For the Love of Weather

“Everyone begins as a child by liking Weather. You learn the art of disliking it as you grow up. Noticed it on a snowy day? The grown-ups are all going about with long faces, but look at the children - and the dogs? They know what snow’s made for.” C.S. Lewis

That is so true. I’ve seen it on my children’s faces a million times over the years because heaven knows they’ve grown up in Weather. 

It’s still a weird thing for us living in Texas. It’s winter. On Christmas Day my family was outside shelling pecans and the guys weren’t wearing shirts. Odd? We run around without a coat. We grill (or rather Wayne grills and I provide the ready meat). I wear sandals. 

To be fair not every Texan winter day is like this although there are plenty that are. Some cooler days are thrown in. It’s exciting to wear a sweatshirt! And I definitely don’t need much of an excuse to make soup or chili. We just enjoy the few days we have of this and before you know it it’s back to warmer again. 

We took our yearly pilgrimage back to Minnesota/Wisconsin for Thanksgiving. We met up with Will at my Mom and Dad’s house in northern WI. Thankfully we beat a snowstorm heading our way and we all managed to make it to their home safe and sound. We woke up to a winter wonderland! 

There was a second snowstorm while we were there that forced us to miss church on Sunday which was weird. Don’t worry, we went on Monday. Again we had the luxury of avoiding the storm and waiting until it was finished before the guys and kids ventured out to shovel, plow, and dig us out. Mom and I cheered their effort from the window! 

I was also pretty excited on that trip to get some wear out of my turtleneck sweaters, corduroy pants, and my super plush Eddie Bauer down jacket I bought our last year in Canada before I knew it would be our last. 

Sugar Bush making maple taffy in the snow

The quote above agrees with my recent reflection on Weather specifically cold and snow. I’m going to be honest. I’m the grown up Lewis is referring to here. I am done with snow. I’ve been over it for YEARS. Now all those past blog posts that I seemed to write every year in the middle of winter make sense to the state of mind I must have been in. It’s called: COPING

Living "Hygge"

Remember the winter I made cinnamon rolls? In an effort to embrace all things cinnamon and warm I tried to do this while NOT putting on 10 pounds. Remember when I took Vitamin D drops and got nervous when my “supplier” couldn’t hook me up fast enough? Remember my “hygge” kick? If that wasn’t a call for help I don’t know what is. Candles and cozy, warmth and down feathers, baking and hot chocolate … I was one wick away from a meltdown!!! Here’s the thing though. You bloom where you are planted and if you’re planted in snow and ice you figure out how to bloom with no sun shining for days. That’s what I attempted to do. 

But what I would never change in the world would be those winters - a cold, snow, icicle kind of winter … for my children’s childhood. When I think of the hours they would spend making snow forts in the drifts of our front yard, or the first day we would wake up to snow and take the morning off of school so they could play, or the once in a while treat when I’d make snow ice cream after a big snowfall, I’m so thankful for those days.  The times we spent skating on the Rideau Canal (the longest manmade skating rink in the world), or went round and round the rink of the local indoor skating rink holding hands and picking each other up when we fall, those are some precious moments to remember. How about careening down hillsides and clinging to the handles of the sled and laughing all the way until the bottom hits and we go flying off? The kids skied with Wayne on Mondays through the winter and the memories they have include whole days with Dad, ski lodge poutine, downhill skiing, and hot chocolate breaks.  And there must have been some kid left in me because there were those family walks we’d take right after a big snow and before the plows could make it to our neighbourhood and it would be magical. The way the rays of a bright sun in a clear blue sky glistens off the freshly fallen snow making it looks like a million sparkling diamonds are covering the ground… My children’s childhood was blessed by Weather and I say, God bless it! I’m thankful for it and the memories we have have been shaped in part by freezing our buns off (and not the cinnamon ones). 

Their childhoods are winding down. Will will turn 20 this year! He spends most of his college days battling snow only now he has to drive in it - if his car starts. Zanna complains she misses winter but I don’t feel too sorry for her. We’ll see what she says starting next year as she heads off to Wisconsin for her years of high school! Still it was fun to buy her a new purple down coat and matching accessories in anticipation of her winters to come. For now it can all go into the Rubbermaid container that all our winter gear goes into and is stored in the attic only to be retrieved for the yearly trip up north. 

This grown-up however is thrilled to have a break from freezing temperatures. I’m loving the sun that seems to shine more down here and I don’t need my D drops as much. I can see the ground at any given moment. I can still have Wayne grill. I can wear shoes (not just boots for 6 months). On top of that, this is the time of year where I get a reprieve from weeding, cleaning up dead bugs (or killing live ones), and being so hot I can’t bring myself to wear pants. It’s really a lovely time of year. 

I suppose if you or I don’t like the weather at any given time, we just need to wait for the weather to change because eventually it will. Until then, may I suggest a fresh batch of cinnamon rolls? It’s good for all weather.