Loving the Little Bit of Snow A LOT!

BEFORE the snow began last Sunday, we celebrated my sister, Taylor's, 15th birthday! I still can't believe she is 15! It seems like just yesterday she was Luke's age and we were hanging out in Disneyworld at a cheerleading competition. Where did time go? :) We enjoyed a super quick celebration with her - Luke helped her blow out the candles on her cake...take a peek....

Then, to our surprise....around 6:45, Luke and I were sitting at the living room table eating our dinner when all of a sudden, we looked outside and saw snow. By the time we finished eating as fast as we could and found our snow clothes, mittens, hat, and boots, the ground was covered. We looked across the street and our neighbors (Drew, Caren, and William) were outdoors enjoying the first (and probably only) snow of the year too! We headed outside to play! Drew, Caren, and William came over to our house and Drew brought William's very cool jeep for the boys to play in. Luke drove it all by himself. He did quite well until he got himself stuck in the mulch! :) Here is Luke driving the Jeep...


We tried to get both boys to sit in the Jeep for a picture but that was difficult....this is as close as we got....
Even though it was freezing cold, Luke's gloves were too big, his hat kept falling off, and he wouldn't keep his jacket zipped (because he hates zippers up around his face), Luke had a blast playing in the snow! We got out Luke's buckets and shovels and he tried to dig in the snow but his gloves kept falling off. Then, Drew and William and Caren started running and Drew would hide. Luke loved this! We would run through the snow to find Drew beside of the house and the boys would laugh out loud. Luke kept saying, "Find the other daddy again." (That's what he called, Drew - the other daddy.) :) William also loved the snow. His out loud laughs were contagious. Both boys held a snowball and seemed to be fascinated with the falling snow around them. As bedtime quickly approached and the boys seemed to be frozen like popsicles, we started talking about going inside - neither of the boys were ready to quit playing. But, as we know, all good things must come to an end. Drew, Caren, William, and the Jeep went home. Luke wasn't ready to go inside so I held him and walked around in the dark falling snow for just a little longer. It was quite beautiful and I definitely enjoyed taking in the moment with Luke. As we rocked that night, Luke told me all about the snow and asked if we could go play in it again. I told Luke that we would get up and play in the snow the next morning, especially since I already knew that school was out - it was a scheduled vacation day! :) No make-up day for us! :) Here are a few more pictures of Luke playing in the night time snow....


As promised, the next morning, Luke and I got out in the snow EARLY! Luke was awake by 5:30am, so by 6:30am, we were bundled up and in the snow! Luke started out by doing some shoveling, some fishing, and then he wanted to ride around in his red car. He rode and rode and rode in the red car around and around my dad's house and our house. Luke seemed to just enjoy taking in the beautiful winter wonderland and I did too. It was such a peaceful morning. We sang and sang and talked about where the snow comes from and what animals like the snow and what animals do not like the snow. Luke's favorite part of the red car was going down the big hill that connects our yard to dad's yard....it was almost like a mini-sled ride! :) Luke also enjoyed our mini-road trip up the street. I pushed him a little farther up the street than normal because there was no traffic. He enjoyed seeing all of the snow covered houses. After Luke was finished with the red car, we went to the backyard and let Madi out into the snow. Madi likes the snow too and she ran and ran and ran like a crazy dog! Luke smiled as he watched her act silly! (On a sad note, I missed Max. This was the first snowfall since he passed away and Max always loved the snow. Even though he was a lazy dog, he would always work up some energy to go running through the snow. I have some of the cutest pictures of him with snow all over his face. I miss you, fat Max.) :( At least I was able to see Madi have a good time running in the snow. She's old but she can still get around. :)

Here are some pictures of our early morning snow play time....


I thought that picture was cute....that's our family....:)







Later in the day, after the snow was almost gone, Luke and I went back outside with Luke's lawn mower. He loved mowing through the frozen and not so frozen mud puddles. He would mow through the snowy part of the yard and get snow on the tires and then he would push his mower through the puddles to wash the tires. As soon as he realized that his boots kept his feet from getting wet, he also enjoyed stomping and running through the puddles also. Here are some pictures of the mud puddle fun....








Luke enjoyed smacking his hands on papaw Dale's metal chairs. He said he was playing the drums...

And, now some other pictures of our week here in the Bumgarner home. One day last week, Luke got my scarf from the kitchen table and started pretending it was a snake. Here he is playing with my scarf...


Then, yesterday, we took a family trip to Toys R' Us and the mall. We had a great time and Luke ended up having a lucrative trip. At Toys R' Us, we bought him a Thomas tricycle (they had all of their tricycles on sale and Luke is now developmentally ready for pedals.) He is doing alright driving it. He still needs a lot of practice but with warmer spring weather right around the corner, he will be taking off on his own before we know it. Until then, he loves the lights and music that play on the top and he loves the storage basket and trunk. Check out his new ride....




During our trip to the mall, Mommy and Daddy got a few things done as well - I bought a new dress for a wedding next weekend, Daddy found 3 sweaters on sale, I bought a wedding gift and a birthday gift that I needed and I found Luke some new shoes that I have been looking for. Luke had a great time at the mall too - he went on a train ride, a carousel ride, some car rides, and played on the indoor playground. Then, after the mall, we ate a delicious hamburger and fries lunch. It was a super fun family outing! :)

After we got home yesterday, I let Luke eat some of his Valentine candy - FUN DIP! He loved it! Check it out....he was serious about that candy....


Just a few other cute moments to share (not caught on camera) - last week, Luke and I had two very fun outdoor days. On Wednesday, I took him to Grimes Park - I walked around downtown Lexington with him in the stroller. He was so sweet. He just talked and talked about everything that we passed. It was a gorgeous day for a walk and I had the best walking buddy in town! After our walk, I let Luke swing and slide. For some reason, he wanted to swing almost the entire time. We had a great time swinging and singing. After I pushed him for a little while, he wanted me to swing beside of him, so I did. This gave me the opportunity to show him how to push his legs out and back to try to swing himself. He tried, but he needs some practice. At almost 6:00pm, I asked him if he was ready to go and he said, "No, I just want to stay at the park." I ended up having to force him to leave the park. :) Then, on Thursday, Luke and I met our friends, Heather and Silas, for a play date at Finch Park and then dinner at McDonald's. That was a lot of fun too! We always take advantage of this great weather!

We have a new member of the stuffed animal family in our house this week. Her name is Minnie Mouse. Luke's mammaw Carolyn bought him a small Minnie Mouse stuffed animal (just like the one he was playing with at Liz and Andrew's house during the Super Bowl party). Luke loves this Minnie Mouse. He carries her around everywhere. Landis hates it! He thinks Minnie Mouse is for girls! I've tried to explain to him that this is just a phase and that Luke will grow out of it. I sure do hope so, but, for now, Minnie is his favorite! Matter of fact, the other day, he sat down beside of Minnie in the brown chair and he said, "She's sweet. She's sweet as a pancake." :)

One day last week when Luke and I were playing, he all of a sudden took me by the hand and said, "Mommy, you are in time-out." He took my finger and walked me to a corner and told me to sit in time-out. I never figured out what I had done wrong but several times that day, I had to go to time-out. One time, Luke said, "I'm in time-out too" and he sat with me in the corner. Super cute! :) I guess I need to learn to behave! :)

Another cute story - Luke was singing into Daddy's big microphone and, before beginning his song, he said, "I'm Luke Bumgarner. I'm going to sing a song." Then, after he was done singing, he said, "Thank you very much." Such a professional....I think he's ready for the road...LOL!

And, finally....just this morning, Luke did the cutest thing. While I was unloading groceries from the car, I let Luke paint. I put a towel on the table in the living room, gave him a cup of water and his paint and let him begin his creation while I unpacked the groceries. I quickly ran outside (for like 30 seconds) to grab a few more bags. When I came back in the door, Luke was standing in the middle of the kitchen with this stunned look on his face (I wish I had a camera.) He looked at me so serious and said, "We need a Mouse-ke-tool and some new clothes." At first, I was totally confused but then when I looked closer I saw the big puddle of water and paint on the kitchen floor and his soaking wet sleeves and shirt. He looked at me and said, "I tried to put my paint up." (Yes, sweetheart, I see that.) :) Evidently, he missed the counter. But, no need to fret, I called for Toodles and he brought us a towel to clean up the mess. Thank goodness for those Mouse-ke-tools! :)

Having a toddler is so much fun! Never a dull moment! :)

Here are some videos...

#1 - Daddy singing a song while Luke plays in the background. Landis has no idea I am posting this but I feel like you all need to hear what a great voice he has! :)

#2 - Luke dancing and being silly at his piano.

#3 -Luke mowing through a puddle.

#4 - Luke singing Old MacDonald Had a Farm.

#5-Luke digging in the snow with his shovel.

Have a great week, ya'll! As always, thank you for stopping by!

Toddy