101 Things to do with children outside....#15 Take a good look!

The other day we were outside enjoying a glorious snowfall-you know the kind: big fluffy white snowflakes, gently rolling through the air, tumbling down to the snowy ground. As we stood at the edge of our yard, taking it all in, L suddenly dropped to her belly on the ground. She lay there quietly for a few seconds. Then she gasped... "Mom! You've got to see this! When you look at a snowflake up close, it actually looks like a snowflake!" Her awe was contagious. I lay down and so did J, and we proceeded to see snowflakes as if we'd never seen them before. It's true, though it's so obvious it sounds silly: snowflakes really do look like snowflakes: multi-armed crystals of intricate lace. For a few quiet minutes, my children and I lay there on our bellies, looking, looking. We settled into the snow, and just enjoyed the beauty of seeing snowflakes.