Most months I have an accumulation of pictures of all the things we've done, places we've gone, people we've seen. My end of the month posts lately just give a glimpse of what life looks like for us right now. Not a lot of places to go. Not a lot of people to see. And the things we've done...well, they might not seem overly exciting, but they are filling our days and keeping things fun around here.
Zach has this forever-long strategy war game called Axis and Allies. I've never had the patience to play it with him. With nothing but time these days, Zach talked Staley into learning how to play. They have put in a few sessions of play. They are about 5 hours in...and still going.
We've filled our days with lots of play time. Sometimes it is Barbies and dolls and figurines and trains and Magna Tiles. And sometimes it is riding down the stairs in laundry baskets or bumper ghosts (which is where the kids put blankets over their heads and walk around bumping into each other.) No matter the game, I'm glad that my kids always seem to find ways to amuse themselves.
Reading and doing crafts fills a good number of the hours of our days at home.
We play lots of family games. And sometimes when the 5 year old gets tired of Monopoly, his game morphs into entertaining himself with all the houses and hotels and game pieces while the rest of us continue to play.
Briggs and Adelie decided they wanted to have a sleepover in Briggs' room over Thanksgiving break. They spent a long time setting up their beds, playing sleepover games, and reading books together. Once the lights were out, however, the sleepover portion quickly lost appeal and they decided they just wanted to sleep in their own beds.
We had 2 cousin birthdays to celebrate in November. Although there were no parties or festivities, we stopped over to give Lucy her presents and enjoyed a little outside play time one week and then did the same thing with Elliott the next week. The kids loved having the opportunity to be together with their cousins.
Cuddling on the couch for family movie night is something the whole family looks forward to.
Although our weeks and months look different than past years, there is beauty to be found in the every day. And whether that beauty is a snuggly movie on the couch or the giggles of kids playing with a laundry basket or the surprise of a rainbow after a storm, it is there. It is up to us to find it.
