Snow in the South

It's a pretty well known fact that the wonderful folks of North Carolina are not really "snow-savvy." The salt trucks get used maybe 2 or 3 times every year, usually for ice. Snow is just now seen very much in these parts and when it is, we really don't know how to act. There is a running joke that at the start of a winter weather advisory, North Carolinian's crave french toast... we all run to the store to buy bread, eggs and milk.

Four years ago, we had about an inch of snow hit in the afternoon during a weekday. The schools closed and everyone rushed from work to pick up their kids. Unfortunately, we were all on the roads before the salt trucks had a chance to run and every bit of road turned to ice. The Triangle experienced the biggest gridlock that was ever seen - roads were lined for over 10 hours with cars going nowhere. (It took me 5 hours to travel a normal 40 minute commute!)

Last week, the Triangle was hit with a snow storm - the biggest in 5 years! Luckily, we saw it coming and the salt trucks treated the roads before the storm hit. Schools closed the night before so kids had all day to enjoy the 5 inches of snow that fell blissfully from the frosty sky.

Despite growing up in Pennsylvania, I am in love with snow. Perhaps it's because I haven't seen it as often as I used to, but I delight in big, soft snowflakes swirling like feathers after a pillow fight - slow and dreamy with nowhere to go but right in my front yard.

Last year we were supposed to have a big snow storm but it never materialized. I was on pins and needles waiting for it and was hugely disappointed that it didn't come. But this year was a dream come true! The snow fell for almost 10 hours. Even though I was at the computer working from home, I could watch the snow fall and fall and fall. It was fantastic!

I was especially happy for my daughter and the kids in the neighborhood. They found a new sledding hill and frolicked in the snow until they were practically frozen. My dryer was on all day long as my daughter would come in every couple of hours to exchange wet hats and gloves for dry, warm ones. What a joy to hear their laughter and see their excitement. I, too, took some time to walk around in the winter wonderland - well worth the 5 year wait!

See more photos of our beautiful snow at Sunniviews!

Skating...

In our neighborhood, along with the retirees that staple thousands of wonderfully tacky lights to their homes at Christmas time and bring us jars of jam and gifts of lawn equipment, we’re lucky to have several families – all with children between the ages of 5 and 9. Not a huge group, but just enough.

One boy across the street won a contest at school and was awarded with a free party at the local ice skating rink. He chose to invite the neighborhood gang, so we donned our scarves and gloves and met him there. Of the six children present, there were 4 adults, myself, my husband and two other lucky fathers. We fitted the kids with their skates, handed them the beginner training bars and sent them off on the rink. Unfortunately, half of them fell flat on their butts as soon as the metal hit the ice. There was only a small opening to the rink and the kids couldn’t be reached above the rink wall because of the 5 foot plexiglass used during hockey games. My husband and I looked at one another and shrugged our shoulders. Someone had to go out there to help and we seemed to be the most qualified.

Not that I don’t enjoy skating… We used to go ice skating all the times when we were kids. Then there were the roller skating years during middle school (am I dating myself here?) And during our 3 years in Key West, Rob and I used to roller blade every day to shake those pesky hangovers.

I guess on a Sunday afternoon, having rushed there from church without my coat, I was taken off guard. It was freezing in there! But, we braved the chill and headed out.

Bless their hearts, those kids were troopers! Even after numerous hard falls, they kept laughing and smiling. Amazingly, their balance improved and we could leave a few on their own. Rob and I decided to take a few spins around the ice together, in that cheesy cross-handed synchronized couples-skate that reminds me of a good old black-and-white Jimmy Stewart movie. The other dads that accompanied our group laughed as we passed by, but who wouldn’t? We’re both hams and we love it.

So I wonder, with rosy cheeks, flying around the rink, why don’t we do this more often? This is the life! Our daughter should have professional lessons, we should come every weekend, we should twirl our life away is this wondrous, sparkling, icy-filled place!

But, our time on the ice dwindles and the kids are getting cold. We fill them with soft pretzels and hot chocolate, return those battered, scuffed boots worn by so many before us and leave the ice palace. Believe it or not, the Carolinas are having an unseasonably high temperatures and the weather outside is warm, comparatively. Sort of a relief, actually.

We pull up to our house and I remember why it is that we can’t fritter our life away in an icy-dreamland. Right – we’re in the middle of 3 loads of laundry, the plants need water, the cat box needs to be cleaned and the dog wants food. Anything else? Of course, the list goes on but what fun it is! Skating. Perhaps we can squeeze it in next weekend!