Advent of winter

Snowfall on Spaeth Ct.

According to Google, "advent" is defined as the arrival of a notable person, thing, or event.  It goes on to speak of the "advent of television" as a secular example.  This time of year advent could refer to a variety of things - not just the coming of Christ.  In our household, it means the arrival of snow season.

Each day, from Thanksgiving on, we complete a list of tasks which prepares us for the approach of the first heavy snowfall.  Snowfall in our household is both revered and despised but is ushered in with great anticipation.










1. Lighting the house -  My husband decorates the house with lights.  He works on second shift and comes home in the darkness, long after the neighbors have gone to bed and warming glow from their living room windows have gone out. So the timer for the lights is set to go off after he arrives home and from the road he can see the lights of our house on the hill like a beacon summoning him home.

Lights covered in snow

2. Ghost of Christmas past - In the back hidden from view he also runs a power cord to a withered pine tree we call the "ghost of Christmas Trees past."  Tom decorates it with a blanket of lights upon its bare limbs, and gives it a second life as a holiday tree during this dark winter season.  When the snow falls upon its bows, it makes for quite a ethereal scene.  We look back and mark on where we were a year ago, and how much has happened since it adorned the living room with its pine-smelling bows last December.  

Ghost of Christmas Trees Past stands glowing in the night.

3. Survival Kit - In Wisconsin it's all about preparation.  Tom makes sure the cars are stocked with an ice scraper, winter boots, a blanket, bottled water, a compact shovel and kitty litter.  You find yourself in a ditch a couple of times, and yeah you learn to head out prepared.  In most cases you are the guy that pulls up alongside a stranded traveler to provide assistance.  Funny how cell phones never work when you need them to isn't it?  That's one of the many reasons we prepare.

Plow truck pulling another plow truck from our ditch.

4.  Silent night - Each season tends to have its own set of sensory elements.  When the snow falls it blankets the earth in a muffled silence.  The silence is beautiful when you pause to listen to it. One of the many traditions we have is to stand outside after a snow fall just to listen - there isn't the sound of rustling leaves on trees, it's as if the whole world is covered with a dome of cotton.  You can hear the ice stress and break free from the branches above, and yes snow does really crunch!

Silence of snow.

5.  Sounds of the season - I don't know exactly when we picked up this tradition but as soon as our local radio stations switch over from their regular programming to Christmas music, all the radios in our house are dialed in. Christmas music emanates throughout the garage and house all day long.  We know the lyrics to every tune by heart.  During dinner, we load the compact disc player (yes we still use a  CD player) with Jimmy Buffet and Big Bad VooDoo Daddy Christmas albums.  It's a tradition and it lifts our spirits.  

6.  Holiday Hallmark movies -  On the weekends, after we complete our endless list of chores we sit down, energy spent and absorb the absurdly optimistic Christmas-themed stories from the Hallmark Channel.  It's not so much the story line or the dialogue that's entertaining, it's the fact that Tom and I (along with the dog) share space on the couch, snuggled up warm under a blanket, and can forget the things that worry us for a little while.  Be warned - only watch the Hallmark channel because you can trust "everything will work out in the end."  

Warm and toasty inside while the weather outside is frightful.

7.  Christmas tree -  Every year right after Thanksgiving, Tom and I (and the dog) head out to purchase a Christmas tree from a temporary tree lot in town. We love the smell of pine in the house, albeit watering it everyday can become a bit tedious.  It stays bare of ornamentation and lights for a week or two, then one evening Tom and I will put a movie on and decorate it; later turning off all the lights, we snuggle together and bask in its glow to review our handy work. 

Ornament of old wagon carrying a Christmas tree on its top.

8.  Friends' Christmas party -  Every year a group of friends get together to celebrate the season.  The ladies exchange handmade gifts, while the guys randomly pass a purchased "guy gift."  Obviously this is more about the ladies' creativity - I've got some marvelously crafty friends.  Later in the evening, to make the party even merrier, everyone exchanges a white elephant gift.  I'm telling you, I don't know WHERE this stuff comes from, but it's hilarious.  

9.  Release the Hounds -  Bailey likes winter in spite of the cold. He digs his face way down in the snow too follow a scent, and pops up looking like father Christmas.  He will romp and play the Bailey Dog way... but it can be challenging. When the snow is over 8" high, we have to plow a path for him poor little guy.  

Bailey exploring scents in the yard.

Bailey loves Christmas as much as we do.

Exhausted from a day of playing in the snow... visions of dog bones dancing in his head.

10.  Release the Humans -  Winter in Wisconsin isn't without its activities.  During plant shutdown, Tom takes the dog for walk snow or shine.  We enjoy snowmobiling, skiing and ice-fishing around here.  If you didn't you'd never leave the house.  This is Tom's favorite time of year... while the dog dreams of bones, he dreams of snow. 

Snowmobiling in the back yard.

Happy snowfall.