Winter Water Play

After the big snow storm, it warmed up again.  We hadn't yet gotten the chance to really get things set up in the yard, so we just threw the water table out there when we moved in and didn't think much about it.  Little Miss played more with it this winter than she has in a long time, even when she had to scrape off a layer of ice to get to the water below.

Getting Snowed in

When we first moved into the garage it was unseasonably warm.  We dressed in t-shirts and shorts, left the windows open all day and enjoyed not having to worry about mosquitos.  Like all good things, a few weeks later it came to a sudden halt when we were completely snowed in.  

Hubs took advantage of his day off and bundled up Little Miss for a fun day in the snow. (Luckily I got to stay behind to 'make hot cocoa')

They had a fantastic time and even made it to the huge hill at the State Capitol and were able to borrow a sled!  Later on that day they collected some snow...

and we made snow ice cream with our hot cocoa!

The first two days trapped at home were kind of fun, but by day three we were getting pretty stir crazy.  We bundled up and walked the three blocks to the grocery store as a family.  Since it was still pretty close to Christmas, there were gingerbread house kits on super sale.  That was a fun afternoon activity for Little Miss and Daddy.

And then, just like that, the snow plows caught up, it warmed up and life returned to normal.  However, it was a very fun few days in the snow.  If there's going to be snow, I wish that it would be big like that.

So. Many. Moves.

The garage, while designed, built and moved into with the intention of being our forever home, marks the fourth home in which Little Miss has lived in her two short years.  It is also our third 'forever home,' reminding us that even with the best intentions, nothing is permanent.  While we never thought to take a picture of the first time we brought Little Miss home to our first forever home, we do have a picture of our first family walk.

May 2013

Constant neighborhood construction combined with a floor plan that didn't work for us, led us to the suburbs, where we bought our next forever home, when Little Miss was just 8 months.

(December 2013)

Surprisingly to us, the house offered way more space than we felt we needed for a family of three, and we were tired of always being the car to get places.  That was the year where I felt I spent half of my days in the car while Little Miss had her car naps.  We lasted less than a year before deciding that a major downsize was in order.  We decided to renovate and move into the garage on our old property.  This led to a temporary downsizing to a one bedroom apartment.

December 2014

 Even more surprisingly, the apartment that was only intended to be temporary became the longest dwelling of Little Miss' short life.  Finally, after running over schedule and a mad rush at the end, we were able to move into our next forever home.

December 2015

I really hope we make it here longer than a year because I think we're all tired of moving!

The First Cut

Little Miss was more than 2.5 years when her hair finally reached the point where it was getting in her eyes and starting to look at bit unkempt.  After several conversations over a period of time, Little Miss declared that she was ready for her first haircut.  I knew that this was not something that I wanted to attempt alone, so we waited for Daddy to come home, went out for a family dinner and then took her to a local Great Clips (nothing but the best for our little girl).  We got there towards the end of the evening which was probably a good thing because as soon as Little Miss sat in the chair and the scissors came out, she had a quick change of heart and a meltdown.  

Finally, she consented to sit in Daddy's lap for the cut.  She wasn't too happy but as soon as the first snip was made and she could see that it didn't hurt and watch the video of it on my phone, she was much calmer.

In the end, she wound up with some bangs to help control the hair from constantly being in her eyes.

I was so pleased that she kept her curls on the bottom.  It was a successful cut, topped off with a sucker and the declaration that she wanted her hair cut again tomorrow!

Goats on the Greenway

Hello?  Is this thing still on?  For a while I debated whether I wanted to continue the family blog, but after several months off, I decided that it is a worthwhile pursuit.  It's really fun for me to go back and see all the fun things we've done and how Little Miss has changed.  Because there's been such a long gap, I may not get to blog about everything, but I will definitely cover the highlights.

Soon after we moved into our little garage, we heard a story on NPR that our local greenway was the host to a herd of goats.  It turns out that goats are much cheaper and safer lawn maintenance for the levee the greenway runs on top off.  We gathered up the family for a walk along the greenway to check out the goats.  It didn't take us long to find what we were looking for.

Both Huck and Little Miss were enthralled.

As we continued along the greenway, it turned into an impromptu photo shoot.

The love for goats must've been real, because when we went to the zoo a few days later, she couldn't resist the desire to pet them.