Darby is 6!!

So, in the midst of Snowmageddon, our middle daughter turned six years old! She had a snow day on her birthday and she was stoked about that. The day was spent watching TV and playing with friends in the snow. She loved it! 

She chose to go to Domino's Pizza for her birthday dinner because the shop here lets you watch them make the pizzas.

She ordered her own pizza but only managed to eat a small part of it. Pizza for breakfast sounded pretty good to her though. :)

After that we decided to go and look at the dogs they had for adoption at Petco through the Last Chance Animal rescue group. That's where we met Buddy (see the other blog post about him).

 He was easily the calmest dog there and went up to each child, smelled them and sat down to get a pet on the head. We walked him around the store too to see how well he did on a leash and how trainable he was. The kids got to walk around the pet store and see other pets too. It was a great topping off of Darby's birthday celebration. 

At home she opened her presents. She got stickers and a handmade scarf from Grandma Nancy and Grandpa Jerry. Grandma Caren had sent a dress but it had not arrived yet, being delayed by the snow. Great Grandma Evie sent money which she is saving to buy a new doll. And Mom and Dad got her a pretty princess doll from her favorite show. Eva was very kind in helping her read the cards she got from aunts and uncles.

Seeing as how all the girls have a birthday in the next 7 days, we have a big event planned next weekend for Girlday. More to come about that.

Happy birthday Darby! I couldn't be happier that you came to join our family.

Snowmageddon 2016

Starting last week there was a forecast of some pretty heavy snow. As the days got closer the forecast was that this would be a "historic blizzard". I decided to go to the grocery store on the 20th because the bishop sent out a warning to be prepared and that shelves would likely be bare as people panicked about the storm. Good thing I did. Basics like bread were low in supply and the store was packed!

Snow fell that night, not a lot, but enough to be a hazard to the inexperienced-in-snow drivers. Roads got slick, lots of accidents occurred and people were stranded on highways. It was a mess!! 

The next day school was cancelled though it had stopped snowing. Our county is huge and doesn't have the infrastructure for dealing with snow. On post was okay (Jason still had work) but other schools were snowed in so the school district called it. The kids were happy. 

The kids bundled up and went out to play in the little bit of snow we had. Paige dressed herself. Note the many different stripe patterns. :)

 An occasional snowfall came throughout the day. The only thing that would have made it more fun would have been if the Thompsons were back in town. I kept thinking what a rude awakening to come back from Hawaii to this.

School was cancelled again on Friday but post was open so Jason went to work. This is what 3pm on Friday looked like.

He was supposed to leave to pick the Thompsons up at the airport that afternoon and it was really stressing us out. The blizzard was to come that evening so we kept watching the weather report. We didn't want him to get stuck on the roads or them to get stuck in Atlanta, not able to make the last flight due to weather. It turns out that they had to run across the airport but made it on the last flight out to ATL headed for DC. Jason drove their big vehicle on a route that would avoid the most traffic and packed some food and blankets just in case.

But they made it!!! And just in time too. Both families hunkered down for the night.

When we woke up we saw this. This is the same view as before, less than 24 hours later.

Almost 2 feet of snow had fallen overnight and more fell all day long. Do you see the windowsills downstairs and the depth of snow in the driveway?

Saturday was COLD! The kids went out in the morning before the wind whipped up but came back in after only a short time. We are just not equipped with enough snow gear.

The snow kept falling and the wind was howling. We stayed inside and watched movies and had hot chocolate. There was a lot of cuddles under blankets. Jason went out to shovel a few times.

 

 By 4pm, outside looked like this. 

They put out word that church was going to be cancelled. We got the okay from the bishop to have sacrament at home and invited the Thompsons. It was a wonderful experience. Jason had to shovel a snow path from our house to the street so they could come over. Do you see how the snow is up to the top of my knee? Crazy!

 

School was cancelled the rest of the week (we would find out the day before if it would be cancelled the following day). There was a lot of sledding and snowballs. And way too much screen time and video games.

 

Erica Thompson and I got bored and baked way too much. She makes a delectable cinnamon roll.

  

Of course the girls had to bust out the Frozen costumes. 

 

It was nice to be able to have all day to play with friends. 

However, Mommy was losing her mind a bit as being off schedule leads to cranky kids who don't sleep well. And once post opened again on Wednesday, Daddy Jason went to work all day. The snow still melted some but will take weeks to see all the grass again. Over 30 inches takes a while to melt. ;)

Skatepark

Jason here.

Fort Belvoir has a nice skate park not too far from the house. Brendan has a scooter thing that he likes to ride, so we have been a few times. 

The park itself is not over-big with mega ramps, but is just about the right size. Brendan has a ball riding up and down the ramps and kind of goofing off in general. The bigger kids are good about it, though we are in the way a little bit. I enjoy putzing around as well, but I feel like a mere shadow of my former self skill wise, and since the most basic tricks are confoundingly difficult I prefer to just cruise around as well. 

Anyways, we have a ton of fun, and that's what it's all about. When the weather turns nice again, we will hit the park more.  Here is a picture of the boy and me enjoying some quality time at the park on a very cold day.

Watching Daisy

Our friends, the Thompsons, went to Hawaii for a week and asked if we would watch their dog, Daisy. She's a sweet old cattle dog and I knew it would be no problem. If anything, she would be over-loved by the little girls.

The girls have always loved dogs but Brendan has been rather indifferent to them. However, Daisy took quite a shine to him. He was the one to walk her and he loved it. She listened to him, followed him around and slept in his room at night. He enjoyed playing fetch with her and didn't mind it the dog duties associated with having a dog in the house (namely poop disposal). We began to see a change in his demeanor as he began to be the "alpha dog". 

When the Thompsons came back he asked if we could watch Daisy again. And so we began to think that it may be time to get a family dog after all. 

TP'ed

"I was making a toilet paper carpet, Mom." So glad I just bought those two hours ago. Sigh.

Sisters

I love it when they cozy all up like this. Sisters are special.

How Paige "Waits for the Bus"

We are having a hard time adjusting to going back to school after vacation. Its the cold weather. At least she isn't one who has to get ON the bus.

Snitcher

I wanted to use up some leftover candy we had so I made monster cookies. I left them on the rack to cool and went to get the kids from the bus. I was happily chatting away with Erica when, in a sudden realization, it dawned on me that Paige was in the house, alone, with the cookies. When I got back inside I discovered this. That second rack was full when I left.

Later I came back from Scouts to see this. Daddy tells me she snitched from the fresh loaf I made and tried to hide.  That girl!! I swear I feed her.

Nerf War

Brendan and his friend Henrik wanted to have a Nerf gun war but it was too late on the day they thought of it. So the scheduled it for the weekend. He even put it in our calendar. He's a wee bit excited, don't you think? :)

Little sis gets in on the action. Isn't this kind of scary? :)

First Day of Sunbeams

Finally, the day has come when no McDaniel child is or will be in nursery. That's right, Paige started Sunbeams this Sunday. We've had someone in nursery for 9 years now. The funny thing is, Jason was called to be a nursery worker last month so there technically is a McDaniel in nursery. :)

Paige was SUPER excited to be in Primary. We've been talking it up and they've been visiting Primary for singing time. We've already met her teacher and we think it will be a great fit as she is young and spunky and fun. Paigey wanted to dress up special for her first day as a "big kid". Her hairdo didn't last though.

As we entered Primary it was chaos since every child was changing classes at the beginning of the year and so many were unsure where to sit, etc. Paige clung to me and was a little scared. But then her teacher, Sister Robison came in and Paige got to sit with her. Oh she loved that! And so I left.

After church she told me, "Sister Robison is so cool! And I only went to timeout once." Hahahaha!

Mount Vernon

On the last day of Christmas Break we decided to visit Mount Vernon, George Washington's historic home. It's only ten minutes away and we pass it every time we go to church. It was very interesting.

This replica was in the lobby. I have no idea why Paige has her hand raised. We started our tour off with a short video of Washington's life. It was interesting and helped prep the kids for what we were here to see.

When you buy your ticket they give you a time that your house your begins. Until then you are free to wander the grounds. Here is a view of the estate from the front, along the road where carriages would have ridden up to it.

We saw the wharf, the gardens, pastures, barns, cemetery and more. It is still a working farm. Being winter, some of the areas were not growing anything but I can just imagine how it looks in the spring. The kids liked the barn and jumping in some hay.

The cemetery was very special. We got to see Washington's tomb. The tour guide, after seeing my photography, commented on how she didn't see many people take pictures looking into the tomb. Far too many people take smiling selfies here and she didn't think that fit the importance and solemnity of the space. I agree.

 

Then it was our turn to tour the house. There was quite a line but it moved quickly. However, it's hard to keep a 3 year old occupied in line, not to mention in a historic house full of people where you can't touch anything. Paige did not enjoy it. I thought it was lovely. I understand why but I do wish you could take pictures inside the home. The drawing room was my favorite but it was equally as interesting to see the bedrooms, especially the bed where George Washington passed away. We came at a time where the third floor was open (it gets too hot and they close that area of the house in spring and summer). It was a very narrow stairway but seeing the cupola and upstairs rooms was a treat. 

The tour concluded out front. Here is a view from the back porch. I know I'd sit here all day if this were my house. 

And here is a view of the home from the back lawn.

 

 

The kids were excited to run and play. Brendan rolled down the hill. It's kind if funny to think of my son rolling down George Washington's lawn. But I think it was his favorite part. 

Then we walked by the side of the house where the slave quarters were. Next to that was a working blacksmith shop. The kids loved that and we watched for a good 15 minutes. 

Lastly we went into the Education Center. Now that is a place to spend some time. We saw vignettes of Washington's life, the Revolutionary War and colonial life. 

George Washington's teeth were even on display. 

On our way to the car, we passed the Mount Vernon Inn (a restaurant that serves Martha Washington's famous dishes). Jason and I decided that was where we wanted to go for our anniversary.

We will definitely go back in the spring. Mount Vernon seems like the kind of place to visit during every season.