Eric on Monday night

Asher & Eric on Tuesday night

Video: My Angel Making a Snow Angel

Throughout the week, Avery was always excited to play in the snow but he does not have the stamina or tolerance for snow that Asher has.  Every time he went outside he would be back in the house within about 15-20 minutes.

On Wednesday the boys and I enjoyed our day home together.  With St. Patricks Day being later in the week, I decided that green Ninja Turtle pancakes were in order.

A beautiful sunrise to start the day.

When breakfast was finished, everyone got their teeth brushed and then we headed over to the Pediatric Dentist for the boys' 6 month check-up.  They both did great as usual and were thrilled by their stickers and balloons that they were sent home with.  However, after paying the balance I think I will be searching for a different dentist.  The place they go now is great but almost double what Eric and I pay for our dentist, which is completely ridiculous!

When we were done at the dentist, we headed over to Meijer to pick up some groceries for the week.  The boys had fun testing out a few of the toys and I searched high & low for Rueben supplies, discovering that I wasn't the only one with a  St. Patrick's Day craving for the delicious corned beef and kraut sandwich, because there was NO thousand island on the shelves other than a gigantic bulk-sized container

When we were finished at Meijer, we headed back home for lunch and naps.  As soon as nap time was over, we got our winter gear on, grabbed our sleds and then headed down to the park at the end of our street for some sledding.

This picture doesn't show it well, but the snow on the sides of the sidewalk was almost as tall as Asher.

 (2) Videos: Sledding Fun

Video: Echoooo!!!

After sledding, I started working on dinner while the boys played.  They wanted me to play in the basement with them, but since I was working on dinner I suggested they play upstairs if they wanted to be by me.  When they told me that was "too boring" I suggested that they make a fort under the dining room table, and they LOVED the idea.  I helped them to put the blankets on the table and they proceeded to fill up underneath and "go camping".  Shortly after, they were walking around the house with a tripod and Asher's camera pretending they were on "vacation".  Since we were all missing the beach a bit after our Winter Getaway, I decided to join them for a while to play and turned on a YouTube video of the ocean so we could pretend we were in Florida!  :)

(2) Videos: Playing in the Ocean

Once dinner was prepared and in the oven, I then joined them in the fort for some more fun until Eric got home from work.

On Thursday night, with the temperatures rising and Spring just days away, we knew this was our last chance to get our Winter Season picture for the year.  So, after work the boys played outside and then we took advantage of the evening sunlight and the snow to get our traditional picture.

Video: Bike Riding in the Snow

Avery decided to ride his bike in the snow and did not seem discouraged by the difficulty.

(2) Videos: Yard Sledding

Eric used the snowplow to make a small sledding hill for the boys in the back yard.  Avery went down with a push.  Asher tried a running-jump start, but it was highly anti-climatic.

On Friday night it was officially St. Patrick's Day so the little guys and I enjoyed our Rueben's for dinner!

On Saturday, Eric and I decided that we needed some alone time together and had our babysitter Kelly come over in the late afternoon to watch the boys while we went to see Beauty and the Beast.  Our outing ended up being a bit more than anticipated.  We drove up to the theater in Racine and when we got there we found out that all of the adjacent seats were already reserved.  Thus, we had to go to a 3D show that was 45 minutes later than the one we'd come early for and planned on (not knowing that you can reserve seats online).  To kill the time we went and got a small dinner at Panera and then headed back to the theater for the movie with some popcorn of course!  Then, after the movie we got dessert at Culver's because I hadn't really be in the mood for popcorn, but we never go to the theater without getting some!  :P  Eventually, we did get home (at around 9:15) and found Avery already asleep in his room and a very tired Asher (who hadn't wanted us to go and we told could stay up until we got home) on the couch with Kelly.  The evening was more time and money than we'd planned on, but it was still great to get some time alone together!  <3

A text that evening from Kelly.  I know they are sweeties, but it is always nice when someone else notices too!  :)

On Sunday, we enjoyed another mostly lazy day filled with Sunday donuts, church, naps playtime and basketball.

Our little sports lover immediately knew which donut he wanted this morning!

Avery Sushi!

After making our table fort earlier in the week Avery became OBSESSED with making forts (which has continued weeks later).  This morning, I came into the living room to find that he had pulled several of the cushions off the couch to build himself a fort.

Avery in his fort.

A boy, his fort and cartoons.

On Sunday afternoon Eric took the boys out to Menards for a little while so I took advantage of the opportunity to make a belated St. Patrick's Day cake...a mint chocolate chip cake recipe that I'd had my eye on for a while!  Then, that evening, Asher really wanted to make a cake too (he was bummed I had made a cake without his help).  Since it was dinner time and close to bedtime, I really couldn't have him make a real cake and he wanted to make it completely by himself anyway.  He kept asking me if he could just make a cake out of food that he could find and I asked what he wanted to use.  When he mentioned bread, I got an idea to make PBJ+Fruit cakes for the boys for dinner. The boys loved the idea and we had a good time making them.  Surprisingly though, Avery (who rarely eats anything) ate the majority of his "cake", while Asher (who is an eating MACHINE) only ate a few bites of his.  At the time I thought it was strange that he said he didn't like it (it was just a PBJ sandwich with some bananas and berries on it), but in hindsight, I should have known that Asher not eating means that illness is in our future.

"Cake" Layers

The End Result

Happy boy with his cake.

After the boys went to bed (& my cake had sufficiently cooled), I made the mint-chocolate chip frosting for the cake and finished it off...

...Then I ate the first piece!  I have to say it was good, but not nearly as great as I'd hoped.  I ate more of the cake than I'd care to admit, but I probably won't make the cake again.