Snow Days--the kid in me still loves them!

It started with rain that turned into sleet earlier today. The temperatures were hovering around the freezing mark and then suddenly they began to drop. The rain/sleet froze on the ground and then the SNOW began! They are predicting we could get around 4-5", which in Arkansas is like blizzard conditions.
We had bought groceries earlier this week in preparation for this. My friend, George Mann, calls this the Snowmaggeden 2010 because of the way people go crazy around here when a storm or snow is predicted. It doesn't seem to change how they drive, but they do all seem to make it to Walmart to stock up on generators and groceries.
We don't have a generator, but we're thankful this year to have the gas fireplace and stove so we could at least stay warm and heat food if we lost electricity.
Steve had a headache this morning so he stayed home with me. I vowed to make it a productive day but haven't done a lot. I did hang some framed photos in the study that have been leaning on the walls for several weeks. But now you see what I'm doing. Decided to catch up on the blog and facebook and emails.
Just thinking of some happy snow memories from my childhood. It was always wonderful when it would snow. My mother was the BOMB at making snow cream, which I think was a mixture of the snow and milk and vanilla....and I really don't know what else. However, it was a delightful, sweet mixture. It was always important to get the "clean" snow. I guess my brothers were in charge of snow collection. Of course we always tried to build a snowman, but often the snow wasn't the right kind to stick together for snowballs or a snowman.
My mother used to bundle us up as if we were going out into the Antarctic blast. I could usually barely move with all of the bundling and several pairs of socks and such. I remember we did have a sled and we have some movie footage of one year when my dad was pulling us on it. Again, there wasn't much exposed except my nose in the cold weather.
As a teacher for 29 years, there was nothing better than knowing snow had fallen during the night and watching the list of closings scroll through on the television, just hoping that your school district was closed! To be on a salary and get a snow day is awesome!!!!!
I remember one year in particular when the children were growing up and we got a delicious snow like this one. We went to the hillside by the cemetery and they went down the hill over and over on the sled. to look at that little sled now, it's hard to believe they ever fit on it. Good good times for sure. Steve was always the brave one to build snowmen with them. I think he loves it after growing up with more snow in Illinois. I usually took the pictures.
Maybe I will get busy with some cleanup in the study and empty out those last 5-6 boxes from the move. I have put it off forever. Been a bit distracted the last couple of weeks. haha.

Here's a look this afternoon at some of the views around the house.