Second & Third Winter Storms 2015

This last week brought us a little more winter weather with more snow than ice.  Although we didn't get as much snow as we hoped, we are now satisfied with winter (except I didn't get any snow cream) and can move on happily to Spring.  On Tuesday, we got about 2 inches of soft, powdery snow.  It didn't really affect the roads so Evan still had school that day.  Brody enjoyed playing in the snow a little bit before it melted away.  On Wednesday night, we were expecting to get hit by a bigger snow storm with the potential for at least a half a foot of snow.  Unfortunately, the biggest part of the snow hit further north of us, and we got some snow and then rain and then snow again so our portion was very wet and melted away pretty quickly.  Evan did get to stay home from school on Thursday so we tried to take advantage of the opportunity to do a little sledding.

Brody's first peek at the snow. 

He got out to experience the snow while it was still falling.

He loves snow!

Uh oh, I wonder who that snowball was for.

Our backyard with a nice white covering...makes it look a lot better than the wet mess it has been most of the winter.

Brody took a direct hit!

Then, he got mommy!

Daddy managed to build us a little snowman on a patio chair.  I had made a decent looking one on top of our car, but it fell over before I could get a picture. 

The boys doing a little sledding on a small hill in our neighbor's yard. 

And Daddy had to try too. 

Such a big kid!

My sweet boys.

And at least we got one decent family picture in the snow this year.  

Evan's Blue and Gold Banquet

Thankfully, Evan got to attend his Cub Scout Blue and Gold Banquet as one of his last cub scout events with his troop here in Charlotte before our move.  We hope to get him into a new troop in our new town, but he has worked so hard to accomplish so much this year in Cub Scouts.  He received his official Wolf badge at this banquet for completing all of the requirements of being a Wolf in Cub Scouts.  The Cub Scout ranks are Tigers, Wolves, Bears, and then two groups of Webelos.  After Webelos, you move into Boy Scouts and then Eagle Scouts.  Evan had also earned a lot more awards for learning to play chess, reading and writing, playing tennis, bowling, and some more patches for his other accomplishments.  Cub Scouts has really encouraged him (and us as his parents) to stay busy.  This banquet not only celebrates the boys' accomplishments but also celebrates the annual anniversary of the Cub Scouts and all that the organization stands for in helping to shape young boys into well-rounded and successful young men.  This year marks the 100th anniversary of the Mecklenburg County Boy Scout Council so it is a pretty big year for the council this troop is in.

The flag presentation ceremony always begins Cub Scout events.  The banquet happened to fall on the 70th anniversary of the battle of Iwo Jima and the famous photo of U.S. Marines carrying the flag was taken.

This is what Evan's wolf badge looks like. 

Little brother wanted his picture taken too. 

Each troop was supposed to present a song and a skit for their parents.  The whole banquet went a little long and each group was only able to perform one of their presentations.  Evan's troop decided to perform their skit.  Most of the skits were funny.  In their skit, one boy pretended to take chewing gum from his mouth and stick it on a chair.  Then, each boy came along and pretended to sit in the chair and be disgusted by the gum.  Finally, the original boy came back and said, "Oh, there it is." and put it back in his mouth.  Silly boys! 

The wolves enjoyed their yummy meal together. 

Evan and his best pal, Patrick, enjoyed another opportunity to spend time together. 

Evan and his troop take the stage to receive their awards. 

The Cub Scout troop leader presented Evan with all of his awards.  Evan was standing tall and proud. 

We love how he was standing at attention. 

Shaking hands.  

First Winter Storm 2015

Last week, we had our first real taste of winter with below freezing temperatures all week and a lovely little ice storm which closed schools for a couple of days.  Evan was already out of school on Monday and then was out on Tuesday and Wednesday for the icy conditions.  Wednesday afternoon when the temperatures had risen enough to make traveling more safe, we all headed to Raleigh with Daddy so that he could handle some work business, and we could look at our future home.  Raleigh seemed to have gotten a little more snow before the ice hit and actually got a little more snow later that evening.  Evan and Brody enjoyed "sledding" on the ice at our house and then enjoyed seeing more snow in their new city.

Sledding down the icy driveway. 

They both had to have weapons, of course.  Boys!

Here he comes. 

I love the way Brody is clinging to Evan to keep from sliding down.  Such a sweet trusting relationship!

Brody's face...haha!

Just two of the sweetest boys in the world!

Trying to capture just what an ice storm is. 

A thick coating of slick, shiny ice coating all surfaces.

This was covering the door handle of Daddy's car.  It is usually in the garage, but since that is staging ground for packing and moving, it has to be outside for now. 

Daddy showing just how thick this ice covering was.  A good half an inch or more. 

Snow or Ice...it is all fun for him. 

Trying to make his snow angel.

Doesn't work too well on ice and sleet though. 

Cocoa got her first real taste of winter weather too.  She actually seemed to enjoy sliding around on the ice. 

Pretty icicles hanging from patio furniture.

Some pretty long icicles hanging off the kids' play set. 

While Daddy put in a few hours of work on Wednesday, I took the boys exploring at a local park.  This park in Raleigh beside NC State's campus is a fun place to be on warm days with a little train and boats to ride. 

A picture by the little railroad crossing.  They can't wait to come back and ride the train. And yes, there was only one other family brave enough to venture out to the park this day. 

And yes I was a little anxious about the slippery sidewalks and stayed off of them as much as possible.  The boys enjoyed sliding around. 

They had to check out this little red caboose though.  The boys and I are always a little disappointed that so few trains these days actually operate with red cabooses.  

Evan hitching a ride on the train. 

I love those boys!

Brody even got to enjoy sliding. 

The slide wasn't slick but the ground was. 

I love seeing them on the see-saw together.

Of course, Evan had to do most of the work. 

That area was a little too slick for me to venture over there. 

Evan attempting to climb the rock wall.  It seemed fairly safe despite the caution tape on the adjoining piece of equipment. 

The boys and I needed a little snack to warm us up after our cold adventure at the park so we headed over to a nearby Bruegger's Bagels for yummy bagels with cream cheese and hot chocolate for the boys. 

Brody was loving his hot chocolate. 

And I indulged in a yummy cinnamon and sugar bagel with cream cheese and a yummy french toast coffee.  I don't drink coffee very often so I felt the splurge was okay. 

Later that afternoon, it started snowing "real snow" when we arrived at our hotel. 

Evan was doing some kind of snow dance here. Haha!

Silly big brother!

Cocoa got to experience some snow falling too. 

Pretty girl sitting in the snow. 

She really liked it.

While we were looking at the first house potential, it started snowing big fat snowflakes.  The boys were very excited. 

Silly Evan.  You can tell we don't get snow too often. 

Me and my little man in the snow. 

Stay tuned for more wintry weather fun.  Today, we awoke to lovely snow falling outside and a nice ground covering and got about one to two inches.  We expect to receive significantly more tomorrow night.