Awesome Snowy and Icy Walk at Southwick Beach

Although it was a dark and overcast day at the beach, it was amazing to go out and walk along a beach we've been to dozens and dozens of times over the last year and a half and see something so remarkably different.  Nature is pretty spectacular and ever changing.  Love it!

This video showing the waves and the ice chunks flowing is just not really something I expected here.  I don't know why not as we are only an hour south of the Canadian border, but this was just unexpected and cool to see.

Ice Fishing

Fishing tent and ice skating

Play time!

Brie's examining the bubbles in the ice.

Over the long weekend, Stevie and fam came up to visit us.  Her husband has an ice fishing tent so we were able to experience an ice fishing weekend.  Mat and Neil had a great time out there even though they didn't catch anything.  They did have a nibble, but nothing latched on.

Another weekend and thankfully, more xc skiing

The weather is crazy this winter, but at least it's snowing some this year.  Last year I don't know if we got out skiing 5 times.  This year we've been able to xc ski most weekends and it's been delightful.

Mat had his work cut out for him weaving the chariot through the trees.  It was a fun ski and we went as far as we could until we hit this river that didn't have a bridge to cross over.  It looked like some snowshoe adventurers used a down tree to get across.  I wasn't game with attempting to take Brie, peacefully napping in the chariot, across the tree.

Where we ate our picnic lunch.  Just a few feet of snow that needed to be cleared off.  Yay!  What an enjoyable day.  

This morning Brie said to me "last morning, we ate pizza picnic table in snow".  She is working on her yesterday, this morning, last nights and mixes them up.  But I am amazed at how much she remembers.  She "read" to me her book "Am I an Insect" and as she was reading she said "read G.G. phone am I insect last morning ".  It took me a second and then I confirmed that yes, she did read to G.G. over the telephone "Am I an Insect" on Friday.  

smooth ice

A couple weekends ago, the ice had frozen smoothly enough that our neighbors were out there skating on it.  Their daughter is really great with Brie and was pulling her around in the sled.  :-)

daddy's bike..

We set it up on the trainer and Brie loves climbing onto it.  She also likes to have us assist her into the seat so she can pretend ride the bike.  :-)

icy walk on the harbor

A beautiful 20 degree sunny day on the harbor.  It's crazy to walk out there and hear the water underneath and look back at our houses.  :-)

XC Ski at Wehle

Thankfully, it's snowing around these parts!  We went for a lovely ski on Sunday with some friends, Ella and Leah.  Ella is 5 and did a fantastic job of guiding us through the woods on her skis.  It was a beautiful day and we went to a part of Wehle that we hadn't been to before.  It's always lovely to see new spots in a place that we go to quite often.  Maddy, of course, loved it and ran about 10 times the distance we skied.  Gabriella slept most of the ski all bundled up in the chariot.  A good day indeed.  Then we went home and watched the superbowl and ate chili and buffalo wings.

Playing with friends

on the frozen lake which is basically our backyard right now!