Fresh Cold Air

We've been dealing with some cold weather around here. But we also have two boys who need to get out and run around, so we've been braving the cold to go take a walk (or run in Rudy's case) in the woods.

Last weekend we went to Estell Manor Park. The weather was finally going above freezing, but a lot of the water was still frozen.

The boys had fun through pine cones on the pond and watching them bounce across the ice. It was also very foggy in some places.

A ring of ice in a puddle.

Running, running, running. The best thing about being in the woods- unlimited places to run!

And lots of things to jump, climb, and explore.

Today we headed to Birch Grove Park. Once again, Rudy immediately went into flight mode and left us behind.

Paul and N brought up the rear.

Part of Rudy's plan with running ahead seemed to be to try to climb things he thought we'd say no if we were closer. I just warned him that if he got wet, we would have to head home immediately.

N had fun picking up sticks and throwing them into the water. He actually walked the whole time; we didn't bring the stroller.

Of course, after about 45 minutes of walking around, this was my view. But he rallied and got up and made it to the playground.

N-isms

* We have a constant running commentary now that he is speaking a lot more. And if you don't respond, or repeat what he says, he will keep saying it louder and louder until you do. A careless uh-huh is never enough. Heaven help you if you're not sure what he's saying and can't affirm it!

* He loves The Little Einsteins and would watch them all day every day.

*"Chop, chop" = helicopter

* His newest phrase is "Me help you" but usually it means "let me do it!"

Rudyisms

* One morning he had a smoothie for breakfast and left much of it on his upper lip. He was also eating a bagel. When Paul came downstairs, Rudy said (in an old man voice), "I started eating this bagel when I was 7 and now I'm 90 and still eating it."

*Although Rudy is sometimes annoyed by N, he is getting more and more attached to him. He knows we hope N becomes a permanent part of our family, but we just don't know what will happen. At church, during communion, one of the priests is available for healing prayers. Rudy approached him during communion and asked him for prayers that N stays with us, and to help N's speech.

*While reading the last chapters of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Rudy cheered and was so excited as Harry won the final battle with Voldemort.

Snowy Days

We got our first snow of 2014 and our first snow day of the school year. We probably ended up with about 3 or 4 inches. It was really cold the next day, so we didn't spend a lot of time outside.

Making snow angels

Rudy's favorite thing to do outside is STILL to eat the snow from any surface. He's been doing this since the first time he went in snow!

Yesterday after N's nap, we decided to head out to the Wildlife Refuge for a late afternoon walk. There had been reports that a Snowy owl had been hanging around and we hoped we'd get to see it. We found out from the office that it had been spotted down the drive a ways, but after walking a little way, we realized our noisy children might scare the bird. So I headed toward the bird and Paul took the boys down another path.

These are the pictures and then the cropped shot to show the owl. I would never had seen it if someone hadn't been there to point it out to me! When it was Paul's turn, most of the people had moved on, so he wasn't able to see it (and we had forgotten our binoculars).

I went back to meet up with the guys and switch with Paul.

The boys were heading to this tower to view the snow geese that were there.