Snow!

5:55. Drew's alarm radio has been going off for a good five minutes. Ugh. I plop my feet over the side of the bed and shuffle to his room. "Drew. Drew. Turn off your alarm." No sense lying down again. I have been awake for awhile anyway, praying for Dad, for Kiel, for Mark.

I wander to the kitchen to look outside and see if there is frost on the ground. Everything looks pale. I rub my eyes, thinking I am not fully awake, and peek out again. The ground is definitely white! The trees are coated and the cars are blanketed. Dark ruts in the roadway mark where the early risers have driven over the white coating.

How apropo. December 1st brings the first real snow of the season. Winter is upon us. Drew comes out, excited, wondering if school is cancelled. Fat chance - there is only an inch or two on the ground, and nothing in the air except the blobs that are falling off trees and wires. Drew wraps plastic bags around his sneakers, loathe to break out his boots yet. He is still waiting for me to get him the winter coat at Land's End that he wants - the one that zips into a small pouch that will fit into his tiny locker at school. He will have to wait awhile longer.

I can't wait to take Sugar out for her first experience with snow. She races excitedly out the door and is paw deep in fluffy white stuff before she realizes there is something different. She lifts one paw and shakes it, then another one. She sniffs frantically around - all the familiar smells are buried. She doesn't hesitate to take care of business, and then hops like a rabbit back to the safety of the sidewalk where the snow has already melted.

She discovers that when she hops, she stirs up little snowballs that roll ahead of her. She chases them by more hopping until she is leaping about joyously, licking the little snowballs and kicking up more. We stay outside longer than usual while I brush the snow off the car, and then off Kiel's car. Sugar loves the snow, racing around and snuffling about.

We head back inside, breathless and energized. It isn't even 7am. What a lovely start to a brand new day!