Winter

We've had a quiet week at Matthew House since we returned last Monday.  The residents were still away visiting friends so we've had the place to ourselves.  We did do some bargain hunting this past weekend, looking for a used snowsuit for Isaiah.  It seems the 3-year-old has finally outgrown the size 2T suit we bought him three Winters ago.

Having the right gear for braving the cold makes enjoying the Winter months so much easier.  It takes a bit of work to convince the kids putting on all of those clothes is worth it once they get outside and still feel like it is cold.  It takes some running around, being silly, toboganning, snow-fort building, and tossing-into-powder-kind-of-play to teach them the cold is no big deal. I hope that by nurturing a love of Winter in the kids now will result in less whining, less fighting, more fresh air and bedtime sleepiness. And really, the 10 minutes it takes to get ready is small potatoes when you see how cute the kids look all bundled up.

We're also trying to teach the kids about God's gift of seasons.  That Winter has it's own smell, it's own activities, it's own rituals - like putting on the woolies.  Winter also gives us a few more things to be thankful for, like warm homes and hot chocolate.