The Snowiest Month

I've been told that April is usually one of the snowiest months here in the Springs. While last year it didn't live up to that title, we only had two little snowfalls after we moved here, if memory serves, April is certainly doing all it can to claim that prize this year! While we had many sunny, warmish days and no snow in January and February, this month has held snowfall, followed by a few lovely spring-like days, only to be followed again by another snow.
It's hard to get excited about snow in April, as we are all gripped by Spring Fever and the hope of warm days, green plants, flip-flops, and t-shirts ahead (hooray! the laundry will finally start to diminish to summer-load size!), but we desperately need the moisture, and it's difficult to NOT think a snow storm is cool and impossible to NOT have fun in the snow, even if it is April.

We were bombarded by a three-day storm that swooped in Thursday early afternoon, starting during Ben's running club practice. You should have seen those poor kids curl up like pill bugs as the hail started to fall! Then they clustered together like emperor penguins. Then they ran for the school building like wildebeests running from a pack of hunting lionesses! It was like watching the Discovery Channel! Fortunately Ben was pretty well covered up because it was cold when I dropped him off, but many of the kids had come directly from school and were not dressed for the afternoon storm. We had hail and thunder and lightning all afternoon, which the boys and I excitedly watched from the couch in the living room, and later that night it turned into a nice wet snow.

Friday it snowed most of the day with times of heavier snowfall, but mostly a lot of light snow. By mid-afternoon Adam decided to come home. We had about six inches, and it was really starting to come down. However, within an hour of his arrival, we ended up with a nice little sun break, during which Adam and the boys took off for the nearby, amazing sled hill to meet up with our friends, the Pucketts. The hill is not on or near the road, so I don't need to worry about the kids crashing into parked or moving cars, the way I am sure my parents always worried when my sis and I were kids. My sister even slid right underneath a parked car once! Don't worry, she was alright.

Here's the gang, ready to sled (Ben, Adam, Cory, Zach, Jason, Joel, Josh)!! Missing is Lisa, who is taking the picture, and Luke and I, since Luke decided to take a three hour nap that day. But hey! You don't wake a sleeping baby, especially one who gets as crabby as a woken-too-early Luke!

If there is snow and speed, Ben loves it!

Josh and Dad, chased happily by Ruby.

Josh was having so much fun, he didn't even complain about having to hike back up the hill!

For Christmas, when he turned four, Zach got a little plastic snowboard from Adam's brother, Ryan. It's not in any way a fancy thing, but he loves trying it out. He is actually really quite the good beginner boarder.

It's a pretty steep hill, but he did great keeping his balance and controlling the board down the hill.

But stopping could use some work. Never you fear, even though he had a couple of good face plants, he got right up, shook it off and went for another run. Ruby had the time of her life. Snow plus Finn (the Puckett's male golden) made her the happiest pup on the face of the planet!

For our little daredevil, Ben, sledding was not enough. So he built a jump. In the picture he's catching some air! Adam promised to help him make one next time, so A could use the tricks he developed over years of ski school jump-building in high school to really get some height!

Saturday arrived with much more snow! It's hard to say how much we got over the three days total, because the temperature hovered right around freezing the whole weekend, so there was some melting from time to time. But I'd say it was over 12 inches. Our friends the Maloys came over for some sledding, but Saturday's snow included a ton of wind. We didn't realize how bad it was going to be until we got to the sled hill, which is at the top of a bluff with no wind protection. It had to be blowing at a constant flow of 40mph up the hill!

Adam, Vern, Zach and Spencer tried a few runs, in spite of the wind. Twice they fell off the sled at the bottom, which was then blown back up the hill without its rider! Adam said his went at least halfway back up without him, and Vern was almost taken out as he slid down and Spencer's sled flew up! You can't really tell how hard the wind is blowing in the picture, but it was hard enough to push even the adults around a little!
The littler kids were quite unhappy and quickly ran back to the car. Jen and I bailed pretty quickly too. Here's Ben, happy to be in the warm safety of the car.
So we bagged the sledding plan, and headed back to the house for some hot cocoa and snow fort building. One of the nice things about spring Colorado snow...it is actually wet enough to pack! Usually it is so powdery, it just falls apart. Adam, Ben and Vern built a huge snow fort using block molds given to us by our neighbor whose sons no longer used them. It was a very impressive fort!

Here they are prepping for the ambush. I think they added another layer of snow bricks after this picture was taken. They even stockpiled the fort with extra snow for making snowballs!
Then they called Zach and Spence out to see it...AMBUSH!!!

Well, how do you answer that?? You build a second fort, of course!! And prepare for the ultimate snowball battle!!! The second fort was a bit more hasty, a little weaker, not so high, and not nearly as pretty, but it worked well enough for the battle. Well, until it started to fall apart.

Luke insisted on coming outside, but the snow was still coming down and the wind was still REALLY strong, even in the protection of our backyard, and he was not so happy about his decision to come out. He is not a fan of the wind. So after five minutes of angry crying, back inside he went!Zach was also reluctant to be outside, he wanted to stay inside and play the Wii. But because I am mean, I made him stay out with us. He was mad the whole time we built the fort, notice his angry glare in the picture. But once the snow battle began he started to have fun...
...BATTLE!! Now he's getting into it!

The poor Maloys ended up with the lamer fort. I think Ben felt he had some claim on the big one since he was the only kid building it. But they are die-hard, no complaining about lame forts from them! They even ended up sacrificing themselves by running out from behind the walls of their defenses to attack!

So we had a great snow weekend! I definitely can't complain too much about the April snow. And it is already busily melting; by Tuesday we are expecting temperatures close to 70. Even though it was great fun, I hope we are done with the snow until at least October. Bring on Spring! Hear that weather?! Done! Although I hear you can't really count on the snow actually being over for the season until Mother's Day. Mother's Day?!!