The Icy Day

Snow really is pretty.
It is.
Calm. Peaceful. Serene.
And it's SO much fun for the kids.

But after it falls and gets all icy and dirty, it loses its winter wonderland charm.

Now, three days later, snow is just a nuisance.
A big conspicuous icy, dirty nuisance.

The icebergs in the middle of the road and patches of black ice leave a bit to be desired.
And let's not talk about the sandy, crunchiness of the roads. Here in the Chesapeake Bay watershed, we're not allowed to put salt down on the roads; they use sand instead.

Sand doesn't work nearly as well as salt, but there isn't much we can do about that.

Fairfax county schools were scheduled to go through Wednesday, but, much to the delight of the kids and the dismay of the parents, school was cancelled for the remainder of the week. Christmas vacation started WAY early, which is great for the kids, but on the other hand, they're missing out on the holiday celebrations, ....and not to mention, the 6th grade kids vs. teachers basketball game, which according to my sources, was expected to be SO MUCH FUN.

Honestly, the roads are still pretty bad, so I can understand today's cancellation. However, the three days they've decided upon seems a bit extreme. On the other hand, the county is probably happy to save a few dollars by keeping the schools closed.

I spent my formative years in both California and Florida; neither of which are big on snow. Obviously, I'm a snow novice (and weenie). I've spent a few days with the white stuff during our 18 month stint in Maryland and now here in Virginia, but I still don't have it all together. With that being said, it amazes me how people who are native to snowy states still freak out. The Federal Government has shut down, for crying out loud. Somehow I'm quite sure our Canadian neighbors to the north and those in Minnesota and Alaska are snickering at us weak mid-Atlantic snow babies.

While I know the kids would rather skip school and stay home and play with ice balls and sled down the drainage ditch at warped speed, it's still kind of a bummer that we won't be able to give Caroline's teacher her little gift. Oh, and they were scheduled to have an ice cream social on Tuesday.

That's a no-go now.

Eh, they'll get over it.

And what about ME? I mean, hello? It's all about ME, right?
I had plans for these next few days. Wrapping up loose Christmas ends, grocery shopping, going to the gym. Silence before the storm.

That will all happen tomorrow and Wednesday, so for now I'm trying to enjoy this forced break. Craig is home, too. His office was closed for the day, which is virtually unheard of.

Caroline is out enduring the bitter cold and playing in the icy snow; we're enjoying the warmth of the indoors, like cranky adults are apt to do.
I set foot outside the house for the first time last evening to retrieve Caroline from our neighbor's house. As Craig said "be careful" I said "I will" in my usual snotty, sarcastic tone and promptly turned around and slid on the ice!
Thankfully he didn't catch me in all my graceful glory; I'm sure he'd be loathe to let me live that down.

I told him of my spill, anyway. It's hard to keep a bruised knee a secret.
And I'm a blabber mouth, anyway.
Oh, Alison.

I try. Really, I do.

Last night, as I was sulking over the fact that my plans our week has changed, I kept thinking about how much I'd rather be living somewhere else. It's hard to be content when you're a control freak who doesn't find spur of the moment change all that pleasant. And let's not talk about freezing, frigid air.
Inspite of my cranky self-centeredness, I'm trying my very best to remember the delighted look in Caroline's eyes as she talks about the snow. This is fun for her.

I'm glad she's having fun. I really am.
That's what it's all about, right?

Maybe this is a good lesson for me. A reminder to sit back and just take life as it comes, with a willingness to just be still. That's a hard one for me.
Spending time worrying about the logistics of a week that is now out of whack and wondering when I'll get the chance to replenish my dwindling diet Coke supply or purchase our pork tenderloin for Christmas dinner is doing nothing to calm my frenetic mind during a season where we're supposed to be peaceful and joyful.

Gee, this started as just a simple update on our snowy day, and it's somehow turned into some sort of life lesson for me.

You get a little big of everything here at The Neurotic Housewife.