Monkeying Around

Forts are awesome. Dad can sleep while
Ira plays

Ira had a little trouble sharing with a friend we were
babysitting, until he realized there was enough to go around.

Getting creative with the snow.

I hope no one saw me eat that yellow snow...

Dad trying to imitate Ira's camera smile

Exploring music has been fun, I wish we lived near my sister
Tiffany so she could teach him.

Spring Thaw

Thought I would put a quick update out. We're starting to get to know the area better. We visited the Minnesota Institute of Art and found the library. We were all sick for a week, but it was nice to have an excuse to stay in for a weekend since the weather was cold.  Now we are finally starting to get some slightly warmer temperatures and the snow has begun to retreat allowing us to get out and explore some of the trails around our neighborhood. It's nice living in a neighborhood that is pedestrian friendly. While on a walk around a small lake we saw some beavers coming up on the ice to bask in the sun.  We're also getting to know the ward better.  I got called as an Elder's Quorum teacher, and Sharon is a nursery worker.  She says that Ira seems so small compared to all the other kids in there, but usually fends for himself well.

We put a little video together of some of the things Ira enjoys doing at this stage of his life. They mostly involve crawling into small dark spaces and surprising us. He's pretty cute. Enjoy the video below.

Winter Wonderland

Before we left Connecticut was getting more snow than usual. It felt like we had a major snow storm every week. The schools haven't had a full week of school since they got out for Christmas break. I took the train to work the other day and ended up coming home early because no one was in the office and work was slow as I wrapped up my 1st rotation work.
I snapped some pictures on my way home. Quantity wise, it really wasn't that much snow compared to what I grew up with in Park City, UT; however, the city doesn't know where to put the snow or how to plow it and people don't know how to drive in it  so it just makes for a bad situation. We also were getting a lot more 'ice' storms with the temperature oscillating between freezing and not freezing.

Enjoy the pictures.

 Messy Intersection at the train station

 Snow piled High

 Downtown Danbury

 Getting away from the main street the snow paths get a little more interesting

 They really need to learn how to use their plows more effectively, sometimes I can hardly tell the streets have been plowed.

 Getting closer to home, I'm the one making fresh tracks through the snow.

 Our house, new car, and the moving van waiting to be loaded. Who moves to Minnesota in the middle of the winter?

It's Snow Time

Connecticut got a nice big snow storm this week. There was a travel ban until they were able to clear the roads so I was working from home. It was difficult to get anything meaningful done because so many people were trying to sign into the network they ran out of connections. I got a good workout moving the snow around, I am now a qualified 'Snow Relocation Engineer'.

We took Ira out for his first play in the snow....

As you can see, it didn't last very long. We are going to have to warm him up to the idea of being cold and playing in the snow.

Please Don't Park Here.

So far it has been the 4th snowiest winter in history of Pittsburgh with about 76.5 inches. That is a lot for a city with narrow streets and houses without driveways and garages. The city has started to crack down on the condition of the sidewalks. You are supposed to clear the sidewalks in front of your house within 24 hours of the storm....we are approaching 24 days after the storm. It has been fun seeing the streets full of people walking, but I can't wait for the sidewalks to be cleared so I don't have to share the crowded streets.

It has been interesting to watch people's behavior in these 'extreme' conditions. To a normal person the streets probably look like they are full of trash, but to the experienced eye it is a territorial statement. If you have a random item like old lawn chairs, desks, stools, ladders, etc... out in the street you have staked your claim and that part of the street automatically becomes a temporary extension of your property. I've come to call these snow garages. I took some pictures today while I was out walking with Sharon. Unfortunately the warmer weather has diminished how impressive and how critical these were at the height of the snow storm. I admit I can understand what people are thinking and feeling, I spent a lot of time digging our car and the neighbor's car out, but I never felt I needed to stake my claim.

The wooden chair has the sign above taped to it( It's to bad they had it on the sidewalk instead of in their spot). In the foreground you can see a nice "snow garage" with an old lawn chair in it. You would park in it as if you were parallel parking, it's actually good practice.

Here are some nice stools holding a nice big place. In the background you can see chairs, dust pans, a desk, and a recycle bin holding the curb spots in front of a house, they don't even have snow there anymore.

Some people parked in their garage.

Anyway life is picking up again in Pittsburgh. We'll miss the pretty part of the snow and the adventure it brought, but are looking forward to the beautiful blooming spring.