Moving things around

Our school district calls so early to announce a snow day. Today at 5 a.m after receiving the call, I found three boys staring at me as I pretended to sleep. Snow day mania began in my house. Despite their pleas to go out at 7 a.m., I held my ground and told them that we had to wait until the strong, cold winds settled down. You can imagine the disappointed looks on their faces. I hoped that we would have better weather for snow play in the afternoon. Now we had a whole morning ahead of us. I needed to think of some activity to pass the time before the inevitable battles began. I decided to recruit them to my moving team.

Every once in a while, I will sit in one of the rooms in my house and rearrange things in my head. I don't often get the chance to move things around to change a room's look. This morning seemed like the right time to shake things up in my house a bit. Luckily, my kids also like when I play around with a room's layout. It turned out to be a great exercise in cooperation, creativity, teamwork and brainstorming for the kids. We also had a lot of fun in the process. Each kid felt they had an important role in the new room design. The morning hours flew by, and we found a new way to spend family time together. It's also funny how an old chair can become so popular with the kids once it is in a new spot. They all were competing for a chance to use it as their new TV chair.

It still doesn't look too kid friendly outside for playing in the snow. Luckily, the kids are not glued to the window and watching the clock as much. Maybe I'll put them to work organizing old pictures this afternoon. Won't my husband be surprised when he sees what we've been up to today?

Stirred by the Snow

It is snowing outside my window. I love looking at the trees outlined in a thin layer of snow. An overall sense of wonder and calmness come upon me simultaneously while taking in this view. Soon my house will be filled with tons of energy and laughter as my kids get home early due to the snow. It is nice to sit here for a few moments and relax with my thoughts before my kid army "storms" the home front. When I'm looking for inspiration, nature often provides me with just the boost I need to get started. If I'm sitting at a bus stop waiting for my kids, I will try and find some little "muse" of nature, even if it is just a tattered little leaf hanging loosely off its stem. Somehow a thought or emotion will come over me and push me to write a few lines of a poem. I work hard to fit these moments for creativity in my busy day. Even if I'm the only one to read my poem, I have to make that effort to express what I'm feeling in a creative way. Sometimes I can feel that creative urge between something as routine as making sandwiches for the kids. Then I'll take a break to write a few lines on a napkin or scrap paper, whatever is handy. I don't want to lose those thoughts so I will stop for a moment to get those thoughts or images written down.

The snow is steady and quiet. Soon my home will be unpredictable and loud with the happiness of kids free from the classroom. Happy kids bring about their own kind of creative, poetic energy. Maybe I'll find my next inspiration for a poem watching my kids act "naturally".