The news called it Snow-ma-gedon! I called it a Blizzard. Molly called it a “Lizzard”!

We made a gingerbread village.

Peter taught Ryan a new computer game.

Peter made a huge fort with Molly and Ryan. The white glow from the living room windows was from all the blowing snow!

I made a pie.

What do you do when you are home-bound with your family? I hope you find something fun!

Love,

Jess

Proverbs 31:21

²¹ When it snows, she has no fear for her household;
for all of them are clothed in scarlet.

Hats, boots, mittens, snowpants….check

This Proverbs 31 “studying” is becoming very fun!

Love,

Jess

In Order:

Sledding in newly fallen snow

Painting for the sake of getting messy

Watching a dormant summer patio

Reading, watching, admiring…all the fantastic blogs out there (blog in my reader? The Inspired Room’s post Quick Room Makeover)

Freezing my fingers off taking photos of the fresh layer of snow

Studying and writing a presentation about loving kids for my MOPS group

Just Kidding! If we make it to the weekend, without rising above 32 degrees F., Minnesota will have the fourth month on record, since the 1880s, to not have a single day above freezing.

When the air is colder than cold, and the sun is brighter than bright, just upon the mere suggestion to go play outside, you will get a “you have got to be kidding me” look. As seen below.

So we hibernate…(Molly in cave on left and Ryan in space ship on right)

Here is a run down, of some silly indoor things, we do to prevent the winter blues and nature deficit disorder from running rampant in our home.

1. We bring snow into the bath tub, cause baby it’s cold outside!

2. We use a bread loaf pan full of lentils for a sandbox and spoons for shovels

3. We wear our coats indoors to blow bubbles out of the patio door.

5.  We watch TV together. Our current fav is Sid the Science Kid on PBS. Hey at least we are learning about nature!

6. We hibernate some more. Hamper kennels for kids that think they are puppies and act like animals.

7. We exercise with extreme games of make believe, hide-n-seek and follow-the-leader. Jump Up! Get Down! Get Silly!

I look forward to the days of sprinklers in the lawn, freeze-pops on the front step and sweaty games of tag. But for now we are getting above this miserable, below freezing, just enough, to see the fun in it!

How do you beat the winter blues and nature deficit?

Summer, in all it’s sandy glory, is pretty wonderful too.

Here are some wonderful things from this time of the year, in no particular order.

1. Felt snowflakes; I made a garland of white lights and a variety of gray snow flake ornaments for over the sliding glass door.

2. Milk and Cookies; Is that patio furniture still in plain sight? Why yes it is. BBQ, anyone?

3. Handmade Gifts; Great Aunt Mary Jo and her friend Diane made a set for Molly’s doll crib; Wool socks so colorful and warm…from who else? Julie, my knitter friend and co-worker.

4. Bundled Children; I think Molly and Ry look like such a great team as they slide down our backyard together on a sled.

5. Warm Cozy Nights; That don’t start until 9-something because Ry, 4,  just has to push the limits by getting out of bed…every night.

It is a wonderful season. Thank you all that have been so loving at Christmas and throughout the year!

Dry furnace air and hauling kids around makes me so thirsty, and yes, so does eating more baked goods more than ever thought possible. Okay, so not only am I in my new slippers…I am also in my husband’s old sweatpants recovering from Christmas.

I just want to take a moment to say my blog and my dear two readers have come to mean quite a lot to me in this giant cyberspace called the blog-o-sphere (a place where reflecting, dreaming and sharing stories happens everyday). So, thanks for reading.

I have been in a state of grief (loss of a loved one) blended with a state of joy (Christmas). I hope to share some fun-ness and a bit of not-so-fun with you as I remember a few things from this season over the next few posts.

On to the fun stuff…

So this is me…Messy Jessy. Hi! The fun-ness of this photo can be listed as such: my winter cap, that I always look forward to wearing; a lipstick, that was price-reduced on Black Friday – that makes my face remember I actually have lips; a pashmina scarf that happens to match the lipstick; and a tried and true snowboarding jacket which, now, only sees the slopes in my backyard (as seen below).

Here are my kid-lets Molly and Ry. Can I say, “Smile for mommy!”, any louder in this photo! They both obeyed my command to smile, but darned if they were going to take their eyes off of their new gingerbread house that was covered in candy, pretzels and sprinkles.

Ry tries catch a snowflake…that or he is licking a runny nose lip. Let’s go with the trying to catch a snow flake thing.

Grammy Kris (Neat Pete’s mom) helped us celebrate the Advent season in style. She made an advent wreath for us, using real pine sprigs. Risky candles, for someone so easily distracted as I, but well worth the extra attention I had to pay to the beautiful and spiritually meaningful fire hazard.

Grammy Lu sent an advent calendar in the mail. It was a treat to have a special delivery that was so fun to use all month long (calendar seen in the photo below, posted on the door in the background). Now all the prayer squares of our Advent calendar are open and….

We want to wish you a MERRY CHRISTMAS!