Beating the winter blues

Since we've moved here a lot of people have asked how we're surviving the winter. Well really and truly it isn't that bad. I was scared from the horror stories I heard about arctic winds and subzero temperatures, thinking I would be trapped in my house all winter long. However, it was only REALLY cold for a couple of weeks. Now we're back up in the 30's and are able to get out and about quite often. I've learned that the trick is to balance fun indoor activities with getting out of the house as well. Here are some of the things we've been doing lately to beat the winter blues:

-We made valentine cards for Daddy. I let Teya use my scrapbooking scissors because the edges aren't sharp and she was in heaven! (Anytime she gets to use a "forbidden" object it brings her great joy) She cut up just about every paper in sight and then had tons of fun using the glue stick to put her snip-bits on cards.

-We made chocolate covered Marshmallows with her friend Abby. I saw the idea on my friend Tara's blog and thought it would be fun. You just melt some chocolate chips, dip the marshmallows and then cover them with sprinkles. Abby was very dainty with her chocolate dipping, barely getting her fingers dirty. Teya on the other hand went all out crazy!

In the end our marshmallows looked like this:

And Teya looked like this:

-We got together with some friends for a Wii party. I have to say, whoever invented the Wii is a genius. It's just as fun to watch how silly people look when they play as it is to actually play it!

-We went on a double date with some friends who treated us to a Minnesota Wild Hockey game. They were playing the Nashville Predators so I was a little torn as to who to cheer for. After all, we lived near Nashville twice as long as we've lived here. : ) I guess it was nice though because whoever won (it ended up being the Predators) would still make me happy. (p.s. is it just me or is Taber looking incredibly hot in this picture?)

-We took advantage of the awesome indoor playground at the Maple Grove Community Center. It's huge! (think McDonalds playground on steroids) and Teya has finally learned how to navigate the climbing apparatus by herself. (Before that Brinley would cling to me like a monkey while I wormed through the climbing maze giving Teya a boost at every switchback. Kind of exhausting)
And finally we've been enjoying visits to the Plymouth field house. It's a giant indoor field house where every Mon. Wed. and Friday they have toddler time. They bring out a bounce house and a jolly jump slide and tons of balls and toys for little kids. Teya loves running around with her friends and best of all, when we leave she always takes a nap! (something she has recently been growing out of) It's nice for me too because I go with my friend who is training for a 5K with me and we take turns running while the other one plays with the kids.

Here's a little video that gives you a better idea of what the field house is like. Teya burns off so much energy there! I also love the little bit at the end where she's wiggling her hips. She says she's just shaking it but I know that dance really means she has to go to the bathroom ; )

Fun at the Fieldhouse from Taber Rigg on Vimeo.