Snow Day

I woke up this morning to the voice of a man speaking in Spanish on my answering machine. I didn’t know what to make of it until I heard the word ‘escuelas’, and suddenly it hit me…

School has been closed for the day!!

I quickly ran to the nearest window. Looking out, I saw 8 inches of pure, white snow and I grew giddy with excitement!

“Oh the possibilities”, I told myself. “We can sip hot chocolate, watch movies, sled, have snowball fights and build snow forts! First things first, though, I need to shovel the driveway and then we can start the day!”

I limped back into the house one hour and forty-five minutes later feeling like I had just been pulled through a knot-hole backwards. To say that shoveling 8 inches of snow off of a driveway and two sidewalks is arduous would be an understatement.

As the boys threw on their hats and gloves and headed out the door, I reminded them to be on the look out for my right arm. It fell off about 5 feet to the right of the mailbox, but the kink in my back kept me from picking it up.

They returned to the house 30 minutes later with my arm and stood on the carpet while nearly three gallons worth of snow melted off of their boots.

“Scat!” I said. “You’re making a mess.”

“Can we get something to eat first?”

“In a minute, just get outside.”

30 minutes later a head poked through the front door and said, “Moooommmmm, can we have some hot chocolate?”

“In a minute. Just get outside!”

An hour later I heard another voice:

“Mooommm!”

“What?!?”

“Can we have some lunch?”

“In a minute. Just get outside!”

Forty-five minutes later an unfamiliar voice yells, “Can we get a fruit snack?”

“Go ask your own mother for a fruit snack!”

“But you are my own mother.”

“If I’m your mother, then where did you come from?”

“I could answer that but then you’d be embarrassed.”

I decided at that point that it would be best if I just locked the door.

I tallied up the damage when the boys finally returned from playing outside. 1 achy body, 1 igloo in my front yard, 2 empty shelves in my pantry, 3 soggy carpets, 2 muddy floors and 4 dryer loads of wet snow clothes.

Is it just me or are snow days overrated?

I suppose I'll just sit on the couch with my kiddos and turn on a movie. Don't start thinking that I'm getting sentimental, it's just that I have no other choice...it's the only dry spot in this house!