We had the best week mostly homebound because the snow minus a few trips to work. So many memories and so many pictures. Trying to organize the pictures into something organized would take forever, so we'll just go with random.
Darrin was recruiting when the snow started last Sunday. He opted to come home early and I opted for a trip to Walmart with Stephanie to get some last minute groceries and snack foods. That turned out to be one of the best decisions I made all week. The grocery stores are out of everything still.
We ended up getting six inches of snow. I was really surprised that it wasn't more. It snowed so hard two different days and flurried and sleeted in between.
The boys have never played outside as much as they did this week.
They were outside between 4-6 hours almost every day. I put Aquafor on their faces and chapstick on their lips everyday. I don't know if it helped, but I feel like they needed something since they aren't used to the cold. They faired well, so we'll assume it helped.
We are the only ones with a hill in our yard, so we were the place to play. That meant playing with neighbors that they don't usually spend time with, which was a great bonus. They climbed the hill many times. Carson carried his own sled like a champ, even when the sled was a two person pool float :)
I played out in the snow some, but I also had to work. My bank actually closed two days last week. I can't remember another time we have closed in the twenty years I've worked there. This was our street, but this is what the roads looked like most of the way to work.
The boys drank lots of hot chocolate. They would usually play outside in the morning for a couple hours and then go back out in the afternoon. Hot chocolate was a must when they came inside and was usually a good way to get Carson to come in.
This kid was an absolute trooper. He played so hard every day and crashed every night. He had very few meltdowns all week. He was in his element this week, playing outside until the point of exhaustion.
I told the boys that yesterday might be the last day of snow because the temperatures started to rise. They both had friends over and played outside for 4.5 hours straight. Carson may or may not have peed in a cup just so I wouldn't have to take off his snow gear in the middle of the 4.5 hours :) Unfortunately, they both got a major sunburn because the sun was so bright.
I think the number one thing that made the week the best is the fact that the boys can play together now. They were outside together the whole time. The neighbors are close to their ages and they came over together everyday. That combination was perfect and they played together so well. I didn't get any pictures of the four of them. I literally don't know how I managed that. I'm pretty sad about it because they were a big part of our week.
They wore the same snow clothes all week. Thankfully, I bought some right after Christmas so we would be prepared. Having good gear made all the difference. They had good boots, water resistant gloves, and snow bibs. I washed everything last night and put it away, probably for another year.
Even on the days the temperature didn't get out of the teens, they were outside for hours and hours.
This is the crew we had over yesterday. Eight boys and one girl. She was a champ. She is the neighbor that has been over everyday this week, so really they were coming to her turf :)
Another mom, Abby, stayed with me while they played. We had fun hanging out together and time flew by. We fed them pizza rolls, onion rings, and chips on the tailgate. Abby and I just found whatever we had left after a week at home. They devoured it. It turned out to be a good set up. No one complained, so hopefully they all go something to eat.
This picture was taken at the beginning of the week when we had a little snow and a lot of ice. It was sleeting like crazy in this picture.
Thankful for a warm house during a frigid week. Also thankful for no snow injuries, car accidents, or problems with the house from the weather. Counting our blessings.
Total opposites. This is standard lounge attire for them.
Carson took a nap one day, but usually just asked to go to bed every night around 7pm. He usually goes to bed at 8:45pm. Miles will never admit to being tired, but Carson is happy to surrender when he's done.
One morning was spent cleaning the house instead of going outside.
I had to take advantage of the help I had at home. Everyone had jobs. There was very little complaining and I was really happy to have a sparkling clean house for half the week.
More time outside with friends, Davis & Owen. They built tunnels in the snow all week. It kept them very occupied.
As crazy as Carson is about his clothes, he did not complain at all about the layers and layers of snow clothes. I guess when he wants to do something, clothing issues are secondary.
Darrin and I didn't get out in it much. The boys had each other and it was great to just be able to send them out to play. We watched TV, read books, worked, did puzzles, cooked, and did a few things around the house. For the most part, it was a chill week. I saw a lot of people on Facebook with cabin fever and I totally understand that, but I did not feel that way this week. It was a wonderful week full of memories for me. It was pure joy to see the boys play endlessly and have such a great time. We will remember this week forever!
