Much has happened in the last two weeks around here. The girls have had their 6th birthday. We had a week long celebration. It started with a get together with our friend Cathy a few days before the big day. Then on their proper day we had a little party with the families we baby sit for, and a dinner / party with my parents and my brother.
So we've hit the cabin fever stage of winter. With at least 6 weeks left until it's warm enough to be outside, we're trying to think of ways to power through. We're filling our days with friends, activities, and school, attempting to distract ourselves from the restlessness that is stirring all five of us. We're daydreaming about our next family road trip, and all the things we can plant in our garden. We're trying to convince ourselves that we're perfectly happy celebrating each day that the Lord has made - even if we don't happen to like the weather that day.
We've dreamed up some rather interesting projects for ourselves these last few days. Annie has been the little shutterbug these last few days. She's had a blast dreaming up little scenarios for her toys, then arranging them just right and snapping away. I've taken to leaving my old Kodak Easy Share camera out for her to grab whenever inspiration hits. Of course the other kids always join in on her little studio set-up and offer their imput (welcomed or not).
There have been a multitude of other random activities, including snowman sculpting (at the kitchen table), food scuptures (with marshmallows, fruit snacks, and toothpicks), aquarium making (tupperware containers full of craft marbles and foamie fish), and rescuing marbles that were trapped in large chunks of ice. Good stuff.