Winter Blizzard of 2008

It's March, but it looks like this outside. I no longer go by the typical season definition, because in the 11 years we have been staying here in the United States, we have seen snow in May, fall in December (a rather extended Indian summer, I must say), and spring in January. Just last week though, we had brilliant spring weather, such that we took advantage and had lunch outside on the back porch. But, with the arrival of Winter Storm 2008, we are blanketed with a generous dash of pristine, white, flaky precipitation called snow.

Everytime it is all white outside, I am somehow reminded of winter 2004, where I started blogging. The event that started my 'writing' was J's demise. Writing was therapeutic then, and now it's something that I rather need to do. We've had our share of blizzards and Level 2 snow emergencies. Without fail, everytime it happens, the kids would peer out the windows gleefully, asking us in excited voices,

"Can we go outside?"

This morning, after Fajr, they looked out, and gasped,

"Look! Ummi, look!"

There were no streaks, no rifts on the white blanket that had befallen us throughout the night. It was beautiful, mashaallah!

We gave them the 'ok', and S and H bounded downstairs to grab their coats. It has been a while since they frolicked in calf-deep snow, so the snow boots we have in the house, they have somewhat outgrown. While S slipped her feet into my snow boots (yes, I think her feet size is probably the same as mine, and still growing), H was left with the option of wearing S's old pink and purple snow boots. He lingered, not quite knowing what to do.

"Oh, just wear it, H," I said, feeling rather sorry for him, but chuckling inside at the rather comical situation.

'No one'll notice you wearing the pink boots."

"Or no one will peer out to see that there's a boy wearing pink boots," I added, honestly thinking that people will notice him wearing the pink boots, against the all-white backdrop.

"No..."he said, and headed towards the 'office' under the stairs to rummage through our shoe box for more masculine snow boots.

He ended up wearing my brown snow boots, as S came in, and S wore her old pink snow boots. I guess they're not too tight then. They trudged about in the snow while N remained inside, huddled in her blanket, reading a book.

I love staying inside too, as much as I love the outdoors when the mood strikes. I don't think I've ever gone sledding in this 11 years. Just being able to relax while the little kiddies mind their own business was a holiday enough for me. And now, with another little kiddie in the house, I also savor my warmth. No adventurous streaks in me now. They've been suppressed, for now.

We are now under level 2 snow emergency, so we can't really go out if it's not necessary. Too bad we don't have a hill, not even a pseudo one in the neighborhood, for maybe just today, I might be able to muster up some adveturouse streak under all those mammary glands.