White fluff initiations

So, for various reasons, we never got Nathan out to play in the snow when we had 30 cm of the stuff on the ground for weeks. Then last week it melted, only to be replaced with a light dusting last night. And who knows what more we'll have? (Probably lots, since we have no garage and that seems to be the way the fates work, but you never know.) So I thought it was high time Nathan was introduced to snow. He's noticed it on our trips to and from stroller and car, and lately he's been interested in sticking his hands in it. He has even tried eating it off the rug after we tramp it into the house. (Delicious!) So today after lunch, we bundled up, and out we went! Nathan was sufficiently bundled up that he had a hard time maneuvering if I sat him on the ground, but he did great if I pre-positioned him for crawling.



He loved riding in the sled--especially when Rachel was the reindeer!



And then...and then Rachel introduced him to the fine delicacy that is fresh January snow. Like sister, like brother. He is a fan!




Then, later this afternoon, we made popcorn for our snack. I'd been avoiding introducing them to it because of an article I read that recommended not letting kids have popcorn until age four. Honest, I don't listen to all that stuff, but choking is something I'd rather not deal with, and popcorn seemed pretty easy to avoid, except when the bag in the cupboard sang its siren song to me on cold afternoons. So I was waiting. Then I saw on this week's preschool schedule that Thursday is Movie and Popcorn day. Well, if she's going to be eating popcorn at school, then she can eat popcorn at home, by golly! I didn't want her initiation to be from a plastic bag or from the microwave. So we got out our best poppin' pan and popped us some corn. And, if you grew up in the house I grew up in, you have to eat it from a wooden salad bowl. So we did. And it was good. It was especially cute when Rachel held up a kernel and explained to Nathan that the yellow skin turned brown and all the fluff exploded from inside the corn! (She is a born teacher. She "taught him how to make a snow angel" today. Well, if he'd been paying attention, he might have learned. He was climbing back into the sled to beg for another ride at the time.) And thanks, Mom, for reminding me of the bite-off-the-kernel-and-give-the-baby-a-bite-of-fluff trick--Nathan loved it, too!