Winter Days

It has been a cold, wet, wet winter. Should I mention it has rained a lot? So we haven't been spending as much time outdoors as we'd like. There's always plenty to do indoor though, and here's a little picture summary of how our Winter days have passed by.

'Circus Tricks'. Jess has been perfecting these on here little brown horse, Eric. She stands on his back in a sparkling dress, waves her arms around and jumps off, to the loud applause of the crowd (me). Dan, or The Shadow, as he is sometimes called, is never far away performing his own tricks. This involves standing on Lily's back and holding the handle bars. Both acts are a bit cute.

Craft is always a good rainy day staple. Jess loves a bit of painting when Dan is asleep and play dough and card making are shared by the two of them when he's awake. Sometime Jess isn't interested in doing play dough with Dan, so he enlists the company of other 'friends'.

Baking. It's not just for fun. We bake a lot. And just recently Dan made his debut in the Learning Tower. So now he is officially able to help in the creation of food for the family. Truth be told, I think he thinks it's just a ladder leading to a smorgasbord of snacking delights. He eats dough while Jess and I do the rest... 

Make-believe games fill in most of the time during the wet days though. There is always a little world being created somewhere, be it a picnic in the little kitchen (below), mermaids frolicking in the seas, circus trains or pony fields or farms or puppy school, the combinations are endless. If the day is threatening to be a particularly long one, cubby-creation is a great way to break up the day (below).

In between showers there has been some play in the backyard. We bought two new family members: Speckles and Brownie. They are our third lot of much loved chickens and we're hoping that our latest efforts to fox-proof their home will pay off.

 

And occasionally the Sun does make an appearance. When it does we made the most of it with picnics are the park, bike rides and sand castle building in the sandpit.

We only spent one day on the Island over the holidays but it was a cracker! Days like that make it hard to leave again and we all look forward to the day when we won't have too.

Jess' highlights for the past couple of months would be her two rides on Lily. She loves visiting her big cousins, especially when it involves riding. Dan has not been quite so taken by his sits on a horse but he does enjoy being part of the action.