Scenes from a Snowy Day

There are many curious things in life, but here are several that came to mind today:

Why would our biggest snowfall of the winter wait for March?

Why I would wait until this late in the season to actually put on my boots and go out in it?

And why would we wait until the watermelon goes completely rotten in the wheelbarrow before we dispose of it?

The only good answer I have is that some things in life are meant to be a mystery.

That said, if you would like to see what my Snowy Day looked like, curiosities & all, you're welcome to come with me for a tour...

There may not be such a thing as our little school closing down on account of the weather, but Elasa's workload is light enough that she still had plenty of time to enjoy the snow and I find that keeping on schedule does us all good. Even though we're not officially counting, today was day 119 of school, which I know isn't as far along as many, but since we'll just be going until her books are done, it doesn't matter so much this year.

We had resorted to store-bought bread after running out of homemade last week, so I was glad to make a big batch of 7 loaves today. It is such a staple for us, especially at lunch-time, that I like to have loaves cut and in the freezer ready to be pulled out and put on the table.

I thought it would be fun to deliver a birthday gift (including a loaf of bread!) to a sister-in-law who also happens to be my neighbor, so I donned my hat and boots and the children and I took a nice little walk! After the deliver was made, we walked around the block and I ended up carrying Parker much of the way as he wasn't overly fond of the sled ride. Wesley got home on lunch break shortly before we got back, and he did the honors of taking a picture that I could actually be on! The bonus for the day was that I got to try out my hat...and it passed the test with flying colors by keeping my ears toasty warm!

 My drying rack is a very handy feature these days for hanging snow pants and coats by the radiator to dry. I think by the end of the day, I had hung up some of these clothes three different times...

The candle was a cozy feature, yes, but I actually lit it because of the watermelon (and yes, you read that right...watermelon!) You see, a certain watermelon was left to languish a bit too long in the garage and it did the only thing a reasonable watermelon would do in the depths of winter... go rotten in the wheelbarrow and begin draining rotten juice and creating rotten puddles on the garage floor! This rotten juice then got onto the bottom of a certain young man's shoes and was tracked into the house. Needless to say, I had never smelled rotten watermelon juice before today and I don't care to again...least of all in March! 

The scene of these three redheads sitting & singing together on the couch looks peaceful enough, but in reality it involved a great deal of discord, you might say! Gavin and Parker argued over who would "blow the pitch" and at times they were all singing their own song!!!

Oh, well... at least they had matching hymn books for the sake of uniformity and maybe the harmony will follow someday.

After supper, Wesley and the children went outside to finish the shoveling, take out the trash...and clean up the puddles of rotten watermelon juice with shovels of snow to help soak it up (Elasa's idea!)

Parker loves wielding his child-size snow shovel, but it's Gavin who really makes the snow fly! I have noticed this winter that when he goes out to shovel. he actually moves the snow and shovels it where it's suppose to go... instead of right back where it came from! 

We have very kind neighbors on either side of us who often use their snowblowers on our sidewalks and driveway, and today was no exception. However, I was relieved that it was not our 80-something year old neighbor- which always makes me a bit nervous- but rather his son who did the kind service. 

Parker came in to warm up on the radiator while Wesley took Elasa and Gavin sledding on a nearby hill. Living in town where we do doesn't give the children very many sledding options just out our back door, but at least there's a place within walking distance where Wesley can take the children, and they love that!

And here's an impromptu review on a book I found at the library on Monday evening...just in case you need a good children's story to read yet this winter!  Blizzard, by John Rocco, is based on the author's childhood experience during the now infamous Blizzard of 1978, which brought fifty-three inches of snow to his town in Rhode Island. The story and pictures are absolutely wonderful and I would recommend it for a great winter story! Both of my boys have taken a liking to the book and Parker is especially pleased with the picture of the snow plow! I read it several times today and it felt pretty fitting, even though we were far from having blizzard conditions!   

There could hardly be a better way to top of the day then with apples, doughnuts from the freezer, and hot cappuccino drinks... especially as the temperatures dipped and the snow clothes hung drying for one last time!!!

And that was our snow day...
watermelon juice,
curiosities
and all.

How was yours?