SNOWMAGEDDON

"Snowmageddon:" President Obama's name for the mondo- HUGE blizzard that hit the mid-atlantic states this weekend.

Here in Pittsburgh, we didn't escape the record breaking snowfall! Poor Bryce had to report into work this morning and wasn't even sure if he could make it.

Of course, we both secretly hoped the roads would prove too treacherous and snow-laden to make the drive possible. Unluckily, Bryce is way too practiced at driving in the snow and a mere 17" of snowfall can't stand in his way. BLAST IT!!!

You can see in the picture, the trail he had to dig just to get to the car. We were among the few crazies who braved the storm last night to do a little grocery shopping.

Being out on a night when everyone else is staying home=no close parking.

The snow bank is so high that hanging out on the sidewalk is almost like being in a snow fort! Well...when you're Isaac's size.

The kids across the street built an awesome snow fort/tunnel! It brings back so many good memories. Am I too big to ask them if I could crawl in it? I so want to.

Isaac's first time playing in the snow was with his friend Andrew and when he looked out the window this morning and saw the fluffy white fun, the first thing he said was,

"Go Andrew's house.

GO ANDREW's HOUSE!"

It was a little too snowy to make it to Andrew's house but we did play outside and he did had fun!

The sun came out in the afternoon and it was gorgeous outside!!! Isaac and I took a walk around the block and ran into so many people out enjoying the sunny winter wonderland.

Everyone was so happy and excited and I was reminded of one of the reasons we love living here in Pittsburgh--our neighborhood is so friendly! What a fun day!

What's the perfect way to end an afternoon in the snow?

Drinking a delicious cup of hot cocoa, of course!

I love Isaac's chocolate mustache in this picture!

Quick Christmas Rewind

We enjoyed a fantastic holiday at home here in Pittsburgh! Bryce had a week off and we savored the time together. It's been so nice to have him home. Here are a few quick pics from our Christmas:

A few nights prior to Christmas, Isaac was invited to be in a small nativity with some friends. I thought he made a pretty cute little shepherd. AND...

...BRYCE made a pretty cute little wise man. Where is that cute little shepherd from the first picture??? Why isn't he in the nativity picture you may be asking...

...Isaac saw "Mary" ride in on her donkey and just HAD to take a turn. He forgot all about being shepherd once he got a hold of the stick horse. Maybe Santa should have brought him one of these for Christmas;).

Instead, Santa brought him a train set! It's been a big hit!!!

A few nights after Christmas we took an excursion to Hartwood Acres to see its famous Christmas light display. We were impressed! I'm sure we'll be back again to see the show next year.

SNOW!!!

We had our first BIG snowstorm over the weekend. The blanket of fresh fallen snow made everything look beautiful (Pittsburgh could use a little cosmetic help in the winter)! Bryce and I were soooo excited to show Isaac what snow is all about. We weren't too prepared since we haven't bought Isaac any snow pants or boots yet but that wasn't about to stop us! Luckily we were able to borrow some snow bibs from one of our friends.

Whoa! Watch your step! Walking in snow takes some getting used to and Isaac spent the first bit trying to get his balance figured out. He was unsure what to do in the snow and paced back in forth over the yard for the first little while.

Isaac and his friend Andrew started to "warm" up to being in the snow (no pun intended). They got a kick out of having snowballs thrown at them. Poor little Isaac has a mom with bad aim and he inadvertently got a face full of snow. He sputtered a bit with a shocked look on his face as I quickly tried to wipe the offensive icy chill away. He didn't cry and ran off quickly forgetting and hopefully forgiving me.

Bryce thought it was high time to introduce Isaac to the pleasure of eating fresh snow.

Lesson learned. And embraced. Isaac did little else except eat the snow after his dads instruction.

Fall Festivities

THE PUMPKIN PATCH:

ZOO BOO:

...doing the "hokey pokey" at ZOO BOO

The Great Outdoors

We have been LOVING Pittsburgh in the fall! Our eyes have been dazzled by the symphony of colors so generously orchestrated by the surrounding trees: fiery reds, goldeny yellows, brilliant oranges, all contrasted by glorious pops of lingering green. Look at me, waxing all poetical! As one of my friends often says "Fall inspires me." It's just that California deprived us of a good solid fall for far too long. It really has been awesome though. The air has turned crisp, Halloween decor is creeping out onto neighborhood porches, and suddenly we are craving cozy homemade soups with corn bread and honey butter! Feel free to pass on your favorite recipe. We'll love you forever :).

So, we still have yet to make it out to a fall festival, pumpkin patch, apple picking type activity. But, don't you worry, we certainly don't plan on missing out on any of those quintessential fall experiences.

HOWEVER, we DID go camping...sans our air mattress...with the ward...and the raccoons...in the rain (in spite of how that sounds, we had a blast!!!).

AND, Bryce and I went on a retreat...without Isaac...at a gorgeous lake house in the Appalachians...could have been romantic...if it weren't for the twenty other people and the beer keg a few of them visited one too many times. The retreat was for Bryce's residency program and we really did have fun even if we did stick to our Sprites and didn't participate in ALL of the shenanigans that were going on there. I enjoyed getting to know the people Bryce works with and some of their wives. Best of all we got to go hiking (I LOVE LOVE LOVE to hike). In the evening we went to a haunted house (upon entering the house of terror I quickly remembered that I don't especially enjoy haunted houses, more particularly people jumping out of dark corners unexpectedly. Someone please remind me the next time I am invited to a haunted house that I'd rather wait outside and drink hot apple cider). As a reward for making it out alive, we got to go down a mountain coaster (similar to the Alpine Slide in Park City). That's more my kind of thrill anyway(I could've done that twenty more times)!

Anyway, this wouldn't be a very good post without some good pictures. Honestly, when I'm blog stalking I usually just look at the pictures.

THE WARD CAMP OUT:

This looks posed but I promise it's not, he's just really this cute.

Our humble abode...and Bryce goofing around with Isaac

Taking down the tent.

Isaac ALL DAY LONG...looked EXACTLY like this...a blur running excitedly from place to place.

THE RETREAT:

Hiking...it made me smile inside.

AND...this made me laugh out loud.

E-I-E-I-O

Isaac and I met up with park group at a local farm today...Huckleberry Meadows (isn't that such an idyllic name?!). It was absolutely glorious to be outside in the fresh air with wide open spaces to explore. Isaac seemed to enjoy every minute of it as well. It was fun for me to watch him discover the world around him and have new experiences like touching a fuzzy caterpillar, going inside a chicken coop and getting to hold a warm, fresh egg, touching wool from the sheep, and having chickens running wild all around him. We even got to pick a few fresh flowers and vegetables! Being there made me nostalgic for all the good times my brother and sister and I had visiting my grandpa and grandma's farm in Eastern Idaho. I miss my grandparents! They've both passed on now, but the memories are still very much alive for me. I think my love for the earth and the great outdoors began with them.

August Activities

What have the Callister's been up to over the last month??? I can't say we've been on any super sweet summer vacations or really done anything too noteworthy (with the exception of Bryce--he's delivered baby after baby!). Sorry friends, this is going to be a pretty boring post. It's okay if you stop reading now and just want to look at the pictures!

Bryce spent month of August on OB service, working five 12 hr. days and a 24 hour call shift on the weekends! What a trooper! He still had the energy to play with his little boy and spend time with his wife. He IS A-mazing.

Now that we are down to one car, Isaac and I have had to get creative to keep ourselves entertained. We take lots of walks around the neighborhood, stopping along the way to practice saying words like grass, car, bush, sidewalk, fence, dog, cat, and birds. We go to the park nearly everyday. Sometimes we pop down to the zoo (the zoo is down the hill from us--awesome exercise for me and so much fun for Isaac--he LOVES the polar bears and the sharks). We do little art projects, sing songs, have dance parties--just the two of us, and read books. We are also really blessed to have a neighborhood full of fun friends to get together with.

So anyway, here are some pictures from the month:

One night we were eating dinner and we heard TONS of bagpipes coming up the street--It turns out that our little neighborhood has its own small community parade! I guess it was the kick-off event for the bazaar thrown by the Catholic church in our neighborhood. We ran outside and watched with the rest of our neighbors. Isaac was soooo excited and got candy and Mardi Gras necklaces (no, he didn't have to flash anything to get them).

AFTER THE PARADE:

So then a few weekends later, I heard this reverberating roar getting louder and louder and closer and closer to our house. Isaac even came running to me wide-eyed and frightened. We looked out the window and...what did we see??? EVERY motorcyclist in Pennsylvania (so it seemed) riding down our neighborhood street! What the heck?!! I still don't know why. We seriously watched the bikers come through for twenty minutes. It was EXCITING.

BIKER RALLY DOWN OUR STREET:

Isaac has lots of friends around to play with and for some reason he likes inviting them to sit with him inside the TV hutch.

ISAAC & CLAIRE:

FOR JULIE: I promised my friend Julie I'd do another art post since she couldn't find the book "First Art Experiences for Toddlers and Twos" at her library. Isaac invited his friend, Claire, over to paint with him. We explored making marks with different tools like cut up pieces of sponge, popsicle sticks, strings, and blowing the paint with straws (use a pin to poke holes in the straw so that the kids don't accidently suck the paint up). We used watercolor and also made paint by mixing equal parts of glue and shaving cream then coloring it with food coloring. Claire loved the puffiness of the shaving cream paint.

MINI PICASSOs or PICASSITOS:

Bryce won tickets to a STEELERS pre-season game!!! What an experience being surrounded by people who are passionate about their team! We had a great time and now feel like we've been officially initiated as Pittsburghers.

STEELERS GAME:

Isaac and I go to park group most Fridays. One Friday we met at a park that had a super fun blue slide. It's long and fun to slide on with a piece of cardboard.

Thanks Bethany for the picture!!!

BLUE SLIDE FUN:

Bryce and Isaac have a sweet relationship. When Bryce is home, Isaac loves to be everywhere his dad is. He likes helping Bryce with projects, wrestling, and sharing "treats." Last night they watched "CARS" together and split a bowl of popcorn.

SHARING A BOWL OF SWEET SWEET COCOA PUFFS:

TAMING THE JUNGLE THAT IS OUR LAWN:

This last month I've been trying to create some abstract family portraits to decorate our family room.

WORKING ON ISAAC:

And finally, Isaac has been learning to sing so many songs. It is adorable. Here's a video of the Alphabet Song from a few weeks ago.