In Alabama, any talk of snow is a big deal. A huge deal, really. Schools shut down, business close, roads are impassable and grocery shelves are empty. When talk of a “major winter storm” started getting tossed around mid-week the entire state went into a state of panic. I bought groceries for the second time in six days, stocking up on formula, diapers and Little Debbie brownies. We borrowed a generator and bought way too much gasoline. I cleaned house top to bottom and washed every stitch of winter clothes we owned. If we were going to get an extra day at home together this week, I did not want to be preoccupied with laundry and housework!
We watched from the porch and front windows all night on Sunday in anticipation. Ella sang songs about the snow and caught a few flakes on her tongue while running around barefooted. I wish I had known to let her build a snowman after dark and stay up late to enjoy the ridiculously beautiful couple of inches we got. Instead I woke up to this. It might look really pretty in the pictures, but looks can be deceiving.
This white stuff is ice. A nice inch thick layer of ice on everything. Not only did it make for very slippery roads and a very quiet neighborhood, it pretty much eliminated any hope of a snowman in our yard this morning.
The good news? Ella didn’t even notice. Aside from the snowman issue, she was happy as can be with this winter wonderland and declared it “Ella Day” where we would do exactly what she wanted all day long. First we went on an “adventure” and took a long walk around our neighborhood. Beemer was beyond thrilled to run around and chomp on the ice and was always looking for something else to get into.
The first toboggan I put on didn’t really work out so well. I asked SD why he took this picture of me looking like a homeless person and he just laughed. Seriously, why is my hat like that??
These two girls thoroughly enjoyed themselves. Ella gave us directions on what all to do and Sophie was happy to tag along. We have laughed all weekend about how much she likes the cold weather. She was pitching a royal fit inside when I was putting two layers of clothes, mittens and a coat on her and as soon as we walked out onto the porch she started kicking her legs like crazy and squealing. I think we found her happy place. Considering she’s teething and hasn’t felt well all weekend, it was a nice reprieve.
There are certain disadvantages to living across from a high-school: afternoon traffic, a lovely view and summer band practice. On the other hand, having an entire football field full of ice to stomp made it all worth it today.
See, seriously giddy!
By this point, SD and Sophie were ready to go inside and they took Beemer with them. Ella really wanted to find another “village” to walk through, so we set out on foot.
First stop, train tracks. Clearly the trains weren’t moving today, but the boxcars were topped with a nice pile of ice and made for an interesting adventure.
Perhaps Ella’s favorite part of our walk downtown was pointing out icicles. If you live in our area, you might have heard it. She screamed ICICLE every time she spotted one.
We walked around the downtown loop and saw the churches lined up and iced over. We considered spending some time on their playground, but were afraid daddy would start to worry.
Instead we snapped a picture of ourselves in an empty store’s window, where Ella got pinged in the cheek with an errant icicle and then we posed for pictures under the trestle bridge.
We finally headed back home and spent some time looking out the windows with Soph. She wasn’t really excited when Ella and daddy took another walk later in the afternoon, so we talked to the kitty cat and waited for them to come home.
Despite the snow fail, we managed two yummy crockpot meals over the weekend, a ridiculous amount of Netflix and far too many Reese’s cups. To satisfy our last little longing, we decided that a Doh-Man would have to suffice.
