moon walk
We took most of December off from bubble school for our pre-Christmas quarantine. Totally worth it, but boy did we miss those folks! School doesn't start up again until the new year, but we couldn't wait that long to hang out again, if only for a little bit. So yesterday our friends invited us to join them for a fire, dinner, and a walk under the full moon. Never mind the cold, we were excited to go an happy to bundle up. Not that the kids needed all those layers once they got going with their friends—they were soon out of their hats and coats, despite the entreaties of their shivering parents. We played and talked until the moon was well up, then headed out for a moonlight hike. We had headlamps for the short portion along the road, but then once we went into the woods we shut them off and relied on the light of the moon—and, even with the snow all melted, it was plenty.
The original plan was to walk for an hour, all the way to a field on the banks of Nashoba Brook, but one family couldn't stay out that late so we only walked for half an hour, out around a cemetery and back. With so many happy friends it didn't feel spooky at all, only beautiful (though the gravestones with a few dim red Christmas lights on them were a little bit creepy). Before the walk we had listened to the wonderful book Owl Moon, by Jane Yolen; there was a little disappointment that we didn't see or hear any owls ourselves, but then again the book makes it very clear that, "when you go owling, you have to be quiet." We were not quiet: it was too much fun being with friends! It was a great night.