xiaxue le! (It's snowing!)

I think we have literally gone a month since the last snow--in the middle of winter, no less!--but we finally are having enough snow to play in.  And play in it we did, for more than two hours this morning.  I was surprised when I came in to find out that it was just 19 degrees outside!  (I'm pretty sure it was warmer when we first went out--the temperature has been falling throughout the day.)  Daniel wore the new sunglasses we got him on Thursday, without me even having to nag.  Definitely worth the 45 minutes or so I spent in Walmart going back and forth between him and the sunglass display while he wandered around looking at the watches and the jewelry and anything but sunglasses.

There was some sledding.

Daniel concocted an elaborate plan, involving a garbage can, a shovel, a bungee cord and a wheelbarrow, to move snow from the back yard to the front.

Esther started making a "castle" by molding snow in a bucket, and Daniel supersized the idea by molding snow in a garbage can.

And then there was the car unburying, and the driveway clearing, and the obligatory snow angels.  And oh yeah, scooping up snow by the sledfull and throwing it on Mom.

When I finally herded the kids inside, Daniel wanted to know if we could go out again in the afternoon!  Knowing that it was supposed to get even colder, with blustery winds, I told him maybe tomorrow.  So he took a nap instead.  I guess playing in the snow is one way to use up energy!