Snow Much Fun!

Winter is in full swing in Pittsburgh, and the snow is falling!

We had a snowy January, and on several occasions, there was quite a bit of accumulation.  The kids were so excited to go outside to play in the snow!

On January 7th, Liam got to experience his first real snowfall.  He was too little to take outside last winter, so he only caught glimpses of it through the window or from his car seat as we ran errands.  We finally had enough accumulation, so I bundled him up, and sat him in the snow.  He reacted exactly how I expected!









He is so happy and content!  I just love his sweet personality!

A few weeks later, Dylan and Lexie had the day off from school.  It was a great day to be off, because it ended up snowing a lot!  It was the first chance we all had to go outside together.  Our dog, Bailey, ran around with the kids, and Liam went sledding for the first time!  We had so much fun!












 




Last week, the kids had another snow day!  Liam napped while I took Dylan, Lexie, and Lily outside.  We were only out for a few minutes, because it was freezing and the snow was coming down hard!






We got even more snow since then, but we haven't had a chance to go outside since the last snow day.  The way this winter is going, I'm sure we'll have many more opportunities!

Liam's First Bath

A few days after we brought Liam home from the hospital, we attempted his first bath.  The kids gathered around him, and Grant took over my role as photographer. As you can see, Liam wasn't a fan!



The traditional newborn bath method didn't work very well.  Liam was so angry that he kept kicking and flinging off the towel that was covering him.  I decided to remove the towel and bathe him as quickly as I possibly could!


 

Wham, Bam, done in 45 seconds!

 

I would love to say that the drama ended there, but he was really angry!!!

 
 
 

Finally, he was dry and warm, and the tears stopped.

 


I suppose the entire 3 minute experience was exhausting, because he fell asleep right on the changing table!



Bath time has gotten much better since then.  He's much happier when his body is submerged in the warm water!

These pictures were taken just over a month ago, and I can hardly believe it's the same baby.  He was so swollen and yellow back then. 

Within a week after that, he managed to lose almost 2 pounds, and he still has to gain 1 pound back in order to reach his birth weight.   His tiny arms and legs are only half that size now.  But...he's on the right track and we're praying he will reach his birth weight by his 2 month checkup!

Most Exciting Week Ever!

Lexie in the midst of her most exciting week ever!  On Monday, she started Kindergarten.  On Wednesday, she started gymnastics.  Today, she lost her first tooth!!!



This morning, her tooth was literally hanging on by a thread.  She didn't want it pulled out, which was fine with me, because loose teeth gross me out!  I sent her to school with a bag, a washcloth, and a bottle of water, knowing that she was most likely going to lose it in school. 

Sure enough, she raced to the car after school, grinning at me, and shrieking, "I lost my tooth!  I lost my tooth!!!" 



She said that she lost it during story time.  She was too shy to raise her hand and tell her teacher while he was in the middle of reading, so she held it in her mouth for a few minutes until her teacher finished. Then, she raised her hand, and told him that she lost her tooth.  Classic Lexie!  

All of her classmates apparently thought it was the coolest thing ever and crowded around her!

Lexie was so excited and so proud of her missing tooth.  She says she looks just like a pumpkin and thinks it's cool that she can stick her tongue through the hole!

She is now in bed, eagerly awaiting her first visit from the tooth fairy!

Sunrise & Bethany Beach: Vacation Day 3

Our third day of vacation was our last full day at the beach. 

 

I decided to start my day off with a first.  I had never really watched the sun rise, so I decided to wake up early to witness it at the beach.

At 5:30 AM, I sat on the balcony to observe the sun rise.  It is so quiet and relaxing at that time of day, but I still couldn't believe how many people were already on the beach.



The sky was already bright, so I thought I had missed the sun rise.  I sat outside for a while, and nothing happened.  Just as I stood up to go back in, I spotted something faint, just above the water.



It was breathtaking.  I watched as the sun grew brighter and slowly rose into the sky.













I sat on that balcony for an hour, then headed back to bed, more relaxed than I have been in years.  It was amazing.

My relaxed state was short lived.  Lily was still sick when she woke up, and to add to her misery, she tripped and face planted on the ceramic tile.  It was bad.  Her mouth immediately filled with blood.  After checking to make sure her teeth weren't loose, I rinsed out her mouth.  It bled for a while, then we discovered that the skin that attaches the top lip to the gum line completely ripped off.  YUCK!

She was a good sport, though.



That morning, after enjoying Fractured Prune donuts again, we walked across the street to the souvenir shop to buy the rest of our souvenirs.  We bought a pearl necklace for Lexie, where you have to open the clam to dig our your pearl.  Grant bought me one when we were first dating, and I thought she would love it!  Audrey and Dylan helped her open the clam!



Just as I thought, she loved it!



There was some waiting around for a bit, while everybody got ready for our late morning excursion.




We decided to check out the boardwalk at Bethany Beach, Delaware, which was just down the road from Ocean City.



We walked around, checking out the cool shops, and then stopped for shaved ice.  It was an extremely hot day again (it was sweltering the entire time we were there!), and Lily still had a high fever.  Shaved ice was just what she needed!






Bethany Beach was gorgeous, and much quieter than the bustling Ocean City!




Once we arrived back at the condo, we suited up to go down to the beach!



We spent hours on the beach.  We stayed well after everybody else had left. 



























We were very reluctant to leave that evening, because we knew it would be a year before we would be swimming in the ocean again. But the sun had set, and we had dinner to eat, and bags to pack. 



We enjoyed a wonderful evening with our friends, and stayed up late, sitting on the balcony.  I love the ocean, and was sad to see our trip coming to an end.