Penn State Chics Dig Nerds

The day after the snowstorm was beautiful.  We took advantage of the snow and weather by sledding on the mountain road. The valley looked beautiful with a blanket of snow.  The snow wasn't packed down enough.  We had trouble going in some spots.  It was still fun, but we didn't zip like we normally do.  My adrenaline didn't pump this time. This is Pap trying to get the sled moving.  Pap and Jesse were not able to get their sleds to slide.  The kids were able to go on their own easily.  For some reason I must have been the perfect weight.  I was the only one able to sled down the one section, slide across the flatter section and continue down the big hill. It is extremely tiring to walk up the mountain road so many times!

Amie obviously enjoyed sledding again this year. She was all smiles. "Help Mom!  I'm stuck!" She did NOT like getting this face full of snow.  After this, she would only sled while sitting!

Four to eight inches of snow was predicted for our area last Saturday, January 23.  We woke up to 18 inches of snow.  You never know what you will get with a noreaster storm (aka Snow Storm Jonas-- it's really funny to me that we are now naming our snowstorms :o)! I measured 21 inches.  Some others near us measured 24 inches. The snow was so fluffy and deep that it was fun to sit in it. Natalee has been wishing for snow for two months and she finally got her wish! Almost everytime Amie jumped off, she got stuck.  Somebody had to rescue her from the deep snow. The kids took a break from jumping into the snow to help an older neighbor shovel.  They watch for her to come out so that they can help.  Sometimes they get a treat from her.   The kids (and I) played outside all day long.  The sledding wasn't so great.  We just stuck and it was so deep that it was hard to slide anywhere.  It was too deep for snow angels....

Today I had the opportunity to go cross country skiing for the first time in a while. Jess and I have talked about it for a few years but because of babies, kids and schedules it never worked out for us to go. But today was the day!  We had to take advantage of all of this snow.  I felt quite giddy because I was so excited to be out skiing again.  We skied around Lake Perez in Stone Valley.   Thanks to Kelly for watching Amie this afternoon and making this outing possible.  She is such a dear friend!  I enjoyed myself immensely.  Jess is a great friend that I don't get to see very often.  She makes me remember my Pacific Northwest days :)

We made use of all of the snow by jumping off of our driveway into the snow.  The snow was so soft and powdery that it was a lot of fun!  I love the look on Brady's face when he jumps :)