My daughter is fascinated with snow.  She has been waiting to make her first snow angel since July.  In the past few  years we have had VERY little snow, and even fewer opportunities to go outside and enjoy it.  In the midst of a very busy fall and winter, I was forced to stop what I was doing and seize the day for fear that the snow would quickly melt and not return for the rest of the winter.  What I didn't realize was that this was a big wake up call, a reminder to look up once in a while so that I don't miss out on fleeting opportunities to partake in greatness.  Not only did I get to finally take her out in the snowy world of her dreams, but I got to photograph her in all her snowy wonder.  Together we shared laughter and had so much fun rolling around, getting cold and soaked, then coming in for a snuggle to warm up.  I want her to look at these photos and always remember how she felt, because one day she will be a busy, stressed out grown-up too, and I don't want her to forget to look up the way her mom does.

So, thanks, snow.  It's been a long time since I've seen a White Christmas.  Last year we came close with a white dusting...but this year we had a real white Christmas, complete with flurries.  For a brief moment today, I caught myself daydreaming while staring at the beautiful snow and realized how many things I overlooked this year while being stressed out, overwhelmed, mad, complaining and actually confessing I was looking forward to the year's end.  The list of things I overlooked is not as important as what they represented, which is that my life is full of so many little blessings that are often overlooked because I am too busy focusing on the negatives.  I'm not saying we shouldn't aknowledge the things that upset us, vent about them to relieve stress.  But I feel that if I had devoted as much energy to being thankful for the blessings, than the burdens wouldn't have been so heavy.  This will be my goal for the upcoming year.  In the meantime, tonight I am grateful for snow--for providing me with beauty, fun, diversity and nostalgia.