White

We saw way too much white this winter. I think we had about eight or nine large snowfalls. I lost count after the fifth one. Liam, of course, had the time of his life rolling around in it every chance he got.

Here are some pics of Liam that his daddy took of him out in the backyard just after the first big snowfall of the season. Happy as can be! I'm just happy that it's all melting away.

 

Today, I planted the baby pine tree that we got for free last Christmas and some tomato seeds in small planters. They are sitting near the windowsill in the dining room for now. As soon as they are big enough, they will need to be transplanted into larger pots and so forth until they are mature enough to withstand being transferred out into our backyard. I am seriously praying for a green thumb this year. Speaking of which, I can't wait to start seeing green again in our neighborhood. Looking forward for Spring to make its appearance. Two consecutive months of cabin fever is way too long.

Our cold and warm feet

I have lost track of many snow storms have we had so far this winter. Maybe eight. I'm totally bummed, but not so much about the snow. I'm sad that I will have to retire my totally awesome funky-looking and warm snow boots. Water is starting to seep in at the toes.

As I sit here at the computer with cold, damp feet and mourning my favorite and lone pair of snow boots, I can't help but wish I could warm them up on a warm sandy beach somewhere. Walking on a warm sandy beach is definitely on my top ten list of favorite things in the whole world. So, indulge me on this next post as I reminisce about our one and only trip to the beach last year.

(Please excuse the lame intros to these next few posts as I am trying to catch up.)

Let it not be said that I did not go to the beach in 2010. I have made it to the beach at least once every summer my entire NYC life and I was not about to break my tradition. Going to the beach is very important to me. It's therapeutic to me. It was the week after Labor Day and all the children were back in school. The weather forecast called for mostly sunny skies with temps in the mid 80s. Liam had been begging to go all summer. I simply could not resist taking our postponed trip to the beach. It was our very last chance. So, I did it. For probably the first time ever with my little boy, I was spontaneous and granted his wish. I rounded up all of our usual beach stuff in record time: towels, blanket, swimsuits, beach toys, change of clothes, Liam's water shoes (which I spent half the summer looking for), drinks, fresh fruit, sandwiches, Liam's usual snack foods, and my salty snack (because there is nothing better than a salty snack at the beach... I think it's that salty air that makes me crave it big time when I'm there.)

 We parked just steps away from the boardwalk. Nice! I could hardly contain the giddiness as we walked across the boardwalk and down onto the beach in the anticipation of stepping on that warm sand. Oooooh, blissful!

From what we could see, there were all of about twenty people at Long Beach, including Liam and me. We so wished daddy could have been there with us. We set up and then ran to the water. The perfectly warm waters were so inviting for a good swim. Too bad about no lifeguard on duty. Oh, yeah, and the toddler in tow. (Sigh.) But we ended up having just as much fun if not more, wetting our feet in the warm water and running away from the waves, much to Liam's delight, and still getting pretty wet in the process. Here are our little piggies in the warm, wet sand.

  We walked along the shore, my little boy and I holding hands. There was a sweet, sweet moment I will never forget. Liam looked up at me and said, "I like holding your hand, mama!" -squeezing mine really tight. (Sigh.) I'm so crazy about this little boy! We gathered some sea shells and then headed back to our blanket.

Wrapped up in our towels, we started our snack fest. Here is little Liam having his salty snack. He is relishing every moment since I never buy these things for snacks at home. Then, the fog started to roll in, practically kicking us out of the beach. And so we bid farewell to the delicious ocean air and the warm sand on our feet until the summer of 2011.

Now back to our regularly scheduled snow shoveling..... and cold feet.

Family fun

I know that it has been some time since I have posted. There is so much going on in my life right now that my head is just full. (Besides that, my husband has been working on our computers for almost two months now backing stuff up and making upgrades, so it has been a challenge getting easy access to my files and the internet.) I will try my best to catch up on my posts.

We had quite a lot of snow this winter which has meant a lot of family fun in the snow. This last snowfall we had the opportunity to try sledding (with a borrowed sled from Bro Herrera). It was a first for Liam and me. Since my boy is still so little, I decided that it would be safer to find a small slope somewhere nearby instead of heading all the way out to the only one grand slope in our neighborhood which is a bit of a hike, or making the longer trek out to the frequented snowy hills of Prospect Park.

We practiced on a small mound, a snow drift nearby, to figure out the sled. When we saw how much Liam enjoyed it, we decided to walk a bit further, closer to the shore by a small but steep area. So there we were, all alone in that area on a bright, sunny day making footprints on untouched snow. Just beautiful, cold, but so beautiful.

These are some pics we took. So much fun!

First, we had to dig out our car. (We actually walked past it.)

These were the tools we used.

Liam on a practice slope.

He protested all the way home.

 Don't worry, my sweet boy, we will go sledding again next winter for sure.

Snow, snow and more snow!

Growing up here in NYC I have experienced snowfalls that have just about paralyzed NYC. With all the meteorological advances through the years, the city now has ample opportunity to prepare early for the snow by ordering plenty of salt (because we ran out of salt one year), filling up the trucks, getting the plows ready and canceling schools. Mind you, it sounds sort of silly canceling schools before the first snowflakes appear, but now that I have a child of my own, I agree that it is better to err on the side of safety.

This winter season we have had plenty of snow, but this last snow storm was special for us because it was the first one that Liam really enjoyed. Inconceivably, we have been sick for all the previous snow storms. We also missed a lot of last year's snow because we were in Australia walking around shorts and wiping the sweat from our brows. (Aaaaah! Nice!)

So, here are some pictures of Liam and Daddy playing out in the latest snow storm. (Actually, as I write this, we are in the middle of yet another one!) Daddy came home early from work just for the occasion. Liam couldn't wait to touch the snow with his bare hands. After we convinced him to put his gloves back on, he finally went to work with Daddy on building an igloo with a snow brick maker that we bought a couple of years ago for less than a dollar from a toy store that closed in our neighborhood. It was easy enough to make the bricks, but we just couldn't figure out how to make the igloo, so we ended up with some kind of an enclosure. People passing by thought the brick formation was pretty cool and wished us luck. In the end, he would much rather frolic in the snow on his own. I even managed to teach my little angel how to make a snow angel. So much fun!

"Snowed in"

There is something magical about having a white Christmas here in New York City. It's picture perfect and if you're like me, it makes singing Christmas carols that much more fun. Well, we had our first big snowfall of the winter season and almost in time for Christmas. (We got a whopping 12 inches, more in other parts of the NYC and about 25 inches in parts of Long Island. Our local Church leaders even canceled services yesterday.) Just six days later and we well and truly would have had our white Christmas!

Okay, I must admit that for those who have to trek out in the snow and use public transportation it is a hassle, not to mention a real pain when home and business owners don't shovel and salt the streets as they should. Likewise, for those of us who own cars, the snow is a quite a nuisance.

Just this morning a lady from down our street, who had parked her car right on the corner of our busy intersection, was seen complaining to two police officers. I thought, "Really? Are your serious?!" Maybe she was complaining about all the hard snow around her car. (It had almost turned into ice from the low temperatures overnight.) Maybe she got a big fat ticket because it was 10am on Monday and she was still parked by a sign that reads no parking from 7am to 4pm on school days. I don't know. I saw the lady and the police officers pointing at each other and the snow by her car. A short time later, they walked away shaking their heads. Then, of course, the lady and her son went to work to "dig out" their car. Less than an hour later, she drove away.


This scene made me remember our big snowfall of winter 2002. So, I dug up these these couple of photos that I took from my bedroom window in my apartment in Queens -while it was still snowing!

THIS is what I call, being "snowed in" and quite literally digging your car out!

You see, the trick to making your life easier in a scenario like this one is to go out periodically during the snowfall to brush and shovel the snow off and away from your car, that way when it finally stops snowing, you don't have the daunting task of the massive snow removal, (I like to compare it to raking the leaves in Autumn), that is, of course, if you are one of those people who needs to have a snow-free car for a quick getaway. Otherwise, I would opt to just stay in and sleep, eat and have some quality uninterrupted family time.

Was my car one of the unfortunate cars deeply buried in that snow? My car was parked in a climate-controlled, indoor parking garage around the corner from my building. HA! I was so pleased that I didn't have to deal with the whole situation, that I sang: "...Let it snow! Let it snow! Let it snow!..." that whole weekend.

So, where is my car now? It is parked outside on our street, "buried" in our pre-Christmas snow of 2009.

Maybe it's time to buy a shovel? Maybe we will get one as a Christmas present? (Hint! Hint!)