Sunday, January 31, 2010

snowy fun!

Nova got to try out his birthday sled (thanks Gma & Gpa!). We got more ice than snow in the end, but we had a great time playing while it lasted...



We also took a long walk through the woods while it was still snowing. Clover and Indigo built little snow people and we visited the faerie house to see how much snow our tiny forest friends got on their home.



When snow is in the forecast, we always make sure that our bird feeders are as full as possible. One of our favorite snowy day activities is bird watching. The sparrows were covering both feeders for most of the day. We also had titmice, Carolina wrens, chickadees, our beautiful majestic cardinals, and some house finches that we haven't seen since last year!

Thursday, January 28, 2010

co-op

The kids have been working on these beautiful, amazing huts. Luckily we are some of the few people to visit the preserve at this (freezing cold) time of the year, so they have been able to work on their creations from week to week!



Lunch was so pleasant. The weather warmed up nicely and we didn't have to wear our heavy coats while we ate.

We took a nice walk and enjoyed the sunshine...



Monday, January 25, 2010

nature walk Monday

We took a walk through the woods behind our house this morning. The wind was blowing so hard, but the sky was so beautiful and it felt wonderful to be out in the sun for a few hours. The lazy little creek behind our house had spilled out over her banks and become a rushing creek with waterfalls everywhere.




There was lots of tree climbing and exploring and splashing in puddles.




There was also lots of climbing across "bridges" - lots of fun games to play with just a simple log across some water.


What a wonderful start to our week!

Sunday, January 24, 2010

lazy Sunday

Clover woke up in a super grumpy mood. She is usually so sunny that it was hard to get our Sunday started off in a positive way.

Tim finally took the boys outside so that they could build a castle for King Winter.


Clover had been trying to work on all sorts of different craft projects, getting frustrated with each one, and crying sadly. She was crying in the kitchen while I tried to cook when I finally remembered that even at nine years old, she sometimes needs a little nudge in the right direction. I decided to give her a project.


Remembering the wonderful wisdom of Mrs. M I decided to cheer her up with a job involving soap bubbles and scrubbing and a lovely end result. I can't remember if it was in one of her files or if it was in a post, but I remember reading that just the sight of a bucket filled with bubbles can be enough to cheer certain moods. It worked! Charlotte was clean after over an hour of scrubbing, and then we filled a big pot with soapy water and she scrubbed all of her doll clothes!!



When the boys came in and saw that Clover was having fun with bubbles, they wanted to play, too. I set them up with sink bubbles, and they had so much fun. When they were done, we all made chicken and dumplings.


What started out as a grumpy Sunday ended in such a nice way.

Wednesday, January 20, 2010

Happy Birthday Nova!

My *baby* is a four year old! My goodness! He has grown up so much in the past year!

He enjoyed playing with his birthday gifts!


Willow and Indigo helped with making a chocolate cake with lots of chocolate icing!
He loved it!


PawPaw came over & had dinner with us, and my little Nova went to bed a happy four-year-old. As he was drifting off to dreamland, he kept asking "is it still my birthday?" Little Sweet Potato!!!!

beautiful Spring-y day in the middle of Winter

While Indigo climbed the plum tree...

....practical Nova cut some plum saplings for kindling because "its going to get cold again! It has to snow in the Winter time!!"

last minute birthday preparations

I finished Nova's doll with some help from Tim last night around midnight. I had forgotten how long it takes to sew on hair!!! I enjoyed the process though!


Tim made an awesome set of blocks!

And Clover knitted a little doll blanket for Nova's doll!

Now all of the kids have a doll & a basket! Hurray!!

Friday, January 15, 2010

co-op

Yoga...

Lunch with friends...

After Circle time and lunch, the boys built this beautiful hut...


Tanya made pumpkin muffins for all of the January babies! I can't believe that my little January boy will be four years old in less than a week!!