Monday, February 18, 2008

Another Snow Day...

With the extra 8-10 inches of snow we got yesterday, I'm guessing some people are feeling shut-in. Not me; I love looking out the window and seeing all the beautiful trees in our wooded neighborhood covered in snow. While I could do without the snow day (we now have two days tacked on to the end of the school year), I do not mind the quiet morning.

My kids are easily entertained in this weather; they watch TV, read, or play Guitar Hero or DDR on the X-Box. Back in the day, though, we had to make our own fun with lesser technology. Case in point: the Easy-Bake Oven. My sister and I spent many a blustery day inside, making prize-worthy brownies, cakes, cookies, and cornbread with that thing. If we ran out of mix (or burnt out the lightbulb), it was off to the crawl space under the stair landing (which we entered through the grate in the floor, believe it or not!) We'd play house down there for hours. It was great, because my older brothers were too big to fit through the opening. Also, what was quite fascinating was the one wall of the tiny "room," which adjoined the only bathroom in the house. The medicine cabinet was in that wall, and there was a tiny slit in the back of it which led to the space where we played. When dad used up a razor blade, he justed poked it through the mystery slit in the back of the medicine cabinet and never gave it another thought. Little did he know, the spent blades lay in a pile in our hideaway.

Now don't freak out; we did not play with the darned razor blades! I just mention them because it was like an amazing discovery, kind of like the stash of beer cans we once found hidden behind a wall in the basement. (We used a coat hanger to hook them all out and turn them in for money!) Anyway, when you grow up with nine kids within 900 square feet of house, you have to be creative to find any personal space, and the nook under the stairs was perfect for us younger kids.

We also played in the attic spaces or under the front porch (we must have been walking spider web collections with all the crawling around we did!) From playing house to playing school, having talent shows or making forts, we always found things to do to entertain ourselves. Nowadays, I do not crawl into or under anything for my entertainment. However, there is an Easy-Bake in the closet...

11 comments:

  1. No television or XBox, can compete with the type of childhood you describe. It sounds utterly lovely and full of imagination. I want that nook under the stairs for my son. We'll leave the razor blades out but I want all the rest.

    On an aside, can I tell you how much your sweet comments have cheered me up. Most especially, the one on the post about my father. I'm terribly proud of that post and as you noticed, no one ever left a comment in it. I did not quite realize I was still waiting for some validation. Thank you for giving it to me. I am enjoying your blog. Your mother is a delight. I read your whole description of why this blog is called half-past kissing time with a smile from ear to ear. I think I'm going to incorporate some of her sayings into my daily lexicon. They are priceless, like your mom.
    Milena

    ReplyDelete
  2. Sounds like your childhood was perfect. And the razor blades, they made me laugh. It's such a guy thing to stick them through the slot and not give them another thought, isn't it?

    My two oldest sons are nine and six and I still take my razor directly to the kitchen trash rather than throw it out in the bathroom trash. Like they're going to go rifling through the trashcan or something, I know, it's ridiculous.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Just stumbled upon your blog while out blog hopping. Loved your childhood memories. We played in a "fort" made up of some bushes along the fence. Or took long walks in the woods behind the subdivision. Or, when it was cold, stayed inside and made massive sheet forts. What fun.

    ReplyDelete
  4. It's been a long time since I've thought about Easy Bake Oven's! Ahhh the memories.

    We didn't get but an inch of snow yesterday. Just cold now...

    How many snow/cold days does that make for you?
    3 for us.

    ReplyDelete
  5. wow, 9. We had a fashion plate- loved that toy.

    We were buried in ice and freezing rain. Glad you enjoyed being shut in :)

    ReplyDelete
  6. Easy bake oven and bowl haircuts. I had both.

    ReplyDelete
  7. So, THAT's what you and J. did all the time! I never knew about that spot. Of course when you were in there I was at least 15 or so, being 12 years older than you, so I was off being a cool teen, probably wearing my granny square crocheted mini dress that mom made me!!! My grandkids still take that thing out of the dress up trunk, as do my daughters. How in the heck did mom have time to make that for me with 9 kids??? Was I that self centered to ask her to do that? I guess... And when my boyfriend Jeff turned 16 she baked a special cake he loved that took a lot of time. He was raised by his grandma, who's recipe it was. Man, I don't even remember helping her bake that thing since I was in school that day??? Maybe you guys came out of hiding to help her. :)Love, G

    ReplyDelete
  8. Gypsy-I look forward to going back and reading more :)

    Oh, no, Sari-far from perfect, but we did have a lot of fun, too.

    Kacey-Us, too! We used sheets to make forts over the clothesline, too. Those were the days...

    Mama Bird-Especially that look on my face; pretty "cool" alright!

    Anonymous-Too guilty to say your name here, huh, Miss Selfish?! JK. I'm sure Mom appreciated the diversion...

    ReplyDelete
  9. I am so jealous. We have been warned of snowstorm after snowstorm and have yet to see more than an inch of snow! It has been C-O-L-D but no fun stuff! The one snow day turned out to be a "rain" day as it didn't quite freeze up the way they were expecting. On the bright side, we have had a couple of 2 hour delays. There's nothing better than a 2 hour delay!

    ReplyDelete
  10. It is funny to think of the contrast between how you coped with "boredom" when you were a child and how children do now... seems that imagination is a bit harder to come by these days!

    ReplyDelete

Your 2 cents...