{this moment} ~ reminiscing

Inspired by SouleMama:  A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. If you're inspired to do the same, leave a link to your 'moment' in the comments for all to find and see.

snow days!

 i think that i am in the minority when i say that i love snow days, i have since i was a child (well, who didn't love snow days as a child?).  i love being snowed in with my family, with nowhere to go and no obligations.  snow days are the kind of days where you can get away with cancelling plans, shirking responsibilites, and staying in your pajamas all day long.  when the children are in school i fill my days with projects, cleaning, errands, tasks, lists, chores, and the like.  when they are home from school i try to focus on them instead of the to-do list.  i try to make our time at home fun and special. 
here's how we spent our snow days this week:

 

 

~ reading books about snow & winter ~ bundling up ~ baking ~ sitting by the fire ~ doing snow-themed arts & crafts ~ drinking hot chocolate (with a bit of butterscotch schnapps for mama & dada) ~ throwing snowballs ~ laughing ~ more reading ~ wearing pajamas ~ simmering soup ~ shivering ~ sledding ~ movie watching ~ crocheting ~ running into trees with our sleds ~ cuddling

unfortunately we did have to throw in a little homework & cleaning, but we followed those tasks up with fun activities!

how do you spend your unexpected days home from school?

snowpeople craft

sam's preschool teacher sent home a cute craft homework project this week, and i decided to make it into a project for all of the kids.  his teacher sent home a piece of black paper and three circles with instructions to make a snowperson.  it's a simple project, and the kids had great fun creating them! 

1.  gather your materials:  blue or black paper for background, stencils for circle making, white paper for circles, pencils, scissors, glue, and any materials you'd like to use to decorate the snowperson.  i found some adorable snowflake sequins in our craft cupboard that were perfect for this project!  i also gave them glitter, markers, and construction paper for cutting out accessories for the snowpeople.

2.  trace circles 

3. cut circles 

4. glue circles on background paper 

5.  decorate!!! 

tada!   look at those big green eyes on sam's snowman, and max made a robot snowman.

{this moment}

Inspired by SouleMama:  A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. If you're inspired to do the same, leave a link to your 'moment' in the comments for all to find and see. 

country bumpkins

max the explorer

not in the mood for picturesCandyland!
Michael's yummy paninis...
ella, sam and max

muddy little frogs!

This weekend we took the kids to a little cabin in the woods, on the edge of the Licking River. It was wonderful to leave our to-do lists, taxes, laptop and responsibilities behind. We watched movies, ate tasty food, sat by the fire, read, played games, laughed with loved ones and took long walks in the muddy woods. The weather was a bit strange for February....there was snow on the ground, but the temperatures were mild. I suggest everyone take a weekend off from responsiblities, even if you just stay home and do this...it is so refreshing.

let's get crafty!

so what do you do on your 6th snow day? i have to admit, we spent much of the day watching movies in our jammies. and then it was craft time! the kids loved exploring with tape, glue, scissors, paper, stickers and crayons.

snow day!

it's been a while since I left teaching, but i still get excited about a really good snow day...the kind of snow day that makes the roads impassable and force the schools to close down. all five of us are home today enjoying each others company...we had a big pancake breakfast (except for michael who just isn't a breakfast fan...he had a hoagie), and then took the kids out to sled ride in the back yard. sam is not a huge fan of the snow, but it could've been because his snow suit made it hard for him to walk and his mittens made it impossible to have any control over his fingers. max and ella though are big fans of sledding! this year we bought a new sled, the baby sled just wasn't cutting anymore, so ella and max were able to sled together down the hill...no more waiting for a slow sibling to walk back up the hill with the sled. it's a good day to cuddle by a fire. enjoy!