Talent

Archie has always loved to stand on his head. He can do it now for over 1 minute!!! Gymnastics are in his future, I think.

Grace really mastered "snowboarding" sled style this winter. I was proud of her for holding a standing position so long.

Maple Syrup Fun!

One thing I love about my homeschool co-op is the field trips. Archie and I had a blast at the Oregon Ridge Maple Center learning about how they make maple syrup! I was so proud of him when the teacher asked (suggesting a big kid answer) if anyone knew what trees breathed out. His little hand shot up, and he spouted out the right answer (carbon dioxide) without hesitation! The tasting was pretty fun, too. I've decided I really like black walnut syrup.

Look at that grimace! Carrying the maple by hand in olden times would certainly have been hard!

Happy 2014

This was the kids' first time ice skating, and they had a blast! Archie finally got it shortly before our time expired. They are both begging to return. I think Grace has visions of being a champion figure skater! She kept asked me how she could get in the Olympics :)

Tubing Fun and BIG Birthdays!

Archie was fearless on the big hill. I had to beg him to go down with me because he was so infatuated with doing it by himself. I finally convinced him two went faster than one, and he was sold. On the way home, Hunt explained the physics of friction absorption and why the back tube could go faster because of diminished air friction. (Knew everyone wanted to know that :)

Grace was only allowed on the kiddie hill, but she still had a blast. The best part was going with our neighbors whose kids are the same age as ours!

 This pic may not belong, but there's no way I can let Grandpa DeJ's SEVENTIETH BIRTHDAY go by without a big shout-out! We were so glad to spend it in Chesapeake!

Flashback to Winter: Grace and the Giant Hill

I forgot I made this video but when I ran across it thought it was too cute not to post!

Pretty Sure There Won't Be Anymore White Stuff This Year!

Welcome to SPRING! It's been lovely weather here lately, and I'm officially predicting NO MORE SNOW for Blacksburg! To celebrate, I thought I'd post some pics from one of our only snows of the year.The kids love to go sledding on this HUGE hill near our house. Grace insists on going all by herself. She looks so tiny flying down that big hill! At least she can come back up it!

Archie and his best friend.

Hunter and I like to get in on the sledding action, too.

No snowmen this year...maybe next.

What did we do besides sledding?

We did a lot, but I guess the first question to answer is "How much did it snow?" Not a ton, but enough to have fun - you can get an idea from this pic. (Unfortunately, I broke my windshield wiper off while scraping so I'll have to get a new one.)

Grace enjoyed looking cute as always.

And, of course, swinging. I think this swing may be the best investment I've ever made in my life. HAHA! We do use it year round.


Archie liked sledding down this mini-hill between our house and the neighbors, too.

Sledding Adventures

We had a blast sledding today. Hunter braved the cold around 9:30 or so and ventured off to school. It was a short day (Tech closed at 3:30) and when he got back home we headed off with our neighbor to the local elementary school which has a HUGE hill! This pic is blurry but you can see the pure joy on their faces.


Daddy got in on the fun!

Grace spent most of the day looking cute like this:

But she eventually decided to get in on the action, too.

It was a steep hill.

Winter wonderlands and weddings from windows

When looking out my window slightly before 8 a.m. the other day, I caught sight of this lovely bride being picked up for her wedding. Unlike America, where the groom can't see the bride on the wedding day, the groom must head over early to the bride's house to pay her family and friends some "bribe money" delivered in red envelopes for the privilege of picking her up. (Nowadays I think that is mainly just part of a fun tradition.) I couldn't resist leaning out my window and snapping a few shots.

Here is the processional of cars. Most Chinese weddings take place in restaurants. Once you've registered and paid your fee, you're legally married (no need of further ceremony) so the wedding is just a celebration. Traditionally, the bride wears red but Western style wedding dresses are more popular every year.

The return of winter. What was missing from those wedding pics (snapped Saturday)? SNOW. What's back today (see below). Yeah! What's this, April 12? Winter, will you ever let go? I got so excited one day last week because I saw snow for the first time in about six months (meaning above freezing temps) but now...

Frozen feet and bath time

Funny of the day:

You can get really stir crazy cooped up with a toddler when the winter lasts 6-7 months and there are no indoor play places around. Desperate one day, I took him window shopping in a rather tiny clothing mall. Archie was immediately fascinated with all the manikins - none of whom were wearing shoes. He decided they must have"dong jiao" (frozen feet) and proceeded to inform every single shopkeeper of this fact. (People here get very concerned about having dong jiao - it's something to avoid at all costs.) Later we came to a manikin who must have been in the process of changing outfits. He looked upon her unclothed state and confidently told me, "She's taking a bath!" Two and a half year olds and logic :)

I am pretty confident I am the only mom anywhere remotely near where I live who takes her kid outside to play in the winter. Although I don't much enjoy watching him play in subfreezing weather, I bundle him up good to try to avoid the dong jiao and take him out as often as I can stand. Brrr. I brought the camera the other day. Usually, I am too busy sliding down the slide with him since he doesn't have any other frozen tundra playmates!

Leslie goes to the world famous ice festival!

It's world famous, folks! The ice festival in our city. This is our third winter here and I'd never been because, frankly speaking, it's so cold outside the outing isn't even that enjoyable. However, I figured I'd have lifelong regrets if I passed up all my chances. So, I dressed in as many layers as I possibly could and off I set with some friends while Hunter stayed at home with the kiddos. (Don't worry, he's been three times already and doesn't need to go again.)

Although I know all my blogger friends believe me, I feel the need to post some pics of myself flying down the giant ice slide to prove I was there!


While at the festival I realized how much more fun you can have when people don't live in fear of lawsuits. I don't think having ice covered steps would fly in America where everyone's constantly looking over their shoulder for a suit.

Now, on to the fun pics. I only posted a few favorites because one ice sculpture looks like another after awhile.



They had this cool ride. You just strapped yourself into the chair and flipped yourself upside down manually. After my friends played on it forever, some angry workers came over and yelled at us to stop. (I would think you should post a sign if you don't want people playing with the toys. I would anyway.)

Warm up with some nice "inspiring" coffee (or not). They wouldn't bargain with us this year and since we wouldn't pay their outrageous prices, we stayed out in the cold. As my group's spokesperson and translator (although why I was translating when we also had two native speakers with us I am wondering), I had finally agreed to buy one ridiculously priced pot of tea. However, the waitress kindly informed me that only half of our group could sit in the warmth if all I would shell out was $12 for the tea. Customer service! No wonder there shop was empty. I am not a business major and have never run a business, but I am confident I could make them more money if they put me in charge. HAHA!

Oh, if you're feeling jealous of my incredible experience, you can go to the Opryland Hotel in Nashville and check out a MUCH smaller version designed by our world famous ice sculptors.

Still camping!

We're perpetual campers! If you didn't take the campsite tour with me back when we moved in, click the link and you still can. We've upped it a notch, though. Hunter and I are now sleeping in the living room floor. Why? You might ask? So we can have family time playing with the kids in a tent? NO! Because it's the coldest day in the last 43 years and our heat is not that great. Our bedroom is the worst room in the house so out we go! (We're pretty sure the heat in there is completely broken, but nobody cares but us!) It's been staying below zero and I think it may have even hit that magic point where Celsius and Fahrenheit meet and become one and the same at -40. BRRRR. Anyway, sleeping on the floor's not so bad. And, I'm thankful for our super flimsy mattress that's so easy to move. I've taken to having Hunt move it in a little early and studying on it before bed. Much more comfortable than the sofa!

What do you freeze in your freezing room?

What do you freeze in your freezing room? I freeze dirty diapers. Huh? First, what is a freezing room anyway? Think of a freezing room like your freezer. But, it's actually a small closet powered by the frigid temps outside. No electricity required. (The only downside is in summer it's more of a baking room.) They're common where we live. In the pic below you can see all the junk we store in ours. (It's our only real closet.) You can also see some lumps of dough that will be steamed bread soon (beside stroller handle). We have also taken to freezing our dirty diapers out there until their nightly wash. It is a great technique for odor control. HAHA! (They're in the box, but I purposely took the pic so you couldn't see them.)

This pic doesn't have anything to do with our freezing room. (Children are not allowed in it.) This pic is to celebrate Archie's "month-day" as I like to call it. He's 27 months old today and getting more grown up looking all the time.

Frozen fingers warmed by soy milk

Winter is so cold here, I can't help but have a lot of random musings every time I go outside. Well, make that inside, too, as our apartment heat isn't working very well this year and we stay bundled in layers in our house and often huddle by our electric heater.

I've taken by stopping by the street stand for a nice cup of fresh hot soy milk whenever I take Archie to the park to keep my fingers from freezing. That's what you drink in cold weather, too, right? I mean, hot chocolate is really overrated.

With a corn cob pipe and a button nose and two eyes made out of coal. Carrot noses work, too. But what about a tomato? My first time seeing a snowman with a nose like this!

Archie still has a blast playing outside even if he is the only kid whose mother lets him venture out in such weather.

Babies were made for warm soft beds, blankets, and kisses and cuddles - not for the arctic tundra. This is ONE of the snow layers Grace wears when she does venture out for brief periods of time on our way to an activity.

Real or fake: A winter conglomeration

Ready or not, winter is here! Its' been downright cold for awhile, but since we live in such a dry climate, we don't actually get a lot of snow. It's just once the snow comes, it doesn't melt for about 6 months. And, it's here now. Couple that with some English Christmas music that was blaring from a nearby loudspeaker, I'd say winter is official.

OK, so what does real and fake have to do with anything? Keep reading. But there's nothing fake about this first picture. Archie doesn't seem to remember last winter and is quite intrigued by his "first" sight of a snowman.

Now on to the fake, In the summer, they decorate with real flowers. In the winter, they decorate with Christmas lights and fake flowers. Anything strange about these snow covered fluorescent pansies? (There's no Photoshopping here!)

The winter weather leaves me searching desperately for creative ways to practice my photography hobby. Our house is definitely not a studio, and props/backdrops/lighting are pretty limited so I like to take pics outside. But, there are only so many abominable snowmen pics you can take of your kids. And, when you live where we do, you find babies were made for kisses and cuddles and warm soft blankets - not the outdoors.

So, since I can't take Grace outdoors for pictures, I just get cheesy and bring the outdoors to her via Photoshop!

And, when I get tired of being somewhat cheesy, I just go all out as you can tell from the next pic. The good thing is I did learn about using color gradients, which I think I will be able to use in a more natural way someday. (At least I can pretend that way I wasn't totally wasting my time :)

Winter fun!

I snapped these pics the last week of March, which was also the first week Archie started wearing his glasses full-time. He definitely gets a gold star for his glasses wearing behavior. He even wore them to preschool! You may be wondering about the temp. It was around freezing on picture day, which seemed pretty warm to me. Definitely warm enough for Archie to enjoy some good playtime!
His duck scooter made its maiden voyage outside. Archie still prefers pushing it to riding. I think he needs to grow about 1 more centimeter before he can get good traction with riding power.


Archie loves the playground equipment, including investigating these fancy steps. (He can't quite figure out how to go up them yet and still opts for the regular slide steps, though.)



Archie feels like a big boy standing on the sidewalk all by himself. (Of course, I'm really only a few feet away with the camera :) and we're in a gated area a long way away from cars!

No local parents consider these temps suitable for toddler playtime so the playground equipment is still pretty muddy. (I had to knock big chunks of ice off with the toe of my boot.) Therefore, Archie gets more than a little dirty, and I have to wash his snowsuit almost nightly! I still think it's worth it!