Seems like I can’t let the week—two snow days in a row—go by without mentioning that the white stuff seems determined—if snow has any free will whatsoever—to create a stop and start pattern to winter 2011. It’s so halting to go to school Monday and then be home Tuesday and Wednesday (and fairly much homebound besides). Then, you know, to get up and go again as if… as if you were going all along (which you were not).
I was pretty amazed that all four kids made it to school more or less if not entirely on time on Thursday.
Overall, everyone did pretty beautifully doing kind of sort of not that much for an additional weekend’s worth of days. That’s not to say we didn’t have some moments. An hour into nap time Saskia’s insistent voice kept calling and I caved, only to find that she had pooped and needed a diaper change and by then, well, napfail. There was a little general boredom. There was too much screen time for some, a little egregious crankiness, and one night with sleepless children interrupting us (one with determination that we join the sleepless ranks—and he succeeded, goodnightofsleepfail). The up side with the kids was most certainly seeing that there’s a lot of mutual enjoyment between them these days. Saskia is completely into dancing. Remy has been making all kinds of things, including origami and great Duplo creations (even a pet dog that poops a piece of green Duplo). Lucien and Ezekiel are sharing meals and the West Wing (seasons six and seven, now). Plus, the papa brought his newfound love of ken-ken puzzles to his sons.
I think that this time, it was really me who felt most walloped by the interruption. Creature of habit, reliant on the teeny windows of quiet Saskia’s three mornings at school bring, losing one—well, more like one per week for a month after the holiday break—is wearing on me. I can’t find a sustained rhythm. Cooped up, I got cranky and even a touch melancholy. In retrospect, I should’ve tackled some house something, but I feared the protests of throwing anything out and so I refrained from doing so. Mostly, I just watched everyone when they were here (they played elsewhere in the neighborhood and at times, our house filled with more than our personal share of twelve year-olds) and watched snow then sleet then more snow falling outside our windows (here’s what it was like in motion, thanks to Scott Howard).
Has it been pretty? Indeed, it’s very pretty. I tried to pretend that walking through the snow was kind of like walking along a sandy beach. Both require a little extra work for the calves. In the snow, you also need a jacket, boots and mittens. The only definite shared item of clothing between a snowy walk and a beach one are the sunglasses.
Sometimes, things just don’t happen the way you think they will or the way you want them to. I’m going to say that about January.
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That groundhog? I don’t have a clue and I don’t even care. I know we aren’t done with winter yet, or at least that winter’s not done with us. February’s the shortest month of the year, though.
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There are just a few more days to vote for Standing in the Shadows as Best Local Blog on the Valley Advocate’s Readers’ Poll. I hope you don’t mind casting your vote for the Shadows: Best Local Blog under Media Mavens.
