Snowed In

Our little corner of the world was plagued by a combination of snow, hail, freezing rain, and rain today. Rob took the 4WD van so Ella and I were snowed in. We took advantage of the day at home and had a great morning.

We started the day by making wrapping paper tents.


It's a game that Ella and I invented when she got her hands on two rolls of wrapping paper before I could stop her.










It's as simple as it looks. You use the empty cardboard dowels to hold up large sheets of wrapping paper like a tent.











The only drawback to wrapping paper tents is that the static electricity ruins your hair.












Ella said here that she was making a paper tunnel but that didn't meet with as much success as the tent.











One of the wimpy local newscasters said, "it's a good day to just stay inside," so I took that as a challenge and decided that Ella and I should go outside and play.



I told Ella we needed to get her coat and hat and she came back 5 minutes later dressed like this. Almost, Ella, almost.















We bundled ourselves up in snowsuits, boots, hats, mittens, etc and had a great time outside. We were out long enough to feel the change from the snow, to the hail, to the freezing rain, to the rain. When I finally realized we were sitting in snow drifts in the pouring rain I decided it was time to come inside.


Our outdoor adventure left Ella totally exhausted and when we got out of the snow clothes, she just lay down on the kitchen floor.










Thankfully, the Wiggles came on the Disney Channel just then and she watched while I put away the snow clothes and toys.

When it was time for lunch, she was so tired I made her a "beautiful nest" of pillows and blankets to rest in on the kitchen floor.

We learned the "beautiful nest" or "impromptu toddler relaxation zone" trick from my cousin Erin.

Now, Ella's taking a long nap. As soon as I click "publish" for this blog entry, I'm going to make myself a beautiful nest and relax with a good book (until she wakes up and we do this all over again).