Sleigh or Sled

On our way back from the science museum, we stopped by our friends' house for a visit.  Åke took the kids out to try out these sleds. Or sleighs. They kind of seem like a cross between the two. I want one. You stand on the back , and push yourself along with your foot, putting it on the other side once you've got some speed or to go downhill. How fun. Apparently, these are extremely common in northern Sweden. I had never seen one before, even though I have lived here three years. I need to get out more.



Åke  and AJ sledding



K trying it out



Happy girl



AJ going solo



K pushing H on one

 After the kids became too cold for more, we went inside for some food and fellowship. At the end of the day, H decided to try out this, this, what is this? It's not a lute. It's not an oud. Maybe a domra? Most likely a balalaika. Anyway, H didn't care what it is called. He was having fun.

What a busy day. These days make good memories, though. :)

Day 5

K has been suffering from the common childhood malady of chicken pox. Day three was by far the worst, but today she seems to be mostly back to her old self -- plus a couple hundred red spots. Here are some morning shots of the kids enjoying the snow.



H sitting in a snow pile



H and K playing together in the snow



K pulling H in the sled



H on the sled



K pulling H down the driveway.



First Snow

Yesterday, we woke up to our first snow of the season. Well, it was actually, the second time it snowed, but it was the first time it stuck around. We brought the kids' snowsuits home from school, and they dove in, so to speak.




H all bundled up



AJ all bundled up

 

K all bundled up



K working on the snowman

 

AJ working on the snowman



H wanting to eat the snowman's nose



Putting on the finishing touches





H and the snowman





AJ rolling another ball of snow





AJ sitting on his snow "chair"





A lonely spider I found crawling across the snow

Rumblings

This weekend, we were inside, about to eat dinner when we heard a loud crack, followed by rumbling and a dull thud. The whole house shuddered with the noise. We wondered what in the world it could be, when Timothy said that it might be snow falling off of our roof. Indeed, it was. The weight of the snow that was drenched with rain on Friday, combined with the above-freezing temperatures, lessened the coefficient of friction enough that the weight of the snow was able to push it off the roof. These house-shuddering (and nerve-wrecking) noises were repeated randomly throughout the evening, night, and following day. It is rather alarming to wake up to what sounded like our own, personal avalanche, but knowing what it was helped significantly. Of course, the result is a pile of snow that follows the perimeter of our house. When I open the front door, this is what I see.


And this is out the back door. Notice that the snow reaches as high as the door handle in the back. You can't even see the rest of the back yard from this angle.

I haven't checked outside to see if any snow remains on the roof, but I can see piles out every window.

It is snowing again today. The good news is that we don't have to worry about the snow becoming so heavy that the roof collapses.

First Sled Ride

Today was a perfect winter day -- snow on the ground and a temperature at about freezing. On such a day, we just had to get outside. I bundled up the older two, and sent them out the door while I searched for something in which to dress Hunter. I don't have a snowsuit his size, so I improvised and layered him, finishing it off with some lined rain clothes that are a tad too large. At least this way his clothes wouldn't get wet in the snow.

Here is Kristen standing on a snow pile next to their play fort.

Once we were all outside, it was time to let Hunter experience his first sled ride. It is long overdue, considering the snow we have had, but better late than never.

Kristen wanted to pull Hunter....

... but she eventually got tired and lay down in the snow.

Here is AJ taking a turn pulling Hunter.

Here is Hunter in our red sled.

After giving Hunter a ride, the older two wanted to sled a little themselves. I tried to build a sledding hill for them, but it needs more work. We have the snow, but I didn't want to press my luck with Hunter sitting quietly in the snow. After all, he is a wonderful baby, but his patience only lasts so long. After a little downhill sledding, Kristen announced that she was thirsty and therefore going inside. AJ still wanted to be outside, so I put him on one sled and Hunter on another one. Then I pulled them up and down our driveway for a while until I was tired. What a fun afternoon.

Igloo

Timothy finally finished the igloo I started last weekend. Well, it is not completely finished. I think we are going to expand it more. The tunnel is complete, and both kids can sit up in there. Timothy just came inside from shoveling snow off of the roof to use in our igloo project (provided the temperatures remain below freezing). We want to make the snow pile wider, so we can make the room inside even bigger. I will definitely post pictures if we do this.

Sitting in front of the entrance.

Inside the igloo.

Snow Tunnels

This week, I dug a tunnel in one of a snow drifts around our driveway. AJ was excited to try out the tunnel, but it was a little too small in the middle. If AJ were to get through, he would have to army-crawl. Today, I will have to go out there and wriggle my way in to clear out the snow for the kids so they can fully enjoy their snow tunnel. Meanwhile, here is a picture of AJ halfway through.




Update: I fixed the tunnel, and I crawled all the way through to make sure the kids could fit through there. Here is Kristen after crawling most of the way through the tunnel. The size difference is evident from the pictures.


While I don't necessarily want it to snow more (I think we have enough on the ground), I do think it is fun having enough snow to do something like this.

Let it Snow.... and Snow.... and Snow

When we arrived back in Sweden from our trip to the US and Costa Rica, there was plenty of snow on the ground. Our driveway was a little hazardous to drive on, and we worked to shovel some of it away. What you should know is that our driveway is about 3400 square feet. That is a lot of shoveling. We never got it completely shoveled off, and it snowed again. We shoveled some more, then it snowed some more, and, well, you get the picture. We have had so much snow, we don't know what to do with it all. We have piles of snow around our driveway that are taller than our kids. I went in our front yard, where the snow was basically untouched, and it was up to my knees. Of course, discovering this, I had to flop back and make a snow angel. It was so much fun to be able to free-fall backwards and not be hurt. Of course, my snow angel was somewhat messy since I couldn't get up without messing it up. That, and there was so much snow between my legs that I couldn't get that nice skirt look. Kristen saw me making a snow angel, and she had to try it herself.

Kristen making a snow angel.

Kristen lying on a snow drift.

Kristen digging in the snow, trying desperately to find the grass.

Right outside our back door, where there is only a dusting of snow because of the eaves sheltering the ground, there were some bird footprints yesterday.

The sun came out today. This is our back yard. As you can see, we haven't grilled for a while. :)

As you can see, we haven't explored the full potential of all the snow in the back. I hope to do that soon. If we can ever stop shoveling, maybe we will have time to play. Timo wants to make a huge pile and bore a tunnel through the middle, making a snow cave. If he does, I will definitely post pictures.