People often ask us, after driving up our lumpy bumpy hill, "What do you do when it snows?" Until this weekend, we didn't know. Now we do. We stay put and have a whole lot of fun. As the snow day turned into snow days, I started to remember what it was like when we were all home, all the time. It's a bit of lovely and a lot of circus. It is also, a lot of SOUND! In and around the many cups of hot cocoa, the piles of soggy wet outside clothes (Just toss 'em in the dryer!), the wonderings of "How will we survive?"--Mostly made by my beloved, who isn't sure 'what all that stuff is' in the pantry. Luckily, I know how to make that stuff (aka ingredients) into food--we have fallen into somewhat of a rhythm... that includes a lot of what we haven't had for a long time: Down Time. I had almost forgotten what staying at home feels like. I haven't done it much since Forest was tiny, and even then, that was short lived. No ballet, no robotics, no piano recital, no horseriding lessons, no grocery store runs, no classes, no school pick-up or drop off. Am I bored yet? Are you kidding? If we had a never ending supply of TP and fresh veg, I'd be just fine. But alas, I do not have rows and rows of canned veggies, or a deep freeze stocked with the fruits of the summer (okay, there are still some blueberries in there). There was time to finish sewing projects, time to make homemade valentines, time to make cookies and bread, pear custard tart and pumpkin pasties. There was time to learn how to dot-to-dot, time to play with Christmas gifts that got put away in the excitement of all of it. I cleaned out a desk drawer! The big kids cleaned their rooms! I did yoga, and made a snow angel, and we all sledded on our awesome toboggan, which rarely leaves the garage. We made molasses candy on snow, a snow man, and new friends of the new neighbors next door. There was time to build a castle in the living room, to play more than one board game every day, to get bored and then get out of it. There was time to build a little of something we have been missing much: cozy homey family memories.
So, while I'm looking forward to some fresh vegetables, I believe we have benefited from this snow-day mentality, and I hope we can keep it around for longer than the snow stays!
