Thanksgiving

Well, I have been delayed in posting things as Ethan has had a stomach bug. I was going to post pictures of Thanksgiving with Greg's family and then I took some great pictures of turkeys in the snow (almost 30 of them) in the front yard. I kept waiting to get some time to go and download the photos (this requires a trip downstairs as the main computer is down there and all the photo stuff is on that computer) so I didn't post anything and well, I might not have time for awhile as I'm hopelessly behind on the house now. Ethan has been symptom-free since Thursday evening (it started on Sunday) so I'm hoping he is better. Greg just made him three chocolate chip pancakes and he wolfed them down and that is the most he has eaten all week.

Some notes on winter/cold here. I love snow, the roads were not so cleared the first day and very slippery, I had forgotten how hard it is to push shopping carts in a snowy parking lot, the horses on the farm on the way to the mall have their winter coats on (this always cracks me up for some reason), Bella has learned she loves eating ice outside and then she gets brain freeze and starts shivering horribly and this new love also requires many frequent trips outside, I would like to get cross country skis, Mater and Betsy actually seem to like the snow, I had forgotten that my car will be filthy for four or five more months (not that I am bothered by dirt - I had just forgotten how dirty cars get in the winter), there are Christmas tree farms all over the place here and you see vehicles all the time with trees strapped to their roofs, it takes a long time to bundle kids up for the snow although it is much easier than when Katrina was one or two and we'd get her bundled up and then take her outside and then she could barely walk and then that was the end of that, Katrina likes to build "China Walls" in the snow (to build a China Wall, simply scoop snow in between your hands and press together - continue in a straight line - yesterday she made on that was about 20 feet long), they both enjoy standing below the deck when I'm shoveling it so that all the snow falls on them, Katrina's class has been about ten minutes late dismissing this week as they have to get all their snow stuff back on, and being in a place for three winters where it was in the mid-50s most of the winter was just unnatural to me.

Also, one more funny thing. On the first morning when it was snowing the kids frantically ran to my tupperware stuff and started scooping snow in ALL the containers and then throwing them in the freezer. This went on until they either ran out of containers, the freezer wouldn't shut, or I told them to stop as it was time to get ready for school. Apparently all they remember of snow is that you REALLY have to enjoy it while it is here because it will only last for a day or two at most. Katrina kept saying on the way to school that morning as we drove in a winter wonderland, "Am I dreaming? Is this a dream?" Shake that South right off yourself, Katrina! You're back in the North now!!