Snowmen before pumpkins. Snowmen on Columbus Day.
Call it ridiculous. Call it absurd.
Call it life in Minnesota.
The kiddy pool was sitting on this same patio three weeks ago. Seriously!
Tag: snow
3 Quick Weekend Highlights
Here’s a quick roundup of our weekend:
A Moment of Bloggy Fame
Friday my good friend Jonda and I went to Mudd Lake Furniture in nearby Watertown for dinner and a special social gathering with blogging superstar MckMama. It was fun to meet Jennifer Mckinney in person and talk about homeschooling, potty training, blogging and the like. I also met a really nice fellow homeschooler, Christy, who is quite an inspiring person as well. She is mother to seven children (two are hers and five are children of her husband’s late first wife.) MckMama even posted two pictures of my friend Jonda and one picture of me on this blog post of hers. Can you find me? I guess we are famous now! Unfortunately, I managed to pick up a MckCold that evening, which put a damper on the rest of our weekend plans. Sigh. At least Linnea seems to be on the mend…
A Premature Snowfall
Saturday morning Laurel woke us all up by exclaiming loudly: “It snowed! It snowed!” Sure enough, we had a thin blanket of white stuff covering the entire yard. By mid-day, it was windy and still only about 25 degrees, but eventually it warmed up enough (to an impressive 38 degrees, I think) to melt away the snow. The girls were sure to play in snow while it was here, of course! Since I wasn’t feeling well, Michael dressed them in their snowgear
A Jack-O-Lantern Smile
Sunday evening during supper Linnea surprised us all when her top front tooth literally fell out onto her tongue. She is stumbling over words with “s” in them, and it is certainly adorable! We keep teasing that she looks like a Jack-O-Lantern when she smiles. My bet is the other front tooth will be gone before the end of the month!
New Friends: Linnea and Lila
About six months ago we learned that Linnea’s close friend Sam would be moving far, far away to Montana. She was devastated. A week or so later, our good friends Bob and Kate received their adoption referral for two girls who are now ages 1 and 6. Linnea was elated that God was giving her a new friend, a very special little girl from Ethiopia who is exactly her age.
Kate gave us a picture of Lila Selam (and baby sister Ella Furtuna). We looked at it often as we prayed for the girls. Months passed, and Bob and Kate weathered many heartbreaking delays in the adoption process. Finally, just after Thanksgiving, they headed off to Ethiopia to get their girls!
This weekend Linnea and Lila finally had their first official playdate: sledding and later warming up with hot chocolate and more playing at the Hutchinsons’ home. The sledding conditions weren’t great since a little warm spell on Friday left everything coated in glaze ice. It was nearly impossible to get back up the hill, and the dads had quite a hard time dragging the kids to the top. Even so, the girls had a lot of fun together. Communication issues didn’t seem to be a barrier for their play time. Lila, who speaks a little English, kept saying, “I love you, Linnea.” What a sweet beginning to their friendship!
Whiter than Snow
Except for a few small patches, nearly all of the snow that had been covering our lawn since Dec. 1, 2007, melted earlier this week. We all rejoiced to be finally rid of that old snow; it had turned ugly and gray over the last three months.
On Wednesday Linnea was able to ride her bicycle and play outside all afternoon. Laurel blew bubbles and scooted around on her trike. Neighbors we hadn’t seen in months came up the street to chat. The hope of spring that had sustained us through this long, bitter winter was finally becoming a reality!
But today it’s a different story. It’s Good Friday and the first full day of spring according to the calendar. But just like Jesus’ disciples felt on Good Friday, we’re feeling confused and discouraged. It’s snowing. Actually, it’s blizzarding. We must have nearly six inches of fluffy white stuff out there right now, and it’s still piling up! We’ve lost a little hope.
So what does snow have to do with Good Friday? After David had committed adultery with Bathsheba, the prophet Nathan came to him and encouraged him to repent of his sins. David wrote Psalm 51, and in verse 7 he says to God, “Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.”
Likewise, Isaiah 1:18 says “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow.”
All week I’ve been reminding Linnea and Laurel that Easter isn’t about brightly colored eggs or tasty chocolate bunnies. It’s about Jesus dying on the cross for our sins. It’s about Jesus paying the blood sacrifice so that we, like David, can be made whiter than snow.
So even in the midst of a March blizzard, we still have hope. We have hope that spring will arrive and the rain will wash away our snow. The grass will reappear and turn green. The birds will return. The trees will bud and the flowers will bloom.
Though our hope for spring may come and go, our hope in Jesus will continue. He cleanses us and gives us a fresh new beginning. He will not disappoint us. He is risen indeed!
Starlight Writer 
