Although her temporary bus stop for the next four weeks is only a few minutes walk, the change really couldn't have come at a worse time of the year.
We just experienced below freezing temperatures, which made this brief walk a bit stressful with a two-year-old in tow.
My son Emory will do anything to be outside, but even he wasn't having it.
Today I was thrilled to find that it wasn't cold at all outside when I woke up. At a bit over 40 degrees Fahrenheit, it was practically spring by Midwest standards!
I made a double espresso, and bundled the little guy up so we could take a walk after the bus picked his sister up. Gosh did we need it!
This made for lots of slush on the sidewalks, which Emory happily stomped in as we walked Thea to her stop.
Some parts of the street were so flooded that there were cautionary signs lined up on the roadside.
One of the worst parts on our street was right next to the bus stop. We watched as cars made waves in the enormous puddle as they passed through it. The water would shift towards the sides of the road, then swell back to fill in the gaps.
It was really mesmerizing. Were I kid free and toasty, I could probably watch that process for many hours...
He'd run 50 yards in one direction, then abruptly turn and run back the other way. We probably walked 2 miles, yet never left the same 1000 feet haha!
Although he declined my suggestion for gloves this morning, he still decided to dip his fingers into the snow. With the temps so moderate, I let him explore the texture, knowing home was nearby should his fingers get too red.
He seemed to really get a kick at how fast snow melts, fading from your fingertips before your eyes...
He has a mission, and only he needs to be aware of it. I watch as he excitedly talks about what he is seeing, catching maybe one in every seven words.
His vocabulary is growing rapidly these days. We picked up "slippery" and "flood" just on this walk. I expect he'll have the whole kit here soon!
One thing I noticed was that he was uncertain about the foggy weather. As we walked, he would stop and point to the vague outline of something moving in the distance.
"I'm not sure about that" His small face expressed, and he would reach for my hand each time.
Of course, caution has a shelf life when you are so small, and soon he would be back to running laps on the sidewalk.
His eyes found all of the different paw prints in the snow, and we talked a bit about what animals they were from. We have lots of folks who walk their dogs in the neighborhood, as well as a hearty deer population. Here Emory is taking a closer peek at some dog prints.
As for the deer tracks, they brought some excitement. Emory loves loves loves deer. When one is walking by our house, it is an event for celebration. So, when I was explaining the tracks, of course he was looking for actual deer!
Although we didn't see any of those, we did have a great walk together. I think we made it for a little over an hour before Emory looked at me and said, "Home momma."
The day passed by, and then it was time to go retrieve our Thea. Well, she had a surprise... She lost her first tooth!
We had to go grocery shopping, and as we checked out she told the cashier all about it. Well, this sweet lady must've had a really big heart. She gave Thea a bundle of flowers and some stickers, celebrating her victory with her.
It was super touching, and the perfect way to wrap up a great day. Hopefully winter shimmies on by quickly, and we are back to walking all the time again soon!