Going Outside

These are not pictures from outside. (Although we have been able to explore a little but more outside thanks to mother nature warming up a bit....just thought I would mention it in case she reads our blog. Maybe she'll see how much we miss her and come back!)

These are pictures of us holed up in our home :) The last one, the girls randomly put on their swimsuits and made "the beach" in their room last Saturday. Oh, if only! :)

Simple machine valentines box

Corrie's class made valentine boxes that had to open with a simple machine- lever, ramp, pulley, etc.. This was her creation and her progress. Tried to capture all the ups and downs :) It has a wheel and pulley system that opens the heart flap on top... oh, and wheels!

Mary Birthday

Mary has had several birthday celebrations this year, two with family and this week's little play date with a friend from school. This concludes all birthday activities till next year :) They ate noodles, played, painted bird houses, painted other things, rolled the snickerdoodles in cinnamon sugar, licked, licked and played in the snow for a tiny bit... and they can't wait till they can do it all again! Thankful for a sweet friend for Mary at school this year.

For Carolyn

Tonight we were treated to a dance show put on by the fabulous Powell sisters :) Side note: we did watch White Christmas this year and they LOVED Betty and Judy! I think they thought Judy was a real life Barbie and boy, could that Betty sing.
Today we spent a solid 3 hours up to our elbows in graham crackers and icing making gingerbread houses. I had wanted to do this all Christmas break and thankfully our break got extended from the very winter weather! Finally all that Halloween candy was put to good use :)

Where We're at Now (Corrie Edition)

Corrie is off to a good start this year. In school, she is excelling in reading (already known!) and is learning multiplication and division in math. She has a quick and agile mind. Brian took a picture of her for Stocksy (online stock photography thingy). It is really a combination of her head against the sky with the branches of a tree coming out of the back of hair. Artsy :) Well, someone showed him a brochure they used this photo of corrie for... it was an informational meeting on understanding child anxiety.
I don't think she has a lot of anxiety but I do often wonder what is going on inside her brain!
They talked about a famous chalk artist in Sunday school one morning and she really enjoyed it :)
Finally, both girls ran in a kids 1K last weekend with some friends. They had fun and each got a medal. But I think they enjoyed playing and exploring and imagining after the race at the park even more :)

Where We're at Now (Mary edition)

Mary and I enjoy the days she doesn't have school... counting down the days till she does have school and waiting till we can get Corrie. She has a super sweet friend at school named Ava :)
And she was a stuffy bunny for Halloween this year. Seems she has been encountering new germs and they keep her sniffling and coughing sometimes. Nothing too serious. Yesterday caused alarm when she learned that she couldn't hum thru her nose!
Also, she would like to be a queen when she grows up because she could "sit on a throne and the king could do all the work!"

Summer Season.
'Twas a short one... but a good one too. I just realized that this summer nobody yelled at flies. My how much older they are getting! Still love being outside. Loved the baby goats at the zoo. Loved our first grade teacher Mrs. Cahill. Loved the movies! Loved the places we went to too... more on that in a bit. :)