Snow Is Here to Stay


Snow Is Here to Stay 12-1-10 Cass Lake Times

By Allan Olson
            As we dig out of our third winter storm in a week’s time, it is evident that the snow is here to stay – and my kids are loving it.
            With the first significant snowfall of the season happening last week, the kids and I took advantage of the fresh powder and got geared up for the great outdoors. This is no easy feat to accomplish with four kids. It takes a great amount of teamwork between mom, myself and the kids.
            This year’s first foray into the winter gear wasn’t nearly as complicated as last year (it was even worse the previous year). Take a step back in time and the dreadful thoughts of fighting to get a kid’s thumb in the right spot, tugging on their snowpants, and their little feet into the awkward boots ... eventually we got it all done.
            Only to get them outside to find out one has to go the bathroom!
            With four kids outside and three of them ages three and under, making sure they don’t lose their boots or mittens in the snow is a monumental task.
            This year the outside adventure was just that – an adventure – with four kids, ages 7, 4, 4 and 3.
            It took less than half the time to get the kids ready, and once outside, they were in the zone.
            Armed with shovels, I attempted to get the kids to shovel my deck and push the snow against my house. My oldest son, Nikolai, was determined that he was going to shovel the road and the rest of the park into one big pile for sledding. I explained that he wouldn’t be able to do that. Again, I directed his effort to the deck and driveway, to no avail.
            He decided that the older neighbor next door needed the snow against her trailer instead of helping us. I guess since he was determined to be the Good Samaritan, I wasn’t going to stop him. Meanwhile, the youngest three took turns with their shovels, but not where I needed them.
            I again showed them how to make snow angels. They all made their versions of snow angels. And then, led by Abigail, my oldest daughter, they proceeded to destroy my snow angel – in gales of laughter.
            After nearly two hours of fresh air, it was time to go in, and all dutifully went inside, protesting the entire way.
            This weekend we hit the snow again. The kids were bundled up, and with an older cousin and my younger brother they had even more fun. Included in the fun was throwing snow with the shovels at the kids.
            Favorite taunts of “Missed me, missed me!” and others were dished out. In one half-hearted toss, I nailed Marcus, my sensitive four-year-old boy, with a shovel full of snow that went down his back. I quickly came to his aid and scooped what snow I could out of the back of his coat. I apologized, and explained that he should’ve had his hood up.
            “Do you want to go in”? I asked, certain that the answer would be, “Yes.”
            “No,” he said stubbornly. “I want my hood up.”
            Inwardly, I was jumping up and down screaming, “Yes!” This coming from my little son, who just two years prior cried at the thought of having to touch and play in the cold, wet snow. Outwardly, I just smiled and helped him with his hood.
            Also included in the lessons of a Minnesota winter was a report of Abigail experimenting with a cold metal fence at school. Her teacher said that she got her little tongue stuck and freed without a cry or fuss. If it wasn’t evident on her face, they would’ve never known.
            “Are you going to do it again?” I asked her.
            “No,” she said.
            I’m skeptical at that answer, but will believe her for now.
            As for my deck, I ended up shoveling it off myself after the kids went inside.
            This week, I learned my lesson. I called ahead and asked Nikolai to clean it off before I got home. It was done – and done well.
Thanks for reading, and I hope everyone enjoyed their time with family and friends during Thanksgiving. As always, we appreciate your feedback, news, and photos, so feel free to drop us a line at cltimes1@arvig.net. If you enjoyed this column and want to read others like this that were published in the Cass Lake Times please visit: http://allan-crazykids.blogspot.com/

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