Snow

Reblogged from Jenny Bleiholder’s Nouveau Southern Belle

Growing up in Southern New Jersey, snow was an exciting event. It meant sledding, building snowmen,  snowball fights and defrosting at home with a cup of hot chocolate with lots of mini-marshmallows. During my teenage years the magic started to wear thin as I was expected to shovel our rather extensive sidewalk of our corner lot.

Little did I know that my previous experience of snow was nothing compared to the lake effect snow that I coexisted with in Buffalo, New York for four years while I was attending graduate school. Who needed a winter membership at a gym when daily shoveling was the norm. I am not talking about inches of snow, but feet of snow.

Driving in snowy conditions can be treacherous, especially when the snow melts and turns into ice. Yet snow can be playful as well. Once, my humble Ford Tempo took on the appearance of a Saab Turbo; however, that only lasted about an hour

Now that I live down South, the winters are short and snow is not such a major issue. But on this messy rainy day with a cold front moving in, snow is indeed on the menu for tonight. My little one is ecstatic. At this very moment, the grocery stores are bracing for a massive buyout of bread and milk, a very Southern tradition.

Places that don’t regularly experience snowfall  tend to have a problem clearing the roads well. A ½ inch of snow can bring everything to a halt. If it is a very heavy wet snow, trees lose limbs and power lines snap. People are left without electricity, sometimes for days.

So, let’s hope for a light dose of snow for now, maybe enough to build a mini-snowman with M&Ms for eyes and a baby carrot for a nose. Let the little ones be delighted!