Winter wonderland

Temperatures here have been in the mid-twenties for a week or so now, and every time we look out the window it's snowing. There's about five or six inches on the ground right now. I know this is Norway, but we're on the coast and the Gulf stream keeps things from getting too cold here, so this is a lot of snow for us. Other places in Norway (mostly inland) do stay buried under several feet of snow all winter, but we don't usually get snow to stick around for more than a day or so before it turns to wet slush. Even after a week, though, this batch of snow is fine and powdery, and I love watching the big flakes glide down past the window.
This, of course, makes biking difficult. Some hardy souls still do, but we've been using the car. My view is that one broken bone this year is plenty. Growing up in NC, I was raised to think that if it snowed, it was best to stay off the road until all the snow was gone. The few times I had to drive on snow in the States I felt I was taking my life in my hands, and to tell the truth, I probably was. However, staying home whenever it snows here is not an option, so we have snow tires, and they make all the difference, so driving myself to work or Ella to day care isn't bad at all.
Ella also seems to enjoy the snow -- when they're outside at day care, she really loves being pulled around on a sled or even sledding down one of the little hills on her own. At some point, we're going to have to get her her first pair of skis, but that will also necessitate me learning to ski myself. I've only been on skis once (in the Alps, perhaps not the best option for a beginner) and spent the better part of an afternoon sliding down a hill on my butt. That was almost twenty years ago now (wow!) on our high school German class trip to Austria, so maybe I'll be ready to try again soon...