Winter is driving me crazy by the time we get to February. We’ve had snow on the ground since November – there’s still a couple of months of winter to go quite possibly. Those who can escape south for a week or two. Those who can’t (us among them) endure the cold and dream of summer. Meanwhile, back in England the first spring flowers are probably appearing. Humph.

I get cabin fever. Just a trip an hour down the road to have a change of scenery appeals to me, only the scenery doesn’t change all that quickly. It is pretty though.

This week marked a couple of anniversaries. Seven years ago we moved to Canada, landing in a world of snow and freezer cold temperatures. Four years ago today I started this blog. February is a month when things happen despite the freezing temperatures – maybe some of them are due in part to the cold and feeling stuck indoors for so long. Maybe it’s a tipping point, when we realize we can’t just sit in every evening staring at screens. It’s time to do something!

I’ve noticed something as a parent that applies to both myself and the kids. Boredom can lead to creativity. Letting the kids get bored is not a bad thing all the time, they don’t always need to be entertained. It can drive them to find something to do themselves, or learn something new, whether it is some kind of art or musical instrument, or making a short movie, even reading a book! My kids have done all these things – not always in the winter – but often in times when there wasn’t much for entertainment going on so they had to use imagination. Of course, it doesn’t always happen, sometimes it’s just an endless, ‘I’m bored.’

When we first moved here we were astounded at the amount of really skilled musicians, painters, knitters, quilters and so on. I don’t know the statistics, whether there are more people who do these things in this part of the world than others and whether the weather has anything to do with it. Maybe it just seems that there are more. Locally made items are most certainly valued here as well as local musicians and writers.

This year our winter is so icy. We haven’t got out to do much winter sport or even walk much because it has just been dangerous. Snow days off for schools have been for messy freezing rain rather than beautiful snow storms. Today is one of those and it is frustrating, but as I write my youngest pulled out paints and paper, and started designing something new. I love that.

Like anything in life, there’s a choice. To be thankful or not, to grab hold of the opportunities and cope with the inconveniences rather than let them overwhelm. Well, you just have to learn to do that when living here. Everywhere has its challenges…

…and every day is one day closer to summer.