Today Is A Blessing

The days stack on top of each other like opened presents pushed to the side of the Christmas tree. We're always moving on to the next one and I feel like I haven't been able to soak in all the lessons, all the beauty, all the wisdom and wonder of the days before. Today was a snow day; the best kind of day of all, isn't it? Lucy's school was closed, I was so relieved to read this morning, so I knew the day could proceed at a different pace than our usual weekdays. No shower for me, piling into our sloppy, haphazard snow clothes, bowls emptied of oatmeal stacked on the counter. Lucy spies little egg-shaped footprints in the snow and declares that a tomten has been visiting us. I shove the wooden dowl out of the shed door, open it and pull out the green sled. Jasper opts not to be in the jogger and walks with us the five or six blocks to the secret garden. We have gone out at the perfect moment - 9:30 am - when the snow is still pristine, fresh, perched perfectly on the branches, no slosh or sludge yet, just powdery snow crackling under our feet. The tomten has been all over the neighborhood, Lucy notices. Kids sled down an awesome just-right hill and go smashing into the blackberry brambles. Lucy steers herself perfectly over the bump where she flies into the air. Tessa, Lucy's friend, her one-yr-old brother Theo, and Beautiful momma Jennifer join us for some snowy fun. Tessa and Lucy get as far away from us as we'll let them to have their own adventure. Tessa comes home with us for a play date. We have tea, fruit, quesadillas, sandwich - warm and cold, but all very easy. Jasper finally has a nap; Lucy and I make a fire, move a big chair in front of it. Lucy suggests we turn skeins of yarn into balls to occupy ourselves. We end up with two half-finished balls with knotty skeins. At 5 pm I finally start dinner prep. Shepherd's Pie tonight - layers of roasted zucchini, sauteed spinach, very spiced up tempeh, and mashed potatos, with lots of butter dotted on top. Doesn't it seem the perfect end to a snowy day? We'll have to thank Grandmother Winter...