waiting and waiting and waiting and waiting and waiting for . . . snow!

Yesterday, our schools were canceled because of snow. Snow? What snow? 

the sled waits

the sun shines 

the sky is blue

So, we visited the history museum where the boys became doughboys. 

The pictures quickly become part of the display.

Macon

 Jed, with Macon in his "lap." 

But finally, only two hours after the normal end of a school day, we started seeing some flakes, and this morning, the boys got to work. 

And then to play. 

Jed, usually not our daredevil, l-o-v-e-d zipping down this hill on Grandma's 1950s Flexible Flyer. He and Macon became the fourth generation to slip and slide on this sled (assuming their great-grandpa took a turn at some point), but they were the first to wear helmets to do it. I felt like a bit of a nervous nelly when I told them they'd need helmets, but they didn't hesitate about wearing them and threading the needle between houses, trees, retaining walls that you can't see, and ending up in the street is a bit different than the wide-open spaces of the Whiteheart family's pasture. Here, Jed is at the top await the all-clear.

And a quick illness update: Eric and Jed have almost recovered completely from our family cold, but yesterday, I had a bit of a reversal and today, I still wasn't on the mend, so between sledding outings, I visited an urgent care and I have walking pneumonia. Why, then, was I out sledding? Well, because I love it, and I want the boys to love it. My lungs will recover, and when will we have another snow? Plus, it felt a lot better to be outside than in, but now it's time for a dose of "grown-up" cough syrup and bed. 

still peddling

On Monday, the boys were out of school for MLK day, so we took our talents to the art museum where Jed peddled and Macon coasted the mile-long loop around the museum's grounds. Along the way, they stopped to make a nest, attempted to visit a goat, and marveled at the whirlygig. 

By Wednesday, however, Jed and I were coming down with colds and by Thursday, we'd both been clobbered. After a croupy night last night, Jed was diagnosed with an ear infection today and got a steroid treatment to open up his throat a little bit. After dinner, he was running laps inside the house, which was a complete turnaround from how he'd felt all day today. Fingers crossed for a quieter night tonight. 

Too bad Eric's hacking now. 

But back to livelier times . . . 

For real. A lady was walking her goat. 

And we couldn't get up close because the goat is afraid of children and will bolt, dragging the owner. 

nesting

more nesting, encircled 

whiiirrrrrllllll 

And before I fell ill, I managed to use up 2 of my 15 minutes of fame . . .


Saturday morning update: Jed slept soundly and quietly all night. He's still coughing and obviously has a cold, but he's much improved.

and we have lift off

It doesn't seem that long ago that learning to escape from the house was a big deal, but today, Jed took another step toward independence and became a bike rider. He has had his training wheels off for a while and he's been able to ride for a whole block without one of us holding him, but he would stop or wreck the instant he realized no one was holding the bike. Plus, we haven't had a lot of room to work on riding because our flattest block is also very short, but today, we took advantage of the wide open spaces of a Sunday afternoon parking lot.

Where you see an empty parking lot . . . 

. . . others see opportunity. 

delight after his first ride

 taking a break

a little trim

The boys got hair cuts yesterday and Macon's is pretty short . . . 

. . . but it brings out the Woodard, does it not?

warm or chillzee?

Yesterday was Jed's first day back at school and he came home with this great New Year's hat or crown (depending on one's perspective and/or state of mind). Around the bottom, it reads, "My resulooshin is to be nis to ur babe bruthhr." 

I think an acceptable translation would be, "My resolution is to be nice to my baby brother." 

Upon seeing it, I thought to myself, "Aaawwww. How sweet. How nice." 

But then I read it again and a dream-like voice wafted through my mind, replaying their most vicious fights: "You're a BABY!" "My not BABY!" "Jed is BABY!" "NO! You're a BABY!" "I AM NOT A BABY!"

So is this a warm-hearted resolution by Jed? A commitment to improve his relationship with his little brother? Or is it a cold stab in the back? A cunning cut-down, aimed low? And does the fact that Macon has been wearing it all day today singing, "Happy Birthday to Macon" make Jed's jab that much more successful, or does it make Jed's resolution that much more tender? 

Personally, I think Jed was sincere. He's not a good liar and he loves Macon, but the word choice does make one wonder . . . 

But in any case, the weather is chilly. Or as Macon declared this morning, "It's chillzee, chillzee, chillzee!" Still, we braved the cold to walk to Jed's school this afternoon, and Macon took his afternoon stroller-snooze. Thankfully, he had a University of Minnesota-Duluth toboggan to keep him snuggy warm. We might be chillzee, chillzee, chillzee, but the Bulldogs know how to keep a head warm.

happy new year!