Our Snowy Holidays

Just before we left for Minnesota for Christmas, we got several inches of snow. The girls loved playing in it and watching it come down. We went sledding and Scott made a snow fort for them. Unfortunately, it later melted but not before we made a snowman! It was cold here so one evening we stayed warm by making a gingerbread house with Dad. It turned out pretty good and is still in our dining room.

The girls enjoyed dressing up for Christmas. Rebekah loves "princess" dresses and so fortunately I found a puffy hand-me-down in the closet. At church there was a Santa Claus handing out stockings to the kids and Rebekah was his "helper" and passed them out with him. Kara has followed in her sister's footsteps and dresses up as well. The pink dress from Nana Savery matched her pink shoes perfectly - or at least so she thought!

A couple of days before Christmas we headed to Minnesota. It was a long drive, 10 hours, to Duluth but we made it just before the big snowstorm hit the midwest. We were joined by Aunt Steph, Uncle Brian and his mother. We had a dreary Christmas day of rainy sleet but fortunately had received several inches of snow earlier in the week. The girls had fun opening presents. I made the girls dolls with some clothing and Scott made a bed to go with them. They enjoyed these along with baby accessories and a doll house. We took the girls ice skating, which Rebekah loved but Kara thought was the worst thing she had ever done. After a couple of tries, Rebekah was skating slowly by herself for short distances. We also took them sledding on the local golf course which was also a lot of fun. Duluth has a huge light display called "Bentleyville" which we enjoyed twice and it was definitely a favorite.

After Christmas, Scott and I left the kids with the grandparents and enjoyed several days at Lutsen, a local ski resort built in the early 1900s. We went cross-country skiing, hiking, swimming, and did a lot of relaxing and reading by the fireplace. It was beautiful since it had just snowed and the temperatures were cold making for beautiful hikes along the local rivers.

When we returned to Kansas we had yet another snow fall (they got about 8 inches at Christmas) of 2-3 inches. Scott took the girls skiing at the local ski hill just north of our house. Rebekah is a true "snow bunny" and loved going down the hills. We let Kara have a turn and she also liked it and wanted to go "faster, Daddy."

Kara is now in a "big girl's bed" and only fell out the first couple of nights. She has since adjusted well. She has two dolls that she calls "Princess Pea" and "Qwaya" (Rebekah interprets this as Katyln - whatever). Kara is definitely going through a stubborn phase and wants to do everything by herself without help. Patience is a much needed skill right now with her.

Rebekah frequently wants time to herself lately in her room and will announce to Kara, "I need my privacy!" She continues to enjoy coloring, and reading, and knows her alphabet. They both enjoy having a babysitter come when I work so they can have pizza parties on the floor in their pajamas.