Mending

This picture says it all.

It's been cold. Unimaginably cold.

We're in the winter weather equivalent to the dog days of summer. Where the cold and wind and snow seem endless. So conditioned are the hearty folks that live in this part of the world, that at minus single digits, it seems 'warm enough' to get the kids outside to play... bundled in layer upon layer of winter-weather gear. If only for 15 minutes.

The upside to the cold and snow and wind, is that we have these drifts that are gargantuan. This beauty has encased our small stand of apple trees, the tallest of which you can see poking through the top of the mound of snow. The smallest... well those may not reappear for quite some time. Our little barn is nearly buried as well. These snow drifts are awesome for making snow forts. The snow is hard packed and sturdy. Digging a small cave big enough to curl up in is something I recall from my own childhood. And just like all those years ago, snow forts are something that kids love.

For me, the upside to this weather is that I don't feel guilty for not being outside... doing something. I am completely content to be in the house, curled up with the little people watching a movie and working on one of those fun little projects I've collected along the way.

This project has been long overdue... every single pair of Benett's jeans need mending. He's just like his older brother (and every other boy on the planet) who has played hard enough to wear holes through the knees of his pants. And I'm just like many moms who refuse to buy new jeans when these holey ones aren't even two months old!

So, we decided to embrace the holes and add a monster mouth. Benett likes the result and I didn't have to buy any new pants, making everyone happy.

And since Benett is a creature of habit, he already has a new hole in the mended pants, and because there is no end in sight to this winter weather... I'll have plenty of time and work to keep me busy.

I suppose that makes everyone happy.