Snow Day Reality

snowdayrealityTwo days ago I left you with all the wonderful things I was looking forward to with the impending blizzard.  It was going to be a picturesque day spent with those I love the most.

As usual, reality didn’t quite match up with the imagery I had summoned.  Now that we have survived Snow Day #2 let’s see how that beautiful list I had made stacked up…

 

  • Sleeping in. Can’t complain about that one.  Day one I slept in until 8:30 where Brian slammed our door open and said, “Come on Mom!  Come on Colin!”, and he didn’t relent until we both came downstairs to see the blizzard.  I don’t care how abruptly and loudly he woke us up, I dare say I have never slept in until 8:30 when he was home.
  • Paid Snow Day.  Yes, I did get a paid snow day and then another one.  And now I’m just about out for the rest of the year.  I didn’t want to use them all in one week, come on.  With two more storms predicted for the next week I’m no longer excited.
  • Kitchen Renovation.  Nope, didn’t touch it at all.
  • More Rest Time.  Though I did get to sleep in, there was no resting while I was awake.  The constant sinus pressure and sore throat made it so difficult to parent during the rough moments and there were probably more rough moments because I wasn’t adequately momming it up.
  • Snow shoes.  We did it!  We finally dug out and used the snow shoes that have just been collecting dust and they were a success!
  • Fireplace.  You’re going to laugh, but we never even got it going the day of the blizzard.  Thankfully we didn’t need to use it as our power stayed on through the entirety of the storm.
  • Functional Exercise.  Did I actually say that I enjoyed shoveling because it gave me exercise?   We went out and shoveled on countless different occasions and spent hours digging ourselves out.  Thankfully my father showed up with a snowblower at one point or it would have been even longer.  The snowbanks at the end of our driveway, thanks to drifts and plows, are taller than I am.  I am sore in muscles that I didn’t even know I possessed.
  • Baking.  I burnt the peanut butter cookies.  Enough said.
  • Mandatory Family Time.  This started off with a bang as we caught our oldest child in a lie so he was grounded from electronics which made for him pretty much ignoring and not liking us for the entirety of the first snow day.  He came around the second day and that was when I realized that I can’t stand long board games- like Monopoly or Risk or Hero Quest- all of his favorites.  The younger child had some pretty rough OCD/tantrum/meltdown moments over the course of the two snow days.  So yes, at times I was wishing for some mandatory ALONE time.
  • The Sense of Wonder.  That was intact.  Both boys loved going out in the blizzard while the winds were whipping around.  Tunnels were made.  Jumping off of snowbanks occurred.  Lots of language around blizzards and snow.  Tons of smiles and laughs and snowflakes caught on tongues.  Thankfully, there was still wonder.
Heather Nelson

About Heather Nelson

Heather resides in Rockland where she is busy juggling life as a newlywed, a mom to two boys (one of which who has autism), a part time job in direct sales, and a full-time job as a pediatric occupational therapy assistant. She has a love for live music, karaoke, and cheering on the underdogs.