Winter Weather

It's been a relatively mild winter this year ... no ice storms like last year (ice is NOT nice). I mean, it's been cold ... which has been more noticeable to me as the heat has decided not to work in the suburban. First the hot air stopped blowing ... Gray filled up the antifreeze and then it worked again for a while, but soon wasn't working again. We need to get it in to be looked at. The seat heaters also went out. I LOVE my seat heaters and miss them so much.  My backside misses them most of all!

We have had some snow. Enough that Cooper made a snowman using his "snowman set" he received for Christmas.  We haven't really had any snowball fights or sledding like I recall in years past though. 

I remember one day in January, I looked out the window to see HUGEMONGOUS snowflakes falling. I'd never seen any that big. You really couldn't even call them "flakes" ... they were clumps. Very cool ... I grabbed the camera, but a picture doesn't really do them justice.

We had some fog too. I don't like driving in the fog, but I must admit it is rather cool. I love how it coats the trees and everything ... it's beautiful!

So while I don't really mind the mild winter, and it certainly makes building homes easier for Grayson ... we are wondering about the water situation. Since Gray bought the wave runners last summer, he's really invested in the water levels at the lakes.

Winter Weather

Look at those red, chapped cheeks!

SO cold!

We've had quite a bit of winter weather this year ... lots of snow, the freezing rain, fog and frost. On one of the first big snows this year, Colton went sledding with Randon a couple of times, and then we all just seemed sick of the snow and stayed inside unless we absolutely HAD to go out (the kids were off track, so they didn't really need to go anywhere. They've actually been wearing shorts lately, and just staying inside.)

After the snow falls, the wind blows ... and it "sculpts" the snow. It's a little hard to see in the picture above, but if you look closely, you can see the snow is lower in sections (by the fence and the back gate) and built up into a gentle circular slope in the center.  In places the snow is just an inch or two, and a couple of feet just a short distance away. All shaped naturally by the wind ...

The morning  frost on the trees looks lovely ... and the few times there were blue skies and sunshine could make a world of difference in how an otherwise dreary day would feel. On some of the "nice" days, the boys actually went outside and played a little basketball (still in shorts and t-shirts, brrrrrr).

Here's Cooper and a nice snowflake he made at school ...

Is spring coming?

Let it Snow

Friday was the first "sticking" snowstorm (the 1st official snowfall was in October, but it didn't stay around long enough for the kids to play). I took Callahan to school and came home to find Cooper and Colton dragging out the boots, gloves and hats (I was a little surprised they had found them!) and heading out to play.

 Keaton got dressed up and joined in on the fun, making a big pile of snow, then carving a hole in it. The picture at top (the "arch") was his finished product, but the hole started smaller ...

View from the front (above)

View from the back (below)

The boys molded snow shapes using buckets. The snow continued through Saturday, and Landon and Callahan joined in the fun too (I let Callahan take off his "boot" to put on boots). Landon pulled out all the old ice cream buckets and attempted to make an igloo (he destroyed it before I got pictures, it only got about halfway up before it started collapsing). 

... snowballs ... or a horizontal snowman?

More Snow, More Sledding

A couple posts ago, I wrote that we hadn't had a lot of snow... that post was premature. March came in like a lion with a pretty good blizzard. The boys went and stood in the snow and got completely covered in just moments. 

 Callahan was so cold
The hairs on his arms were standing straight up.

With even more snow on the ground, Randon's Razor was again put to good use, pulling the boys all around the park. They went Thursday AND Friday. The bigger boys were invited along too, and they had a blast. I stopped by the park and got some pictures and video. Randon's mom also took a lot of great shots. I made a little muvee  ... it was SNOW much fun!

Of course there was some throwing of snow too ...

Don't throw a snowball at ME!

Some Snow

 It's been a really mild winter. Last week we got a little bit of snow and Colton was invited to go sledding with a friend. I had recently been going through the storage and did have a snowsuit, boots, gloves, etc. on hand. I think it's the first time Colton had been bundled up this much ... he had a little trouble walking around, looked like a little penguin. *Ü*

Randon's family came and picked Colton up in their Razor. This wasn't the first time Colton had been taken for a ride in the razor (previous post here) but this Winter ride was different. They went to the little park in our neighborhood, and pulled the sleds from behind it.  Lot of quick turns and spills. When Colton came home, he was beaming and said "this was the funnest day of my ENTIRE life!"

The older boys were actually jealous! They did go out and play in the snow as well though. Cooper got all bundled up, but it actually wasn't that cold out. The bigger boys prepped for a snowball fight, but of course ONE second after this picture was taken,  Landon tried to knock the snowballs out of Keaton's hands, but hit him in the nose instead. Bloody nose and a crying Keaton ... and that was the end of the "fun" for the bigger boys.  Cooper did stay out and attempted to piece together a tiny snowman. He did end up putting arms and a face on, but then destroyed it before I got a picture. Here's one I took as he got started ...

February is almost over ... 

I wonder how much more snow is in the forecast?

Brrrrothers

The weather was SO nice on April 1 ... I remember contrasting it with last year when we got SNOW ... well, the winter weather was a couple days later this year, but it hit just as hard. I woke up around 3:00 in the morning and it seemed so bright outside, I thought it was morning! It was just the moon reflecting off a blanket of white covering everything. And the snow continued to fall throughout the day. I know we had a snow in late May last year, I hope we don't get a repeat of that! Landon and Callahan decided to go jump in the snow with just their shorts on ... um, okay ...

Brrrrothers

Shifting Seasons

It doesn't seem so long ago that it was summer ... then school was back in session and the days started getting a little shorter. I LOVE autumn, but here in Utah it so often seems to shift so quickly from warm to cold, summer to winter, we don't often get to experience much of the fall splendor. There had been some cooler days, but the kids were still wearing shorts and t-shirts each day. After returning home last Sunday from a cousin's birthday bash, the house was a chilly 66 degrees ... so we turned on the heat for the first time (gotta love the smell throughout the house the first time the heat gets turned back on after a long hiatus). A storm rolled in that night and we woke to snow, but the kids STILL put on shorts (and the snow didn't last very long). Then yesterday, more snow. Enough that the kids wanted to go out and play. We had to look through drawers to find the forgotten long pants, dig out the boots, gloves, hats and coats. With a couple of kids from next door, they made the first snowman of the season ... he was a bit tilted (see above), and after several hours in the sun, he was even MORE so (see below) ...

Long sleeves present a bit of a problem with Cooper's cast, most arm holes aren't big enough to go over the bulk. But the coat was fine, and we even put a glove over the hand ... you couldn't even tell he had a broken arm! I noticed that Colton's pants were a couple inches too small. He sure has grown since the spring. I'll have to spend some time going through all the closets and drawers, putting the "cold weather" clothes that still fit front and center, moving items too small for one boy to the closet of the next (one of the perks of having all boys!) . I just wish I could find a good solution for all the winter wear (gloves, hats, boots, coats) that gets strewn all over after the kids come in from playing outside.

The snow has since melted, and the kids were outside playing tag and soccer again today ... but the chill is in the air ... sweater weather is here, calling for hot chocolate and chicken soup. I certainly don't mind if the snow stays away for a while ... let us enjoy the fall season *Ü*

Spring Snow

Is May 24 still considered "spring"? Just ONE week ago we hit 80 degrees and the kids were in swimsuits having a water fight in the back yard. My lilacs just bloomed ... and this morning? Snow!

The first thing Colton said as I pointed to the snow falling out the window was "Oh no, we put away the boots!" I keep a big basket right as the kids walk in the front door. During the winter months, this is where we keep the boots. For the summer months, it's the storage spot for balls, mits and summer sandals. Up until just a few days ago ... it STILL had boots in it. Although it's been a rainy spring, I figured it was safe to put the boots away. Silly me! But in truth, the snow isn't really sticking around. The sun is out and it's melting fast. Several years ago, there was a popular song with the line "sometimes the snow comes down in June" ... and I remember once we did actually get some snow in June ... will we this year, or was this the last snow of the season?

Mother Nature's April Fools Joke

April 1st ... Spring Break ... SNOW ... looks a little like the picture I take Christmas morning! I do adore a Southern exposure though, no shoveling (or at least a lot less) ...

The poor tetherball with it's little snow cap ... this ball is pretty beat up and flat, but I figured I wait until spring (REAL spring) before replacing it.

I don't think the kids will be riding their bikes today ...