A monkey. A squirrel. One happy family.

Westwinds Park is located right behind our house, and it offers up a few gentle hills just right for sledding. The temperature got up into the low 40s today, which made excellent wet snow for packing. We rode down the hill in the toboggan, threw snowballs at each other, made snow faces on trees, and built a snowman. Annie in particular worked up quite an appetite, and when we got home she devoured a cheese sandwich, an entire grapefruit, and a bunch of carrots. This snow play is hard work. Now there is chicken soup simmering on the stove, and Ella is practicing her times tables and studying various polygons for a math test that was supposed to happen last week but got postponed due to the weather. There is more wet stuff in the forecast for this week, but we are prepared. We have plenty of milk, bread, and butter and flour for baking. And beer. (Priorities, right?) Our snow angel. Our other snow angel. Frosty! I hiked the short distance back home for the carrot and

Snow started falling just after 8 this morning, and it hasn't stopped. We are down to one car, so Spencer had to leave work, pick up the girls, and retrieve me from the library (which shut down after opening for two hours). It took him nearly an hour to get back to the radio station, and we are not sure if he will attempt to make it home tonight. But for now, everyone is safe and warm. Baking and snuggling are on the agenda. Ella wants to say that "a triceratops made script Ohio in the front yard!" But that was a couple of hours ago, and now those tracks are covered up again. The paleontologists will be disappointed. Annie made a single snow angel and then decided she was ready for hot chocolate. Smart cookie. Stay warm, all!

Ella is in her third year of ballet. Ms. Stoy, her instructor, doesn't teach the children routines with an eye toward a spring recital, complete with expensive costumes. Sound, careful training is this studio's mantra of sorts, so classical ballet movement, balance, control, and discipline is what these students learn. In lieu of performances, Ms. Stoy has an occasional "watch day," where family members and those special to the students are welcome to sit in the studio and enjoy the day's lesson. Here are some pictures from Ella's class earlier today. Ella at the barre. Pointed toes. Annie took this artsy shot of the dancers' feet. Pas de ciseaux (scissor jump). After about 45 minutes, Annie had had enough of watch day. They end each class with a curtsy and "thank you" for their teacher.

I used to say that I wanted to write for a living, and in my life as a librarian, I do get to do an awful lot of writing. I'm so lucky! One of the library blogs I write for is DBRL Kids. This morning, we posted my article about our house being overrun by dragons. Ella and Annie are kind of obsessed. Their Uncle Aaron should be proud. Read the article at DBRL Kids .