It's cold today! Well, a whole of 16C (or 60F). But, you must remember that we live outside, so there's little relief from the blasting cold wind!
People are walking around covered from head to toe in whatever fabric they can get their hands on. Some people look like Christmas trees that have been wrapped in wrapping paper. You can hardly make out where their eyes and nose are!
This morning we started our day with a hot chocolate (thanks to Matt and Hope for the hot chocolate and to Nathanael for the marshmallow!). Drinking hot chocolate brings back many memories for me of cold days in my childhood. But, most often, my mind rewinds back to snowy days on Saints Hill Lane.
Saints Hill Lane was the name of the street I grew up on - a name decided on by the 7 families that collectively decided to buy land and build together in the early 1990s.
The plot of land I grew up on was on a hill making it difficult to play things like soccer, kickball and certainly croquette! But, when winter came around, all the other neighborhood kids were jealous because our backyard made for the best sledding hill within miles!
It didn't take long once we'd had a snowfall to look up the street and see little smiling faces all bundled up and carrying sleds walking towards our house.
After Dad unloaded the dozens of sleds from the shed, he began the task of starting the best fire possible so that his kids could warm their toes after their outdoor fun.
My mom always seemed to love the snow. Now being a parent myself, I appreciate more the incredible effort it must have taken to dress, undress and REdress so many children for just a few minutes (sometimes!) of play! But, she always seemed happy to do it!
But one of the highlights was the hot chocolate. I can still taste it. Swiss Miss was the brand - the kind with the mini-dehydrated marshmallows in it. Mom would put a whole POT on and serve it up into Styrofoam cups and it just tasted perfect. I can feel the steam warming my nose as I write! Great memories.
There was the time that Beth, Katie and I pretended we were stranded in Antarctica and took shelter in the shed. And the time that I tackled Daniel in the snow. And what about the time that Josiah sent me down the hill having poured water over the his "snow-ramps" so they froze. Ouch. And the time Dad went down backwards and broke his ankle. The time Luke skied into the tree. How MANY times we all piled onto the toboggan and went faster than we ever had before! The thrill of sitting on a saucer and spinning around like a top while flying down the hill. And the times we tried to talk Dad into carrying us back up the hill. And of course, how could I forget? The millions of times we had to bail out from hitting the trees at the bottom of the hill. It seemed to make each ride more exciting!
Flashforward to today. I had such a wonderful childhood. I am so thankful for my parents who held nothing back in their giving and love for us kids. Wow. I want to be that way with mine!
I think I need another cup of hot chocolate now. My fingers are turning blue. Smile.
