Penn State Chics Dig Nerds

We enjoyed beautiful weather today - nearly 60 degrees!  In January!  It was only a little more than a week ago that we were looking at snow.  On the way to Belleville, Natalee excitedly told me, "Mom, after we rest this afternoon, I'm going to ask Pappy to take me to the park!"  I got back from my appointment a little early, so I went, too.  The kids were running all around the playground from one thing to another.  You could tell that we have not been to any parks recently. What a difference a year makes.  Both kids willingly went down the tunnel slide without any hesitations. Natalee even got her pap in on the swinging action.  Of course, she made Pap go up to the booth and pay her for a ride first.  She gave him a ticket to redeem at the ride.  It was definitely a nice, enjoyable break from winter.  Even with a bit milder of a winter, I think it made me really look forward to spring. Brady is now tall enough to...

While we were in Belleville earlier this week, it was a beautiful afternoon to rake leaves and have fun in the pile. I thought they looked like farmers holding their pitch f orks.  Brady lasted longer in the leaves than Natalee did. Here he comes again!

Sunday, I took my camera on my afternoon walk.  The leaves seem to be a bit past their prime, but they were still really pretty.   I have seen this trail before -- and knew that it existed.  But, I have not ever walked on it because it is on private property and I don't have permission.  It is a former trolley line that was started in town but was never finished.  I must ask permission because it was really nice back there.  And, it made a nice loop for me to walk on back to my house. On our way to Belleville, Brady and I stopped at Greenwood Furnace because the leaves were so pretty there, too.  Enjoy this picture because this is the only time he smiled all afternoon!  I think his  molars may be bothering him :( Brady really enjoyed looking at the spillway. And, almost in Belleville:

We ventured out into the snowy weather today to go to the Yoder / Zook Christmas dinner. Except for the first picture, the pictures were taken on the drive to town. It was quite snowy on all of the roads, even the main roads. I think we may have totalled 9 inches at our house -- we were just on the fringe of the storm. Once on 655, we saw more buggies than cars.

Yesterday, we spent an afternoon in Belleville after my Connections group. While going in the house, we saw a great opportunity to jump in the leaves.... Sorry, I did a sideways video without even thinking. When I rotated it, it got distorted, so here it is sideways! Turn your head :)

Here are some pictures from from our drive to Belleville yesterday:

We've had a busy weekend of picnics and fun. Sunday we had the Yoder/Zook BBQ chicken (yum!) picnic. Easton: "Who me?" Monday morning, we started off by eating breakfast with Mom, Dad, Todd, and Kate. Then, we walked to the Belleville Parade, were we got lots of candy. In the afternoon, we had a picnic with some of the Sharp side of the family. After lunch, we played the corn hole game that Jesse and I made last week. I thought it was a lot of fun! Last night after we were home for a while, I put Natalee's pajamas on her. Then, I told her we needed to go and trim her toenails. She ran back out into the living room with Jesse and Brady. Natalee: "Toes. Mom." Jesse: "Yes, Mom has toes!?!?." Natalee: "Yeah...." Me: "Okay, Natalee, it's time to cut your toenails." Jesse: "Oh, is that what you were trying to tell me?" Natalee: "Yeah!" ;)