Snow Day #2 . . . enough already!

Eight inches.  Seriously.  There is 8 inches of snow outside my door!  Ugh.  It is beautiful, especially at night.  But it is cold, wet, slippery and messy and it makes my otherwise relatively calm children absolutely CRAZY!  They are like wild animals clawing at the front door to escape into what they consider an absolute wonderland!  I, on the other hand, have had enough.  I think Jeb is like me -- he was done quickly today too.  Ford and Virginia though -- they are in snow heaven and they don't want it to end.

Thank goodness for Brent and his skill with a shovel.  This morning he spent 2 hours digging us out of the snow.  He even made Barney his very own "pee pad" since the snow was too high for the poor guy to even squat! :(  

So, here are some pictures of the kids enjoying their wonderland.  I just hope that tomorrow, things return to normal.  I really need my 5 hours with kids at school -- REALLY!

Poor Jeb could barely walk in the snow and his mittens kept coming off in it!

Virginia loves sledding -- the faster the better!
Ford found a perfect little resting place in the tube Mimsie gave them!

A little crash and flip of the tube!

I hope tomorrow I can post pictures of 3 kids all dressed and ready for a fun day AT SCHOOL!!!!

Snow Day in St. Louis!

So, we kept getting teased with lots of cold and the occasional dusting of snow.  Well, last night the sleet and snow started to fall from the sky and it appeared to be the real deal.  Ladue cancelled school last night -- not the norm -- and then we awoke this morning.  Not nearly as much as they had predicted.  I don't even think it was 2 inches.  But then, it started again!  And has continued throughout the day.  Sleet, then sleet and snow and now mostly snow.  It is supposed to continue until very late tonight or early morning.  Unlike many of my friends who claim to love a snow day, I was not happy that my kids weren't going to school.  Ford missed two days last week because he was sick and Jeb missed a day too.  I was in need of a school day!  But instead, I found myself outside with 3 kids and a dog in the miserable, wet, cold.  The good news is, as much as I hate the wet clothes, the gray slush and the freezing hands, we had an awesome time sledding and laughing -- and some of us even cried a bit! 

Here are some pictures of our day -- especially you Alabama folks who aren't sure what snow is!!!!! :)

Sledding all the way from the front door to the middle of the street . . .

Wheeeeeeeeeee . . . almost as good as Thunder Mountain Railroad!
"Brothers are so mean . . . they throw snow!!!" said Virginia.
And the whole gang . . . even Barney enjoyed the snow!!!
So while you Southern folks are praying for a snow day, I will stick to my prayers for a full day of school tomorrow . . . but I'm not holding my breath!

Happy Birthday Brent!

So, I'm running a little late.  We celebrated Brent's birthday one week ago today!  Ford and I spent the entire afternoon baking and icing Auburn mini cakes.  These were a true labor of love and thankfully they tasted good too!  I am not an artist -- I can't even draw a decent stick man -- so the fact that you can tell this is an AU symbol is in and of itself amazing!  I notice that as we get older our birthday gifts get a little more boring -- excitement just isn't the same over dress shirts, ties and suits!  At least we threw in a Dave Matthews Band live cd from the show they did at Busch Stadium last year -- Brent and I were in the audience!  Gotta have a little fun to go with the work clothes!

 

Barney is definitely a Balogh!!

If ever there existed a tolerant dog, we have found him.  Barney is Virginia's baby doll.  Seriously!  We are just waiting to see him dressed in baby clothes and riding in the doll stroller.  It is only a matter of time.  He is so adorably cute and we are all loving him.  Brent and I had a thing against "fluffy" dogs for a long time.  We liked big, manly man dogs -- labs, goldens, etc . . . but for our family at this time, Barney is the perfect fit.

The Biggest Loser

OK, Brent and I admit it.  We have never really watched The Biggest Loser.  I think we are the only people on earth that haven't!  So, a couple of days ago, the kids were sitting on the couch with Brent and an advertisement for the show came on.  Ford turned to Brent and said "Dad, what is The Biggest Loser about?" and before Brent could respond, Virginia kicked Ford in the head and said "It is about you, Ford!".  For the love of little sisters!!

Welcome Barney!

Most of you know that we lost our Boykin Spaniel, Huck, after only 15 months due to kidney failure.  We have been patiently searching out a new dog for our family and we had lots of requirements.  Brent and I were not sure we wanted to commit to any more "children" right now but decided we would know if the right dog came along.  Well, as I was searching through petfinder just before Christmas, I noticed a new listing for an 8 month old  havanese that was a puppy mill rescue dog.  I am a sucker for havanese -- they are the cutest, cuddliest little dogs ever and we had even talked to breeders about them about 5 years ago.  I contacted the lady about the dog and he sounded too good to be true -- 8 months old, neutered, up to date on shots, microchipped, crate trained, good with kids, happy and friendly.  The only negative -- he was from a puppy mill and therefore wasn't housebroken.  Ugh!  Did I really want to train a dog when I wasn't even sure I had successfully trained my two year old yet!!??

I sent Brent to check out the little guy while the kids and I were visiting family in Alabama.  He called and said "Three other people are looking at the dog so we need to decide now!"  Brent is a great salesman and he falls for great sales techniques too!  Of course, we jumped and after driving 7 hours from Alabama (miraculously with only one stop!), the kids and I drove to Wildwood, MO to pick up the little guy soon to be known as "Barney Balogh".  So far, only two accidents in the house and one was totally my fault -- he tried to tell me!  He is the cuddliest and calmest dog we have ever owned.  He is a total fit for us!  HOORAY!

So this morning, after taking my 3 kids for haircuts, we loaded up Barney and took him to get dolled up for the new year too.  Total Balogh grooming fees for today -- $93; neat and cleanand sweet smelling Balogh kids and dog -- priceless!