Four inches of snow fell here in Buckner on Monday. The kids were home from school and had a blast playing outside until they were numb. Every half hour, they came in to thaw by the fire and warmed up from the inside out with hot cocoa and snickerdoodles. As exciting as that first snowfall is, I know winter’s going to be long and cold. What do you do on those days when school’s out and the kids get tired of snow?

Get cozy, curl up together under a warm blanket, and read a great book! Make it fun by challenging each other to read this winter. Winner gets off dish duty for a week! Books also make great gifts. They fit well in stockings and are easy to wrap! Books take kids away from over-stimulating video games to faraway lands of castles, dragons and pirate ships. Books feed their curious minds and let their imaginations run wild. Books encourage them to follow their dreams. Give your kids the gift of reading, and you’ll open up a world of possibilities.