Snow Day!!!

Today was one of those magical days when all the stars align and everything just works out. We spent the afternoon with Ari & Rand, and Lyla loved every moment of playing in the “..nnooww”, as she calls it.

I love watching the relationship develop between Lyla and Rand. They are becoming good friends, and I think she will remember him as one of her very first playmates. He watches over her, and is really mindful of everything she does, like a big brother. Likewise, Lyla loves watching every little thing he does – while she can never keep up, just watching him slide down the hill on his brand new tube gave her great pleasure.

I am struck at the difference between this year and last, when we were “snowed in” with Rand & Ari at almost this exact same time of year (It was early February, 2010 to be exact). Startling differences in the photos:

Then:

Now:

Then:

Now (Love the smile, Rand):

Then:

Now:

What a difference a year makes!

Here are more pics of the afternoon:

One of Lyla’s great joys in life these days is eating snow. It doesn’t matter if it’s outside, or if it’s snow that Mommy and Daddy have tracked in the house, we have to keep a close eye on her. I was very proud of her today when her “Christmas Story-esque” snow suit caused her to lose her balance and fall literally face first into the snow. She popped up, licked her lips and kept on ticking. I, meanwhile, successfully resisted the urge to run inside in search of a dry towel for her sweet little face. :)

We laughed until our sides hurt at Rand and his new tube. It FLEW down the hill, even a little faster than I think Ari originally anticipated:

And, of course, no snow day would be complete without some hot cocoa and chocolate chip cookies after. Ahhh, it was truly a wonderful day.

Are these WAVES in Miss Q.’s hair?!?! Hmmmm…..