So... 2023

I forgot to put together "Winter Fun List" this year and now it's too late. I better get working on the "Spring Fun List".

This winter was mostly a bust weather-wise. No snow. No sledding. I don't like warm winters. I like frozen trails, snow on the branches, and crisp air.

And yet - this winter did have it's moments. We had a few cold days in December. We were visiting my in-laws and stayed at their house overnight - and guess what I saw in the  morning? Frost pictures all over the windows! I swear, I haven't seen those since I was a kid - the forest-like patterns all over the glass. Magical.

There was a giant frozen puddle outside their house. The kids actually had their ice skates with them, so they put them on and went skating! And once again, I was reminded of my childhood. There was a burst pipe of some sort that flooded the area behind our apartment building when we lived in the Far East. My grandparents sent me a pair of ice skates and it was the best thing in the world - stumble out of the house, and the "skating rink" was right there! The ice was very much uneven but we (local kids) didn't care. I never got really good at skating, but I figured out the basics.

Another winter highlight: skiing. We took kids skiing for the first time ever. I've never done anything except a little cross-country skiing, and I've never been to a real skiing hill with lifts and stuff... so it was a completely novel experience for everyone involved. Even though I didn't try it - it was so much fun to watch the kids. Yes, the snow was artificial, but - it is what it is. I was amazed at how quickly they were picking it up - all 3 went on a lift and down a "beginners" hill (that looked rather large and terrifying to me). All 3 are much better coordinated, and much braver than I've ever been.

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Life sometimes feels like we keep treading water, barely keeping our heads up. The war in Ukraine keeps going. First thing every morning, I check the news to see if Putin is still in power, if he has used nuclear weapons, if the world has gone completely mad. East versus West. 

I escape into books, I escape into doing fun things with kids. Dear Reader, what's your escape?