Let it Snow!

After an EXHAUSTING day of a craft at Home Depot, 2 birthday parties and a dinner, Josh and I decided we needed a date night for just the two of us. So, my dear friend and the best neighbour in the world came over to watch our girls for a few hours.

Well, after a delicious burrito and a movie, we walked out of the movie theater and into a winter wonderland! I have never been so excited to see snow! After a wonderfully romantic kiss in the snow, I promptly picked some of the marshmallow fluff off the ground and threw it directly at my hubby's back! And so truly began our night!

When we made it home safely...um hello Mr white SUV, at night, in a snow storm, with your lights off...both girls were awake and playing. Even though it was 9:30pm and WAY past there bedtime, I could not resist the urge to bundle them up and play outside in our own private snowy paradise!

Now, of course all the snowsuits, boots, hats, mitts...everything piece of snow gear was MIA. Apparently, my seasonal organizational skills need some revamping. But that is ok...my childhood urge to play in the fresh untouched snow, have those soft flakes fall on my eyelashes as I watch my girls giggle and play in the snowy streetlight was stronger than

So, Evelyn's snowsuit was a size to big, Sam's mittens weren't waterproof and she's wearing my winter hat. My winter boots are still missing and Daddy had on his baseball hat...but none the less, it was the best 20 minutes ever. It was quiet, there was no wind, it was above freezing and the snow was still falling lightly.

Daddy and Sam made a snowman, with cookie cutter eyes and a carrot nose.Which Sammy promptly turned around and snacked on...little rabbit! Evelyn played and ate the strange cold rain and I enjoyed the moment.

Then, I remembered an old sled I had bought that summer! I pulled it out, put both girls on and pulled them around. The sound of their laughter was the only sound that evening.

Evelyn refused to get off the sled, so Sam happily pulled her around with a huge smile on both of their faces.

That will truly be a night I will never forget. What a perfect way to start off the Christmas season!

Now, bring on Christmas and that crazy old elf! 

Lest We Forget

Well, the day has and gone, but has not been forgotten.

Samantha is now 3 and a half and full of questions and inquiries. Remembrance Day was another one of those days.

But how do you explain what Remembrance Day truly means to someone so young...with a craft!

So, we made our own poppies out of red paint, coffee filters, buttons and glue.

The craft was easy, fun, messy and the perfect way to talk to Samantha  about what the poppy stands for.

1) Paint your coffee filters red and let them dry. 

(I had a very surreal moment as Samantha decided to paint her hands in the red paint 

to finger paint the poppies. Little does she know, the true significance in her actions)

2) After they have dried, crumble the coffee filter into a ball

3) Glue a black button to the middle and let dry.

 *Alternatively, you could put a pipcleaner through the coffee filter and button to act like the stem*

4)We glued the poppies to a piece of construction paper to bring to a war memorial. 

Now, the hard part, explaining to Sam what the poppy stands for. Here was our conversation.

ME: Men and women wear a poppy on this special day to remember the men and women who fought for you to be free. A long long time ago, a lot of people had to leave their mommies and daddies and go really far away for a really long time. While they were gone, they got into a big fight and some of those people didn't get to come home again. These flowers are our way of saying Thank You to each and everyone of those men and women and rembembering the sacrifice they each made for us.

SAM: These flowers are pretty mommy.

ME: (Kiss Sam on the forehead) Yes, sweetheart, yes they are.