Mommy Musings

Like the rest of the east coast, we got slammed with Jonas the blizzard this weekend.  I honestly thought they'd get this one wrong. Which technically they did, but went the wrong way. Originally my area was supposed to get a dusting to maybe  six inches.  Well about 2ft of snow later, obviously they were a little off. Honestly, this storm wasn't that bad for us personally. Skip was off on Saturday, and we had no where to go. We never lost power, and with my foot injury, was prevented from shoveling. So there was a lot of eating, playing, relaxing and taking it easy. My favorite part was the snow ice cream we made that night...delicious!     Skip went back to work Sunday, and the girls and I spent another day watching football and more relaxing. The plows in our town were pretty decent, and the roads were clear enough by Sunday morning. So unlike the rest of the area around me, the girls had a regular start time for school today and we're all back into...

....and about a million snow days. Needless to say we've had a rough winter here in Jersey {and sadly with no end in sight as we are getting more snow and polar vortex weather this week}.  And when you're literally trapped in your house for days on end with a preschooler and very active toddler.  I have loved having so much time with the girls while they are home, but they are definitely sick of never leaving the house.  These past few months have really forced me to stretch my parenting skills to keep us all entertained, sane, and not just watching Trotro on repeat on Netflix all day {also, if you have kids and haven't watched this or Pingu yet, go check them out!}  I thought it might help some of you to construct a list of the ways I've found to pass the time with the girls! - School time.  As Emmy has been missing so much school, I want to make sure she's not going to fall behind.  I try and work on her handwriting, sight words, and math facts a little ...

I am not  a winter girl at all.  Once the temperature hits below 60*, I just want hibernate....or move to Florida. New Jersey has decided that winter needs to come early this year, and we have already had plenty of snow/ice.  Nothing blizzard-like or all that epic, but enough to be annoying. It snowed all day this past Saturday, and I gave Emmy a snow day last Tuesday {her school had an early dismissal, but since it was already snowing when we got up, and me and Charlie would have to take her, I decided it wasn't worth the risk}.  In my pre-kid days, snow days meant a little shovelling, and a lot of sleeping, TV watching, and hot chocolate drinking. Things are a little different now.  And I had to get pretty creative with how to pass the days with a toddler and preschooler!  Here are some of the things we came up with. Make-overs with mommy's make-up 30 minutes to get bundled up to go outside?  Check. Snow ball fights! Snow angels! Making snowmen Some ...

It snowed around here last week.  Enough to cover the ground and stick around for a few days.  So one day after lunch, I bundled the girls and myself up {which is an Olympic sport in and of itself...have you ever tried to put gloves on an 18 month old hands?!?!} and headed out.  I also remembered to snag my good camera on the way, since I have been seriously lacking in nice pictures of the girls recently. When we got out in the fresh air, snow crunching between our boots, I realized this was Charlie's first time out in the snow.  Last year she'd been too little, and we'd really only had one other decent snow this year, which she'd had the sniffles for.  I was so excited to see how she'd take it! Emmy took off to do her own things... ...and Charlie took her first cautious steps. After that the girl was golden .  She   loved stomping  around and exploring.  But she quickly realized her most favorite thing about snow?   Eating it ...

One of the things I hate the most about the winter is being stuck inside all the time .  I hate the cold, hate  it.  So once the temperatures dip down into the 40's, I want to do nothing more than crank the heat, cuddle up in a blanket, and take a good long snooze till spring.  I am so much more productive in the warmer weather and I just can't get motivated when it is cold.   But with all of us coming down with some sort of sickies the past two weeks, I realized that there is a bright spot in being stuck inside.  We got to notice the moments a little more.  The dancing, the snuggles, the personalities shining through.   Though I am still longing for the days of sunny warmth, I'll look for the good in the snuggly winter coldness.