Winter Wonderland
Cold, wet flakes drifted from the heavens, and gently accumulated on the ground. TJ took notice of the new development. "LJ! Raph! Jules! Come look! First snow of the year."
"Ah, cool!" The kids all echoed each other, running to see the source of the excitement. The group all sat there and watched the snow accumulate.
The next morning, the snow had settled into a great white blanket covering the ground. LJ came down the stairs as TJ prepared to go shovel snow from the porch. "Hey LJ, why don't you see if Raph and Juliet want to go outside, play in the snow?"
Excitement spread over the boy's face as he raced up the stairs to alert his siblings and gather his warm clothes and snow boots. The trio rushed out of the door in their coats and scarves, followed closely by their father. Christmas bells jangled as the door slammed behind TJ. "Sleigh bells ring, are you listenin'? In the lane, snow is glistenin. A beautiful sight, we're happy tonight, walkin' in a winter wonderland." TJ mozied to the garage for the snow shovel. He acknowledged the cardinals and finches nestled in the bushes and nearby trees. "Gone away is the bluebird. Here to stay is a new bird. He sings a love song as we go along, walking in a winter wonderland."
The kids began forming giant balls of snow from the grand piles TJ had created. They rolled the balls across the small yard, collecting more and more snow. Eventually they finished one ball and started on a second ball. This time they didn't let the ball get quite as big as the first, before stacking it on top of the first. They topped it off with a final head-sized ball. "In the meadow we can build a snowman. Then pretend that he is Parson Brown. He'll say 'Are you married?' We'll say 'No man, but you can do the job when you're in town.' Later on, we'll conspire, as we dream by the fire to face unafraid the dreams that we've made, walkin' in a winter wonderland."