Navarino Snowshoe

Michael & Tammy invited us to join them showshoeing in the Navarino State Wildlife Area.

We happily accepted their offer.

We hiked through the woods in search of a few hidden treasures.

We found one treasure in this hollow log. What was it??

A hibernating porcupine.

Nathan & Michael consulted the GPS and maps and decided we'd have more fun off trail.

Lydia took a brief break before we went on our way.

Tammy and I had a little picture war! Look how cute she is.

Then we got one of the two of us together. Maybe we'll call it 'Smith Wives.'

Blazing our own trail

Another treasure! A winter geocache.

No matter how you look at it, snowshoeing means a great day.

Flat Joe

Have you ever heard of Flat Stanley? It's a great book for elementary kids to read. Many teachers have taken it beyond the book and have their students create flat versions of themselves that the students send on adventures.  Our nephew, Joe, had been assigned to do just this.  We had a great time taking Flat Joe around Oshkosh and taking pictures before we sent him back.  Here we are with Flat Joe at one of our favorite Oshkosh places, the EAA Museum. 

That Peaceful Easy Feeling

A few ducks on the open water of the Fox River.

     My parents came for a visit. There is something about being with my kids and my parents at the same time. It's just neat.
     Mom and Dad left early enough to surprise the boys by stopping at school for lunch on Friday. Friday evening we had a movie night at school which they attended with us. Saturday we went off on an adventure and hiked around Thousand Island Environmental Center in Kaukauna. We had hoped to snowshoe there during the evening but with all the snow melt the previous week we ended up settling for hiking on the board walk along the river. Sunday the kids sang for church with their Sunday School classes. The only damper on the visit was that Mom and Dad left in a bit of a blizzard and the return trip took them eight hours instead of four and a half.
     One of the things that makes these visits so special is seeing my parents in my kids. Parents are the ones we are born to love, it's the nature of a child. Our children are the ones we bear to love, it's the nature of a parent. Link by link we create a chain that is family.

A Cuddle Night

Lydia has a double bed that is our "guest" bed when we have company. When needed, she sleeps on a small mattress on the floor in the boys room, freeing up her room. The boys are a little jealous since her bed is so big. We often cuddle together for nightly devotions and story time on her bed. On many such nights the kids have asked if they can have a cuddle night and all sleep in Lydia's bed together. Knowing that three kids in one double bed might not be the most conducive for sleep, I usually say, "Not tonight guys." We had a few days off of school in mid February with no big plans so when the kids asked, I (finally) said, "Sure." I tucked them in with the understanding that they could talk for awhile but then would need to settle down and sleep. If they didn't, it would be back to bed as usual. It was as fun for me to sit at the bottom of the stairs and listen to them whisper and giggle together as it was for them to do the whispering and giggling. There was a bit of smooshing so the boys switched places at one point but eventually they settled down and slept from about 8:45pm until after 7am the following morning. They haven't asked again so I'm not sure if we'll be repeating this or if it will just be remembered as that one special night they finally got a cuddle night.

More Snow Day Play

During the afternoon of our snow day the kids dug out/built a fort in the back yard. Since we share a driveway that comes between two houses, much of our snow gets shoveled and blown into a big pile between our house and garage. The kids dug into the backside of the pile creating a fort. To me, snow forts are an essential for kids during a WI winter. Part of this comes from my fond memories of doing the same as a child. We used to dig in drifts along the side of our dead end road. As a Mom I think the kids need the fresh air, the physical exertion, the team work & compromise that comes with working together, and it offers the perfect excuse to savor a cup of cocoa when we need to warm back up again.

Starting our Snow Day

Hello, Mr. Pancake Snowman

Happy about breakfast!

This morning we woke to a snow day. The kids are still in jammies and I'm sure we'll make it outside later but this is how we started our day. A little snowman breakfast. Yum-yum. To the rest of our friends and family who are enjoying snowdays from WI to IL to MI to TX--HAPPY SNOWDAY!