snowy Sunday afternoon

Sunday morning we woke up to snow blanketing the ground and it fell fast and furious all morning long. The kids went out around midday (that's how long it took me to track down snow pants, winter coats, hats, gloves and boots to fit everyone). I don't always go out with them but I decided to head out with my camera and take some pictures and we had the time of our lives. I remember one of my favorite things to do after a big snow was be the first one outside and make tracks all over the yard. The snow seemed to muffle everything and the world was so quiet and I felt like an explorer making strides into a brand new world. This was the first order of business for my kids too. They wandered all over the yard discovering how the snow transformed their toys and the world around them; delighting in the snowy footprints they left behind. Teresa, true to form, walked around with a handful of snow from which she nibbled. Every winter, since the first one she enjoyed as a toddler, she has sat and munched on snow. I think she looks forward to her wintertime treats. This year she ate her snow off a stick. Okay, probably not the most sanitary way to eat snow, but it's fun and it certainly won't hurt her.

The snow lay so thick on some of the pine branches they were bent way down to the ground. This inspired a new game called avalanche, where the kids took turns standing under the branch and the other shook it to cause heaps of snow to dump on their heads.

They made snow angels too. Poor Katie doesn't quite get the concept. She lay there on the ground and flailed her arms and legs (her head too for good measure) and sat up quickly and whipped around to look. Each time she wailed "There's NO angel!" I'm not sure what she expected. But quite obviously, her little snow angels were not living up to her expectations.



A snow ball fight to beat all snowball fights sprung up out of nowhere. The kids really don't make snowballs yet, they just pick up handfuls of snow and fling them at each other and Joe and I. We were all breathless when a truce was finally declared.

And then, out of nowhere we were attacked by a rampaging coyote and we had to fend it off with snowballs. They did little to stop his advances but gave us time to regroup and form a strategy.

I decided to feed the kids to him, which would give me plenty of time to make it indoors and save myself.

(don't worry, no children or coyotes were harmed in making of this blog post)