Dear Aunt Lauren,
We love our new bowls! This week Rick made chicken pot pie from scratch. The crust was buttery and delicious and everyone couldn't wait to dig in - hence the hot pad! We have decided that every week we will try to make a new meal in them. Next week's attempt will be mini pepperoni loaves.
Love, The Slightly Zany Kelly's!
P.S. When you come to visit, please bring your little bowl!!

Sledding at the Park

We bundled up, called our friends, and a mere 40 minutes later we were ready to hit the slopes! Ok, so our slopes are really just one medium sized hill at the park, but for us - winter bliss! The hill is steep enough at the bottom that we had to carry Alannah back to the top each time. After a few times with someone she was demanding to go down all by her independent self!

Nothing like a little sledding snack!

We plowed several paths with Daddy's help and then it was "Look out belooooow!"

I even went down a few times!

Loads of fun! The morning was over too soon for the big kids even as they flopped at the bottom in exhaustion!

Snowed in!

This first pic was on Sunday - the next one is Monday morning!

As it turns out, we actually have enough snow to warrant a snow day from school! I'm not sure how the rest of the week will go since the forecast is the same - between 3-5 inches every day. We could be going to school until July at this rate!

But at least that gives me one more precious day with my guys - who are growing up alarmingly fast! Erin had her hair cut in Philly and then we had her ears peirced at the mall. Daddy hoped that she would chicken out and stay "his little girl." Unfortunately she persists with the growing up thing. Good thing we have Alannah!

Ok, I admit, I really had planned to dress them snug, boot them up, and send them outside so that I could have a quiet cup of coffee! But once they were out there, squealing and climbing around on the buried wood pile, I couldn't resist snapping a few shots. The big kids are so careful and thoughtful of Alannah. They keep her with them, they drag her around on the sled on days like today when she is bundled up like Ralphie's little brother and the snow is up to her waist.

As Erin later said "It all would have been fine if I hadn't had to come in for the bathroom." This particular outing ended with Bryan and Alannah stranded 75 yards from the house after sledding on the big log. Erin came back to the house, Alannah couldn't walk, and Bryan struggled in two feet of snow to pull her on the sled. Thank goodness I went out to burn trash and rescue them!