Snow Bunnies

If you live in southern Iowa you can probably tell these pictures are from the beginning of the month. I've been busy with sick kids for the last week and a half with makes for a lack of time to post and a lack of new or exciting pictures. Even though these are old they're still kinda fun! My sister came for Anton's birthday and joined me and the kids for some sledding on Mark's snow pile.

Amelia was very kind to pull Anton around the yard.

This was Anton's first time sledding, he seemed to like Amelia pulling him around the yard. But as soon as she stopped he would dive off and crawl around in the snow.

Amelia zipping down our hill as fast as she can!

We sent Anton down once. He didn't really care for the hill so much. :)

Elijah, king of the snow hill!

Elijah wasn't sure about sledding down our monstrous hill at first, but he soon figured out that it wasn't so bad!

Me looking super stylish in my 1980's Nutrena Feed coverall's and pink John Deere hat! :)

Anton Turns 1

Yesterday was Anton's 1st birthday! The past year has gone by so quickly and Anton has grown up so much! At this point he's trying very hard to walk and is getting better and better every day. He also says a few words, "hot, mama, dada and kee (kitty)" are his favorites. He doesn't play with many toys at this point. He would rather tinker with stuff, like dirt in my potted plants, Tupperware in the cupboards or anything his siblings are playing with. We can get him to play "catch" and he does like rolling balls a lot. Which is why I made him a "ball" cake for his birthday. Happy Birthday Anton!

Anton with his birthday cake.

We had a house full to say the least! Poor Anton felt very invaded with all the extra family in the around and cried about it much of the night. :( In this picture he's doing well opening a few presents with Elijah and Ezra.

A picture on Anton and me this week.

One year earlier, the day he was born.

Someone needs a haircut! Mark doesn't like hair on the ears at all. So Amelia and I brought Anton to his first haircut this week.

He did very well for Kelly, but we were both full of hair afterward!

His after picture.

Snow Days

I enjoy a good snow and if I have things to keep the kids busy with our extra time at home is usually pretty fun. This week we had three snow days which meant I had to find something to keep the kids occupied with or they would fight all day!

Thankfully the boys love to be outside and will brave most Iowa weather. Amelia is more of a "fair weather" gal but will join in on the fun if the whole family is outside.

We won a Wii last winter that didn't get much use until we got Super Mario Brothers and MX vs. ATV for Christmas. Now it's become a fun family time for us during cold winter evenings and snow days!

Amelia brought home a marshmallow igloo from school and Elijah thought it was the best thing EVER! This was another fun and easy craft for them to make on a snow day!

Wal-Mart always has gingerbread houses 75% off after Christmas and for a couple bucks the kids have an easy project to keep them busy for a while. Hmmm, looks like we're missing a few pieces of candy. No doubt that Anton saw a few others snitching candy throughout the day! :)

Mark has been teaching Ethan how to clear the driveway with his skidloader. We don't have livestock to take care up and thought this would be something he could learn to have a little responsibility. I agreed this would be fine on one condition, they have to rake all the gravel out of the grass this spring. :)

The other kids stuck in the house to watch the snow removal lesson.

We attempted another snow day project, making suckers. I found two recipes, one using the stove top and a candy thermometer and the other the microwave. I opted for the "easy" microwave one. Our first batch was going great and I was very pleased, until Amelia asks if it's supposed to be tuning orange. NO ITS NOT! So the first batch ended up a smoking mess that I dumped in the grass. Our second attempt went better, but we didn't quite hit the hardball stage so they got a little soft when you ate them. Overall the kids enjoyed them which is what counts, but next time we'll use a thermometer!

Our last winter day craft was doing paper mache` the kids hadn't tried this and loved the goopy mess they got to play with! We made our own paste out of flour and water which was easy and worked well. We did have a little boil over while making the "paste" when I left to change Anton's diaper, but other than that it was a success! The kids will paint their creations soon!