Snow

After a dry December and one of my only green birthdays, the snow has begun to fall. Friday all of the schools let out early and we celebrated the snow day with snow ice cream. We collected clean snow in a bowl and added sweetened condensed milk. Ben and I liked it, and while Alena did say it was yummy, she still prefers good old fresh snow eaten outside. Saturday only got up to 18 degrees, but there was no wind so Alena got her eating snow request. It was so fluffy that she brought a spoon to assist her in her efforts.

Snow ice cream

Off the charts!

Nora's stats at 9 months: 25 3/4 inches, 14 lbs, 11 oz. No surprise to me, she has dropped off the always exciting growth chart for weight. The doctor was quizzing me on her food intake (clearly she is malnourished) when I pointed out she is only 4% for height and perhaps she is just small like her mom. Social services was not not called...this time. We are putting her on a steady diet of cookies and Cheetos so she can be considered healthy.

What Nora lacks in size, she makes up for in ambition.

My birthday

We enjoyed a relaxing evening for my birthday. Ben made a healthy vegetarian meal, then finished it off with the richest cake ever. Ben and Alena made this flourless chocolate cake with whipped cream and raspberries. It was delicious!

Alena was savoring her cake. This was the first time in history where I beat her in finishing dessert. She was so busy saying, "mmm, mmm," it slowed her down.

Nora has a little raspberry on her cheek. She wasn't allowed to eat any cake, but she did get a raspberry. She was not impressed.

I did get a lot of help opening presents.