Calling my name

You know you're a true tundra photographer

when you wake up to this

knowing that most people see this

but you see this.

The flakes are waving wildly your way,

and you hear their tiny voices calling,

"Come and play!"

It's a siren song, really.  

You think, holy buckets, this is the fluffiest snow I have ever seen!

Capturing those flakes will be like shooting fish in a barrel.

You forget the wind, the shivering hands, and the watering eyes.

You forget that you said the same thing about last week's snow and last month's snow.

You go out there, because you must.

Because today just might be the day.

Melting

I wouldn't be a true Minnesotan

if I didn't think winter is beautiful...

...but even more beautiful

when it's on its way out.

Snow Day!

It's so nice (and surprising!) when you have room on your calendar 

for what turns out to be a snow day.

We haven't had one for years.

One might assume we were beckoning the snow gods for one,

but no snow dance here.

A snow mask, perhaps.

But it was unintentional.

I did hear about people who went to bed last night with their jammies inside out

and a spoon under their pillow to summon the school sabotaging snow.

So we slept late and had waffles for breakfast and played Skip Bo.

Lee won...

so we sent him out to start digging us out while we played for second place.

And then we took pity on him.

And by we, I mean I sent the kids out to shovel while I stayed in and took pictures.

For a minute.

One of my kids knows how to dress for cold.

The other kid came to his senses and went back in for gloves.

They're a must for a snowball fight.

We're replacing the snowflakes in the window with another message for nature.

C-c-c-cold crafts!

Monday we had this wonderful gift of a day off.

It was one of those days where otherwise you would drive the kids

the half block to the bus stop to wait in the van for the bus

in order to help insure that they would get to school with all their digits.

Still no guarantees.

Brr.

I had seen this idea to freeze water with food coloring in balloons to decorate your walkway.

I found it pinned on Pinterest with the comment "Epic fail".

Didn't freeze all the way.

Big mess.
And of course, I immediately thought, "Oh, we should try this!"

After all, if they can freeze, they will freeze in -11ºF.

But we put them in muffin tins to make sure they were well exposed to the elements.
Because burying them in the snow just insulates them.

The next morning I looked out the door.

Yup, frozen.  

7.63 seconds later the door was frozen too.

It just took a second under the faucet for the balloons to be rinsed off since they had already popped.

My decorator extraordinaire.

Last night temperatures soared into the positive digits, and we woke to this delightful soft snow.

There.

We have officially rolled out the winter welcome mat.

Doesn't it make you want to come and visit?

Tips for those who might want to try this:

1.  I had both liquid and gel food coloring.  They worked equally well,
BUT the gel ones faded fast in the sun.  Not melted, faded.
2.  Put one or two drops (or a squeeze of the gel) into your balloon before filling.
3.  Do this over the sink. It is ridiculously messy.  Be warned.
4.  Attach the balloon to the faucet to fill.
(And you thought adding the food coloring was messy.)
5.  We found it helpful to blow the balloons up first to stretch them.

This gave me such a flashback to another cold day.

Click here to be amazed at the adventures you can have here on the tundra!  Fun times!

Only on the tundra

Ever since they announced this was coming

I've been eagerly anticipating the magic.

Bought my half price Groupon before construction began.

I was not disappointed.

No, in fact...

I was giddy.

Color.

Texture.

Light and contrast.

I felt the need to use my flash once.
I was pleasantly surprised.

(I also felt the need to tell other people to turn their flashes off.
I refrained.)

Me.  Still squealing inside.