Outdoor Play -- Fairy House, Sledding without Snow

 A huge part of our homeschool routine continues to be spending time outdoors.  I feel the kids need outdoor time -- and send them out to play for an hour or so every afternoon.  A lot of the time, I spend some of that time cutting wood and gathering kindling for the fire. (We use the fireplace once or twice a day. It really helps make our homeschool room cozy.) Though I get to enjoy tag, tickle monster and hide-and-seek of course too!

Daddy got the kids this little fairy house kit. LD nailed the door and windows to a tree in our backyard. When I'm cutting wood, I try to add some wood discs to their collection each day.  They've made little tables, stepping stones, etc. for their fairy house.  It's so cute to see them so engaged!  LD particularly enjoys taking some of those discs and nailing them together.

It's now a bit too cold for outdoor picnics, but we sure love eating outside when the weather's nice!

LD and DD have a "secret fort" -- a place where there are lots of fallen down logs. There's something about cubby houses and forts that capture the kids' imagination.

They seem to be good at making their own fun--in this case using some cast-off siding as a slide.

Who needs snow when the hill is so steep??  The kids have had a blast sledding down this hill in our front yard.  Their cousins were here for a visit last weekend and everyone from 3 to 14 (and beyond!) had a blast!

I love this blurry action photo of LD shooting down the hill!

Now that it's quite cold we all don our snowsuits and head outside! It doesn't make for spectacular pictures, but they/we spend a lot of time just wandering in the yard and in the woods, climbing up/over dead trees, etc. Some of my fondest childhood memories are climbing trees and exploring the park near our home.  I hope the kids continue to enjoy and appreciate nature as I do!