Winter Beauty

Winter is a beautiful time...here are a few pictures from our yard today.

Check out this icicle! It reaches all the way from the roof the the deck!

This is one of the driveway markers. We had freezing rain last night, blowing from the west. It made a very interesting one-sided coating on everything.

The trees looked so pretty, layered in ice and snow.

Dumped On

From the evening of December 31 through Tuesday evening, January 5, it snowed pretty much without stopping. The kids even had a snow day on January 4. It takes alot for that to happen around here. It was quite an event even for here in the "Snow Capital of Ohio." We enjoyed spending most of the time here at home, venturing out to play in the snow and clear the driveway.

For an idea of how hard the wind was blowing, check out our garage. We had not opened the door yet. Apparently, there are some tiny gaps between the door and the garage floor. The snow blew in about knee high!


Katie loved trying to walk through the snow!

Look how deep it is! See that pole next to Jacob? That is the driveway marker pole.

Katie and Jacob in their tunnels

The kids had a blast digging through the snow!

Can you see the driveway?

Thank goodness for snowblowers!

The finished product

Gone Visiting

On January 2, we traveled to Plymouth, MI, to visit with relatives. My cousin Marilyn graciously hosted a get together. We always enjoy spending time together, hearing great family stories. It made for a long day, with three hours driving each way, but it was worth it. The forecast for Chardon was heavy snow all day, but the whole way home it was clear until we got off the interstate about 5 miles from our house. We thought maybe the forecast had been wrong. The snow started falling almost immediately once we made it onto the back roads, and by the time we reached our house, the snow was flying. We have our own little micro-climate! More pictures on that coming up.

My uncle Nick, and his sister, Auntie Anne, who still lives on her own at the age of 95!

Emma with Aunt Muriel, and Katie with Marilyn and Ron

A dream fulfilled

Joe has certain foods that he has ummm....a very strong aversion to because of childhood experiences. Two of those foods are chili and stuffed peppers. I joke that the smell of green peppers cooking makes him cry. But it's not far from the truth. Consequently, I have never cooked stuffed peppers in all the years we have been married. Katie brought this to my attention around Christmas time. She said she would like to try them. Well, as luck would have it, Joe was out of town the week after Christmas, so I did some looking around online and found a recipe that looked good. Joseph, Katie, and I loved them; Emma devoured the filling, and Jacob was happy to eat leftovers since the recipe only made four. I think I have a new dish to prepare for any time Joe isn't here!

Christmas and skating

Christmas morning. Emma was delighted that Santa took the time to reply in detail to the letter she had left for him.

Other than the issues with diabetes which I already mentioned, it was a very relaxing and fun day.

Katie was happy with what Santa brought.

Joseph was still waking up.

Emma loved the American Girl clothes from Grammy.

Jacob in his Patriots bean bag chair

Christmas dinner--we love ham!

In the afternoon, Emma read one of her new books to her new Webkinz.

Jacob got a number of very complicated legos sets. He had them all completed within 2 days.

On the 26th, before taking Grammy to the airport, we went ice skating.

Christmas Eve gifts

After watching "A Christmas Story" in the afternoon, we ate dinner, and then the kids gave the gifts that they had picked out. We like to do that on Christmas Eve so it doesnt' get lost in the shuffle of Christmas morning. The kids put alot of thought into the gifts, and enjoyed giving them out.

Daddy opens his window scraper with a mitten from Katie

Emma was thrilled to get a teddy bear from Jacob.

We left cookies, milk and a note from Emma for Santa. He wrote back.

Christmas Eve sledding

Christmas Eve, we went sledding at the "chalet" in Chardon. The hill is alot steeper than our yard, so they were really flying. Grammy and I watched this time.

Grammy!

Grammy arrived on December 22. That evening, she and Joe and the kids went sledding. I don't sled. My back can't take it. And it was too cold to just be standing around out there. So I took some pictures and ran back inside.

Joseph "surfing"

The next day, Emma taught Grammy how to play "Ticket to Ride." It ended badly. Emma's strategy consists of completing all of her routes. When she realized she wasn't going to be able to finish one, she was distraught.

Winter Solstice Walk

Our county park district does a Winter Solstice Walk every year. We thought it looked fun, so we went. So did alot of other people. We had to park in the overflow parking and get shuttled over to the location. It was really cold, and my toes were numb by the end, but it was fun. There was a brass band playing Christmas songs in the lodge, and then we went to seven stations, each one acting out and explaining the traditions of a different culture regarding the winter solstice and Christmas. Will we go again next year? Not sure, but it was great to do at least once.

In the lodge listening to the band. Katie wasn't feeling great. Can you tell?

Santa and Buddy the Elf

Ancient Egypt

Vikings