On my many walks around Rossland, this is one of my favourite winter ornaments. It sure beats elves, dwarves and toadstools, doesn't it? The house is located at the top of a very steep hill and I hope you note the snow ready to crash off the roof. It is wise to be wary when walking in Rossland. There are so many precipitous roofs and I've often been blissfully unaware. Now that I have this big responsiblity in the stroller I am taking much better notice.
There's been a revolution in the world of diapers since I was the parent of a young baby. The ones Atley and Miro are currently wearing are featured at left. They should fit them for quite a few months because there are rows of snaps to adjust to the different sizes. (My arthritic fingers have a bit of a time with the snaps!) There is tons of padding in each diaper and they seem to work pretty well. The most brilliant part of the whole procedure is that we are simply throwing them into a diaper pail "as is" and then we put them through the rinse cycle of the washing machine to get them rinsed prior to washing them. None of this hands in the toilet business. So far it's working really well, but our two little guys are pretty young and their "number twos" are always small and runny enough to get rid of everything with ease. The boys seem to enjoy their diapers and we're not creating a mess to the moon with disposables. However, we do have laundry! Good thing that I'm the Queen of the Clothesline!
Today we had crystal clear skies in Rossland and Andrea and I took the boys out for their first snowshoe. We left from my rental house in Happy Valley and wandered over to the Kootenay-Columbia Trail where we planned to walk the "Back of KC" and back to Andrea's house for feeding time. We had the babes out for 35 minutes when Miro woke up and we didn't know how much further we had to walk. So it was decided to go back to my place in case he wouldn't settle again. We managed a good hour outside with them. I found that my back was a little sore carrying Atley on my chest in this nifty rig. I just need him to be on my back, however! We won't be able to try that out for a couple of months because the babes really should be able to hold up their heads (reliably) before we try it. At this point, we're thinking if we really want to work out with skis or snowshoes it's best to go single while someone stays with the boys at home or takes them out in the stroller. This is the view from my driveway at the rental home above Happy Valley.
Today was very much like a good old prairie blizzard, but not cold enough to really qualify. Here's my car after two days of accumulation. I had a fun time walking the boys this a.m. as the stroller cover was continually getting covered in snow and I was frequently blasted as we passed many snowblowers in town. The boys would love seeing all the road graders and sanding trucks in town, but I guess that will have to wait until next year for their enjoyment. Happy ski season, all!
Now, don't you think that these carrying bags ressemble something you'd take on a picnic or to the store to put your ice cream into to keep it cold? These are the totes we use to take the babes out in the stroller. When they fall asleep while on our walk, they can simply be brought inside without being disturbed. Brilliant, isn't it? Atley is getting long enough to come to the end of his tote bag, however, so I don't know what we do when he graduates out of it. It is a big day for graduations for these two fellows - they've gained over one kg each so they are in a whole new weight range, they have moved on from "newborn" clothing into 0 - 3 month sizes and today they both wore Bum Genius diapers and we're hoping to forget about disposables! Congratulations on your graduation, grandsons!
Got up this a.m. to snow falling and it kept it up all day! This is one thing I have liked about the Kootenays - winter doesn't usually start until the END of November. Not this year, or at least not at 1025m (Rossland's elevation). I didn't get to walk the babes in the stroller so we put them in their Snuglis and took them to town for groceries. I was afraid of falling the entire time! In the p.m. we turned on the kitchen fan to create white noise to put those guys to sleep (it worked!) I missed my walk with the wee ones and it's a bit depressing to think of it being winter, but I will get used to it. Now we just have to hope that it snows TONS and we can get out the skis. This is my view today with snow, cloud and mist.