And so......the snow came

We were waiting with great anticipation for the snow yesterday evening. Everyone kept saying there's going to be a heavy snowfall overnight. While in the kitchen, I kept looking out of the window, hoping to catch the first fall of the flakes. When it got dark, I asked the girls to look out of the patio doors to see if there's any snow outside. 'No' came the reply. It was finally around the time we were about to leave the house to pick A from the train station in the evening when the magical moment came. White flurries fell from the sky. At first it was light. Just like white flour dusting around. The roads were still clear when we set off but they got whiter and whiter and the snow began to fall fast and furious. On our way home, the snow had begun to settle and all things were turning white. It's not the first time I'd seen snow but I get excited every single time without fail. Of course, the girls always manage to have lots of fun too!

Early this morning, I received a text from the girls' school informing me that it will be closed today due to heavy snowfall. It was supposed to be the last day of school for the year. Good thing they'd taken back all their PE Kits. Louisa kept saying her plimsolls are still at school. Nevermind, she'll be back at school in two weeks.

Today also marked the first time I drove in snow conditions. I always hibernate at home when it snows. Never dared to venture out. It's treacherous to drive. Not when there's at least 20cm of snow outside. But it's my school's Christmas Party for the children and I'd promised my boss I would go and help out. I rang one of my colleagues who lives near me and she said she's not going to take the risk. I was at a dilemma. If I go, I had to bring the girls with me. Driving out alone is a risk by itself, let alone bringing along the girls. So I called my boss and she asked me to drive out and if I were to feel uncomfortable with continuing the journey, I should then turn back and go home. Most roads in my estate are still private and not adopted by the council so they are not gritted. I live in a cul-de-sac so the roads were covered in thick snow. We also had to scrape off the ice and snow off the car. That took a while. When we finally set off, I drove so slowly. My average speed was perhaps about 20 mph. All went well until we were about to reach the school. I was slowing down and coming to a halt at a traffic junction, holding tightly to the steering wheel and using engine brake when it kept skidding to the left and towards the traffic light pole. I started to panic. Luckily, I managed to stop but I wondered if I'd gotten stuck or if I would continue to skid forward to the left. Alas! We made it safely to our destination. The party was a great success and by the time we went home, the sun had melted the snow on the roads. The only difficulty I had was driving towards my drive. The snow was so thick the car could hardly move forward. I heaved a big sigh of relief when we got back in the house. Will we have a white Christmas? I don't know. But it sure is very cold here and will get even colder (-7 degrees C apparently) as the week progresses.