The Christmas of '04

Here are some vintage pictures that I promised.

Where we lived in Texas it was warm year round. The summers were hot and the winters were awesome! It got cold only a handful of days all winter. My kids had two pairs of pants for school. Everything else was shorts. Anyway, most people in the valley had never even seen snow. They had no concept of the cold stuff. Then, on Christmas Eve of 2004, the elements were just right and for the first time in 100 years the Rio Grande Valley awoke to a White Christmas.

Aaron's family was visiting us that year. They found it interesting when we watched the news and the reporters were telling people not to drive on the roads. Few knew how to master driving on bad roads. They demonstrated how to scrape a windshield for the poor souls who did have to leave home. We knew several families who did not live in adequate housing for such cold temperatures so, we delivered blankets and food the night before.

For those of us who grew up in the north, it really wasn't much snow. For everybody else it was more than sufficient. Almost every house in the neighborhood had a snowman. They just weren't regular snowmen, most had clothes and accessories. My mother-in-law noted the fancy snowmen. I reminded her that it was a chance of a lifetime for most people and they wanted to make the most of playing in the snow.

I had a friend who was living in Iowa at the time. Her family sent her pictures of their cars with snow on them. Her family was so excited! When Elena showed her friends in Iowa the pictures, they were unimpressed. Their cars had snow on them everyday. So, here are some pictures you wouldn't see in Iowa. Palm trees with snow on them. While our neighbors were out shoveling the snow off their sidewalks just because they could, we were inside opening presents. Here is Savanah and a very pregnant Colette enjoying Christmas morning. (Vanessa was born a few weeks later.)First of all, we knew the snow would be melted by afternoon. Secondly, I sent all of our gloves, hats, and coats with friends who were visiting Colorado for the holidays. Incidentally, there wasn't any snow in Colorado that year.

The snow melted by afternoon and life returned to normal. We were able to keep with our Christmas traditions in Texas. The next day, we visited a nearby orange grove so we could pick fresh citrus.Lauren posed by a friendly longhorn and calf.We also visited the beach. The water in the Gulf is cold in the winter, but no colder than Oregon in the summer. The kids didn't seem to mind.Even little Savanah had fun playing in the sand.We had it all that year, the snow and the sun! What a nice way to spend the holidays!