frosted windowpanes.

On Friday, I was looking forward to the idea of not being able to go anywhere.  With the weather reports in favor of one of the biggest storms since the Great Halloween Blizzard of '91, the idea of staying home would give me a chance to catch up on chores like cleaning, organizing that room that collects a bunch of misfit items or tackling that list of to-dos that have been piling up. As I woke up on Saturday morning to a whole lot of white and the promises of a blizzard had been fulfilled, I already started to get antsy.  It didn't take long and this whole idea of being able to go nowhere was unsettling--I quickly found out that I don't do well with stuck.  It wasn't even close to noon yet and I was wishing I could get out to go get my morning coffee...yeah, I could have brewed my own, I had some Dunkin' Donuts whole beans, a grinder, a brewer and a holiday coffee mug I got as an office gift last Christmas, but it just wasn't going to satisfy my need of my morning ritual of Super America's Dark Roast with a splurge of Caramel Cafe Latte to top off the last 1/4 cup.  I know, it sounds crazy, but I felt lost.  How was I going to get all the stuff done that needs to get done without my engine starting coffee?  This staying in wasn't as fun as I thought it was going to be.  I couldn't even see the grain elevator bearing in bold the word Windom which is only a few blocks away--heck, I couldn't see the neighbors across the street.  As the day went on and the crisp white snow crept up the screens on the windows, the outside world that I'm so familiar with was drifting away faster than one of my "normal" days-and that is fast. What now?  I looked at Henrik playing on the floor so delightfully and paying no attention to the cold wind blowing around the white burden falling so heavily outside.  I sat on the floor next to him, he gave me a big smile, and he showed me his world all afternoon.  It was simple, we played Patty Cake, he is so close to crawling and wishes he could just run instead, and I encouraged, he showed me his love for "big boy foods" like spaghetti, he showed me his belly laugh that makes me melt when it is paired with that mostly toothless (except for 2!) smile.  I quickly started to forget about all the things I should be doing.  That night, after a full day of being with my family in the home we created together, I noticed the windows were completely covered with white--couldn't see anything but pure snow and the outside world was gone.  All those things I thought I should have been doing that day, all those chores, well, they are still unfinished, still waiting to be done.  The one thing that should never wait are those simple things Henrik showed me while the snow kept us in our warm, peaceful home.