ASHLEY’S CORNER No School, All Snow: The Joys of Sledding and Snow Angels
I have always loved snow days from school.
9:30 p.m., and I was thinking, “OMG, what if we don’t get a snow day?” When I finally went to bed at midnight, it had not snowed at all.
They rarely happened when I was a kid growing up in upstate New York. We got a ton of snow there most winters. I was in the Ski Club from second grade on, and we all took the ski bus every week to a ski resort. On the rare occasions when the schools cancelled classes, we would cross- country ski to our friends’ houses. Here in southwestern Ohio, however, everything shuts down if we get a couple of inches of snow. Before one recent snow day, everyone was predicting the shutdown five days in advance. The kids have a whole list of tricks they believe will help make a snow day happen. They put a white
Fortunately, we woke up to four inches of snow the next day, and I got the hoped-for call from the school. The kids were pumped! They thought all their snow day tricks worked.
It takes an hour to get everyone dressed to go out in the snow. But once we are finally there, the kids love making snowmen and tracks in the snow. They speed down a hill in our back yard on their sleds, and build jumps to try to catch some air. And they love jumping out of the hot tub in their swimsuits and landing in the snow, making snow angels, and jumping back in. The day goes by so fast! Later, we watched the rest of the movie. There’s just something about the excitement of having popcorn and curling up in blankets after you’ve been playing in the snow. If my childhood experience is any guide, it’s something you just don’t forget.
crayon near the front door, tuck a spoon under their pillow, wear their pajamas inside out and backward, and flush ice down the toilet. They have fun calculating the odds: “What if we put two spoons under our pillow instead of one? Maybe we’ll be twice as lucky!” We were so sure the schools would close that we started celebrating the night before. By 7 p.m., we were deep into board games. Later, we started watching a movie on a projector screen downstairs, “The Christmas Chronicles” with Kurt Russell. The kids were still awake at Take a Break
VODKA CREAM PASTA A delightful dinner party entree, this flavorful Italian dish promises to warm hearts on wintry nights!
Ingredients
• •
1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
•
32-oz can crushed tomatoes
1 tbsp butter • 3 cloves garlic, minced • 2 shallots, minced • 1 cup vodka • 1 cup chicken stock
• Coarse salt and pepper • 16 oz penne rigate pasta • 1/2 cup heavy cream • 20 basil leaves, torn
Directions
1. In a large skillet over moderate heat, sauté oil, butter, garlic, and shallots for 3–5 minutes. 2. Add vodka in a steady stream and heat for 2–3 minutes to reduce by half. 3. Add chicken stock and tomatoes, bring to a light boil, then reduce to a simmer. 4. Season with salt and pepper. 5. In a large pot, cook pasta to al dente in salted boiling water while sauce simmers. 6. Stir cream into sauce until it bubbles and remove from heat. 7. Drain pasta, toss with sauce and basil leaves, and serve with sides of your choosing.
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