Much more low-key day today. It was rainy and gray--good for staying home and recharging.

The kids played around this morning while I worked on carving our letterboxing stamp, which came out pretty good considering it was my first shot. It took a while to carve, but the kids enjoyed playing and checking on my progress every so often. They all took turns stamping it in a different color ink when it was done. I offered to carve a stamp for each of them if they choose an idea that we can design it around.

Sam and I played with the castle toys for a while this morning, and soon the girls joined us. They also watched Scooby-Doo and the Witch's Ghost, which talks all about the Wiccan religion and has cool connections to our visit this December to the Salem Witch Museum. During the day, Sam decided to play mountain climber on the stairs with the dog's leash. He figured out how to tie it to the banister, clip it to the back of his pants and slide down the steps. Too funny! We definitely have to get back out rock climbing this spring! At one point, the kids all put their raincoats on and went outside to collect rocks. I'm not sure exactly what they were using them for, but apparently they needed more. *g* Maybe they just wanted to be out in the rain, which is a good thing, too.

Some new games that we ordered arrived in the mail this afternoon, one of which was some new chess software for the kids. Emily disappeared for a while, and the next thing I knew, she had installed it on their computer downstairs and was already playing it. Go figure! She decided a while ago that she wanted to learn how to play chess. She has seen dh and I play, found out a friend of hers plays and has seen Harry Potter playing it, so it seems like a cool thing to do. I showed her the basic moves and have played with her several times. Dh found an online game to download for her, but it's really too advanced. So, he did some research and found a great kids program Learn to Play Chess with Fritz and Chesster. Emily's been playing all evening, so she sure seems to like it. It's neat because it breaks the game down into several smaller games, showing how to move individual pieces and play them effectively. I'm thinking I should try it--it might help improve my game!

Julia and I played Settlers of Catan, and Sam joined us to make some chocolate chip cookies. Emily was, of course, busy downstairs playing chess on the computer! She's down there again now, showing her father all the stuff she's figured out. Sam and Julia are in our bedroom watching a DVD. Another good day!