Three Blogs in One

I have been MIA for a few days because we have had so much going on. I really meant to post, so here are the missing posts in one.

Ice, Ice Baby...

Last Friday, we got an ice storm and school was delayed again. It looked so pretty outside, just like someone had dipped everything in sugar. I took some pictures of our trees and holly bushes covered in ice because they looked so darn pretty. The girls and I had fun waiting for the bus when it did come looking at all the "ice leaves" (pulling the leaf-shaped ice off the tops of the leaves).

The not so good thing about an ice storm...my klutziness is magnified by about 100. Over the course of the weekend the ice melted and refroze about 3 times and on Sunday the walk down to our driveway was basically a sheet of ice. So, as I was walking to the van to go to church I fell and twisted my ankle. Now, I was smart enough to at least wear sensible shoes on the walk to the van instead of my heels, but still managed to fall anyway. Of course, we were already seconds from not leaving on time, so by the time we finally managed to get to church we were VERY late. I hate, hate, hate being late. It makes me crazy. And, as luck would have it, the only open seats were in the front row, so not only were we late, but everyone at church knew we were late. One of my worst nightmares.

Then, Sunday night we were hit with yet another ice storm. School was again delayed. It was also Kyle's first day at his new job and he didn't have to leave until 8:30, (Much better than the old time of 6:30! Just for the first day, though, it will be 7:30 from now on.) so he was able to have a nice breakfast with us and we all got to see him off.

Happy Birthday, Riley!!!!

Yesterday, my baby girl turned two! I still think of her as a baby, so now that she has reached toddler status I am in complete denial. She is so funny and we love watching her personality develop. She thinks she is just like the big girls, but at the same time milks her "babyness" to its full extent. As a friend said to me yesterday, she is a "hot ticket". She is so smart! At Kellen's dance class an older sister took her younger brother's toy away from him and he was chasing her crying like it was the end of the world. Riley went up to him and said almost as clear as day, "Why you kyin?" Then she went to the older sister and blessed the poor girl out. None of it was legible but clearly she let her have it. This morning, she was sitting in my lap while I was drinking my coffee and she looked up at me and said, "I haf baffee, too?" Kellen and Jenna never went through the terrible two's, they waited until they were three, but Riley is a whole other story. She wrote on the walls yesterday with a pink marker, bit Jenna and pulled her hair! Its hard to get mad at her, though, because when you are fussing at her, she gives you this sly little smile and its really hard not to laugh.

My Favorite Kind of Day

Today my wish came true. It's snowing!!!! The weather people are calling for anywhere from 5 - 10 inches! School was called off this morning before the snow even started. We still got up at the regular time (6:50) so we have had quite the morning. I made chocolate chip waffles, the girls have cleaned their rooms (totally needed to be done!), I cleaned the kitchen and dining room, swept and vacuumed and straightened the family room, the girls watched Rudolf and Frosty: Christmas in July and Winnie the Pooh's Christmas and now are just playing. Still on our to-do list for the day is for the girls to straighten up the play room, we are going to read lots of Christmas books and have hot cocoa, I need to address our Christmas cards that came two days ago (Sara - email me your new address!) and finish the book that I am reading.

My book, The Echo Maker by Richard Powers, is the reason why I haven't been able to blog. My book club meeting was yesterday and I have been trying to read this book for a month! Usually I finish a book in a week or less, but this book has been soooo slow. I will read for an hour and feel like I got nowhere. I didn't finish it in time for book club and have been assured that there is a twist at the end that no one expected. I am determined to finish it, but I don't think I would recommend it to anyone else! It has more medical mumbo-jumbo in it than I ever wanted to know. If I ever finish, I'll let you know if it was worth the trouble.

We already have at least three inches of snow and its only been snowing for 2 1/2 hours! I love a good snow day.