Wednesday

Careful what you wish for! You want snow? Look out the window!







It is a mushy, wet snow, with a bit of ice and a little rain thrown in. Apparently enough to close Madison schools for the day. (I think to myself: there was a time when schools would not have shut down for mush on the roads, but perhaps the unpredictability of where this is heading put the decision makers on guard.)

That means Snowdrop has her first official school snow day!

Well, it doesn't affect my morning. Same old lovely breakfast...






... same old routines of tidying, reading, planning. But later in the morning, Snowdrop's parents have work commitments and so I slosh my way through farmette snow to the car...






... and drive over to Snowdrop's home.

She is spirited! (The chef at work!)






But of course, you can't have a snow day without playing in the snow. It's not very deep and it's exceptionally wet, but we have enough to take out the sled.

There is, however, no oomph to our slide down a hill. Without my push, we'd be standing still.  Not surprisingly, she wonders what the thrill is and insists on getting up and being the one to commandeer the sled.






Okay, Snowdrop. Go for it.






After a while, she is happy to abandon the sled altogether (what a surprise) and go for a snow walk unencumbered.






Oh, but that outdoor adventure works up her appetite! (Cooking up a warm lunch...)






... and inspires creative building ventures after. I offer to help her build a thick wall. She scorns the idea and builds a tower car instead.






One more photo from out playtime -- we're engaged in one of her favorite games -- hide and seek. She is at that age when it's all just too adorable. Her feet stick out, but she is quiet as a mouse in her hiding spot behind a curtain.






And it all ends with laughter. Oh, how I love that for her, it all ends with laughter!


Evening. Her mommy is home now and she begins the job of getting dinner  ready.






The little one helps. Always, Snowdrop helps.






As I get ready to leave, I gather up stuff that we keep at the farmhouse for her: a bear cap, her mitts... No! Please please please let them stay.
Oaky, Snowdrop. But you really can take them off now. No more snow play for today!






As I drive home, I think to myself -- the roads are fine tonight. If you move forward slowly, you wont be done in by the slush or ice. So it wasn't a big weather event after all, was it?

Perhaps not. But the world looks wintery white again. Unmarked by unseasonable thaws and dreary cloud covers. So we're in the thick of winter. For Wisconsin people this is as it should be. Snow. A bit of ice. Welcome to January.