It's sleeting. It's snowing. The old man is snuggled up warm in bed with no plans to move til morning.
Ok, so I'm excited. We never get snow here, and the thought of even the possibility is enough to send me into fits of frenzied delight. I love snow. It's the bonus that makes cold weather all worthwhile. And I know that our cold - just a few minor degrees below freezing - is nothing compared to the cold in some places up north, and I know that a snowfall that is not likely to last more than 48 hours before everything goes back to its normal, dead grass state is nothing compared to the literal FEET of snow that even my SIL can look out her window and see. I know all that and it is just more reason for me to be excited.
If I lived somewhere that snowfall was more common, I guess I wouldn't be as excited as I am now. I'm quite sure that I would be less than impressed by the possibility of a few inches of snow and ice. But I don't live in one of those places and therefore I am completely capable of loving snow.
Doug laughs at me becuase I wander over to the window to have a look at what is happening while we wait for the arrival of snow way more often than the kids do. I'm the one most likely to shout out a hearty WOO HOO! when I hear snow mentioned in a forecast. And I do the "Oh crap! It's gonna snow shopping trip happily. Did it yesterday, and had a wonderful time. Wish I hadn't forgot snack cakes though.
At the moment we have nothing but sleet. The ground is white, but it's far from fluffy. When I walk out on the porch the sound is entirely different from the one I crave hearing - the whisper of snowfall. The dogs don't like it. Gimli actually looked at me and said, "No way, Jose." this morning when I opened the door and offered him the outside to relieve himself in. He turned and went straight back to the leather chair to curl up again, nice and toasty warm next to the heat.
My favorite moment occurred last night just shortly after midnight. We were getting ready to go to sleep. The lights were off and I had dutifully raised the blinds in the bedroom so that we could just look out the window and see if it was snowing when we woke up during the night. Emily and Jacob stood, looking very much like Ziggy, with chins resting on the window sill, staring out into the night, eyes squinted to aid in detecting even the smallest fleck of what might be snow. The picture they made, which I will carry firmly embedded in my memory forever - I hope - was one of pure peacefulness. Where is Norman Rockwell when you need him?