During those days spent at home, Nan did her best to amuse her brother.
As soon as she was out of school she came straight home, and read to him
and played games. Nan was also learning to play on the piano and she
played a number of tunes that he liked to hear. They were so much
attached to each other that it did not seem natural for Nan to go out
unless her twin brother could go out too.

The first snow storm had been followed by another, so that in the garden
the snow lay deeper than ever. This was a great delight to Freddie and
Flossie, who worked hard to build themselves a snow house. They enlisted
the services of Sam, the stableman, who speedily piled up for them a
heap of snow much higher than their heads.

"Now, chillun, dar am de house," said the colored man. "All yo' hab got
to do is to clear out de insides." And then he went off to his work,
after starting the hole for them.

Flossie wanted to divide the house into three rooms, "dining room,
kitchen, and bedroom," as she said, but Freddie objected.

"'Taint big enough," said the little boy. "Make one big room and call it
ev'rything."

"But we haven't got an _ev'rything_," said Flossie.

"Well, then, call it the parlor," said Freddie. "When it's done we can
put in a carpet and two chairs for us to sit on."

It was hard work for such little hands to dig out the inside of the heap