I am sure that it is not news to anyone out there that the East Coast (and a good bit of the rest of the country) has been slammed with unprecedented amounts of snow this year. We normally see an average of 3 inches in my area, I think so far this winter we have had (my yard calculations) nearly 60″ of snow, possible more. Most of that from just 2 storms. This has caused my kiddos to be out of school for two whole weeks! Ask my 7 year old son and it is the best thing ever! Ask my 11 year old daughter and she was ready to go back after Day 1…she loves school and missed her friends. My little Dude is glad to have his big sis and big brother home with him everyday.
Although I adore my children and love playing with them, it has not always been easy the last two weeks. Some Bloggers and Facebookers have expressed their dislike of people getting frustrated with the snow, and frustration with their kids being home. They have cast judgment that everyone should be on “cloud nine” to be able to soak up their kiddos for an extra 2 weeks and frolic in the lovely white snow. That sounds super dreamy and in a perfect world I think would be the best thing ever, but not everyone has the luxury to do that. So, I want to just put it out there, why some (not just me, but others too) are having some difficulties dealing with this unexpected weather and impromptu vacation.
-It was unplanned. Some jobs don’t stop because of the snow. Some people can actually loose their jobs if they do not work (with or without children). My husband and I are two of the lucky ones that we can actually work from home, but we still have to work. And working 2 jobs that require us to log in more than full time hours with 3 kids running around can be less than ideal and will cause undo stress and frustration.
-Some don’t like snow. I personally love it…for a little while. I choose to live in VA because we get a bit of everything in all the seasons…it is wonderful to be able to experience that, but when one season gets outta hand I am ready for it to end!
-The kids bore of it after a few days. The snowmen get made, the forts are built, they have trucked up and down the hills 5 billions times, soaked their snow clothes a hundred times, and now just want to be able to ride a bike, or skateboard.
-Being stuck! We all do not own 4 wheel drive trucks, snow blowers or personal plows. Enough said.
Does any of this mean I have not enjoyed my kids being home at all? No! I cherish the fun things we have been able to do while they were home, and if I did not have to work I would have done even more with them. It does mean that it has not been easy. Does it make me a bad mom? Apparently to some. Expressing frustration that I can’t just drop everything I normally do for 2 weeks (unexpected) and go play with my kids is something some see as shameful. Our kids do grow up fast and we should soak them up while we have them…but we also need roofs over their heads, clothes on their bodies and food in their bellies. Finding the balance is the challenge (challenge being the key word). It is not easy, perfect, or ideal and some days we do get frustrated.
Now that I got that off my chest here is some of our winter fun…more to come.
This is the longest one but one of my favs:
Sunset Snow from marta locklear on Vimeo.
A quick peek at my Comedian!
More Pictures?? from marta locklear on Vimeo.
Ben and I worked for hours on this! The walls were over 3 ft high and 6-10 inches thick and still standing.
Fort Locklear from marta locklear on Vimeo.
