Dreams of Snow Cream

Eating winter as a familiar pastime.

When you’re from the country, you’re born with the innate ability to sense the weather.

We all have that friend, or are that friend, who says “I can smell the rain coming.” Who cares about the exact science behind meteorology, being attuned to nature is way cooler. Some days I wake up and can just tell what kind of day we’re destined to have from how the sun is rising & moon is setting in the sky. And recently, I could feel the snow approaching in my bone marrow.

I’ve lived in Virginia my entire life. We get all four seasons here. I can always count on the air to change in September. The leaves to fall in October. The frost to come over the land in November. The snow to cover us in December. With climate change, there’s been more delay in the snow sadly. But this year, we were blessed with a magical first snow on January 15.

My energy soars when the snow arrives. It’s not my inner child coming out, it’s simply me! I’m a playful gal, in awe of everything mother has to show me. I yearn to see the dusted evergreens line the slushie roads. To crush the snow beneath my new winter boots (that I feel validated for buying now that I’ve used them once). To frantically pull out all the spare blankets, candles & Vaseline. A winter storm forever tugs the corners of my mouth into a big smile.

This being our first winter as a family and in our house, I’m savoring every breeze as if it were my last. Something I’ve come to know too well; the feeling of every first being a last and that I never know when something is the last time I’ll experience it. When you plan to have one child, it’s a common feeling. It’s neither negative nor positive in connotation, it just is what it is.

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I stood on the porch alone that night to listen to the snow fall on top of another. It’s hard to describe that sound. It’s like soft tv static. Or when you move your legs through bedsheets. Or if someone made chimes from quartz crystal and played a symphony. It’s- God I don’t know how to explain that if you hold your breath at 5:55PM on a Monday night to listen to the snowfall, you’ll hear the best sound of the season. You just have to do it! No meditation app, drug or VR headset can compete with that experience.

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So what’s on the menu?

Breakfast: Frosted Flakes

When my parents separated, my mom moved us into an apartment. I recall during the winter, it would get so cold, our gallon milk would freeze a bit so when you’d pour it into your cereal there were icy milk flakes mixed with your Frosted Flakes. I loved it.

Lunch: Ramen

After you play long enough in the snow to get it into your socks somehow, a couple packs of instant ramen taste great. I think it’s the warm, saltiness that wonderfully contrasts the snow you probably ate during a snowball fight with your brother. A sprinkle of shredded cheese goes a long way too.

Snack: Snow Cream

If you know, you know. I’ve always wanted to try making snow cream but every time I’d remember, it wouldn’t be the right kind of snow. It needs to be soft yet firm, fresh and clean. I was over the moon excited to see good snow this morning, perfect for this treat. I filled a bowl with snow, vanilla almond milk & a few tablespoons of sugar. My husband, our one year old son & I were in love. A bowl of joy was created. A core memory created.

Dinner: Soup

Step aside Campbell’s, this mama has a homemade soup for her family. Any soup will do. You can go all out making one from scratch for hours. Or you can dump a bunch of canned beans & veggies into a stock, let it simmer and call the producers of Chef’s Table to come by. Snow days are for leisure so an easy minestrone soup is our saving grace.

Nightcap: Hot Cocoa

Lactose intolerant? Deal with it! Hot cocoa is essential. Did you not watch The Polar Express as a child and remember the Hot Chocolate song? Did you not read Diary of a Wimpy Kid and wish to be a hall monitor just to drink hot chocolate every morning? Did you not battle with cousins on if marshmallows or candy canes tasted better in it? Just me? That’s fine. Good news though, they make a dairy free Swiss Miss so no more growling from your tummy. I mix it with 6oz instead of 8oz of whatever non-dairy milk we have in the back corner of the fridge. Top it off with exactly 11 mini marshmallows by Dandies while my husband dissolves a mini candy cane in his. Sometimes I’ll sneak some Reishi mushroom tincture in the cups to help us sleep too. Like I said, hot cocoa is essential.

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By now I’m sure you’re wondering what’s my deal with loving a snow day. I find it funny that people think Black folk don’t like the cold and definitely not the winter. Friendly reminder that we aren’t a monolith! I hate the summer heat. My spirit is most alive from autumn to spring equinox. Always have been, always will be.

Could be all the fond childhood memories around school and holidays that time of year gifts us with. I do always love the overall cozy aesthetic. I’m a homebody who is elated by quality time spent with loved ones and my favorite comforts. I can only really get that during this time.

Whatever it is, it’s very Carri. And I like that.