Baby It's [Bitter] Cold Outside

We live in Nashville, TN.  "The South". A location known for its humidity in the summer and it's "Tender Tennessee Christmas" in the winter.

I've been duped.

This week was anything but tender to my thin, moved-here-from-California blood.  Granted, we don't live in New England where there are FEET of snow and ice piling up - I feel for them (no, I literally do, considering they must surely all be numb by now - I can NOT imagine).

We're going on our fifth "snow day" in a row here.  School has been canceled all week, I interned at the counseling center a few hours yesterday, but that's been it.  Otherwise, our world has consisted of adjusting the thermostat, layering sweatshirts, and cooking pantry creations I would otherwise deem inedible beyond these circumstances.

It's not been all bad.  Honestly, I LOVE a reason to be an introvert for a week.  I love to hunker down and hermit-it-out in front of Netflix and give myself permission to drink hot chocolate in bed while I start yet another episode of Parenthood (I'm new to the series, so no spoilers, please).

Meanwhile, my husband has braved the icy terrain of our yard with our two daughters, teaching them important life lessons like "don't lick the swing set" and "icicles are not for throwing".  Luckily, I had found two snowsuits at a consignment sale last year and I'm forever grateful I purchased them when I did, not knowing if they would ever get much use here.

As I handed my husband two giant cake pans to fashion into toddler-sleds, I became instantly overwhelmed by the thought that THIS is exactly what childhood memories are made of:  holed-up family time, getting creative and resourceful, resting in the comfort of home.  (Okay, maybe I've been watching too much Parenthood.)  Forced at-home days are the perfect remedy for the too-busy soul.

It's easy to get restless - not just on snow days, but in LIFE!  It's easy to think more about what I should be doing that what I get to be doing.  It's easy to look out the window and only see a stark world, dangerous and full of risks not worth taking.  Rest is necessary.  Down time and togetherness are essential.  And adventures never come without risks.  I too often overlook the importance of these things, and I'm grateful for the forced-homebodiness that was implemented into our family this week.

But, while it's been the coziest week ever, I'm also glad that spring is on the way.  (You are coming, aren't you spring?)

It's hard to find the balance of busy/productive/independent and rest/relaxation/together-time.  Ya feel me?  I love both, I need both, and I hope if this week has taught me anything it's to appreciate both for what they are and how they serve recursively in my life.  Too much of the one takes away from the other.

So, if you're climbing the walls ready to kick your kids out into the yard and actually looking forward to the next trip to the grocery store simply cause it means you'll get to leave the house - sit tight, hold on, and count your blessings like the tiny little snowflakes that they are - unique...beautiful...sometimes a mess.

Winter won't last forever.  We might as well make memories that will.