Baby, It's Cold Outside

Unless you were born and raised here, I doubt you would ever understand what happens in a Southerner's mind when any kind of frozen precipitation is a possibility. It doesn't actually even have to snow. Just hearing the weatherman talk about it is enough. There is the natural reaction we have to rush out and buy milk and bread. But that's not all.

Today our high was 31 degrees. Cold enough for our birdbath to stay frozen all day. Here at the farm we only had a little drizzle and 87 sleet pellets. The county to our north did have some sleet accumulation. Tomorrow we all go back to the upper 50s. So today might have been my only day this year to wear the hat I knitted a couple of years ago. The only day to wrap up in the soft furry cowl that Jessica gave me a few Christmases ago. The only day to put on the boots that I've had for years. These days are rare for us.

Schools dismissed early. Government offices and banks closed in the afternoon. Meetings and church outings were cancelled. Next week they predict temperatures will be in the 60s and 70s. So we try to cram all our winter into a single day. Then I'll put the winter things back in the closet. Don't get me wrong. I really don't want months of cold weather. But a cold day every now and then is fun. I've stayed in this afternoon, keeping a lookout for a stray snowflake, and worked on a pair of socks for Daddy-O. And I'm making soup for supper. (I might have even popped a little popcorn.)

Mommy has been telling me about a soup she's been making since she moved west. Friends out there introduced her to these noodles. This morning I found the same frozen noodles at our local Publix. I've never heard of this brand but I'm making it tonight. Tonight is a soup-kind-of-night for sure. Mommy says, "Just follow the soup recipe on the bag of the bag. It's sort of a cross between chicken noodle soup and chicken and dumplings." 

I love that my daughters now give me ideas of what to cook. That (among other things) makes me feel like I've done a pretty good job as mother.


PS  The soup was as good as Mommy said it was. Thank you, Mommy!