Snow Caves and Forts

On Saturday afternoon, the boys were getting restless and were sent outside to play and release excess energy. We had just recovered from a big snowstorm, and there were large piles of snow along the edge of the driveway.

Looking at those huge snow piles gave Joshua, Jonathan, and Joseph some ideas. They grabbed shovels and began digging, scooping, and moving snow. It didn’t take long to hollow out mini-caves. With a little more effort, they turned their caves into personal dwellings.

They decided to make tunnels to connect their rooms and homes together. April was walking on top of the snow piles while Marianne was inside checking out the caves. They alerted April to the potential danger. She quickly jumped down and avoided a cave-in. All went well – no damage!

While they were digging, they talked about what they would do if one of the caves collapsed. They decided they would stay on their hands and knees creating an air space. One would run for help while the other would dig like crazy and pull his brother out of the snow. The snow piles really weren’t that high, but they had their safety plan all in place.

Someone was trying to make a bigger room but ended up digging a bit too far into the hill of snow. His home turned into a tunnel, or you might call it a home with a front and back door.

April and Crystalynne made their snow houses in the yard. Crystalynne wanted to turn her fort into an igloo. She took great pride in her home. The walls were strong and well built, but the roof never came to fruition. She worked hard on it and played in it for hours.

With so much snow, it’s hard to imagine someone had the controversial idea to throw a snowball at someone else. Can you believe it? The unknown soldier actually followed through with his battle idea and started a wonderful war. Dad likes to throw snowballs just to get things moving. He rarely hits anyone. He’s either a bad aim or is just not trying. A cave, fort, or igloo can come in handy during a snowball fight.

They were still digging when we went on our walk. When we came back, we checked on everyone’s progress. The children gave us a complete tour of their snow creations. We entered their homes, and admired what they had carved out of snow. It was a pleasant afternoon and a great way to release surplus energy. Good job everyone!