Snow day!

Last Friday we were lucky enough to have nothing better to do than watch it snow. While the media was freaking everyone out with their predictions--30 inches of snow! The same path as Hurricane Sandy! A snowicane!--we made chili, baked some chocolate chip cookies and watched movies. Nacho's flights were all cancelled before he'd even left the house which was fine by me. It was a cozy day and the mix of sleet, rain and snow meant I waited until Saturday to venture out.  By then the sun was shining, Nacho had to return to work and we made plans to play in the snow with Leonardo and Myla.  In our neighborhood we got an impressive foot of snow (I think Central Park recorded 11 inches to be precise) and so I ditched the stroller and took a little walk with my girls to Carmen's house in the Gardens to see how long they would want to play in it.  It was a great way to introduce Carolina to the concept and see if Elisa enjoyed it more than years past...

For Elisa, the snow was a definite hit. The whole way over to Carmen's she wanted to walk along the snowdrifts and make snow angels. I tried to humor her and remember what it is to be a kid in the snow. There is so much wonderment at seeing your entire neighborhood covered in this beautiful, powdery white goodness. But when you have a toddler strapped to your back in an ergo and just want to get there already...well, I did a lot of patient standing around and bouncing Carolina. It wasn't too cold out on Saturday with the sun shining brightly, but later the winds kicked up and I realized being inside drinking hot cocoa was a better use of my time.  Actually, all the kids had a great time playing on the porch and making a small ramp for sledding. When Carolina finally gave it up and wanted to go back inside, Carmen and Jay followed the big kids out back to the common gardens and let them run around. Of course, that didn't last too long either considering it was almost lunch time and tempers were starting to flare. But food was on the way, and then it was time to head home...through the snow. 

By the time we walked back in, Carolina had passed out in the ergo and I had to gently transfer her to the crib. She was so dead asleep, she didn't even flinch when I unhooked her and let her fall back on the bed from the carrier. She just laid there like a little frog with her legs still bent and splayed open. It was so damn cute. Of course when I scooped her up, she cried out and barely woke up long enough to take some milk in her crib. Then she slept for 2+ hours so I guess the snow did its job. Elisa was equally tired and passed out for a bit as well. And I was reminded of all the days my sister and I would get dressed for playing in the snow and then spend hours outside sledding or just marching through the snow in our backyard. There was a certain kind of fatigue that came with it...the needing to warm up inside and then wanting nothing more than to curl up on the couch for a bit. Snow takes a lot out of you. Which is probably why we all needed to get out of the house and enjoy it a bit before it was gone.