South. Then East.

Callie views slides a bit backwards

Cohen says:

A looooong time ago, way back before winter with all the cold snow and...wait what? The snow was only the last 5 or 6 days? Ok, so, I guess this is actually just a story of a week ago, when we decided to first drive over some great big mountains to see Great Papa in Ellensburg, and then on the way back, stopped at Steve-Steve's house (mommy says the house actually belongs to Uncle Dale and Auntie Amy - not sure what her point is) to get more quality family time, of which four 3 year-olds partook of.

McKenzie and Callie - they look a bit cramped..

I was hoping the frozen slide would be faster...but..it was just cold.

Silly babies - trying to race up the same slide

Trips to see Great Papa are always fun, not just for the obvious reasons (he's awesome, marbles), but we usually get to our my cousin McKenzie who is just about Callie's age. On Saturday morning, despite the cold weather we headed to the local park to play (read: burn off energy for nap time). The playground was pretty cool, even if Callie and Kenzie spent the whole time trying to climb UP a slide. They'll realize how silly that is when they grow up like me.

The Fearsome Foursome - Scarlett, Emma, Me, Eden (50/50 chance the order is right)

Now THAT's how you slide

Another cold park trip

Mommy and Callie went down the slide together

Whoa!

On Saturday afternoon, we got in the car right around naptime and drove back over the mountains to get closer to our house. Rather than go home though, we stopped in Maple Valley to see my cousin Scarlett and my auntie Megann (I have two) who were visiting all the way from Virginia. I think that's near the new Trump National Golf Course, so maybe I'll go visit sometime.

Callie and her slide antics once again

Callie is a baller

She thinks she can dunk

Cousin Slide!

Cousin time was super fun, especially cause Emma and Eden were there too. The adults like to catch up, dare each other to wear extra small shirts, and talk about books and things which gives us extra time to, you know, play! It was time to go a bit too soon on Sunday, but before we left, we got another park trip in, and this park was amazing! Big slides, rock walls to climb, and I climbed it all. I can't wait to go back!

Callie sliding by herself

Scooting around

Saying buh-bye to Papa and his "bus" before we left

Snow Day II: White Powder

Crawling thru 18-24 inches of snow seems daunting

Cohen says:

It's common knowledge that sequels are generally over-hyped and less successful than their original counterparts, however today's 2nd straight Snow Day joined "The Godfather II" in the pantheon of untouchable 2nd acts. We had more than double the amount of snow from the day before, Callie was feeling better, and my cousin Brooklynn came to play too. Lookout Ferris Bueller, there is a new epic "day-off" on the block (too many cultural references? I told that to my dad, but he insisted).

Her theory was "Taste it before I play in it"

Ever tried to swim in snow?


And what Cohen does, Callie does too

Snow beard!

What is there really to say about a snow day? It involves bundling up, the usual array of sledding, snowballs, snow angels, and general snow fun, trying to warm up quickly, and repeating the process.

Of course, I like to add a little extra element of fun, and undress myself WHILE mommy and daddy are dressing me. Think my gloves are on? Not anymore! Jacket zipped? Are you sure? I crack myself up.

One of the few times I slid off the deck, rather than jump

Well that's just goofy

Callie playing in the trench that mommy made for her

Mommy, doing what she does best (being an angel)

Callie trying to run away

Nothing weird here - just waist deep snow...

Who knows how long this snow will last, but I'm sure we've got at least one more day of the good stuff with these temperatures, so I plan to get in as much time with it as I can. Then again, tonight at Costco I tried to convince mommy and daddy that we needed a slip n' slide, squirt gun combo pack. It's almost summer!

Daddy! You're hilarious! Seriously, so funny!

Brooklynn, being very cautious with her footing

Do I look like a Snow Monster yet?

And what Brooklynn does....

wait for it....

Cohen does!

Snow Day on the South Lawn!

Cohen pretending our backyard is the Frozen Tundra of Lambeau Field

Callie says:

Well, today was a day we had been waiting for all winter, and of course, I had to be SICK! I'll try to put the bitter feelings aside, and pass on a few pictures from Cohen's outside exploits. I'm not incredibly worried, because as I write this, we've added another 6-8 inches to our total, I'm feeling better, and that 12-14 inches of snow in our yard will be MINE tomorrow!

Trip 1 outside: Cohen's mini snowman

After nap, Cohen dressed himself to go outside again

Mommy to the rescue

He was a little obsessed with throwing snowballs at people

Whitewash!

That's all we have for today's brief entry. We'll definitely have more after tomorrow, and also have some pictures from our weekend to pass along soon. Enjoy the snow, and stay warm!

Can't wait for tomorrow!