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Monday, January 3, 2011

Views from a train, fun in the snow, and crazy animals

I flew back to Illinois for the holidays, then took a train to my daughter's house. She lives in north central  Illinois. The train ride was only a little over an hour; I wouldn't have minded if it were a longer one! The seat was comfortable and I enjoyed watching the scenery rush by. Here are some of the photos I took looking out the train window.

This is an old grainery building.


Doesn't this look cold?


Or this?


A bridge over icy waters.



I got a chance to spend several days at my daughter's house and a LOT of time with my granddaughter, Lily.

And here's the plus that Jim didn't come home with me......he's such a baby hog!

It's true!

I can barely get time with Lily when Grandpa is around.

But THIS TIME I had her to myself.

Well, Daddy was home for Christmas break. He's a teacher. And Lily's cousin, Isaiah came over a couple of days, so her attention was diverted a little. But mostly it was all about Grandma.

We played with blocks, we sang songs, I rocked her dollies.

When Lily calls your name, she tends to say it over, and over, and OVER.

Such as Momma, Momma, Momma, Momma, MOMMA.

It's cute, but it can get tiring.

When Cousin Isaiah came over (he's 5), Lily called to him, "Zaya, Zaya, Zaya, Zaya, ZAYA!"

And he answered, "WHAT?!!"  Kind of annoyingly. It was pretty funny.

Here's "Zaya" playing with the blocks and Lily sitting in Dada's lap watching in fascination.


Lily got into a bag of new clothes that she received as a gift. She put them on in various stages; but not in the right spots, as shown here with the skirt around her head.



You've heard of the saying that it was so cold it was a "Three Dog Night"? How about a "Three Cat Night"?


It's unusual to see all three cats together. The only time they are usually together is when it's feeding time, and the only reason they are standing near each other is because their feeding bowls are all in the same place. The two female cats, Luna (calico) and Cora (small gray on left) don't like each other. This picture is deceiving because Cora is very small; weighs about 6 lbs, Luna is about 10 or 11 lbs, and Kahn, the large male cat is about 13 pounds. He was up to 19 pounds at one time! He's very big and long.

Here are the crazy dogs, sleeping with their heads together.

Venus is on the left, Atlas is on the right. Lily calls them "Me-ma" and "At-ee". She even named her doll "Me-Ma" after Venus.

My daughter had to work a few of the days while I was in town. Since my son-in-law, Dave, was home on Christmas break, he was asked to watch his nephew a few days.

Dave and I did our best to entertain the two kids. Dave is really a kid at heart, and he took Isaiah out to play in the snow. Lily had a bad cough, so we stayed inside to watch.

They decided to build a fort using the recycle bin to pack the snow and make blocks.


Zaya hides behind the fort in anticipation of a snowball.


Ready....aim



Fire!


Zaya liked throwing snow at the window and making Lily laugh.

Lily enjoying the fun.


Zaya makes a bold move.


Uncle Dave retaliates.








You can see that it was a fun day all around!

18 comments:

Missy said...

Lily is so cute!!!
Love the Cold Pics!!!

Furry Bottoms said...

You crack me up... about how it was all about GRANDMA! I see that all the time. I'm glad you had a great holiday!

Gail said...

What a wonderful series of photos...I remember fun in the snow. I prefer to watch from the inside now!

Teresa said...

love the pictures! lily is getting so big! what a doll. zaya is pretty darn cute, too.

Ami said...

I was thinking through the whole post how smart you were to take pictures through glass.
You sat where it was warm and did all the hard work.

:)

Lily is just precious.

Kathy's Klothesline said...

Love the pictures. Lily is so cute. I love that age when they start talking away and their little personalities start to become apparent. Glas you had such a good time. I think taking a train for a long trip would be very relaxing.

Brian Miller said...

ha. love me a good snow ball fight...cool fort...those pics of the town are really cool...taking a train would be very cool...

Unknown said...

Great photos! and Lily is a cutie!

Sunny said...

What a fun time! Lily is a real cutie pie :)
The pictures from the train are fantastic! Very Americana; I expect to hear Arlo Guthrie singing City of New Orleans.
☼ Sunny

Donna B. said...

What a cutie Lily is. I love her name. I felt like I was there with you guys watching Zaya and Dave throw snowballs and crash the snow fort. Gosh, do those pics bring back fun memories... Thanks so much for sharing.

SquirrelQueen said...

Lily is adorable, she has grown since the last photos you posted. It looks like you had a great visit. I love all of your train photos Pat.

Betty Manousos said...

Lily is sooo cute!
What lovely pictures! What a fun!
I really enjoyed looking at them.

B xx

Valerie said...

Lily is adorable, Pat. Her features are really striking. She'll be a good looking gal when she's older. Enjoyed the pictures and the snow fight... happy days were remembered.

Bonnie Zieman, M.Ed. said...

Wonderful shots of happy times Pat. Lily is so sweet! Great pics of snowy Illinois landscapes out the train window, too.

Bossy Betty said...

What great pictures of great times!!

AiringMyLaundry said...

Snow ball fights are so much fun!

Ruth said...

These are beautiful family pictures. Lily is adorable. I especially like imagining her getting into the clothes, that skirt, worn so fetchingly! I am so eager for a grandbaby. This year, I hope!

becky said...

this looks like such fun! i love how they built the fort!