Oh, the weather outside is frightful, but the fire is so delightful...

Awww! I'd love to send you some! But, unfortunately, it has already stopped snowing and the sun has even come out! Apparently, it's a front pushing through because now we're under a wind advisory. But, I'll tell you what. The next time it snows, I'll grab my camera quick and take a picture for you. Oh, you know what? I've actually seen "snow" that you can buy! I'm not sure exactly how it works but it comes in a can. You add water and voila! Snow! Weird, huh? I think Edmund Scientific sells it, not sure, though.

Cool!!! Now, buy some and you can have a white Christmas! I think I read that it lasts something like 2 to 4 weeks, somewhere around there. Awesome, huh?

Oh, that is so cool! lol. I just looked up their web site and found it there. They have a lot of neat stuff.

Aww, no snow! Well, that probably means that you also have warmer weather. One thing I can't stand about winter is the cold! When it snows, at least there's something to distract from the cold. I've wanted a fireplace since I was little but have never had one. We moved here to this house last year and I said this is it... no more moving! This is the house I plan to grow old in, but it doesn't have a fireplace! My husband had a pellet stove installed in the basement last year and it works great but the fire in it is not the same as a traditional fireplace. Those pellets burn hot and hard... not the nice, lazy, comforting fire of a log-burning fireplace. But, he promised me that we'd have one built between our living room and dining room, so I can watch it from either side... one of those open fireplaces. I can't wait!

Yeah. I know what you mean!

Yes! If at all possible I would suggest that you make that one of your goals... put it on your 'to-do' list! Snow can be a pain in the butt but it's always so beautiful. It's kind of like babies... they make them cute so you won't kill 'em! (JUST KIDDING!!!! I adore babies! I wrote a short-story about my youngest son when he was young, entitled "Living With a Young Tornado". He would sometimes drive me to the brink of insanity but, when I looked down on that adorable, sleeping face of his, I'd think, "How could I have ever been upset with this precious angel?")

Oh, how lovely! I've never seen it myself but I've heard that Disney on Ice is beautiful! AND I'm glad that you'll miss the snow. Driving in it can be fun but it can also be dangerous! Even if you're the best driver in the world, there always seems to be a few that drive like maniacs when it snows, like they're trying to outrun the snow! So, I'm glad the weather is working for you! Enjoy your snow tomorrow!!!

It has stopped snowing now and the sun is shining! Go figure!!! Now, we seem to be in the middle of a rainless hurricane! High wind advisory. I guess it was a front pushing through. I want more snow! I understand completely about the ice! I'd rather see 2 feet of snow than 1/10th of an inch of ice! You can get traction on snow but never on ice. It is extremely hazardous! I hope that you don't get any ice this year. I grew up in Maryland and lived there most of my life. We got snow every year but most people never seemed to learn how to drive in it! Most things stayed open when it snowed, at least if it was under 6 inches, so a lot of people were driving. I never could understand why so many people drove like maniacs in it! It's easy to do as long as you are careful and keep your distance from other drivers. But that ice! Man! I HAD to go out once after we had freezing rain. I was making a turn, moving no more than 5 miles per hour but I still started to slide! The side of my car bumped into the side of a parked car. Luckily, there was no damage to either car but I had just passed two accident scenes with police already there. I guess that means that you should NEVER park near any intersection if ice is predicted because your car is almost guaranteed to get hit!

Thanks, but I'm not too sure it's a good thing! This is the fifth time it's snowed this season and winter hasn't even started yet! LOL Usually, February is the month we get the most snow, so that has me a bit concerned. I work from home so it's not a big deal to me and even my husband can work from home most of the time but there are times when he has to go work from a jobsite or from the office. The office is 90 miles away! But, he likes driving in snow. I just worry about the other people on the road! Not everyone uses caution when it snows. I remember well the good old "snow days"! I loved waking up and finding out I didn't have to go to school but, not only that, but there was snow to play in!!! Ah, memories! It seems like it snowed a lot more when I was little than it does right now. Have you noticed that?

Oh, man! I know exactly how you felt doing that 360 1/2! I've done that twice myself and that's two times too many! Well, actually, I did a 360 once and a... um, gotta get my math brain cells working here... hang on a sec... they're warming up... okay, that's a 540! I was just so happy that there was no other traffic in the immediate area! That adrenalin keeps on pumping at full force for awhile, too, doesn't it! I'm so glad that you weren't hurt from that episode! I'm also happy that you had a nice, warm house to go calm down in while you watched the snow through a window with that fireplace going! I've seriously been thinking about buying one of those gas fireplaces or, more precisely, an electric one. They're almost as good as the real thing. Trouble is, if the electricity goes out, so does the fire! I won't think about a gas one because there's a lot more work involved in installing them and, if I'm going to go to all that trouble, it's going to be a real, wood-burning fireplace. For right now, though, I have to either settle on watching the fire from our pellet stove or put in my fireplace DVD and watch that. LOL

Yep, snow is very pretty but it sure does come with a lot of problems! I don't mind driving in it but, when there's ice involved, nope! I'll avoid driving in that at all costs!

I live in The Netherlands(Europe), my birthday is the 20th.

Ah, January baby, were you? My youngest son was born near the end of January. The day before we were to leave the hospital, we had an ice storm! Sleet and freezing rain. It was awful! January is traditionally the coldest month of the year, at least here where I live. February is THE snow month. Shame you couldn't have held out just a little longer, maybe hang on to your mom's ribs or something. We didn't get much snow at all last year. Maybe a couple of inches fell the entire season! But this year looks as if it's going to make up for last year. Virginia is a pretty cool State...er...Commonwealth. (I never could figure that out. Why do we have States AND Commonwealths here in the U.S.?) We get lots of snow, usually! Come on over for a visit!

Memories like that are great, aren't they? So many people wish they had a fireplace but so few do! It really is a shame that they're not standard with newer houses anymore. I'm talking about houses built in the last, oh, 75 years or so. They're so nice! I suppose, with the introduction of central heating, it was just not economically feasible to build them into new houses. It's such a shame, too. We live in the mountains... lots of trees, lots of firewood! Well, at least my son can use some of our wood. HE has a fireplace! Hmmph! LOL I just go over to his place whenever I feel the need to sit in front of a real fire.

It is a pity, I agree! I think, if you want to get away from snow, you should go to the west coast and let the entire east coast have snow! I mean, we get hurricanes every year, right? We should all be compensated with lots of wonderful snow! You reminded me of a picture I took of my oldest son when he experienced his first snow. He was 18 months old and we had about 30" of snow dumped on us in 3 days. Oh, the face he made when he touched it for the first time! Yep, I'm going to find that picture, scan it and post it here for you. It was the most adorable face!

Then you'll just have to come for a visit!

Lucky you! I think I could give up snow for warm weather all the time! Yeah, if I missed snow that much, I could always come back for a visit, huh? LOL I'd LOVE a year-round growing season! Gardening is my passion and it depresses me when I can't get outside to grow my fruits and vegetables! The long winter wait seems sooooooo long! But, we have snow to compensate. Well, it helps, anyway.

Oh! Haha. My parents have lived in Canada before for some years and they're telling me that during the winter, the temperature can dip to -20 degrees celcius, and it literally freezes you to your last cell!! Ah, maybe i'm grateful after all to be living here. I'm sitting here in my cozy chair tying this while it's drizzling mildly outside, with a temperature of about 28 degrees celcius :D

Well, "lucky" is a relative thing. Snow is so beautiful but it sure does come with it's own problems! I think the auto insurance companies HATE to see snow falling! They'll be shelling out a lot of money, for sure! LOL I'd love to live in a tropical area where it's warm all the time. I love gardening and hate it when it's too cold for anything to grow! Winter seems soooo long! I'm definitely a fan of summer! Yep, waking up to see the sun shining will put a "smile on my dial" as well! I love the way you phrased that! LOL You have a very Merry Christmas yourself!!!

I'm going outside shortly to do some gardening as well. Absolutely love this time of year. Everything looks so lovely. It's just great to get your hands in the soil and see all the beautiful colours. I'm not the best at it but it feels good.