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Although we've had four snow days, not one included actual snow. But finally, in meteorological spring, we got real snow! And on Rhett's birthday! It was very exciting.
Our first trip out for sledding was late morning. For some reason, they didn't last too long. And we didn't take pictures because it was still snowing fairly hard. But it was still fun. Man, I love the snow tube.
After lunch, we watched a movie: Coco. Then it was time to go back outside. I worked on the shoveling (the snowblower we inherited didn't work!), and the boys headed to the backyard to use the brick molds we got two years ago but haven't had enough snow to use yet. Both boys were quickly distracted by the backyard neighbors, so they disappeared to play there. Ollie came back a little while later and helped Chuck finish the shelter they started. It collapsed before our bedtime. And the next morning, Ollie went out in footed-pjs and snow boots to jump on the ruins. Kids!
He wanted an action shot of him shoveling. Which wasn't actual shoveling, but just moving snow from one spot on the brick to another.
After Rhett finished at the neighbor's house, I convinced him to take one more sledding trip. I'd love to send the boys by themselves, but man, there are just so many trees! I'm terrified they're going to hit one and then be paralyzed. So I go. But man, they have fun.
For me, March snow is the best snow. I'm fairly confident that by Saturday it will all be gone! Perfect!
And then he was ten. Although we were prepared for the snow storm, it's still not usual in late March. So it was a really fun thing for Rhett to get a snow day on his birthday. The snow hadn't accumulated in the early morning, so we spent the time opening presents, making his cake, and playing video games.
The cake is all rice krispie treats. The top layer is a peanut butter/chocolate/butterscotch. It sounds better than it tastes. It just got so hard. The middle layer is a regular one. And the bottom is a mint Oreo. It's also my favorite of those three.
Rhett with his birthday haul. Caps pillowcase from Ollie (even if I paid for and sewed it), rollerblades, ukulele (I'm hoping he and I will learn together), a video game, a few nutcrackers, and, of course, Nugget. Not pictured: some cash and clothes.
We broke down and had "cake" after lunch.
For dinner, Rhett chose to have a "mystery menu." Which means Chuck and I make a menu with coded items and the boys chose their "courses" without knowing what they are because they're in code. Rhett made me take pictures of each course for posterity. And if I'm forced to take the pictures, I might as well post them.
Course 1
Course 2
Ollie was understandably not happy with his course (on the left).
Course 3
Course 4
It really was a fun and special birthday for our 10 (!) year old. (The snow pictures will be another post. )
I recently helped a neighbor with some statistical software programming for a class of his. In return, he offered to take my family on a tour of the West Wing, where he happened to work. Um, YES. At the time, I didn't realize that, "the only way to experience a West Wing Tour is by invitation from the White House or through a personal connection to a White House staffer willing to lead you on an after-hours tour." But once I learned that, um, DOUBLE YES. I just had to ignore the fact that it was Trump's office.
We had a bit of a traffic problem, so didn't get there early enough to see something else, but instead we got there too early to just go straight to the White House. Plus, it was kind of rainy and really cold. So we played with funny pictures of the Washington Monument.
Once we were allowed in, we got to see the Navy Mess (where they eat), the Rose Garden, the Cabinet Room, the Oval Office, the Roosevelt Room, and the Press Briefing Room. We couldn't take pictures inside, so if you want to see some, look here. We did get some from the outside.
Tour start
Press Briefing Room
After the White House, we briefly toured the Executive Office Building, which houses the office of the Vice President.
This floor!
Now I'm thinking we should do a regular White House tour, but contacting my senators seems like a lot of work, so...probably won't.
For a couple of months Rhett has expressed interest in getting another pet. Like a snake. I'm pretty sure you can figure out how long I entertained that thought. So then he moved on to something like a lizard, or a bearded dragon. We went to an aquarium to do our research, only to find out that the animal + the habitat would be a few hundred dollars, which is far more than we thought reasonable to spend. As Chuck and I tried to figure out how to make it work for him (could he pay for part? etc.) we decided to also check out craigslist and Nextdoor. We "lucked" into a guy who had a dragon that he was willing to part with and he gave us everything for FREE! We did have to buy a couple of lights and stuff, but still. FREE.
Funny thing about this dragon. We're family #4 for him. Family #1 is in our ward, but gave him to Family #2 when the oldest boy went to college. Family #2 had him for awhile but due to changing conditions at their house, they couldn't keep him. They found him a home with Family #3, who in turn, gave him to us. Of course, I knew nothing about homes 1 and 2 until Chuck posted a picture on Instagram and Family #2 recognized him. It's really a hilarious story.
Anyway, this creature (named "Nugget") is now living in our house. I have yet to touch him, and can't say that I actually will. But both boys really like him and are excited to have him. A feeling I predict will last about, oh, four months.
