Icicles Are So Very Nicicles

And a very Happy New Year to you!
We spent the early part of last night at a party filled with drinks and nibbles and screaming children. It was lots of fun. But NYE is also our wedding anniversary (9 years!) so we usually aim to end the night with just the two of us. We headed home, put the exhausted Poppet to bed and spent the rest of the night watching "True Grit" and chilling. We still managed to stay up until 1.30am. Had to watch the ball drop in Times Square and see what the rest of the world was up to. Also the landlord was having a party and there wasn't much point trying to get to sleep with Katy Perry coming up through the heating vents.
Today we managed a sleep in and sat around in our pyjamas until well after lunch time. But the sun was shining and it was such a beautiful day so we decided to head to the park in search of a toboggan run.
It takes a good half hour to gear up for this weather, and is always a particular challenge getting kids into their layers (make sure they go to the bathroom FIRST). It was a super-cold day (apparent temperature of minus 12) and thermals were a necessity. I even wore my snow pants, which turned out to be a good idea as I spent most of the afternoon kneeling in the snow taking snaps of Poppet screaming down the hill.
Here are some of them. I am still liking my camera so very much, but more work needs to be done to make the most of it. I already feel like I don't have any time for camera study and it's only January first!

Check out those icicles!

She started right at the top.

Went all the way to the bottom, and then climbed back up again.

Until she just couldn't.

A helping hand was required.

There was a fair amount of whining on the walk home.

And some more of those super-nicicle icicles!

Look at this one coming out of a drain pipe.

We finally made it home again. Husband distracted Poppet from her exhaustion by making a game out of kicking clumps of ice down the street. He's good at taking her mind off of things, I never seem to think of these things and admire his ability to come up with fun stuff on the hop.
Now we're eating hotdogs, drinking champagne (why not?) and watching 'Adventure Time' before bed.
Do your kids love that show? We all do in this house, it's so creative and crazy. I wish more kids' TV would push the boundaries so much. If you're not familiar with the show, here's a link....

Here's to an early night and cheers to 2013.