Just in from shoveling.....again

It's gonna be a short summer, since I am now experiencing my 4th unexpected day off of school due to snow. As of now, my last day is June, gulp, 27th, and we have at least two more months in which severe winter weather could happen. Beatrice is thrilled about every flake and about every minute Mama gets to stay home. We were outside shoveling/playing for 90 minutes. She came in and used the bathroom, then came in the studio announcing "I ready for my nap!" On went the camera....

When I downloaded these and viewed them in the "Last 12 months" section of my iPhoto, I mistakenly arrowed forward and saw a photo of her taken exactly one year ago today. I guess January 21st is "no-pants" day!

The Week in (Photo) Review

Snow Angel

This morning we woke to 6 inches of beautiful white fluffy snow. Beatrice was SO excited. We missed the first storm of the season while we were in Florida, so she went to sleep last night in anticipation of the predicted snowfall. This morning she ran to the window to see if her dream came true, woke up Daddy announcing the grand event, ate breakfast in record time and impatiently waited for the moment when we could go out and she could make a snowman and play. Finally, we got out there, all decked out in hot pink snowpants, coat, boots, scarf, hat, new teddy bear mittens...the works. The snow did not disappoint. Beatrice flashed smiles from ear to ear. She threw herself down to the ground and made snow angels, flew down the snow-covered slide on her swingset, the usual way and belly-whopper style a la Frosty, used her shovel, and tried to create snowballs. Anyone walking by would have heard the loud giggles and excited squeals of a 2-year old as she experiences all the joy that is a day out in the snow. Anthony and I kept watching her as we were shoveling, reminiscing about how ambivalent she was last year about snow, and finally, when the shoveling was done, I went back in to get the cameras to capture these magical moments. I envisioned playing side by side for the remainder of the morning, taking video of her sliding, perfect photos of her flapping her "wings" as she made snow angels, snapping away as I pulled her in her sled, all set against a blue sky and in clear sunshine. Each picture was to be worth a thousand words. When I returned, I heard crying along with the dreaded words "My toes are cooooooooooold!!!!" There was no recovering. Here is my only photo from this wondrous New England morn:

The picks of the (300+downloaded photos) crop

The day before we left. I love this shot of B. at the park before Rachel arrived:

Scoping out the water at Providence airport, sporting her new elephant backpack, given by Daddy for the trip.

Eating a banana muffin breakfast, made by Auntie Leisa in Florida.

Reading some of her new books with Lola:

Ninang (Godmother/Aunt) Lucy got a big reaction with this gift of a Fancy Nancy doll!

Reading a(nother) new book with my goddaughter/niece Linden and B.

Here's big cousin Raina, who doted on B. every chance she got:

And adoring cousin Jackie, whose house we stayed at. On the last 2 days we were there, B. finally started calling her by name instead of "dat one I like."

The family reunion was on 12/26.

All nine living members of the oldest Foronda generation were there:

The middle generation, with only two "girls" missing:

The musical talent spans all generations, and I was happy to see my little one in the front row, taking it all in:

Lolo's siblings and he all sang a choral piece composed by their father decades ago. This was a highlight of the day, and it brought back so many fond memories of Archambault family parties from years ago:

With music all around us, B. decided to pick up a ukelele:

Strumming and singing with Lola and Ninang:

Cuttin' the rug with Lolo:

Dueling strings with cousin Miles and Tita Betty:

This girl LOVES a conga line!

I needed a higher shutter speed for this whirlwind of a dance:

The youngest Forondas:

Another duet, this time on drums with Dominic:

The next day we headed to downtown Disney where she enjoyed the Lego displays:

and the chilly train ride with Daddy:

She added her own painted coconut to Jackie's tree:

We stopped for a very quick "hello" to the beach the evening before we left. Gotta love boots on a beach!

We returned home to a(nother) birthday cake for Mama:

Home, and back to reality.?

Happy New Year

We're slowly downloading the hundreds of pictures from the holidays and I will post photos ASAP. Our trip was really fun and really exhausting. Beatrice loved flying, loves her cousins and all her family, and loved Christmas. Anthony and I were most proud of how able she is to share and cooperate with other kids, skills we can talk about but don't get to foster on a daily basis since she's an only child. Bossy Betty has lost her edge, in a really good way, and I'm amazed at how well she can put her own agenda on hold and enjoy some else's. Clearly the time she has spent with Jillian and now Ethan is paying off. She is enjoying and savoring every present. Santa came through with several Barney movies. The many books she received are her stated favorite and she is still spending loads of time every day with her new washing machine/ironing board. My brother Paul also got her an e-reader electronic kiddie-kindle type thing that she's quite taken with as well and today I had to cover the screen of it to get a kiss goodbye. And so it begins with an electronic childhood.....We returned to a good amount of snow and B. immediately wanted to build a snowman. She had a blast playing in the yard for a couple afternoons but, thanks to a warm weekend, the "no-man" went from beheaded to thin to "uh-oh...no-man all gone!" We're anxiously awaiting another good storm so he can come back again. Until then, 2011 is underway, school/work is back in session, and it's back to the normalcy, schedules, stresses, and the moments of wonder that each day in our home brings.