First Snow

Today marks the first snowfall to stick to the ground- November 24, 2012.

 

 

Anna woke up super excited to see snow and wanted to go out to make a snowman.  There wasn't enough to make a snowman, but we did get bundled up and venture out.  Her gloves came off almost immediately, because she wanted to feel the snow.  We took a walk to the barn to see the cows, and to escape from the bitter wind.

 

Anna fed the cows.  Most of them were not interested in eating from her hand, but a few ventured closer to give her a sniff.

 



 

I couldn't resist putting baby Clara down and snapping a picture of her, too.

 

 

I took this next photo of Anna at the same age.

 

 



A Moment of Thanks

 

I am Grateful...

 

For God's very apparent presence in our lives.

For my daughters, whom I am privileged to parent, and with every small moment I cherish.

For my husband, and the wonderful life we've made together.

For the land, which provides such abundance for all people.

For our family, who provides a warm and loving safety net.

 

 

Wonderful Weekends!

I had a really great weekend.  I wish all of my days could be as good as the ones I had this weekend.  It was the perfect mixture of productive activity (cleaning, organizing, baking, cooking) and lazy play time with the girls.  I started a new series of books called the "Game of Thrones," that brings me back to when I was a teen and loved reading fantasy novels.  So I got some reading in.  And some filing and QuickBooks time. 

 

 

And I got baby toys out for Clara that I had stored away in the attic.

She especially loved this one, that flashes and plays music when you hit it.  Right up her alley, because she LOVES to hit things.  Did you ever see this video of her batting her toys around?

50 Posts

Clara's baptism was November 4th.  She was sooo adorable in her little white dress that my mom bought for her.  Like a little doll.  The baptism was wonderful, and I really felt the support from our family for Clara's faith and life with God.  I attended Sunday school every Sunday while growing up, but the past five years have felt like coming home.  I love our little Lutheran church, and what it is coming to mean to our family.

 

 

Afterward, we had a little luncheon that I put a lot of thought into.  The food was all easy to prepare, but there are always a million and one small details that you have to remember (and feel bad about forgetting).  I was happy to use some of our farm-raised produce in the soups.  For the beef vegetable soup, stew meat from one of our steers, green beans, corn, carrots, onions from our garden; and for the potato soup, the potatoes and onions.  I ordered a cake and had some help with some fruit salads.  A vegetable and cheese tray, rolls, and a salad rounded out the soup.  We have a ton of leftovers!

 

After Church, I did some cleaning, but mostly played with my two very exhausted girls.  Did I mention that daylight savings time ended on Sunday?  I really appreciated the extra hour to get ready in the morning, but the girls woke up at normal time and were well past their noon or 1pm naptime.  But they were so tired that they couldn't close their eyes for more than half an hour, much to my dismay.  I was hoping to catch a little catnap.

 

Despite being extra tired, Clara happily sat playing with toys.  Yes, she sat.  For a long time... until she fell backward with a clunk.  I'll keep the boppy behind her just in case for another week or so until she's a little more steady. 

 

Such a simple accomplishment.  But so momentous for babies!

 

Another momentous occasion?  Over 50 posts on Ginny's Happy Family.

Clara, almost 6 months old.

Halloween!

In preparation of Hallowen, we carved a giant pumpkin.  See previous post for an adorable picture of Clara in a pumpkin.  Here is Anna's pumpkin picture:

 

And Anna's pumpkin picture from last year.  Can you believe how much she's changed?  She's not facing the camera because she wasn't too thrilled about this idea.

 

Here are some more pictures of Clara's pumpkin adventure.

 

At first, we're loving it!

 

But then she gets tired and her legs give out...

 

Ugh, mom, this is hard work trying to stay up!

 

Annnnd, she gives up.  And bites the pumpkin.

 



Anna was a doctor/nurse.  She loves her doctor's kit and giving people check ups.  She's even got the "ga boom, ga boom" sound effects going when she checks your heart.

 



 

She was pretty excited about trick or treating, and actually understood the concept this year.

 

I watched in dismay as she devoured her candy. She's never really tried a Twix, Reese's, Snickers, or Milky Way. I would not win the mother of the year award for her balanced meals every day, but I do try hard to not let her consume candy, cookies, and pop on a regular basis (actually, no pop EVER).

So Anna's third Halloween ended in a sugar rush as she tried various different candies, including a dum dum sucker, twix, whoppers, and a very chewy snickers. 

Clara was a cow, and she tolerated the whole ordeal of being carted from house to house with good humor. 

Happy Halloween!