Snow Day

And we have snow! Real snow, not flurries on steroids.

I took this photo at 7 a.m. when the neighbors' children woke me up - they were already outside playing. I can't say I blame them - the last real snowfall here was apparently in 2004, and they would have been infants or toddlers back then.

So I heard squealing, then I looked out the window and squealed myself, because I didn't actually believe the forecast yesterday. And then I immediately wished that I had cross-country skis, not that I'd be allowed to use them in my current condition. Pregnant women aren't allowed to do anything. Except eat as much chocolate as we want, which, now that I think about it, almost makes up for everything else. Maybe not skiing.

Gus the Cat spent the day looking out the window, then looking at me, then looking out the window, then looking at me, like, "Do you NOT realize something really weird is going on here? Aren't you going to DO something about it?" Then he ran around the house like a maniac. Finally, at the suggestion of a friend, I brought a bowl of snow in the house and let him check it out. After pawing and sniffing at it for a few minutes, his curiosity was sated, and he has pretty much acted normally ever since.

By the time it got dark, I measured the snow on our patio at 6.5" - not quite the 8" to 12" the forecast predicted, or the big drifts in other places I've lived, but still, a marvelous amount for southeastern Virginia.

I made the most of the day by working on some of my own artwork that I have had on the back burner while working on commissions, and by drinking three cups of hot chocolate.

It's been a good day.