Wintertime

We had an ice storm over the weekend while much of the country was also dealing with winter weather.  Luckily we did not lose power like last year.  We have remained toasty inside while the temperatures have stayed below freezing.

We did go outside for a little bit once the storm had past.  The girls don't really remember last year's snow, so this felt like a new experience for them.  They were disappointed that they couldn't make a snowman and name him Frosty (you can tell what we watched recently).  It was mostly ice and did not want to be shaped into a snow ball.  Maybe we'll get some real snow this winter for them to play in before we move back to southern California and minimize our chance of every seeing much snow again.

 

 

They got to hold icicles for a bit which made me a little wary, but we kept a close eye on them.  Poking out their own eyes or each others luckily did not cross their minds.



I knitted them some mittens last spring, planning ahead for this winter.  They are still a bit big for them and awkward but at least they helped keep their hands warm.  It was cold out there!

 

The mittens have different fair isle patterns on them but the pastel colors make it hard to see unless you are looking at them closely.  I can't decide whether I am happy with my color choice or not.  Most of the time I like to knit bright colors for them.

 

The girls and I haven't ventured out since Thursday and tomorrow is also not looking good unless it really warms up in the afternoon.  Both our driveway and our cul-de-sac is steep and getting out to the main roads is difficult.  I also don't really know what I'd do if we got stuck.  Digging our car out of ice and snow was hard enough in New York, when I was in great shape.  I really don't see myself able to do much a few weeks away from delivering a baby.

 

 

Science Time

My husband's parents came for Thanksgiving week and it was lovely.  Two extra people helping around the house and keeping the girls busy.  Not a vacation for me but I was definitely able to take some long breaks.  We were very busy with family pictures, story time, a visit to the Museum of Discovery, Thanksgiving dinner and a trip to the Zoo.  The girls had such a nice time getting spoiled.

We are back to our usual routine.  The girls are delving deeper into the murky waters of the terrible twos.  I'm tired and losing my patience with them more than I wish.  They just aren't listening much and throwing more fits over little things.  I know it will get a lot worse once baby sister arrives before it gets better.  But at least it is Christmastime and I love Christmas!

 

This morning we tried out a 'science' activity.  They created a chemical reaction by mixing an acid and a base.  Of course the particulars of that did not matter to them.  They liked playing with an eye dropper for the first time.  And they liked how the baking soda foamed when they dropped colorful vinegar onto it.  Since it is December, I choose red and green food coloring for the vinegar. 

 

 

D needs to work on her timing with squeezing and releasing the eye dropper bulb.  But T got the hang of it and didn't need help from me after the first few tries.  There was very little mess and they had fun.  Success!