February

In comparison to last year, we had a very different winter.  Much less snow and much less germs!  But, February came through for us.

February break started with a sick Gavin.  He woke up the first Sunday of break, complaining of feeling so tired and was really emotional.  Through the day, he started saying his head hurt, took a nap but couldn't quite quick the grogginess, etc.  I knew he wasn't feeling well because of the tears...he's a really emotional sick person.  I took him to the doctor on Monday afternoon, and sure enough, strep throat.  What a way to kick off February break!  But...within just a couple days, he was back to 100% and we enjoyed a nice week off from school. 

And then, surprise!  The snow finally found it's way to Arkansas.  We ended up with an extra long February break because of the bonus of two snow days.  Once Daddy got home that Monday (because Mommy wasn't feeling the best that day), the kids got to go out and enjoy a little snow time.  I love playing in the snow!

That same night, Gavin went to bed saying his belly was hurting, and we were awaken around 10 that night to him getting sick.  Fun stuff.  But, it was a one time thing and he seemed fine the next day. 

Fast forward to this week, and this time our Monday morning started off bright and early with little miss saying her tummy didn't feel good.  That was the start of 12 hours of constant vomiting.  First stomach bug for our baby girl.  She was pathetic!  And while she's still not back to her normal self, she did eat about 1/4 of a bagel this morning and has kept it down.  The sweet girl is napping right now and I am keeping my fingers crossed that she may wake up wanting to eat a little more.  We sure have spent a lot of time on the couch with Disney Jr. over the last 24 hours!

Of course, the snow and germs has thrown my training schedule for a bit of a loop and I'm behind on my miles for February, but I'll get there.  Just 4.5 weeks until the race!  I did my longest run to date last weekend...7.8 miles. :)  Shooting for 8.5 this weekend.

What is a Snow Day?

Snow day???  What is that?  I wasn't sure when we moved here if my kids would even see snow regularly and that kind of made me sad.  Obviously, I had nothing to be sad about!  We've had snow every winter we've lived here so far, and now that we're in school, I realize just how much that snow impacts this area!  We now have ELEVEN snow days to make up.  ELEVEN!!

So, what do we do on our snow days?  Well, let's see...this past week, we had three.  So, from Sunday-Wednesday, we didn't leave the house.  I literally would go from my pajamas in the morning to workout clothes to the shower to yoga pants to pajamas....and it repeated itself for four days!  With the kids taking turns being sick, we didn't get out to play in the snow this time; just took advantage of play time, movies, snuggles, and hot cocoa.  And I finally got my camera out for the first time in ages, and captured these cuties.

Gavin rotated through Legos, Star Wars, and Angry Birds.

Riley's new favorite thing to do is flip the ottomans over so they're all over the living room and then stand on them to jump to the couch, or like these pictures, to pretend they're her stage.

 The kids pulled all their instruments out to do some performing together as the Great Pate Band.  Gavin said Riley is the singer and he plays the instruments but Riley felt she could easily do both!

 I also attempted to clean out the craft closet.  I thought I was a genius mom....popped popcorn at 8:30am and let the kids pick out movies for a movie marathon!  Surely that would keep them entertained, right?

Within five minutes, Riley was in the toy room with me taking things out of the closet as I was trying to organize them.  Needless to say, the craft closet did NOT get cleaned out that morning.

So....we've now lost pretty much all of our May break.  Kind of sucks because the advantage to year round school was all the breaks....and now he'll go from the end of March til the end of June without any breaks.  Not only that, but they're mentioning Saturday school may be an option if we have more snow days.  Luckily, we're supposed to get more snow this week and it's an off week for us.  So...we won't have to make up any snow days that occur this week for the rest of the district.  Fingers crossed we don't have any more this winter....I think I speak for MANY people when I saw we're ready for spring!

A Winter Wonderland

Gosh, I love it when it snows!  It's something I've always said when Jarrod would talk about a new job a potential move...I had to be somewhere that had some seasons!  Of course, living at the beach would be awesome, but I'd miss the beauty of the snowflakes.  {But, give me another month and I'm certain I'll be ready for warm weather again!} 
We got our first snowfall pretty early here.  And when it snows here, it shuts down much of the city.  We don't have the appropriate equipment to clear roads, and this time it was much worse because we got ice first, then about 9 inches of snow.  When the snow would melt a little through the day, it would just freeze up again overnight, making the ice thicker and the roads worse.  Gavin had a total of FIVE snow/ice days!  Many friends were complaining of being stir crazy, and I couldn't have disagreed more....we had so much fun being  homebound.  Lots of family time {Jarrod did go to work each day, but he went in later than normal and was home early}, lots of playing in the snow, lots of hot chocolate!

Riley was just getting over being sick and we didn't want to make it flare up again so our time outside was limited before she'd start coughing and I had to bring her back in.  She sucked on some candy canes to help soothe her throat and calm the cough, and couldn't wait to go back out the next time.  We had so much fun!

 

The kids loved jumping off the porch into the snow.

These are definitely not all great photos, but I love the goofiness that is Gavin in them.  You can tell just how much fun he was having!

 

  

 

We remembered the sled Mimi bought us when we were moving to NY and the kids both absolutely loved going for sled rides around the front yard.  Bonus for Daddy....cardio workout!

Next up...a little baseball game using a rake and snowballs!

 I even was able to get in a couple photos! :)

 And this was the first year that Gavin actually enjoyed hot chocolate, so that was a special memory.  They loved coming in and having some in a couple of Riley's teacups from her Minnie Mouse tea set.

Considering we already have five make up days for school, I don't know if I really want anymore snow, but I wouldn't mind too much if I got stuck inside again with these special people.  Doesn't look like we'll have any snow for Christmas this year, but at least we don't have anywhere to go for the next few days so we can pretend to be snowed in and spend lots of quality time together!

 

Snow!

Snow!!  The day we got our new van {yes!!!  I still have to blog about the van!!} we got some snow, too.  It was a fantastic day!  We didn't get home until 4ish that day and Gavin was begging to go out into the snow.  I was afraid it would be our only snow of the season, so we bundled up in the best snow gear I could find (no one has snow boots that fit this year!) and attempted to play.

I say 'attempted' because even though she looks like she's having fun, this little girl wanted nothing to do with the snow.  She lasted less than 10 minutes outside and wouldn't even touch the snow.  I'm hoping next time, if we get more snow this winter, she'll enjoy it more so we can all play outside together for a little longer.

Snow Day!

It's hard to believe that our windows are open, I just brought Riley in from playing outside, and Gavin's still out there in the sandbox, when just 10 days ago we were outside enjoying our first {and probably last} snow day of the year {and Riley's first snow day EVER!}

 We got just enough snow overnight to go out and play...but not enough for Daddy to get to stay home with us!  By the time he got home, the snow had turned to freezing rain, so we didn't get to enjoy any play time with him.  

Riley loved being outside!  But, it was so bright that she couldn't quite keep her eyes open.  :)

When we moved to NY, my mom gave us this sled, but unfortunately, it was so buried in the garage there with all our boxes, we never found it to use it!  I was recently in the attic and saw it, so it was fresh on my mind when we got this snow.  Gavin enjoyed pulling Riley around, and after she was back inside, I pulled Gavin back and forth MANY times across our yard.  Talk about a workout!  Mama was tired!

Though it might look like it, Riley wasn't really wearing many layers.  She had her outfit on, and then we put on this adorable snowsuit that my friend Stacey gave us.  But...every time I'd sit her down, she'd go from this....

...to this, in no time at all!

And yes, I'm such a good mom that I did it again on purpose after I figured it out so I could take her picture.  Mom of the year, right?

We had a blast out there, and I'm so glad that we still get a chance to occasionally experience snow down here in Arkansas so that the kids {and ME!} can have all four seasons and play in the snow!  I love the snow.  :)