Wonderland

Normally today, I would write a report card.  I’d tell you how Chris is home on vacation while the Brotherhood is being renovated and how my father-in-law is visiting, which means the house is mostly in tip-top shape and that, with Chris’ help, I even cleaned out the attic and filed the pile of papers burying my desk.  I’d tell you that I’ve been sticking to my yoga once per week plan, and loving it.  Normally, I’d spend this post talking about how proud I am that I sewed a sling for my friend, Jess, and other happy moments of the week, or maybe mention that the grocery budget (now $80/week and now including anything bought at the grocery store, not just food) went out the window yesterday when we spent over $170.  But I don’t want to talk about it.  Not any of it.  Because all I want to do is share the joy that is a wish-come-true.Yesterday, I got my snow.  The teasing flurries of last week turned into a wonderland of white, dropping almost 6 inches of beautiful winter on our spit of sand; perfect for Nora’s first experience sledding.We stopped into Marine on our way to the grocery store and bought a sled.  After unloading and settling, we bundled up and gleefully marched through the snow toward Dead Horse Valley.  There aren’t very many opportunities for sledding and snowmen on Nantucket.  Most of our winter comes with sleet or rain, and most snow isn’t more than a dusting.

I grew up in Iowa and have many fond memories of cold, snow-filled days.  Drifts would pile up high enough to dig igloos and snow forts, and we could build snowmen like nobody’s business.  I remember the magic of days when the snow cancelled school: sledding outside on the neighbor’s hill until our fingers and toes were numb, running rosy-cheeked inside to homemade hot chocolate and the sound of popping corn spilling out of the popper into a mixing bowl, then playing Monopoly and Sorry on the blue carpeted floor of our basement.  Those are memories I want for Nora.  Last year, I knew a few people went sledding, but I didn’t think there was enough snow for that.  Yesterday was a wonderful surprise — though we may not have had the 12-plus inches I celebrated in Iowa or New York, there was enough to create the joy of the winter wonderland from my childhood, something I didn’t think possible on Nantucket.  Nora was just as taken with the snow as was I, and even if it’s already melting way, one day is a great start to amazing memories.