Please direct your attention to...

You know, I don't have too many more pictures at the moment, but for those of you needing to see more, go to Jerry and Brina's site. Just click on the link on the right-hand side of this page. There's a catch, though--you have to be invited by them. But most of you looking at my site on a regular basis have most likely been invited to theirs.
Also, check out the two new links I added...that is, if you're into wall-graffiti or jean skirts!

This weekend

The boys all got dinosaurs in their happy meals. Then we went to a store and Clayton promptly lost his.
I can do this too. Well, I could. When I was seven.
This past weekend we went to Emily's birthday at a hotel near here. Then Saturday the Jer's and the John's headed up to Grandpa John's for one... last (*gasp*) attempt at snowmobiling. John had been up there five days before and couldn't believe all the snow. By the time we got there Saturday it was down to a measly six inches or so.

Up Nort

The sign at Grandpa John's house.
A birdhouse. In Grandpa John style, it's held together with wire.
Grandpa will be 92 in May. Still he plugs along...he's amazing.
Jaina
I caught this shadow following me after we'd hiked through Grandpa's woods.

Sunshines and Stories

I think the kids enjoy National Geographic as much as we do! They all look pretty engrossed.
Joel, little ray of sunshine. We were at Menard's (did you know that going to Menard's can be considered a date? Hey, I don't get out much.) Anyway, they have an awesome play area for the kids there. To make a short story long, that's where this picture was taken. If you cared.

Snowmobiling

We went to a State Park about an hour from here to take advantage of the recent snowfall. It was beautiful weather. A good time was had by all.
Joel insists that he's too big for naps. And yet when naptime comes, he's out like a light. I don't think I'll let him give them up yet. Besides, I need his naptime!
I had to take a turn riding in the sleigh because all of the kids wanted to have turns riding on the snowmobile with John. I'm a little bit too big for it, but it's not bad. My head only hit the ceiling a few times.

A snow day

Awww...isn't he handsome? Now if only he could behave himself. He's no dummy~~as soon as he sees that we're not paying attention to him, he takes off for parts unknown. And he'll come back when he's good and ready...not before. That's why he's tied up.
Two boys in a box. It really is amazing how much fun can be found in packaging.
John is wearing a helmet. Not because his tractor is such a racer, but to keep the snow off of his face.
These pictures are a bit outdated. They're from our last big snowfall two weeks ago. But I thought I'd put them up anyway. You don't want to see what it looks like now. Imagine a big muddy mess. The temp today got up to 66 degrees! Tropical!

I'll post again soon, I promise

I do have more pictures to put up soon. Just not this minute! Clayton is hollering, "Hey MOM, cheese. Hey Mom! Comin'? Hey Mommmm!" Tucker is barking, barking, barking and I need to let him out. Besides that it's coming up on feeding time here at the zoo, and the natives are getting restless. But I will put up some pictures soon. Maybe even tonight! Stay tuned...

A new dance--The Shovel Shuffle

Today I was out clearing off our cement apron (it proved to be futile...we've gotten as much snow since then as I had shoveled away.) Shoveling is a pretty boring, mindless activity so while I worked, I thought. I was thinking about how ridiculous I must look to the neighbors...working so hard at something that's so pointless. But I was burning calories so I didn't care what anyone thought. Anyway, while I was trying to see myself from another's view I invented this dance move and thought you all might like to try it. It's advisable to have snow or something to shovel while you do it or you'll end up looking really silly. Even more silly than I did. So...you take a shovel and scoop snow. Turn, toss. Repeat. Scoop, turn, toss!...scoop turn toss! The nice thing about this dance is that you can add steps as you go, or even mix up the order. For example, when I started getting further from the edges of the apron I had to Scoop, turn, STEP, toss. And then it was Scoop turn step step step step step step toss. For some variety, try doing scoop step step step step TURN step toss.
By the way, our cement apron is about 30' x 20'. That's...600 sq. feet?! I am really good at this new dance.

A Blizzard on Thursday

I took this picture out our living room window. This isn't an accurate way to measure our snowfall, but it's still fun to see. Most of this blew off the main roof.
This gives a good idea of what it looks like here today. We're supposed to be getting nine inches of snow today, with more on the way tomorrow. I am house-bound and loving it...I really don't enjoy going out that often anyway. (Unless I could go all alone!!!)
Joel today. That's his skateboard in case you were wondering. He wanted to make sure I got that in the picture.

Wednesday pictures

Two cowboys on their horse. The cowboy in the green pajamas looks like he shouldn't be trusted with any horse...has has a drunken look. Joel is wearing his cowboy hat that he got for his birthday. Not to be outdone, Clayton uses John's hat.
John reads our local newspaper for some entertainment. The articles are poorly written and seldom proof-read. Reporters tend to ramble on and on, often repeating the same thoughts three to four times just to fill space. I can't stand it so I've given up trying to get news from it. Next to John is our budding musician. This little keyboard of Rebecca's plays several songs and Clayton knows them all. He was humming and bopping about to the beat.
A closer look at Clayton's unique headgear. He wore this oversized bike helmet for four hours last night...no exaggeration. I had trouble getting him to take it off for bedtime. He slept with the silly thing! He insists on having the buckle over his mouth like that. He tells us he's a "motorcycle guy, 'kay?" I say he's a little pumpkin.

Dentist

This was Clayton's very first dentist appointment. He did very well...no fussing at all. But he was very very sober and would not smile. Clayton's teeth are fine, and Rebecca has a little spot on one tooth that needs to be watched, but Joel has five cavities (between his molars). I cried. Let this be a warning to you!! Kids need their teeth flossed.

Sledding

Patty and Clayton at the top of the hill. Clayton at this point is a scaredy-cat when it comes to sliding. He prefers to watch or, as was the case Monday night, claim the coolest sled (it looked like a snowmobile) and sit at the bottom of the hill making motor noises.
Joel went flying down the hill several times and was a little trooper...it was hard work getting back up but he did it without complaint.
Patty took a few runs herself, but most of the time she was on hill-maintenance duty. She shoveled a path to climb up and made a jump for the two nine-year old boys (her nephew and his friend).
Rebecca is a little dare-devil. She went down the hill many times, trying different positions--using the sled like a snowboard, or backwards, or on her stomach. She even tried the jump. I was nervous about that because I was afraid she'd knock some teeth out, but then I remembered that all three kids were scheduled to go to the dentist the next morning anyway so that set my mind at ease. And no teeth were lost.