busy week frosty weekend

It's been a week since I took these photos but life is busy..... it's busy for everyone, why and when did we fill up our lives with STUFF.  Lots of stuff that keeps us running every night and just when I think I can work on something that I've been slacking in {like my grandkids blocks, you don't want to know how far behind I am on them.... like Melanie, Andee, and Caiden don't even have any, that far behind, but....... those that aren't related to me are done.  Bad Grandma} and then my weeks become consumed with STUFF.

This week consisted on 2 meetings, 1 paint class, watching g-kids, and now were back to the weekend.  So let's see what happened last weekend out our windows.

Below zero temps, frosty trees and foggy mornings.  As soon as John opened the curtains he knew the front door was going to be hanging open cooling off the house as my camera captured this beautiful morning.

Back to the weekend but this weekend does not bring relaxation..... but I'm ready for my full calendar and can't wait to check things off my list.

More cottage time {a hundred times}

Our weekend was planned for comfy pants, hot chocolate, movies, CMA awards, messy cottage and lots of snacks.  We started out Friday night with everyone smuggling on the love seat while we watched the CMA's.  (I might have to watch them again because I didn't really pay attention)

Saturday morning Lynn let the kids watch a movie and then we have to turn it off so they get some play time in.  These kids are not used to watching TV so when it's on they are glued to it.  

Mommy, Grandma and Grandpa took turns playing games..... they cheat!!!  Not even kidding they cheat.

After our sledding adventure it was hot chocolate and Grandma's famous hand drawn pictures to color.  I let them request if they want and of course Miss Melanie needs Doc McStuffin, Stuffy "aaaannnnddddd Lambie Grandma"..... "I have to have Lambie".  And then she didn't even color..... 

Lynn said naps were needed during the weekend..... she didn't say by who.... see TV is on and glue is happening.

That didn't last long, TV was off and we're onto a new adventure.  

We had seen deer tracks while sledding so we were hoping for some deer to walk through.  We had no idea they would find our bird feeders.  And be able to stick their tongues in them for a little snack.

Bedtime was early for Little Miss but she woke up when the big kids were wiggling around so she wanted Grandpa to hold her.  

And then it was Grandma's turn to tickle her leg, foot, belly, arms, toe, foot, leg, belly, arm..... anything for this little princess.

The next morning it was sledding again and a little animal safari hunt.  I hid Max's animals and he hunted them.  

Mally being silly.

Mally had to help him on his hunt, he had a hard time finding these little guys.  (Dead tiger on the floor)

More Grandpa snuggle time in the morning.

Melanie and I were playing and this was her hair all weekend.  We tried to tie it down but not long it would be like this again.  

She is a repeater, she repeats the same thing a hundred times.  Even if you acknowledge her she will still say it over and over again.  This weekend she had a black spot on the chair she was suppose to eat supper on.  It was like a dried up tar stain that wasn't going anywhere.  She says

"thadt's gross"

Lynn - "Melanie that's not nice"

"thadt's gross"

"thadt's gross"

"thadt's gross momma"

Lynn - "Melanie that's not nice, you're fine"

"thadt's gross"

"thadt's gross"

"thadt's gross"

"thadt's gross"

Grandma - "Melanie it's fine, it won't hurt you"

"thadt's gross"

"thadt's gross grandma"

Grandma - "Mennie you're fine" {laughing a bit}

"me no like it"

"thadt's gross"

"thadt's gross"

"thadt's gross"

Lynn - "Meannie STOP"  {not laughing}

"me no like it"

"thadt's gross"

"thadt's gross"

"thadt's gross"

"me no like it"

"thadt's gross"

Now just think of everything this little girl has to say and repeat it a hundred times.  It seems like she finally got her voice so I love it.... momma not so much.

She colored her pictures on Sunday morning.

Oh baby girl you are the sweetest thing.  She would say {a hundred times}

Melanie wanting her momma - "thadt's my momma"

Me telling her - "that's my daughter"

Melanie - "Nooooooo thadt's my momma"

Me - "that's my daughter"

Melanie - {crying..... Nooooooo thadt's my momma, not your daughter"

Grandpa just naturally gets the snuggles from them.  I think because he sits still.  I might have to learn how to sit still.

It was a great weekend and we have so much fun spending time with them.  The cottage is all about making memories with the little ones  Grandpa even has memories...... he remembers to stay home next time a sledding weekend is suggested.  :)

Sledding weekend with kids

Lynn had a weekend that Jesse was going to be gone so we planned a weekend at the cottage to go sledding.  The kids love sledding up there because the hill is so big and they can "fly" down it.  Well after Grandma packed that trail down last weekend it was frozen and hard like ice...... and fast.  But remember I kept heading for the trees so we had to have spotters at the middle of the hill to stop them from hitting trees and going down the 2nd half of the hill.  Having them walk up the one hill was bad enough we didn't need them walking up from the very bottom with all those clothes on and hauling a sled. 

Melanie wasn't even afraid to go down the hill by herself.  She loved it and wanted to go faster. 

Lynn's turn because this is just way to fun to not go down on the really, really fast sled.

 Does Lynn's tube look a little flat?  It's a snow tube but sledding down a ice hard hill in temperatures in the single digits causes sleds to pop.

Good thing Grandpa and Grandma remembered to bring more sleds up from when the kids were little because Lynn forgot their sleds....... yep a sledding weekend and they forget their sleds.  :)

This hard yellow sled was way to fast to let them use.  One trip down and they almost took out grandpa.  So with the long string on it we hung onto it and let them go till they were out of rope.

That might not have been the best idea...

Lynn did it to Max and he thought it was great.  Grandma did it to Melanie (not on purpose) and she cried hard.  {fail}

Then we would pull them back up the hill........ it was an upper body work out.

 Sometimes we had lots of drama.....

Here Lynn almost lost her.

This sled was great, it was sturdy and fit two of them and with the protective fabric it wasn't quite as fast and we could stop them when we needed to.

When Melanie would go down the hill we had to carry her back up.  That got old fast so we got her to walk to the sled on the rope and then we'd pull her up.  She thought that was fantastic.

Here's all the sledders and for being 8 above zero it really wasn't that cold.  Except when trying to take pictures and you can't wear gloves. 

And of course we had a campfire too.  

Instead of cleaning off the snow on the swing they used it as a cushion.  

 When it was my turn to pull Melanie up I got Max as a helper..... um non-helper.   

After Lynn and Melanie went in we were exploring the bottom of the hill and the river.  I think this is the first year it's been totally frozen.  The big kids were sledding down the bottom hill and I wanted to video it so I ran back up for my camera. 

Here is the video of the kids coming down the hill and out onto the river.

We had such a fun time sledding even in the cold.  The kids are already planning their next trip to the cottage.