Some videos from this fall. Two of Nora flipping on her swing, one of Beth giggling on the swing (it just makes me happy...her laugh is contagious!) and one of the scary transformer light show we had during the big October Snowstorm.
Monday, November 28, 2011
November updates
It has been a very interesting month! We built about 3 snowmen, and have Halloween photos of the kids standing next to a giant snowman Danielle and Jeff built! We also spent the Saturday after Thanksgiving outside in just shirts! Andy cleared out the gutters and put up the Christmas lights wearing a t-shirt!
Nora insisted on being a tree frog for Halloween. For those who don't know, it's very difficult to find a tree frog costume with red eyes, orange hands AND orange feet in a child size 5/6 without breaking the bank! After much searching, I finally found a hooded sweater and matching corduroy pants that were the 'right' color green (according to my 4 year old). I made Beth an owl costume and really liked the way it came out. Both girls wore their costumes quite a bit before Halloween and even on Halloween! However, come a week later, when it was time to trick or treat, Nora was tired of her frog costume! I was happy to let her pick out any costume she wanted - we have plenty of fairy/princess dresses, pirate gear, farmer costumes, but a friend had a blue sea dragon costume and she LOVED it. Beth honestly thought she would be able to fly when we put her in the Owl costume for trick or treating and the look on her face when she couldn't fly was simply heartbreaking. We only did a short trick or treating - just around the block. kids still got plenty of candy (much of which I sent to work with Andy!).
The weather went from snowy, to warm, to cold to warm again. Very hard to figure out how to dress the kids. Even more confusing for the kids, who get to go out with just a sweater one day but need their heavier coats the next. I can't complain too much, we have been able to get in a few extra fall hikes, more biking and more swing-set time although I'm pretty sure the kids will still be swinging in the snow!
Nora insisted on being a tree frog for Halloween. For those who don't know, it's very difficult to find a tree frog costume with red eyes, orange hands AND orange feet in a child size 5/6 without breaking the bank! After much searching, I finally found a hooded sweater and matching corduroy pants that were the 'right' color green (according to my 4 year old). I made Beth an owl costume and really liked the way it came out. Both girls wore their costumes quite a bit before Halloween and even on Halloween! However, come a week later, when it was time to trick or treat, Nora was tired of her frog costume! I was happy to let her pick out any costume she wanted - we have plenty of fairy/princess dresses, pirate gear, farmer costumes, but a friend had a blue sea dragon costume and she LOVED it. Beth honestly thought she would be able to fly when we put her in the Owl costume for trick or treating and the look on her face when she couldn't fly was simply heartbreaking. We only did a short trick or treating - just around the block. kids still got plenty of candy (much of which I sent to work with Andy!).
The weather went from snowy, to warm, to cold to warm again. Very hard to figure out how to dress the kids. Even more confusing for the kids, who get to go out with just a sweater one day but need their heavier coats the next. I can't complain too much, we have been able to get in a few extra fall hikes, more biking and more swing-set time although I'm pretty sure the kids will still be swinging in the snow!
Our Snowtober snowman!
on Oct 30, we carved pumpkins with no electricity. Was a very good thing to do to pass the time!
Some of the damage from the storm. We were very lucky - only a branch on our fence. other neighbors were not so lucky!
Photo of the snowfall. This was taken after some compression and melting! We had MORE than this in our yard, despite the reports of nashua getting 5 inches!
Halloween at "Occupy Bedford Street"
Our carved pumpkins a week later. On our delayed trick or treating day. They got a little squishy, but still looked cute!
Halloween with the cutest kids!
I didn't take very many photos on Thanksgiving. We decided to just enjoy the day an the family and not worry about carting around the camera. Here is a photo of our kids watching the parade on TV. It didn't really hold their attention for very long (they really only enjoy watching animated programs).
Nora with her Thanksgiving meal.
Beth with her plate!
Beth listening to Daddy read her a Thanksgiving story.
So much to be thankful for
While February seems to linger, November just flies on by! We have had quite an exciting month, starting with the power outage, delayed Trick or Treating and Thanksgiving. The kids have been very high energy the whole month, which is tiring for me, but also nice to see.
I didn't post on Thanksgiving, but we had a wonderful day. A slow morning at home just the four of us, then around noon we traveled down to my sister's house for turkey dinner. It was a very easy year for cooking for Andy and I. I made apple pie and cookies (my dad loves toll house cookies, so I made him some). We picked up the turkey from a local farm on Monday and had dropped it off on Wednesday night for my sister and her mother in-law to cook. We also dropped off some squash and cabbage as well. The turkey was amazing! I think most everyone went back for seconds on the turkey, which is often unusual in my family. Carol did a great job roasting the bird and there were plenty of leftovers. We played outside with the kids for a bit, and enjoyed plenty of dessert! It was very odd to not have my grandparents there. They were certainly missed. They moved to Florida this year and this was the first major holiday celebration we had without them. They are missed, but we are very much looking forward to visiting them in the spring...when we just need a break from snowpants and boots for a few days!
This year, I have had so much to be Thankful for. My girls are both healthy and growing strong. They are playing together and it has been so wonderful watching them become friends. On occasion, I will even catch a glimpse of Nora hugging her sister and saying something like "you are the best baby sister ever" or "I'm keeping you as my sister for ever and ever." It's so sweet. I do my best to remember those moments when they are battling over a toy or who gets to pick the first story after lunch!
I'm also so thankful that Andy is able to support our family without me working. It's always a bit of a struggle, especially this time of the year, but I really do enjoy being with the kids. I would love to go back to work, preferably part time, but I just haven't found the right job. I think my problem is my heart is telling me I want to teach science. I just love watching a child when they are experimenting, especially that moment when it all comes together and starts to make sense! Beth will be in Kindergarten before I know it. I may look into teaching at a local community college for the next year or two, just to get my feet wet in front of a classroom!
I am also very thankful for living in New England. We get snow and ice and heat and humidity. But, we also get beautiful falls (maybe not THIS year), artisans, farms, mountains and oceans and a wonderful city all nearby. We can get most of our food locally sourced - meat/poultry, veggies, and a lot of fruit. There's even a local farm that makes beans! I will take the harsher winters and more humid summers over living in a location where there isn't the amazing availability for farming there is here! We are trying a new CSA this winter - Shared Harvest. It's two pickups, November and December (both the week before major holidays...). Lots of yummy veggies - potatoes, sweet potatoes, turnip, parsnip, salad mix, cabbage, squash, brussel sprouts, onions, and garlic. We even got apples! I'm very much looking forward to the November pickup!
I didn't post on Thanksgiving, but we had a wonderful day. A slow morning at home just the four of us, then around noon we traveled down to my sister's house for turkey dinner. It was a very easy year for cooking for Andy and I. I made apple pie and cookies (my dad loves toll house cookies, so I made him some). We picked up the turkey from a local farm on Monday and had dropped it off on Wednesday night for my sister and her mother in-law to cook. We also dropped off some squash and cabbage as well. The turkey was amazing! I think most everyone went back for seconds on the turkey, which is often unusual in my family. Carol did a great job roasting the bird and there were plenty of leftovers. We played outside with the kids for a bit, and enjoyed plenty of dessert! It was very odd to not have my grandparents there. They were certainly missed. They moved to Florida this year and this was the first major holiday celebration we had without them. They are missed, but we are very much looking forward to visiting them in the spring...when we just need a break from snowpants and boots for a few days!
This year, I have had so much to be Thankful for. My girls are both healthy and growing strong. They are playing together and it has been so wonderful watching them become friends. On occasion, I will even catch a glimpse of Nora hugging her sister and saying something like "you are the best baby sister ever" or "I'm keeping you as my sister for ever and ever." It's so sweet. I do my best to remember those moments when they are battling over a toy or who gets to pick the first story after lunch!
I'm also so thankful that Andy is able to support our family without me working. It's always a bit of a struggle, especially this time of the year, but I really do enjoy being with the kids. I would love to go back to work, preferably part time, but I just haven't found the right job. I think my problem is my heart is telling me I want to teach science. I just love watching a child when they are experimenting, especially that moment when it all comes together and starts to make sense! Beth will be in Kindergarten before I know it. I may look into teaching at a local community college for the next year or two, just to get my feet wet in front of a classroom!
I am also very thankful for living in New England. We get snow and ice and heat and humidity. But, we also get beautiful falls (maybe not THIS year), artisans, farms, mountains and oceans and a wonderful city all nearby. We can get most of our food locally sourced - meat/poultry, veggies, and a lot of fruit. There's even a local farm that makes beans! I will take the harsher winters and more humid summers over living in a location where there isn't the amazing availability for farming there is here! We are trying a new CSA this winter - Shared Harvest. It's two pickups, November and December (both the week before major holidays...). Lots of yummy veggies - potatoes, sweet potatoes, turnip, parsnip, salad mix, cabbage, squash, brussel sprouts, onions, and garlic. We even got apples! I'm very much looking forward to the November pickup!
Thursday, November 3, 2011
Trying to stay positive
We lost power Saturday night. It's Thursday near noon and still no power. Hoping soon.
We are fortunate in that we have town water and a gas cooktop, so we can still heat water and food (and make coffee with a french press) and flush the toilets without melting snow. However, we do not have an alternate heating source - no fire place or generator to warm the house. We stayed in our home Sunday night, but on Monday with no work crews nearby and the house cooling, we decided to pack up and head to my sisters house. If it were just Andy and I, we may have opted to stay home and just add a few layers. However after Sunday night trying to keep the kids warm enough (we each slept with one child), it was clear that we were going to need to be someplace warmer. Beth's room gets cold quickly (even at night) but she will not sleep in our bed or with blankets (and she doesn't sleep well if she's cold), so we knew we needed to do something. My sister got her power back late Sunday night, so on Monday we headed down. Then on Tuesday, we had to start thinking about our freezer stash. We had just recently picked up our meat CSA for the month and did not want to lose that. Again, we are fortunate to have friends with extra freezer space. I packed up the cooler and drove to a friends house with power and loaded her freezer. We kept the soups, which will thaw slowly in the cooler over the next few days and we'll just eat them up as we go.
I've stopped at home on both Tuesday and Wednesday to check on the house, pick up extra blankets/toys, toss or pack up food etc and the kids will not go into the house. Nora seems to be really struggling with the fact that our house has no heat or lighting, but she's happy to stay at Danielle's as long as we'll let her! Beth mostly just wants to go home.
On Sunday, we kept the kids busy with snowman building, pumpkin carving, coloring by candlelight more playing in the snow. They really enjoyed getting to play with glow sticks at night and it was a nice adventure. Monday was hectic because we were trying to pack up everything. I took the kids out to lunch (only the second time I've done that alone...I still just don't enjoy eating out with the two kids by myself, it's far too much stress). Tuesday, school was canceled so once I got the kids ready we ended up heading to a friends house for the afternoon. Nora was very quiet for most of the afternoon but perked up as soon as we returned to her aunt's house. Wednesday, we had Nora's tumbling class and then stopped at a toy store. The kids made tiara's and each picked out a game (they are both lots of fun!). Today, I can't convince Nora to get dressed, but she seems to be happy tearing apart Danielle's couch to make a fort and I just have very little energy left to stop her! I'm really hoping for a return to normal tomorrow. Nora has her first sports mania class in the morning - at 9am and I'm already worried about how to get her up and to the Y by 9am!
So anyway, I'm trying to remain positive and patient...but frustration and exhaustion are starting to win. I really want to sleep in my own bed, send Nora back to school and generally get back to our normal routine!
We are fortunate in that we have town water and a gas cooktop, so we can still heat water and food (and make coffee with a french press) and flush the toilets without melting snow. However, we do not have an alternate heating source - no fire place or generator to warm the house. We stayed in our home Sunday night, but on Monday with no work crews nearby and the house cooling, we decided to pack up and head to my sisters house. If it were just Andy and I, we may have opted to stay home and just add a few layers. However after Sunday night trying to keep the kids warm enough (we each slept with one child), it was clear that we were going to need to be someplace warmer. Beth's room gets cold quickly (even at night) but she will not sleep in our bed or with blankets (and she doesn't sleep well if she's cold), so we knew we needed to do something. My sister got her power back late Sunday night, so on Monday we headed down. Then on Tuesday, we had to start thinking about our freezer stash. We had just recently picked up our meat CSA for the month and did not want to lose that. Again, we are fortunate to have friends with extra freezer space. I packed up the cooler and drove to a friends house with power and loaded her freezer. We kept the soups, which will thaw slowly in the cooler over the next few days and we'll just eat them up as we go.
I've stopped at home on both Tuesday and Wednesday to check on the house, pick up extra blankets/toys, toss or pack up food etc and the kids will not go into the house. Nora seems to be really struggling with the fact that our house has no heat or lighting, but she's happy to stay at Danielle's as long as we'll let her! Beth mostly just wants to go home.
On Sunday, we kept the kids busy with snowman building, pumpkin carving, coloring by candlelight more playing in the snow. They really enjoyed getting to play with glow sticks at night and it was a nice adventure. Monday was hectic because we were trying to pack up everything. I took the kids out to lunch (only the second time I've done that alone...I still just don't enjoy eating out with the two kids by myself, it's far too much stress). Tuesday, school was canceled so once I got the kids ready we ended up heading to a friends house for the afternoon. Nora was very quiet for most of the afternoon but perked up as soon as we returned to her aunt's house. Wednesday, we had Nora's tumbling class and then stopped at a toy store. The kids made tiara's and each picked out a game (they are both lots of fun!). Today, I can't convince Nora to get dressed, but she seems to be happy tearing apart Danielle's couch to make a fort and I just have very little energy left to stop her! I'm really hoping for a return to normal tomorrow. Nora has her first sports mania class in the morning - at 9am and I'm already worried about how to get her up and to the Y by 9am!
So anyway, I'm trying to remain positive and patient...but frustration and exhaustion are starting to win. I really want to sleep in my own bed, send Nora back to school and generally get back to our normal routine!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
