Makin' S'mores

The Girl has really enjoyed roasting marshmellows over the fire. We don't do it that often, for the coals necessary for roasting marshmellows don't occur until later in the evening - past the kid's bedtime. This night, we started the fire a bit earlier than normal so they could enjoy it, too.

When it is s'more time, the boy starts off the festivities by ripping open a bag of marshmellows.

I gave the Girl a little training session...

.... and then she was off on her own.

The sweet taste of a perfectly roasted marshmellow. Most of it got in her mouth, the rest was swabbed up with a wet rag.

A fun evening for all!

Creativity

Our Boy keeps us entertained while we go out to eat. Not long ago, we all went to "The Train Room" at Arni's. While waiting for our pizza to come out, the Boy kept us entertained by making artistic sculptures. While styrofoam cups and forks may be his forte, he is skilled in other artistic mediums such as place mats, napkins, plates, straws, and a wide variety of foods.

Fine motor skills are a must.

He sure is proud of his creations!

A Day in the Snow

With a couple of inches on snow on the ground, we had to go out and try out the Girl's new sled.

Goodbye Lawnmower - Hello Snow Blower!

Today I made a Craigslist trade. I traded my recently acquired John Deere 300 lawn mower for a snow blower. This snow blower mounts onto the front of my John Deere 316. It is powered by a belt, and raised and lowered with hydraulics.


Besides getting the snow blower, I also bartered to get a set of suitcase weights as well as some cash. These little suitcase weights are about 45 pounds each. I'll build a bracket for the rear of the JD316 and mount these weights to provide a little more counter balance for the heavy front-mounted snow blower.
I am happy with the trade I managed. I figured out I am about $300 on the positive side of the trade by keeping the snow blade, tire chains, and weights from the original purchase of the JD300. I had hoped for pure cash for liquidity, but perhaps I'll get some use out of this snow blower. Now we just need some snow to play in!