If you would rather listen, I have recorded this post for you!
I wanted to apologize to my subscribers for an error I made in the last letter. I said “Haggai” instead of “Hagar” when retelling the story of “The God who sees”. When I realized what happened I was able to quickly update it on my substack post but the email had already sent.
Hello dear readers! I just want to say that I really appreciate each one of you! Every email, comment and text if we know each other personally has meant so much!
This week on Sally Clarkson’s podcast she inspired us with her ten things that she does every day in the winter to keep joyful. As per usual she had some lovely little ideas! I decided to follow suit and made my own list along with my children (and being a homeschooler doubled it up as a fun ELA assignment!). It was good timing too as our part of the world spiralled down into arctic temperatures!
As a gift to you I decided to gather up twenty of our ideas with some recipes and links to bless you for your readership!
Here are twenty of our ideas (we had a good deal more but I whittled it down to this) in no particular order to make your cold winter day a little more special!
Light candles. We love lighting our oil lamps and putting a taper candle in the kitchen window
.
Make hot cocoa and read (aloud, together, separately, listen on audio or to a VOX book recording from the library). One of our favourite books recently was “A Duet For Home” by Karina Yan Glaser. (Our cocoa recipe is at the end of this list!)
Watch a movie (we LOVE “Dolphin Tale” and then watching the animals on the live cam at Clearwater Marine Aquarium in the days after!)
Have afternoon tea time together. We love Yorkshire Gold tea with whole milk. If possible we make our tea time an event and enjoy it beautifully with a tablecloth and candle.
Do some crafts (my big kids are into wood burning, popsicle stick creations, knitting, wreath making and macrame right now. My little guys love paint, stickers and glueing things with glue sticks.)
Bake something (goes well with number 4!)
Play “floor is lava”.
Play bakery with our play little kitchen, play dough, mini muffin tins, etc
Listen to Adventures in Odyssey while doing puzzles or lego (find four days of free episodes here https://www.oneplace.com/ministries/adventures-in-odyssey/ )
Share things you’re thankful for (also good with number 4 while eating number 6)
Make a blanket fort (my big ones love building these for the toddlers.)
Sit by a window and look up at the trees (or just up at the sky if you don’t have any trees). Move a chair (or chairs) if needed.
Have a fire and be together. When we haven’t had a real fire before we’ve enjoyed an electric fire place for creating a cozy feeling
.
Make soup. My favourite simplest ever soup is the Trim Healthy Mama Just Like Campbells Tomato Soup recipe made big enough for my family https://www.copymethat.com/r/Q6ZzPBzx8/just-like-campbells-tomato-soup/
Listen to hymns and beautiful instrumentals. We have been enjoying Nathan Drake’s Reawaken Hymns.
We like the playlist on Spotify called “Cozy Winter Instrumentals” and I play it during tea time and meals.
When it’s bedtime, send everyone warmly away with a hot water bottle or rice bag.
Read the Bible and journal.
Try to spot a brave little bird. Look it up in a field guide if you aren’t sure what it is.
Head outside for just long enough to appreciate being indoors again.
Read a winter poem. I always enjoy “Stopping By The Woods on a Snowy Evening” to remind me of my early homeschooling days doing Five in a Row.
Our Healthier Hot Cocoa
1/4-1/3 cocoa powder (depending how chocolatey you like it)
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup collagen powder
A dash or two of salt
A splash of boiling water
3 cups of almond milk
Approximately 4 cups of whole milk
Stevia to taste
Mix dry ingredients in the bottom of a large pot.
Add a splash of boiling water and whisk until honey has melted and a paste forms.
Slowly add your milks while whisking. Heat up to desired temperature, but don’t let it boil. Almond milk tastes weird when it boils!
Taste and add stevia to boost sweetness if desired (or add more honey), more milk if needed or more cocoa. I’m always adjusting it depending what we’re liking.
Top with whip cream and cinnamon! Or just drink it as is.
*collagen is optional and just for added protein. I also add a couple tablespoons of beef gelatin. This still passed the picky eater test!
All right friends I am still thinking of ideas even while typing this but it’s time for me to go and spend some real life time with my family and put some of these ideas into practice!
Stay warm and be blessed,
Monica