Some Winter Fun

Winter started late, but is has come in raging! As I type this, the girls are home from school on their third snow day in a month. This is definitely a time when I love being out of Manhattan and having a backyard again. The girls can put on their snow pants and play outside as long as they can stand it...I can join them intermittently instead of having to commit to several hours like I did when taking them to Central Park!

Here's a snapshot from the Superbowl Party we went to last week. It was hosted by a church member and it is apparently an annual event with many traditions that we got to learn. All ages welcome, and I love this shot of the high schoolers playing with my girls. The blonde is their favorite babysitter, Sarah. She is a gem and we've decided that she is going to mentor my girls and her mom is going to mentor me...I have no doubt that this will ensure that my girls grow up to be as wonderful as Sarah. :)

And I end with some snapshots from the Mother/Daughter Valentine Tea Party at the church yesterday. My committee and I almost canceled the event because no one was RSVP'ing...but there was a flurry of last-minute activity and we ended up having nearly 50 moms and daughters (and a couple sons thrown in for good measure). It was SO SWEET!!! We had coasters with ice-breaker questions and all the little girls loved asking questions to their tables. We also wanted a service component, so we made Valentine goodie bags for the local senior center...almost 100 goodie bags in all. Our church runs a thrift store, so we were able to cheaply purchase an assortment of mis-matched tea cups and saucers...as a party favor, all the attendees got to take home their cup & saucer. I think my favorite part of the event was that not everyone there was a church member--people brought friends from the community...open and welcoming...the way church should be! :)

And we end with a pic of the Huntley Valentines. :)