...and Part 2

From our front porch...

I think that I've been in denial about how much snow we actually got in March. Or I just needed to wait until it had all (or, honestly, most but not all) melted to finish blogging about it. I love a good snowfall but when you get several feet, it just out stays it's welcome!

The boys were thrilled when just days after the first big snowfall we got slammed with a couple more feet. I was just glad that yet again we were all snowbound together!

Starting to play

Just so much snow!

Yes, he really is that light!

The little "mountain" in our front yard.

Apparently the walking got to be too much for him. : )

The side view of the snow from the driveway.

Another mountain to climb!

It even proved to be a challenge for the big one!

In up to his waist

Since it wasn't sledding snow...Jacob turned it into swimming snow!

Scaling Mt. Marsh...

...so that he could dive off! He used this opportunity to practice his "fingers first" dives.

Not to be outdone!

Now we're on to treasure hunting!

Unfortunately, they didn't find gold and jewels...but they sure had fun trying!

As always, ending the time outside with his "warm" cocoa. (Better known as lukewarm chocolate milk to the rest of the world!)

Snowapalooza, Part 1

Back at the beginning of the month, the heavens opened up and our little corner of PA (and much of the East Coast!) was blanketed in white! It was a sight to behold and the boys were absolutely thrilled...as was their Mommy since it took place on a Saturday and there was no doubt that we'd all be snowbound together.

The boys were so excited to get snow that they could actually play in. All of our previous storms had either ended to late in the day or were just not that impressive. No matter how many warnings that we gave him that the snow might be too deep for him, Zack was not to be deterred! Despite about 16-18 inches of snow, he prevailed and had a blast!

Jacob is sitting, not standing but still, it was really deep!

The standing picture

Attempting to sled...nothing really happened until we spent some time making a "track."

We found that this method worked best.

Trudging through the front yard.

So much snow that even the big one could stand on top without sinking.

Eventually, little one joined in on the face first sledding.

The wind blew hard enough that this guy ended up cold.

Ready for cocoa!

My baby turned 4!

I'm feeling the guilt of neglecting the second child just a little as I write this post from January. On January 9, my baby turned four...and I am just now writing about it. However, we celebrated that day in style...he had no complaints!

We started the day opening presents. More Dragon Castle pieces from Uncle Timmy and Aunt Rachel started things off.

Uncle Jon Jon, Aunt Mary Katherine, and Cousin Ben sent an Iron Man cartoon DVD. It is now in the official "must watch" rotation.

Opening Grandma and Grandad's gifts.

Not to be left out...there were even a few things for big brother in the box.

More Dragon Castle figures. He now has most of the set...and one on it's way that Nana hunted down.

Lunch was a trip to McDonalds for Happy Meals. They'd been asking to do this for weeks.
You can tell how excited Jacob was to have his picture taken.

If I only knew how to Photoshop...this pic of Jacob and the other one of Zack would be perfect!

Another thing that Zack had been asking to do for forever was go back to Cedar Lanes and go bowling. Instead of a big party at the church, we did lunch and bowling as a family and a smaller party at our house that evening. All of this took place on this actual birthday...making it absolutely perfect!

A little assistance from Daddy.

Getting ready to throw the ball.

Watching his ball inch it's way down the alley. It actually went faster than it did the last time we bowled...practice makes perfect!

Jacob had a little more finesse to his form.

Rolling the ball more smoothly. However, he was extremely disappointed that it wasn't as easy to get strikes and spares as it is when bowling on the Wii.

Pizza party with his friends. Can you guess what the theme of the party was?

Blowing out his candles.

A big piece of cake...surprisingly, Daddy had to help him finish it!

Opening his presents from Mommy and Daddy and his friends.

It's the Amazing Spidermen!

My grandmother, Meme, scored big with the gift she gave the boys this year. Lifted from Zachary's Christmas list was an item that he wanted not only for himself but "one for Jacob too." My children are now the proud owners of The Amazing Spiderman Electronic Web Spinning Blasters. Complete with web fluid and a mask.

A little problem presented itself upon inspection of the web blasters instructions. The web fluid included extensive warnings about all of the surfaces NOT to have the material come in contact with...a list that included carpet, furniture, and clothing. Needless to say, they weren't going to be playing with these things in my house! Since it's winter, extremely cold outside, and there was snow on the ground, to say the boys were not happy with this pronouncement would be an understatement!

God must have been smiling on us all that weekend. The sun came out, the temperatures rose to a reasonable level, and the snow melted away. The boys dressed in old clothes and had a blast running around the front yard, masks on, shooting each other and the entire lawn. I'm sure you can imagine how extremely disappointed I was that they ran out of web fluid in just this one outing! However, on the bright side, the blasters come with a mechanism that allows you to shoot water instead and the boys are presently counting the days until it's warm enough to do so.

Jacob getting started.

Thinking it was funny to shoot at Mommy.

Little man needed two hands to make it work.

Their favorite part...getting to shoot at each other and not getting in trouble for it!