I don’t know about you, but I’m sure all of us are sick sick sick of this whole snow palooza of these past weeks. I know for sure that I am.
As the snow tumbles down again today I had to laugh to myself as I thought of days gone by and recalled some really good buddies of mine that would wag for joy whenever this white stuff fell.. Well, two out of three, at least! Can you guess of who I am thinking of? Ayup, Jackson, Molly and Duffy–our dogs.
So, I got to thinking about a typical recap of snowy days of the past. Here’s how most snowy days were greeted on our farm.
It’s morning, and unbeknownst to the gang, the white stuff is falling (yet again). I haven’t yet had my morning java (in the days when I drank gallons of the stuff) and still need to ready for morning barn chores–time to get the day rolling. The ewes were calling me, the ‘kids’ bleating for their morning chow. ..and I still had a dozen 40# bales of hay to get down from the silo. No doubt the nesting boxes were full of eggs — with any luck, none would be frozen. Then there were the greenhouse chores –check on all the baby seedlings, do the watering, make sure the temperature was right on the mark–but first things first, the shoveling–ugh ugh!
So I throw open the back door and out bound the three dogs. Immediately two things happen– Duffy and Jackson bolt happily into the back pasture, the snow kicking up from their heels while Molly picks her way carefully a few feet into the unshoveled snowbanks like an elderly woman wearing high heels on a skating rink, before doing her business and attempting to run back into the house.
This is how I always imagined what was going on in their three heads. Jackson, (golden #1 & the oldest, 15yrs): Snow!! I love snow!! I must run through it, eat it, and roll around in it. I feel like a puppy again! In fact, I love snow so much that I will sit here for a very long time until my Mom at the door hollers and begs me to come in and then finally resorts to the old ‘cookie trick’ in an attempt to lure me inside. I’ll just wait for her to close the door ( she thinks she can fool me!) But I’ll just trick her — I will wait for the door to close and run up and grab the cookies, and then run away before she can throw open the door and catch hold of my collar. And then we will do it all over again. Oh boy, how I love this game! And snow!!
Snowy Faced Jackson
Duffy, (the border collie, & middle child, 13 yrs): Snow! I love snow even more than Jackson! I love it so much I will race around like a dog demented kicking up tufts of snow everywhere. Jackson will try to keep up with me but he can’t because I’m the fastest on the farm and I love snow!! I will eat it until my whiskers are white and I look like I ate a bag of powdered donuts (*sigh, I only wish!) and not realize it is water so I will need to go back outdoors again ten minutes after I get in. And I will move to the farthest part of the farm..way around the back pasture surveying all and making sure everything and every critter in my charge is in check, until Mom gives me the whistle to come back and head inside while she goes about her morning chores, but I will just sit here a moment because while I love my Mom, I really LOVE snow and don’t get to play in it nearly enough, so no matter how much she whistles or hollers I will just sit here and stare out into the snow until Mom thinks all of this snow must have clogged up my ears or something because I am giving not the slightest indication I can hear, nor am I going to play that silly ‘cookie trick’ at the door game she is playing with Jackson, not when I can just sit here and enjoy the snow. Finally, when my black coat has turned purely white and Mom has yelled long enough, I will run as fast as my little legs will scoot, past Jackson–kicking up snow in his face — and into the door, where my feet will slide across the tiled floor. I will slide right into the door, passing Mom who is waiting with a nice towel to dry me. Just when she leans over to dry me off I will shake myself really hard to cover Mom, the door and the floor with snow. Mom must love snow just as much as I do, because just as the snow is dripping down her face she gives a shout for joy. Yay snow!
Molly & Duff
And finally, Miss Molly. ( golden #2, the youngest & spoiled rotten): Oh no–Snow!! I HATE snow!! Give me my swimming pool and sunglasses any day. Brrrr… it’s cold!! I don’t like the way it feels on my paws–the ice gets stuck between my toes and it takes me hours to chew it all out once I get indoors. Why does it keep falling from the sky? I mean I just love these people, but couldn’t we move the farm to Florida? And I love Jackson and Duffy–but what the heck is wrong with those two guys? They’ve gone demented! I hope the heck Mom opens that door real soon, because I don’t want to be out here much longer. Maybe if I huddle up against the door and howl in a really high pitched voice she will let me in soon. Like when she comes to play that stoopid ‘cookie trick’ game with Jackson and Duff. Bingo! Once that door opens again, I’ll be through it like a shot, bouncing off Moms legs and getting her soaked on my way into the house–where I’ll then rub up against anything to dry myself off and I especially just love to hop up on the freshly made bed–so warm and comfy–and then spend the rest of the day snoozing or skulking around and trying to avoid going out again. Ugh!! Snow!
My best buddy & me
Believe it or not, there once were days when I thoroughly loved snowy days–when all the chores ( if that was even a possibility) were finished, and I could play with my guys out in the snow. They just loved walking in the snowy woods with me, or chasing flying snowballs, or piling on top of a monster snowbank. But that was some time ago. These days, I’m afraid I’m with Miss Molly on this–give me warmth, sunshine and balmy breezes. Snow!! I hate it! LOL Do all your dogs enjoy the snow as much as ours did? Stay warm.
Thyme Goes By... 
