“To laugh often and much; to win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children; to earn the appreciation of honest critics and to endure the betrayal of false friends. To appreciate beauty; to find the best in others; to leave the world a bit better whether by a healthy child, a garden patch, or a redeemed social condition; to know that even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded.”
― Ralph Waldo Emerson I have been pondering the weather lately because we have not had much of a winter in the badger state. Would I rather endure the snow and cold of winter or a winter full of rain, a bit of snow and lots of puddles? Today, I realized I would rather have snow. Since Friday, it has been snowing on and off; creating a winter wonderland outside.
At our house, the afternoon started off with the kids kicking balls around the house. Not my favorite activity for the kids to take part in while inside the house. Every time a ball zooms past, my nerves cinch a little tighter. Both Dean and I sent the kids upstairs to their rooms to kick the balls around. That did not last long because Noah and Riley began to disagree, followed by arguing and then some tears.
Fast forward five minutes, the kids and I put on our snow pants, winter coats and the rest of our winter gear. For the first time this winter, we actually have some snow. Noah and Riley were playing in the puddles at the end of the driveway. Go figure! We finally have snow and they are dipping their hands in puddles to play with ice chunks. There is something about puddles that intrigues my children.
After replacing some drenched gloves, we made our way to the park in the infamous blue sled. This is the same sled Noah fell out of when he was itty bitty and face-planted in the snow. There were a lot of tears following that face-plant. Today was a completely different experience.
I felt like I was a dog pulling a sled in the Iditarod because the kids kept yelling, “Faster, faster.” Pulling a sled is fun for awhile. Noah and Riley are having a jolly old time because they are sitting pretty in the blue sled. On the other hand, I am out of breath and extremely over-heated as I endure a serious workout by tromping through the snow with 70 pounds of giggling children in tow.
Splat! I jolted forward like a bat out of hell. I spun around to find two silly kids laughing hysterically, while rolling around in the snow.
“Do it again.” They squealed.
We repeated this little adventure over and over again. I never got tired of their silly giggles. When we reached the playground equipment, the adventure on the blue sled had lost its excitement. They bolted off the sled and climbed on the playground equipment. I found a seat on one of the three dinosaurs to catch my breath.
I believe I prefer snow in the winter, rather than brown grass and puddles.
