How to survive a really long winter

Not sure what happened to the original words I composed for this post but I'm guessing a 2 year old banged a little too hard on the keyboard in a moment I stepped away.  I hoped to record the feelings and activities from this past winter - but this morning it is spring so I'm having a hard time retrieving the exact words. In this case I will allow the pictures to share the bulk of the story.

This winter was long, it was snowy, the van got stuck several times, the boys were iced over knee down after daily farm chores and hearts were heavy on the day our two ducks did not survive.

There were a variety of snow forts and snow people sculpted and the girls dug a snow cave with several holes and named it the "Holestel".The kids were cooperative in sharing two pairs of cross-country skis and the bees survived! 

Paul relieved us from an unexpected toilet episode and he also cleared lots of snow.  We celebrated birthdays and Valentines and it seems everyday was a costume party.  Oma and Opa treated us with a quick visit, we treated ourselves to indoor s'mores by the fire and on the longest of days spread out indoor picnics.  

We shed tears of gratitude as we feasted on our grass fed beef and spent nights crowded by the fire dreaming of summer projects and future farm plans.

The girls painted through pages of watercolor paper (Maryanna is the artist of the new blog header) while the older boys quietly dove into their individual passions - James performed physics experiments, Peter planned out the garden and started 85 tomato seedlings and William took thousands of photos for stop motion Lego brick films.  As for the younger boys, they took to sword fighting, begging for shows, and making messes whenever the opportunity allowed.  They were harder to contain but the baby wrap hammocks under the table did amuse them for one full day.

I stole away as many naps as I could and cooked pots and pots of warm rice pudding and even more of broth.

We watch with delight the daily growth and bloom of the amaryllis.  We also watched my belly grow and wondered of the new soul that will soon be a part of us.  Brother or sister?  there were many prayers begging for each and honestly a few punches thrown in disagreement over what this sibling may be.

Lastly, the hauling of wood and feeding the fire was constant.  It seems so long ago that we sweated through our 4th of July holiday splitting and stacking wood.  I am amazed at the extremes of the seasons, each with its challenges, joys and beauties.

The snowsuits and boots are washed and packed away, lost mittens have been found and mud boots are lined up on the side porch.  

I am grateful to for the fullness we experienced this winter and also grateful to once again see patches of grass, hear birds sing and welcome spring.