What to do when the snow is up to your neck

We took the kids out for the first time on snow shoes this season and they did very well. It got dark very quickly so we had to beat it out of there in a rush to get back to the car. Next time we'll leave more time for enjoying the scenery (and some hot chocolate. The boys really only seem to care about the hot chocolate at the end of every wintery escapade.)

Liam watching darkness fall, very quickly.

Sadie still walks like a slightly drunken sailor. Although she has started to pick up speed lately, she's still not ready for her own snow shoes. She got to ride on my back, but boy, is she getting hefty! I took one header into the snow and with her pulling me head first into a drift, I was glad Chris was with us to pull her off me so I could dig myself out!

Eamon did GREAT! The snow is probably at least neck high on him now so after a few missteps initially, he was a happy little trekker.

Colin taking a wee rest before we packed it in for the return trip.

Fur: the long and the short of it.

Eamon, so happy that he got his own scissors for Christmas came to me one night with a fist full of hair while I was making dinner, saying: "Mommy, do you think this hair is from the cat??" Assuming he'd found a dust bunny or actually cut hair off the cat, I said, distracted: "Um, yeah, I do, Eamon." "Nope, it's mine!" Little Bugger.

Good thing he didn't give Clara a trim too because she apparently doesn't even have enough fur to stay warm and comfy without three pillows and a blanket to help out.

Ten minutes in the life of Eamon

Eamon snagged my camera and secretly took it over for about 10 minutes before I caught the little bugger. This is just a smattering of the nearly 50 photos he took in that time!

Star Wars cartoon on the TV.

Still life with art stuff.

Feet, a self-portrait.

Liam. Obviously for blackmail in high school when he wants to borrow the car.

Headless brothers in their natural habitat (aka Watching Aforementioned Star Wars cartoon)

Sleepy-messy-faced sister. (Hopefully for purposes of embarrassment later in life when her first suitor comes a-calling.)

Daddy.
(A nice composition and one of the few that didn't have the photographer's pudgy fingers over the lens)

Old Sturbridge Village

Just a few of the beautiful views of Old Sturbridge Village in Winter.

And some of the fun we had. Liam showing off his prized giant icicle that he used as a sword. (No blood was shed, miraculously). Colin loved the old arms shed the best and posed as a militiaman. Liam's interpretation of what a young boy might feel like with that tight lace collar on. Colin and Eamon took Rudolph for a ride. Sadie and I explored some old homes. She missed the cheese room in the basement since she was trapped in the stroller but she loved meeting the cows outside and learned to say "moo!". We all took a sleigh trek around the commons. Eamon climbed the 3 year old version of Mt. Everest. We can't wait to go back for old fashioned sledding and maybe a hot toddy in the tavern next time!

Baby curls

I want to remember these golden angelic curls (on a decidedly no-longer-angelic baby). The big brown eyes will stay but I keep hearing the curls will be gone when she gets her first hair cut. I don't know how she is my genetic offspring, but I'll keep her nonetheless.

New Year's dozen.

Cousins, cousins, everywhere. They just get bigger every year. And louder, at least in my estimation. When I was young, one of my favorite books was called Eight Cousins by Louisa May Alcott. This is the updated version: more adventures, more trouble, more fun, more kids!

Over the fields we go, laughing all the way!

We were thrilled to have a White Christmas (it would just be wrong not to) and more thrilled with the extra foot of fluffy stuff we got right afterward! Miss Sadie got introduced to snow for the very first time! She loved it and stayed out for over an hour even though it was very cold and windy. She was less thrilled about sledding down alone, but happy to go with a big brother or two.

Liam and Eamon got new Mini Luge sleds for Christmas which are fast and fun (and good for me because they carry them up by themselves). Colin practiced his sled surfing in preparation for using the new skateboard HE got for Christmas. (Of course, now that the snow is already mostly melted, he has been yammering at me to take him out skateboarding while the dry roads last!) Liam refuses to believe that it will, in all probability, snow A LOT MORE this winter and thinks all of his best sledding is already behind him. I'll wish for (just a little) more snow just for him!