Winter Wonder with Elsa and Anna

On our way home from Seattle after Christmas, we took a scenic route.  The drive winds around in a canyon along a river, not shoving its way through any hills or forcing its route, but instead following the natural curves of the land.  Wendell Berry has an essay that discusses the differences in old-fashioned roads like this and the modern concept that we can force our way for convenience sake.  Even our roads reflect the values we have as a culture.  Jesse and I both always feel a sense of peace and rest when we go along the canyon, maybe because the road reflects our own personal values.  This time there was a flock of swans in the river and they were breathtaking against the snowy ice that hadn't melted after our deep freeze a few weeks ago.  

When I have a few seconds, I have been picking up the camera and playing with different settings.  I have absolutely no idea what I'm doing, and I'm sure that's apparent from my pictures but I keep researching a little online as I go, and my brother explained a few things over Christmas that, well, I still don't really understand but after reading enough and fiddling around, I think it will sink in.  I am eyeing a book on Amazon that would probably teach me more. 

Millie is insisting that her name is Anna (Ah-na) ever since we saw the movie Frozen.  They have been pretending they are the sister princesses from that movie the past few days and it makes me smile.  I am amazed at how much Millie, er, Anna, really understood from the movie and is able to build into their pretend play.  Poor Rosie ends up being the goofy snowman Olaf and I get to be the reindeer Sven.  I'm not sure who should be more offended.  

We haven't had any real snow at our house, although we did take the girls up to the mountains with friends to play in the snow a couple days ago.  Since snow is scarce so far, lacy paper snowflakes have had to suffice.  We cut them out before Christmas and I even tied the yarn on, but as with so many of my projects, I never got around to the final point of hanging them anywhere.  So when Elsa and Anna (smile) found them the other day and decided to hang them up under Lyddie's bunk, I was pleased since that was exactly where I kept meaning to hang them but never got to.  It was better this way.  They were so proud of themselves for the snowflake forest they created.