Don't Believe The Weatherman

The weatherman said freezing rain changing to all rain. Well I finally went outside to shovel, and we had close to 6 inches of snow!!
Faith walked around in the snow, but she's still not really a snow lover. After about ½ hour, she went up to the door and told Karen , “I'm done!” and walked inside. The boys are another story...
Reuben was using the dump truck to move the snow and occasionally would use the shovel and help me with the driveway. Jacob also liked using his shovel, but he liked to dig in the piles of snow where I was dumping the driveway snow. He kept moving the snow, back onto the driveway! This was definitely snowman kind of snow. The boys and I (mostly me) built this snowman. Jacob and Reuben collected the rocks for the eyes and buttons. And then Mommy gave us a carrot for a nose.
Tipper was also dying to go out and play with us, so after Layla (our neighbor's dog) went inside, we let Tipper out with us. She had a good time, but I'm always afraid of her eying a squirrel and running off.
Supposedly it is still supposed to rain tonight, we'll see. I've lost some faith in the weatherman. Hopefully things stay as pretty as they are right now.
And nothing like coming in to a cozy fire...

Desparately Seeking Spring

 

I know this star magnolia is going to bloom as soon Spring starts to peek out of this cold. Then like every year, a cold day will come along and kill all the blooms before they blossom and before it really gets its chance to shine.

Ode To Tipper - The Movie

Our dog Tipper loves this weather, though I'm pretty sure she more fond of the fluffy stuff rather than the ice sheet we have. Even still we finally had a chance to play with her outside and she was very happy. Most amazingly she was able to run (we call them the puppy crazies, even thought she's now 5 1/2) around the yard in places where it was almost impossible to stand up without slipping.

On to the movie...

Ice Sledding - The Movie

Yesterday, we walked (very carefully) to our park to go sledding down the hill. Everything was frozen solid and very slippery. We had a lot of fun, but there were no soft landings and a bunch of sore tushies. I tried one of the sledding tubes early on and busted it, but I kept the using the flattened tube when I would hold Faith going down. She really liked it, but was afraid to walk around because it was so slippery; I don't blame her. It was very hard climbing back up the hill each time.

On to the movie...

The Artists

"Stuck In The House",
Photos taken by Karen

Hotel Review - Sacramento (part III)

Fairfield Inn - Expo Center This place is a couple miles from the Hilton, so the neighborhood his pretty good. Lots of mid to higher quality chain restaurants. About 15 minutes from the office. There must be a train near by, but its not too loud. I was at up at 4:30 am this morning and heard its whistle, but it didn't wake up; I was up already due to the time change.

On to the review:

1) Bed: B-
Nice looking, nice sheets. No pillow top and the mattress was soft.
2) Cleanliness: B+
New place. Everything nice and clean. Nice looking bathroom with good shower and vanity. Low flow toilet almost gave me trouble.
3) Media: A-
Free wireless internet, 11Mbps connection. Good cable TV selection with HBO, ESPN, and ESPN2. 20" TV was the only negative.
4) Breakfast: B
Free breakfast including waffle maker, prepared oatmeal, fruit, various toast and muffins, hard boiled eggs, and microwaveable breakfast sandwiches. Perfect for me. I had a nice bowl of oatmeal and a banana.
5) Towels: B
Decent towels. Seemed thicker than towels you find a Comfort Inn or Hampton Inn. All towels were stain free.

Overall rating: B

I think we have found our place to stay in Sacramento.

Reading and Writing

We've finally started working with the boys on writing. Took awhile to get them to hold a crayon correctly, but now both of them hold it pretty well. They are also showing interest in writing their name, so above was Reuben's attempt this afternoon. On the reading front, I have Jacob able to find the words Pooh, Roo and Ted (Big Dog, Little Dog).

A Chili Saturday

I've really gotten into winter with all of the cold weather. We've been using the fireplace a lot; sometimes using real wood, sometimes just lighting up a duralog. It does add a bit of coziness to the house. So being in my winter mood, I made my chili today. I throw in some corn chips and mix them into the chili when I serve it. The boys copied right along.
Karen and I didn't think the kids would eat the chili, so before we gave them a bowl we had them taste it. Now, earlier in the day Reuben was watching me stir it so his opinion may have been swayed. Reuben gave a big “yum” when he tried his. Jacob then tried it, made face, but forced a “yum” out.
Karen said it came out with a good kick, which really means I made it too spicy. I thought it was just right. The boys are new to the “spicy hot” taste and were unsure of the adjective to use. Reuben described it as being “hot for a really long time” and then “my tongue hurts.” Jacob ate about 6 or seven spoonfuls before he didn't want anymore. Reuben then followed. Then they had peanut butter on crackers.... with a catch! Their pre-school may be going nut-free so Karen was secretly experimenting with sunflower seed butter. I think its a winner; no one suspected a thing! As for the chili, after Reuben ate his crackers he went back to eating the chili for another 6 or seven bites. Probably until his tongue hurt again.
Faith meanwhile had cottage cheese and then the sunflower seed butter on crackers. We couldn't get her try the chili. I know I'm going to get an ear full from my Mom about giving them chili. A few days ago the whole house (except Reuben) went through a spell of, call it, gastro distress. Everyone was feeling good today and to be honest I forgot all about it.

Yeah... Snow Day

Snow day Fairfax. Last night we got maybe 2 inches of snow; enough for Fairfax to cancel school. The kids pre-school follows Fairfax's lead. So the kids were home and got to play outside in the snow.
Here are the boys filling in for VDOT.


Reuben warming up for the iron man competition.


The only way to travel.

After playing in the snow, Karen was still left with a day of bunko. So out come the craft projects. She also baked zucchini muffins which the kids loved, even knowing they were made with zucchini. She was definitely super Mom today.

Faith proud of her puppet


Jacob always willing to play the monster.


Reuben loving the camera ;-)

And now presenting...
The Village People Performing Arts & Crafts

Happy Tu B'shvat

Our synagogue had a Tu B'shvat (Jewish version of Arbor Day) celebration for the little ones today. With no RSVP required, the great turn-out surprised the organizers. We needed to quickly setup more tables. Even with the chaos, everyone had a good time.
Later today we are off to a friend's for a super bowl party. It looks like it will be well attended with lots of little ones. We probably won't make it much past kickoff... if that!!

All Aboard!

Nice being back home. We went out for bagels this morning at our favorite bagel shop. Kids are becoming well known regulars. Then afterwards since it was pretty cold we set up the electric train set in the basement.
Faith has either another cold or the same cold has now been dragging on for a month. Karen took her into the doctor after breakfast, so the boys and I played with the trains.
Later in the day a made a fire. This was my second attempt. A couple of weeks ago I failed miserably. This time I took the wood inside a few days ago, instead of trying to burn it right from the store. Anyway it was a nice fire.

Hotel Review - Sacramento (Hilton)

We tried a new hotel in Sacramento for this trip. As you may remember the last place I stayed rated a weak C. This time we stayed at the Hilton - Ardens Way which got a recommendation from the company we are working and we were able to get their corporate rate.
The neighborhood was decent with no sex shops near by; always a good sign. Still not the best area, but I'm starting know the area better and have found some nice places downtown.
On with the review:
1) Bed: 'B-' The bed looked very nice and had a nice pillow top, but the mattress was very soft. It kind of felt like a cheap mattress with an expensive top layed on. The sheets and duvet were clean and high quality.
2) Cleanliness: 'B+' Couple of spots on the carpet. Overall very clean. Coffee machine still was not clean enough looking to actually use.
3) Media: 'C' Good cable selection. TV a bit small, maybe only a 20". Internet was $10 a day, which significantly hurts the rating.
4) Breakfast: 'C': Nice restaurant, but breakfast probably would have cost $20. I'm a Hilton VIP Gold member so I could have got a free continental breakfast in the concierge room, but my associate was not VIP Gold. So we went to IHOP instead!
5) Towel Quality: 'B+' Nice thick towels, but they could have been softer. Thick terry cloth bathrobe available for use as well.
Total Rating: 'B-'

We noticed a Courtyard nearby this hotel that I think we will try next time. May depend whether we can get a rate close to the per diem. The only way we booked the Hilton was through our hosts corporate discount. Otherwise it was $100 over the pe diem a night.