This year's been a fairly mild winter for us here in NY. I mean, it's probably going to hit 60 today, and I recall similar temps during the middle of December and January. But we did have a few snow blasts here and there out of the blue. Which means lots of shoveling. For some reason, I actually enjoy shoveling, to a point. Maybe it's because I work from home and it's an excuse to get up out of my chair, go outside and get some exercise done. Though usually about halfway through shoveling, when I get to the end of the driveway that's been packed twice as high thanks to the snow plows, that's when I start cursing out the snow gods.
Anyways, last week we were hit with a blanket of snow that probably dropped about 6 to 8 inches of absolutely perfect snow. I'm talking the light, fluffy kind that packs so perfectly, you barely have to clench your fist to make the perfect snowball. So with an eager young 4 year old nipping at my heels, I went outside to do something I don't think I've ever done before. Sad as it may be, I never officially made a snowman.
We saw the neighbors had made one, and the house next to theirs, and 2 doors down, etc. Honestly, I'd never seen so many snowmen at once before. So we joined in the fun. But, uh. If you've never built a snowman before, it's a little perplexing at first. I started with a small snowball and tried rolling it to build up steam, and that just went nowhere. So then we scooped up a lot of snow, formed a medium sized ball, and I continued to slowly roll it around the lawn. That definitely worked. The problem came when I went to the 2nd big snowball. It ended up being even larger then the first. And since it was just me, there was no way I could lift either big snowball to put on the other. So yeah, I ended up breaking off pieces and rebuilding them on the 2nd level. Sad but true.
When we were done, it was time to decorate. Carrots for the nose, right? Um. Hmm. No carrots in the fridge, except for those tiny baby carrots. Those wouldn't work. so instead, we used a pretzel rod! After the first two broke into pieces upon hitting the snow, I dug a hole with my finger first, and that did the trick. We tried using Oreos for the eyes, but you ever try to stick an Oreo into frozen water? Yeah, it no work so good. We ended up using Fruit Loops for the eyes and buttons on his chest. And the mouth was pure raisins. A few branches for arms, a scarf and an old Steelers knit hat (some of you may call it a beanie or a toboggan, I imagine), and our friend was complete.
Yep, he may not've looked like much, but we certainly made the tastiest snowman on the block. And the birds and squirrels apparently agreed. Because the next day our snowman was practically naked! All that was left was his hat, scarf and pretzel nose. As I look out the window right now, he's all but gone. Just a teeny tiny little mound of snow on a muddy lawn. But seeing as how spring is right around the corner, knowing how confused Mother Nature is these days, I have no doubt we'll get another chance to rebuild him real soon.
COUPON TIME:
Seeing as how I was dressed in giant overalls (the same ones I used for my Luigi costume last Halloween), I could defintiely use some snow pants. It was a bit cold out there, especially once you fall down into the snow and get all wet. So here's a few coupons for outdoor apparel so no one has to suffer in overalls again:
10% off online orders at Wilsons Leather
Plus Free Shipping!
Use the above link to activate the coupon.
Valid through: March 12, 2008
Valid online only. Not valid on previous purchases, gift cards or in conjunction with any other offer or coupon. One time use per customer.
15% off online orders of $75+ at Sierra Trading Post
Use Keycode AC38C in your shopping cart. You should see a note saying "15% HAS BEEN DEDUCTED FROM YOUR ORDER TOTAL!"
Valid through: March 12, 2008
Valid online only. Not valid on previous orders. Cannot be combined with other offers.
10% off your purchase at Kohls.com
Use promo code NEW5983 during checkout.
Valid through: March 15, 2008 11:59pm CT
Terms & Conditions: Only one 10% off promo code can be used per order. You're allowed use another type of coupon as well, such as free shipping, but they rarely exist. Excludes sales tax and shipping. Not valid with other coupon offers, purchases of gift cards, Kohl's Cares for Kids merchandise, and price adjustments on prior purchases. Valid online only.
10% off your order at JCPenney.com or
15% off if you use your JCPenney Card at JCPenney.com
Use the above link to get the promotion code and view all the terms.
Valid through: March 8, 2008
2 Responses to “It's Snowing Men”
Ha! I love the photo. I'm sure you had a blast building a snowman! I haven't built a snowman since I was a kid - back in the good old days when we actually got snow once in a blue moon.
Believe it or not, we had a blizzard here back in 1993. And people still talk about it. In fact, I overheard some coworkers talking about it just the other day. It's really funny actually. The stories always start exactly the same way. "Remember the blizzard of 1993??" And of course, *everyone* remembers! As for me, I was stuck at my boyfriend's parents' house for three long days! Three EXTREMELY long days!
Btw, I just love that cute little toboggan your snowman is wearing!
@Tish - We used to have tons of blizzards like that, where we'd get well over a foot, and then get a few back to back so there'd be over 2 feet of snow piled up on your driveway and sidewalks everywhere. There was one in the mid to late '80s that was the worst. But yeah, nothing where we've ever been stranded for 3 days. And at your boyfriend's parents' house no less! Oy! That so must not have been fun.
And glad you liked the toboggan. Heh. I had a feeling you would.