Snowman Toddler Craft

The last handful of weeks we've finally experienced some real winter weather. As a teacher, this means snow days! I savor this extra time with my babes, especially since I pay dearly for the days we are out when we return. My oldest is coping with a nasty cold and despite her begging, I've kept her inside. To keep her from getting cabin fever, we've been building with play dough, coloring, enjoying a Disney movie from time to time, baking and getting in extra cuddles. 

To mix it up, I decided to pull out a toddler friendly craft. G loves snowmen. Perfect! 

Here is what you'll need:

Construction paper

Glue

Cotton balls

Crayons or markers

Sidewalk chalk

I began by drawing the outline of a snowman on her paper.  She then took her glue and began smudging large dots on her paper. 

(pardon the packing boxes in the background...we're slowly but surely getting this house packed up)

On top of each dot, she placed a cotton ball. This continued until she could no longer see the outline.

She then drew (with some assistance) the eyes, nose and buttons.

She used the chalk to add "snowflakes" and snow to her paper. I love the look of chalk. It has a snowy soft texture.

Afterwards,  we hung her masterpiece on the refrigerator. She couldn't have been more proud.

When It Snows...

It's a well known fact among my circles that I love snow. Most folks call me nuts and I'm ok with that. I've loved it since I was a small child growing up in northern Indiana. Even now it all seems so magical.

This past December was unseasonably warm and I desperately wanted to share some snow play with my littles. We've gone through January with a couple of dustings...that was until Friday. As predicted,  winter storm Jonas hit our part of central Virginia. We were stocked up with food and wood for the woodstove. We were ready to be homebound for a few days.

As I mentioned,  the snow began Friday. School had been canceled in anticipation of the storm. It was the perfect opportunity to make homemade hot chocolate and play in the fresh falling snow.

It came down so quickly.  We were gaining 1-2 inches an hour.

My little lady did not want to come in but the increasing winds eventually forced us inside.

Saturday was spent inside. The wind and snow were fierce. 

Sunday was much nicer. Our roads were not safe so we stayed home from church. My hubby had gone into the fire department on Saturday night so it was just me and the kids. The sunshine was such a welcome sight so we took full advantage of it.

N's first snow

Monday was more of the same, except we made our way down the road to the grandparents' house for some snow fun.

G built her first snowman (she added hair).

She also had her first sled ride.

Overall it has been a blast. I wouldn't trade these moments for anything. 

Linking up with Tuesday Talk

It's All Good

This week has been wonderful!!!

[Gender Reveal]

I am so excited to share the news! You can read the full reveal here.

[Snow Days]
I have been praying for snow (and I'm not kidding) for a while now. It's winter time for crying out loud and not a single good snow...until now. Beginning Monday morning, the snow began to fall and it left our little corner of the world cloaked in white. Of course, it's only proper to enjoy it while it's here.

Last year G was too small to play in the snow...not this year!

[Naps]

Snow days mean no school for me. This means I get to stay home and spend some extra time with my sweet girl. This also means naps. She takes one good nap a day and I took the opportunities to enjoy them with her. Growing a tiny human is tiring and every nap is greatly appreciated.

[22]

Our sweet girl turned 22 months old this week! I can't believe her birthday is just two months away! I've got some plans in the works and I'm really excited to celebrate our little beauty.

[New Toys]

I have been longing for a new sewing machine for quite some time. My old machine has stitched its last and it was time to let it go. My new machine came in the mail last Friday and thanks to the snow, I was able to get it out of the box...now to find time to use it.

Linking up for Oh Hey Friday and Five on Friday

Once Upon a Snowy St. Patrick's Day

Happy St. Patrick's Day!!! The weekend was filled with wonderful things, as was today. G and I began the weekend with some errands and a few odds and ends. We woke up really early on Sunday morning to head out of town for a long awaited visit with some of our closest friends. They had their first child on Christmas day and, due to sickness and schedule conflicts, we've not been able to visit. It was such a joy to see C and her parents. We were in awe of how just a few months ago G was that little. They in turn were looking towards the future when their little one would be almost a year old. It's crazy how time flies!

 

We left early afternoon in the hope that we'd beat the incoming winter storm. We began with some rain which quickly turned to sleet and then as the evening approached, the precipitation turned to snow. We gained about 3 inches, which probably would have been more had we not had such nice warm weather just the day before.

 

 

 

 

We took great joy in celebrating G's first St. Patrick's Day today. She sported her green, and even so, we could not help but pinch those cute cheeks! We also took her out into the snow for a little play time. She and daddy had a blast with the wheel barrow. She made her first snow angel and dug little holes in the snow. All of this was made possible thanks to today's snow day. Only time will tell if tomorrow will be yet another.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!!!

 



 

 

 

Playtime in the Snow!!!

 

 

(Pardon the reindeer socks...she kept getting a gap between her shoes and her snow suit...socks solved the problem.)

 

 

A Taste of Spring

Despite the fact that the current temperature is below 30 and still dropping, we did get a nice taste of Spring weather yesterday. I took G outside after church to enjoy the beautiful 60 degree weather. She adores the outdoors and if it had not been for the rain, we would have remained outside for most of the afternoon.

 

 

Today will be a typical snow day. I'll catch up on some snuggle time and straighten up the house. I broke out our new donut maker and tried my hand at a new donut recipe. Hopefully I'll get to post about that later. They were quite tasty!

Only time will tell if we'll be home tomorrow. My husband was held over for mandatory overtime at the fire department. After getting his call this morning and learning about the road conditions, I'm glad he had to stay. They continue to respond to automobile accidents and considering we live almost an hour away from his work place, I am glad that I don't have to worry about him traveling home (I know he has to still respond to emergency calls, but fortunately he is not alone and is in a REALLY big truck). The layer of ice beneath the snow is reeking havoc, even on the main highways.

The ground hog was not kidding when he saw his shadow...

::via::