I told the kids a secret today– I hate thaws! I always want powdery snow, colder cold, realer winter. But, if we have to have mid-winter thaws, there is no better way to enjoy them than with some stream play. We buttoned up our Grundens and got busy.

Many kids helped build dams. They used rocks and sticks, and stuck mud and leaves in the small cracks.

Astrid was busy fishing (note fishing pole) and here are the fish (muddy snow/slush balls coming off the edges of the stream) she collected. She made a giant fish cake to eat with Rowen and Emilia!

Logan’s journal: “I found a stream. It was fun. I made a dam. It stopped the water.” He labeled “mud,” “rocks,” and his friends Jack, Hayden, and Jackson as well as himself.

Hunter had fun fishing too! He labeled “me,” “pole,” “mud,” and “fishing.” You can clearly see the fish/slush balls in the water!

Ok, so it does take twice as long to peel off the soaking Grundens, change into new socks (and sometimes pants), and hang everything up to dry, but I think it’s worth it! (Ask your kids.) There is no replacement for water– sloshing in it, jumping in it, watching it while you are standing in it, experimenting with it– and water brings up endless imaginative play and engineering problems. Not a bad thaw day at all!