Promises to Keep

 “To the world you may be just one person, but to your dog you are the world." (my apologies to Dr. Seuss)

Charlotte wasn't friends with our first dog, Maggie. Mags was over two years old when Char was born. For a toddler, our dog was an ever present nuisance with a wet nose and a habit of getting in the way. "Maggie! Go!" was about all Char would say to her.

Maggie was protective of our daughter, but after years of being pushed away, Mags had given up on seeking attention from her. When Char was old enough to want to play with Maggie, Mags was too old to roughhouse or be chased around the backyard. They had to settle on playing with costumes. Mags politely tolerated this.

Neither Char or Maggie were at fault. They may have lived in the same house, but their paths never really met. 

Char regretted that relationship when Maggie passed away. So, Charlotte made us all kinds of promises about what she would do with her next dog. She would help with the bathing, grooming, feeding, and walking. She would buy dog toys and dog treats. They would play dress-up upstairs and wrestle downstairs. She made promise after promise after promise.

You know what? Char has kept every one. We've had Ellie for over five months, and Charlotte has played with her puppy every day. She and "El Pup" run all over the house and roll all over the carpet. 

Ellie smiles and stretches when either Daphne or I open the door to her kennel. When Charlotte opens that same door, you can hear the rapid THUMP THUMP THUMP of Ellie's tail beating a rhythm on the kennel's walls. Ellie loves her girl.

On weekdays, I spend the morning slowly getting Charlotte awake while Daphne takes Ellie for a walk. When they get home, Ellie charges up the stairs to jump on Char's bed.

Enamored with our stories of Maggie seeing snow for the first time, Char couldn't wait for her dog to see it, too. On Sunday morning they both got their chance. Our bedroom door exploded open, and Char cried out, "Guys! Guess what? IT SNOWED!" Daphne and I peeked out of our respective windows and blinked in disbelief. The backyard was covered by a thin, white blanket.

Charlotte bounced down the stairs, "C'MON Guys! Let's get Ellie!" 

Taken unprepared, Daphne needed a few minutes to locate Char's snow pants and winter coat from last year. But the two girls were out there soon enough. Ellie was hesitant for about 30 seconds, and then she flew around the yard. 

Char's goal is to get Ellie to sled down the hill with her. That hasn't happened, yet.

Char's first snow angel of the year was quickly trampled. 

As was her first snowman.

But Ellie was quickly forgiven.

I don't think Char will have any regrets this time around.

The Icicles at UHS Look Aggressive

Just sayin'.

According to Charlotte...

According to Charlotte, snow is something you look forward to.

According to Charlotte, birthday gift cards should be spent on Hatchimals.

According to Charlotte, you have to warm the eggs up first by sitting on them. (That was awhile ago, and we felt pretty silly when we discovered how they really open.)

According to Charlotte, the touch screen games at McDonald's are pretty fun. 

According to Charlotte, it's fun when your dad surprises you with a t-shirt that appears in the book series you are currently reading. (No, its not Harry Potter.)

According to Charlotte, it was a good weekend.

White Winter Hymnals

This morning Urbandale Schools had a two-hour delay due to the weather. Daphne and I finished shoveling around 6:45, and from the driveway I could see that the light was already on in Char's room. Charlotte was hoping for a school delay so she could lounge around in her PJs.

Later I was watching the news while Charlotte was eating breakfast. A Toyota commercial appeared with the Fleet Foxes' "Ragged Wood" playing in the background. I thought, That would sound good on the way to school today. Fleeting thoughts like that usually don't return before we leave the house, but today I remembered to grab the Fleet Foxes' self-titled CD.

The music filled the car as I backed out of the garage. Outside, the snow was falling silently. By the time the second song came on, "White Winter Hymnal", Char was also quiet.

We passed under a bridge, and I looked into the rearview mirror and asked, "What do you think? I thought this music would be calming on a morning like this."

Char smiled. "Mission accomplished," she said without looking away from her window.

link--> White Winter Hymnal

Weekend Snapshots

It's hard to see, but Char and Daphne's snowman is threatening you with a snowball.

What's in that snow fort with a sheet for a roof?

How far can they sled together?

The ladies in a dog bowl.

New Brownie sash - worn with pride.

What a Drag

The snowfall total in Iowa is about is about 12 inches below normal this year. That's been driving Char crazy. She didn't get a white Christmas, and the one snowman she built lasted about 20 minutes after the sun came out. Daphne can't believe that she remembered to buy Charlotte snow pants back in October, and our daughter hasn't worn them for school recess once.

I wouldn't say we ended the drought, but it snowed 2.5 inches in the metro yesterday, and that was enough to pull out the sled! 

You can tell we're a little out of practice.

A Cool Christmas Gift

The local meterologists were 99% positive that we wouldn't have a white Christmas. This really bothered Charlotte. She couldn't understand how Santa's sleigh could deliver gifts without any snow on the ground.

She didn't need to worry. The meterologists were wrong, and the snow was beautiful.

And you know what that snow meant...

"Again!"

Of Course You Do

So what do you do when there's over a foot of snow outside, and it's blowing to near whiteout conditions?

You become the Snow Burglar!

And you jump out of obvious hiding places, so your victims can pretend to be scared.

Look out!

Whoa! Didn't see that one coming, did ya?

Unavoidable Disney Reference

I didn't think we'd have a white Christmas this year, but we got about an inch of snow last night.

You know what that means...

First Snow Party!

On Thursday morning I was driving Charlotte to daycare and I asked her a question, "Char, if you could have any meal in the world, what would you want?"

"I'd want to have it at home."

"Okay, I'll make it at home. But what would you want me to make?"

After a lengthy and serious pause Char answered, "Pink fish."

Unless you are fluent in Char-speak, you might be puzzled, but I know that Pink Fish means Grilled Salmon. To make Grilled Salmon, I'd have to grill on Saturday night. The forecast for Saturday says we're suppose to get our first serious snowfall, and the high is 28 degrees.

Like I care. Let's fire up the Weber!

And let's have a winter grill party!

I didn't get a photo of Char swinging in the winter air, but here she is finding out that a snow-covered slide is too fast.

Luckily, our small sledding hill is just right.

Maggie stood guard.

After 15 minutes on a cedar plank, Char's Pink Fish was ready to go.

Since the coals were still hot, I toasted some rosemary garlic bread for a side. We also had some veggies.

I'm lucky it wasn't windy, and it's good thing I kept the charcoal where I could reach it.

Springtime in Iowa

Currently, I know only one person who is not sick of the snow.