Frozen Bear
2011 started off beautifully. We got 3-4 inches of snow in one hour the week prior to the New Years arrival which then stuck around for an entire 7 days thanks to a cold snap and clear skies. 3-4 inches may not seem like much to talk about but it's enough to blanket the world in soft white, remind Seattlites of our ineptitude in handling snow (everyone else would have shoveled off the drive and walk ways instead of letting it melt just enough to freeze resulting in the walk to your car becoming a deadly ice skating rink), and definitely encroached on a record for snow sticking around in Seattle. Anyway, we decided to capitalize on our fortuitously good weather and embark on an adventure to bask in Winters beauty chasing those beckoning crystal blue skies.
We spontaneously packed up the car with a baby, all the necessary snow items for both adults and babies (which is a surprising amount of stuff), a younger brother and some sustenance and headed off for Leavenworth. Each turn in the road as we climbed the pass was more breathtaking than the last. Each turn also brought the realization that it was FREEZING outside! No seriously, by the time we reached Leavenworth we'd watched our car thermometer hit 6 degrees, then bounce up a degree or two till we reached a balmy 12 degrees.
Once there we discovered the sledding hill. Poor Owen, he must think his parents are crazy. We stuffed him in so many layers he couldn't move, bounced him around the frozen icy streets in his stroller, then made him sit on his Dad's lap to slide down a slippery slope. We sure had fun despite the fact that his facial expressions clearly stated he was unimpressed with our zealous glee in the simplicity of sledding. We can't wait for the years to come when he will actually think we are cool for wanting to push him down a snowy hill.
in the freezing cold!
