Eleven Months Until Christmas!

 No kidding.  Only eleven months and it will be Christmas.

My Christmas decor is put away now, but I did leave up these winter bits because it makes me happy.

Not that I would ever sled or skate anymore, because I would not.  But I do like looking at it and remembering just how amazing I used to think that winter was.

 Now I prefer to look at the snow from the comfort of my home.

It didn't used to be that way.

One very cold winter my sister turned our backyard (a SMALL backyard) into an ice skating rink.  It was AMAZING.

Other years I remember there being so much ice on the roads that we could wear our skates to the neighborhood rinks - or better yet - just skate in the road, forgetting the rinks altogether.

And I LOVED going sledding.

I remember my dad pulling the sled up the hill for me, getting me all set, and then jumping on the back "so you won't have to pull the sled back up by yourself."

I also remember great snow forts and snowmen and all the other winter stuff that used to keep me entertained all season long.  And, the seasons of the past really were much longer.

Now if you are inclined to participate in winter sports, the most fun I can ever remember having happened at a retreat THGGM and I were involved in sponsoring.

We played volleyball in the snow in the wee hours of the morning.  It was actually snowing quite furiously which made it all seem rather surreal and hypnotic.  As I recall, you really never quite knew where the volleyball was until it smacked you.

I loved it.

Eleven months.  Did you catch that?