There is nothing quite so magical as the first winter snow! Every crystallized water droplet glistens with wonder and the hush that covers the landscape makes me sentimental.
The first snow awakens the child in me.
Snowball fights. Whimsical snowmen. Snow cream.
The second snow of winter still thrills me, yet some of the luster begins to fade.
Snowmen become less engaging....I grow tired of the building process.
By the third and fourth snow I've seen more than enough of the wicked white.
Winter has chilled me to the bone and I grow weary of the grey dreary days.
As a mom, I begin to feel trapped with my children.
Board games have become boring.
Outdoor activities become a chore due to the heavy layering of clothes piled
high and dripping on my laundry room floor.
I begin to feel suffocated and "up to my neck" with the winter doldrums.
Snow grows into ugly dirty piles and makes my world seem bleak.
My patience becomes strained and I snap at those I love
who dare cross my blissful afternoon naps to escape the shivering of my spirit.
I begin to wander around my now undecked halls hearing murmurings of the word
"redrum" because I'm trapped in a house with adolescent boys who want to eat all day.
And eat they must!
But my cupboards are bare; there is still too much snow
and ice on the ground for me to venture to the store.
I begin to fear for my life!
"Why, oh why, did I not make that milk and bread run before the next blizzard?"
I ask myself this question after I hear the rumble of the growling stomachs in the next room.
Hunger and winter madness have driven my family to the edge.
I lock myself in the bathroom and cry with great heaving sobs.
But wait! I gain my composure long enough to remember a few staple food items tucked away in my pantry.
Four cups of white sugar,
one-half cup of cocoa,
one cup of peanut butter,
three teaspoons of vanilla,
five cups of oatmeal,
one stick of butter and
at least one cup of milk
(half-and-half might substitute).
That covers most of the basic food groups, right?
Quietly, I slip into the kitchen. I mix my sugar, cocoa, milk, butter and peanut butter together and boil them hard for two minutes. I pour the hot mixture over the five cups of oats I have in a bowl, add the vanilla and mix well. On the last piece of wax paper I own, I drop thick spoonfuls of the concoction to cool.
Disaster averted! For now.
Welcome sweet spring time, I'll greet thee with song!
Thanks for reading, Rosie.
