Saturday, December 15, 2007

Snow / Leaves and Christmas Trees

Yep, we got our first dose of snow two weeks ago. About 6 inches fell overnight and we woke up to a white blanket of snow all over everything. The steps walkway, patio and of course the car. The parking spot that we have is street parking and I am concerned that when there is a lot of snow on the street the plows that maintain the road may not see the car and either run into the car or plow us under. I've already tried figuring out where else to park it in that case; though there is nothing nearby. I'm not ready to face winter, however the snow that fell was amazing. When we got home it was already dark but I happened to snap a few shots while it was still coming down. We had Juno with us out in the backyard and she was going crazy for the snow. She's not one for rain but the snow she's totally into. She started running and would go faster and faster in circles until we started throwing snow at her which she would then eat. Ironically, the leaves that everyone had been raking for the past month were piled in the street awaiting cleanup and removal by the county, the last day for removal was supposed to be Saturday, but the leaves were covered in snow; removal didn't happen. The piles of leaves with six inches of snow on top of them looked like huge snowbanks in the street; Juno loved trying to make her way through those piles immediately sinking after jumping in.

After all the snow melted B and I made our way out to the Christmas tree orchard up the street. We picked up a nice Blue Spruce and brought it home. There's really no great place to put it in our living room. We tried several options before setting it near the side windows. We decorated it and hung some lights. Although I wasn't into it for one reason or another at the outset of the project it became really nice to get something out and up. In a way it was comforting to begin a tradition; it was probably the first time that I had felt that we were in our home; rather than somebody's apartment rental that we were going to move from in a year or so. It was with that set-up that we really have begun our own way of celebrating the holidays. I shot some photos, we put some seasonal songs on, started a fire and drank some Egg Nog, it was enjoyable devoting the evening to it. We somehow are hosting Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and now there's even talk about throwing a New Year's Eve bash so it's also nice to know that the tree we set up and decorated will be enjoyed by everyone.