Snowstorm in all it's perfection

I've figured it out. The perfect snowstorm.

It starts with plenty of warning so you can stock your fridge and pantry with extra milk, cheese, eggs, formula, fruit and vegetables to carry you through the following week. The temperatures are soaring in the upper 40's and 50's the day before the first flake so you can send the kids outside to play while you check all the flashlight batteries and restock your fresh water supply. The snowstorm starts on a Friday evening...after the kids and hubbies are all safe in the home, but early enough that you can go catch a few snowflakes on your tongue and build a miniature snowman. It then snows all Friday night and you wake up early Saturday morning to a fresh, beautiful, sparkling landscape. A 9-inch thick blanket of white that covers everything you see in a quiet stillness.

You live in a place where snow is rarely experienced, and temperatures fluctuate above and below the freezing point often enough that the danger of ice becomes real...and everyone bows to the power of nature. Plans are rescheduled, shops are closed, and church is canceled...leaving you with a full weekend to enjoy the beauty and thrill of the snow without interruption. The powerful sun starts working almost immediately after the storm - seemingly embarrassed it let things get so cold - and the winter landscape slowly starts to melt into a memory.

It only took me 120 pictures to finally get one with the drop falling (ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY!!!) So, even though the drop is out of focus, I still want you to be impressed.

In the short meantime, you comfortably sled down your icy road (you don't even have to dig out your sleds, because cookie sheets work just fine.)



You drink lots of hot chocolate. You have friends over for homemade pizza,

then drive 25 mph to their house the next night for homemade soup and apple pie. You ignore the pile of coats, hats, gloves and scarves that are piled up at your back door. You hunker down inside and play games on Daddy's 'i-pad'.


You eat a lot of snow.

As you tuck the kids under their warm blankets you can't stop thinking about the three inch layer of ice that covers the road in front of your house...and when you come out of the kids' room, your handsome hubby already has his tread-worn shoes on his feet, ready for skating. You fall in love again as you hang onto his arm while you skate up and down the road in the quiet darkness.

You simply enjoy what's left and sadly admit that it's probably better to end a situation when you're still having fun. That way, the memories are all sweet, and you look forward with nothing but excitement towards the next perfect snowstorm.