Table for 5: Snow adventures and faith building

Finally, we have our snow! We have been below our normal for so many months now with the lack of snow fall that I was beginning to wonder if we were every going to experience our "normal" winter.

One of my favorite things about the snow is, waking up in the morning to find a whole new world blanketed in the powdery white. It's breathtaking. When it's still dark and everything is covered with snow, it's easy to feel romantic about it. Everything takes on a glow and the world is quiet. The buses that go by our house are even quiet. All you can hear are the muffled crunch of tires on the road. When daylight comes so does the reality of what more you have to do to get your day going. Shovel the sidewalk, wipe my dogs paws off, make sure that the little dog makes it off of the patio to do his business instead of stepping just outside of my reach and taking care of it on the patio, oh and because we have no garage, you can add sweeping the snow of the cars too. The thing is, even though these are inconveniences, they are small when you consider the gift that this white stuff can be. Like listening to my kids laughter as they come sledding down the hill, or the cold rosy cheeks of my kids as they sit around the table cupping their hot chocolate, or building snowman or snowforts. Oh, I know many people that curse at it and grumble about it, but really, there are few magical moments in this world and I consider a good snowfall to being one of them.

I have to also clarify that I have an amazing husband that does all of the snow clearing for me so I can sit inside with my cup of coffee watching him. I have spent my time clearing sidewalks and cursing the snow, but for now, I have a husband that does it for me so I don't have too.

This is Baby T's second winter but really her first experience with the snow. Last year I put her on a sled so I could get a picture of my 3 kids, which she then fell head first into the cold stuff and ended her wonderful experience. This year, when she sees my older two get their snow pants, she runs to the bathroom to grab hers. She points to her head and says, "hat Mama", and her feet and says, "Boots". She knows what is required to go out into this cold and wintery world. I love her enthusiasm. Her excitement to go out and eat the snow. She saw her older sibs playing and making snow forts today. She wanted to be a part of it, until I set her in the 12" snow. Then she looked at me and cried. She felt stuck. "Uppee, Mama!" Sure, I'll pick you up. It has to be so comforting to know that no matter what someone is always there for you.
This past winter I have been wondering what our plans are going to be. Questioning everything. Wondering where are the jobs that we were led to believe would be waiting for us when Jeremy graduated. I mean, a PhD should get you something, right? I think of my kids and then think of God. Our kids rely on us to carry them when they can't walk or crawl. Our kids rely on us to be their guide when they can't make sense of a situation. God wants us to do the same with Him.
Jeremiah 29:11
For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

Ok. I get it. Instead of asking questions about why is it not working out the way we had envisioned, I should be relying on God. Well, here goes. " Uppee God!"