Best Day Ever...

Earlier in the week, I had heard that there was a chance for snow.  The "rumor" was everywhere... you see I call it a rumor because living in Wilmington... it's one of those "I'll  believe it when I see it" type of things.  After checking the weather Friday morning, I became excited!!  The forecast was 1-4 inches!!  I made a typical trip to the grocery store to stock our house for the weekend.  Ok, now I wasn't worried that we would be snowed in... I was a little nervous that Wilmington would "shut down."  When I was out here for college at UNCW, we got a couple of inches and grocery stores, government buildings (include the post office), restaurants, and shoot even Blockbuster was closed.  I figured if they're calling for anywhere between 1-4 inches... I should be prepared.  Everyone else must have had this same thought... as the grocery stores were slammed.

Later that afternoon, I checked the weather again to learn that some areas may see 5 inches.  I was hoping to see at least a dusting... but the possibility of something more was nice.  SO...Friday night, as we were putting the kids to bed... snow flurries began.  The kids were so excited... running around the house... looking out every window... and then when it started accumulating... they would come up to me and say, "MOM... I am just SO excited about the snow!!".  As they should be... snowfall in Wilmington isn't something that happens often.  We had to coax them to bed with promises of an early rise to play before the sun melted the snow away.

This morning (Saturday), Chase must have remembered our promise of an early rise.  In the midst of dreaming, I heard my blinds moving... deep in sleep, I thought it was all part of my dream.  Then I wake up to realize that it's Chase.  As he hears me stir he says, "Mom, how much longer until we can play in the snow."  It's pitch black and the electricity had flashed several times in the middle of the night, so I tell him that I have no idea.  With the thought of our promise in the back of my head, I struggled to get back to sleep.  I finally got up to find that it was only 5:38.  When we said early, we did not mean THAT early!  I quickly let him know the time and that he needed to try to get back to sleep... another hour or so would be nice.  Next thing I remember is hearing Henri's footsteps and then Claire's.  Our day had begun.  AND it was a beautiful day to begin!!

I decided that I needed to know... how much??  I, promptly, put on my boots and walked out front with a ruler.  On the sidewalk/steps we got 4" and in the grassy areas we got between 5" and 6"!!  Amazing!

While I made breakfast, Aaron took all of the kids outside to play.  They attempted to build a snowman... and made something that looks a bit like Jab of the Hut.  Chase has named him "Fred".

Not long after breakfast, I decided that I was going to attempt to make a snowman of my own.  I told the kids of my plans as they played trains on the living room floor.  I went out onto the front steps and started my first ball.  Impressed with how well the snow was sticking, I popped my head in the front door to have the kids come see.  Claire was impressed.  Before I knew it, she was outside with me helping me with my snowman snowgirl.  We decorated her only with things we could find outside.  Hair made from spanish moss, eyes and mouth and buttons from sweet gums, a nose of snow and magnolia leaves for a hair piece.

After we finished our snowgirl, the boys decided that they were ready to come back out into the snowy world.  We started building a snowfort as Chase built a snowdog for our girl.  The dogs must not have been too happy with the snowdog because it quickly disappeared :)  So, we all got to work on what we hoped would be a complete igloo.  Claire got cold and decided she would watch us make the fort from the window inside.  So the boys (not including Aaron... he had to go get adjusted because of a mishap on Friday) and I got busy.  Block after block and patting in extra snow... we made it pretty tall.  Then it happened... I... finally got cold.  Chase decided that he wanted to keep building, so I rushed inside to grab my camera.  After several pictures, we then all decided to go inside and warm up in front of the fire.



Ever since we moved back to Wilmington after living in St. Louis for a year... Chase always says that he wants to live where it snows.  Today, that happened.  BUT... it's different here.  Because here... snow is so rare that it is SO special.  There is something amazing about living in a beach town when it snows.  People aren't cranky about the impending weather... the grocery stores may get busy... but it's full of excitement and hope (for snow).  The most unlikely of places craft snowmen from the church down the street to Chick-fil-a... snowmen are everywhere.  (In fact, at Chick-fil-a they were going sledding and having snowball fights during breaks.)  Here... snow is not a burden... it's a gift.

To quote Chase, "Today was the best day ever."

To see all the pictures, visit my Shutterfly site:  www.daniellerpictures.shutterfly.com