First Snow Fest of the Year

It finally snowed and we could not be more excited!

Sunday night it finally started snowing.

The boys had been waiting for a few long days

(maybe weeks, even months)

to wake up and find everything hidden under a white blanket.

The anticipation reached new heights a few weeks ago

when our friends handed us down

a pair of kids cross-country skis.

We picked them up one Sunday afternoon after church

and the boys chanted "ski, ski, ski"

all the way home.

They have entertained each other with the same chant

at least once a day since.

Of course they needed to do some living room skiing

as soon as we got home.

Noah is absolutely thrilled to have big boy skis, boots, and poles!

Thank you so much, Jennifer and family.

Max was rather upset to be stuck with the plastic skis

but has since gotten over it.

Monday we did, indeed, wake up to a few inches of snow on the ground!

I was (unsuccessfully) trying to hide that fact from the boys

since we needed to get to Noah's preschool program at 9.

So we packed up all our snow gear in a big bag

and I promised we would play outside as soon as school was over.

Luckily it only lasted about 30 minutes total and

we headed straight for the playground outside.

After about an hour,

I was getting cold and needed a change of scenery.

So we headed over to the ice rink.

We discovered a few weeks ago

that there are always big piles of snow/ice to play on

and today was even more fun

with nice, soft snow on top.

Another hour later,

Max was getting cold and wet.

Both of us had about enough and were ready to head home

but Noah was still going strong.

We finally convinced him to come along

but he was not about to come inside

until he had made some rounds on his bike

in front of the house.

After lunch and a little break,

we headed over to the picnic area

and (finally)got ready for some skiing!

And off they go!

Who needs poles anyway?

Max did much better than expected.

He honestly believes that he can do anything Noah does.

And he will try his hardest to keep up.

I definitely did not get cold this time.

Helping two wobbly kids get up and down

our little mountain kept me plenty warm.

Even with the sun fading behind the mountain.

After plenty of skiing fun,

we decided to get the sleds out.

Sledding is definitely easier than skiing!

Although,

our favorite run had a big rock and

the picnic table in its path.

So, it was still a challenge.

They just kept going, and going.

We got out our bigger sleds.

We brought out snacks.

We headed over to a longer run.

So much fun!

I am so glad we moved to a place

where we can enjoy all the seasons.

Well, actually, I prefer mild seasons

and would not mind if the snow stayed up in the (close) mountains.

But seeing the boys enjoying themselves so much

is priceless!

(Unfortunately,

a few minutes before coming into the house,

they found a big mud puddle

and everything ended up in big muddy mess.

I was so mad.

A dozen wet things in our little apartment

is one thing.

But everything covered in mud?

Argh!)

We are a bit jealous of the big snow

storm in Utah!

Preschool Program

Today was Noah's Preschool Program

and it was fantastic!

They sang, danced, jumped, made funny faces,

and performed a little play.

Isn't he a cutie?

(Ignoring the fact that he refuses to get his hair cut

and still insists on shirts 3 sizes too big.)

Here he is doing a fe tricks but, unfortunately, my camera

only caught the very end of his jump.

Dancing and twirling with scarfs.

I was surprised he did not throw a fit when his teacher

handed him a pink one.

Acting out

"An Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly"

Noah has really been enjoying going to Acorn Preschool

3 mornings a week.

It is a very neat school and he has made great friends.

Thank you, Oma and Opa!

Max enjoying the presentation on Papa's lap

After the little program school was out already.

Perfect timing!

Because today was the first snow day of the season!

So we bundled up and spent the rest of the day

enjoying ourselves outside.

More on our snow fun in the next post...

The MaxMachine!

Unbelievable!

I don't mean to brag but I am super excited to tell you that

Max biked a whopping 1.4 miles today!

At the age of 2 years and 3 months,

he decided to ride his little balance bike all the way home from Noah's preschool.

It was really fun to watch him cruise along.

His little legs moving super fast.

He was able to hold a good pace and did not get distracted too much.

He is pretty proud of himself. So are we!

He really wants to be like his big brother.

Noah is great at helping him along

and setting a good example.

(When it comes to biking, at least.)

Here are my 3 favorite guys on their way to church.

Noah did not really start riding the balance bike

until he was almost 3.

He just was not very interested and the bike was a little big.

Max is a pretty tall kid and we have a different bike now, the Kinderbike.

Noah managed to totally destroy his Skuut.

He literally broke the wooden frame in half.

Karl glued and bolted it back together but it just was not the same.

I don't think it was made to be ridden hard daily.

It took Noah a total of 5 minutes to learn how to ride a bike with pedals.

We went around the block and there he was, pedaling away.

I am a big fan of balance bikes.

They have been around in Europe for a while now

and I am glad they are getting more popular here.

It only took Max about a week

to feel confident enough on his bike

to pull up both of his legs and glide along.

It was just the natural thing to do.

Now he is doing all sorts of tricks.

I love to see this development.

In case you are wondering if I make Max ride his bike:

absolutely not.

It is totally up to him whether he wants to ride or sit in the chariot.

I just give him the option.

If he wants to ride, I still pull the chariot.

When he is tired, we just throw the bike in the back

(or lock it to a tree and get it on the way back)

and he plops into the trailer.

I love it.

Being able to ride your bike = Freedom

Inside Entertainment

What do you do when you have already played outside all morning and don't want to go back out in the cold and wind again? You come up with fun ideas to be wild inside. After (me) getting tired of playing "pretend", here is what the boys came up with:

I was having trouble with the camera and its flash. It just takes so long for it to actually take the picture that my timing was mostly off. Some turned out pretty well though.

As you can tell, jumping off the table is allowed at our house. That was one of the reasons we bought a cheap, foldable table. No need to worry about it. I like it that way. At least as long as we have young and wild boys around. You should see the tricks they do on/off our couch...

Sometimes I wish we could have nice stuff in our apartment that actually looks good, but this is not the right time. And I guess I am not ready for it either. I prefer cheap furniture over many rules any day.

What do you do with your kids when you are "stuck" inside for a while?

I Love My Hat

Hey, y'all!

It's me, Max!

I am back to tell you

about my favorite accessory.

(I am not actually sure if a hat

is considered an accessory,

but Mama does not know either.

She also says, she does not care.)

This is the hat I have been wearing

the last few weeks,

but, as you can tell,

I was not quite happy with it.

Just because I wear it 24/7

does not mean I like it.

So,

I went through our winter clothing box

and found this!

A super soft, super cute hat!

Never mind that it is Noah's.

It almost fits.

And Noah does not even mind...

He'd rather be wearing his helmet anyway.

So now I wear it everywhere I go.

Or don't go.

I wear it making puzzles...

(or whatever that thing

I am doing is called.)

I wear it biking...

(I like it much better than my helmet.

I hate that hard, uncomfortable thing.)

I wear it on our explorations...

I wear it for breakfast, lunch, and dinner...

And even in bed!

The other day I took it

in the bathtub with me,

but that did not go so well.

Now I know...

In other news:

I still wake up between 6 and 6:30 am.

I have been doing it

ever since we moved here.

So why stop now???

On top of that,

I also decided to drop my nap

about a month ago.

Because, why not???

Papa, Noah, and especially Mama

could not be happier

spending so much time with me

every day.

Even when I am really cranky and tired.

They think I am that cute!