Combating the Winter Blahs

Winter time in a small town with small children at home is... interesting. We've all found ourselves with cases of cabin fever, although, we try to keep busy and entertain ourselves.

I've been doing a lot of this:

Sewing and crafting up a storm. Which is a great distraction and lots of fun (most the time) although, it's also a leading cause of why I've been blogging less as well.

Keeping the kids entertained is another thing though with their boundless energy and need to work it off through activity.

So, I've been trying to keep things interesting.
One day we played with puppets, which, although on the surface sounds pretty sedate, we managed to turn into a full on athletic sport. (Mommy wore the puppet on her hand and made it chase the kids around, trying to "bite" them, while they screamed and squealed.)

Then there's indoor soccer. We have a little kid soccer ball that's a lot of fun, since Noah is just starting to be coordinated enough to kick and throw it successfully.
Getting ready for a big throw!

Smiling after connecting with the ball in a solid kick.


This particular game is a big hit with Noah...

I mean, check out this happy face!

Bree likes that kind of stuff too, but tends to favor dress up these days.
Striking a pose in Tinkerbell PJ's accessorized with a pair of Mommy's black high heels.

Of course, it's not like we don't get out sometimes. But, it's just so cold! And, you know, after spending 30 minutes bundling up the kids you only end up spending 5-10 outside before someone gets too cold and wants to come back inside.

But still, on occasion we do "bungle" up (as Bree calls it) and head out gamely to try and have some winter fun.
Our last attempt at this was, on a slightly warmer day, to head out to a nearby lake and do a little snowshoeing. (Travis got some snowshoes for Christmas and decided to buy Bree a little pair as well.)

Bree and I trying out the snowshoes. Trav let me borrow his for awhile and he pulled Noah along in the sled.

Bree tromped along quite happily for awhile...

...then she decided she wanted a turn in the sled, so I carried Noah.

Waving at Daddy.

But still, we are definitely inside a lot more lately and sometimes it's hard to think of new things to hold off the winter whineys. It gets to where you try to spice up even the everyday things just a little.

Like brushing your teeth. I bought the kids new electric toothbrushes in fun themes, and actually, they were a big hit!

More so than I would have thought. It was pretty funny, I also bought them a new bottle of hand soap (watermelon scented) for their bathroom at the same time, and that was apparently quite exciting too! So, killed two birds with one stone, the kids felt like they were getting cool stuff and I'm happy that they're into good hygiene.

Here's Bree admiring her toothpaste foam goatee.

Recently I also turned a little haircut into a spectacle. I decided Noah needed a little trim so...
I sat him down in the middle of the kitchen table and went after him with some clippers.

He thought it was a big game and was laughing and dodging, much to Bree's amusement.

I'm lucky I didn't shave him a bald patch! But, it turned out pretty good, here's the final result.

The kids also have their own ways of keeping themselves amused. One of their favorite things is playing crib peekaboo.
Either that, or Noah finds much joy lately in standing on one side of his crib and then throwing himself forward and landing in silly positions on the other side...

...which makes both kids laugh like crazy people.

And, if all else fails, there's always a game of naked Jedi fighting while wearing a bath towel cape! Always popular at our house!