Well, it’s not exactly a snow day, it’s about 85 degrees outside. You know that feeling when school is cancelled because of a snow day? The roads are unsafe to travel on because of snow and ice? So you are just stuck at home. Anything you needed to do outside the house just got postponed. I loved snow days when my kids were younger. It meant a day in the house in pj’s, grilled cheese for lunch, and everyone home. No shuttling them to basketball practice or doctor appointments. It was a day to hunker down and use our minds and desires to schedule this gift of time together. Board games, art projects, movies on VHS, baking, playing in the snow, making hot chocolate.

I would look into the pantry and get creative about what I could make for dinner without being able to get to the store. I prided myself with having a knack for whipping up something from the random ingredients. Macaroni noodles, cream of chicken soup, cans of tuna, onions, flour, cheese. Tuna casserole! Or when in doubt, there was always the option of breakfast for dinner.

Snow days always began with the loud ring of the anticipated phone call from the school, followed by the soft silence of snow falling on the thick blanket in the streets. The white magical winter scene was a wonderful way to start the day. Every scheduled item on this calendar day erased by the accumulating snowflakes.

It’s July, why am I talking about snow? Yesterday I had errands to do, I gave Koda and Summer each a treat and put them in their crates. I grabbed my bag and went into the garage to leave. I pressed the button that has “Mom” written in black sharpie above it. The door opened only eighteen inches and then made a loud clunk sound and stopped. I pressed it again, and again. The rolling door continued to go up and down only that little bit. Uh oh. It was broken and my car was inside. This meant that I was stuck and could not leave the house to run my errands. No trip to the grocery store, no pick up of the dry-cleaning, forget swinging by the mall to check out the pillow sale at Macy’s. I cannot leave my house today.

This would make some people angry. Not only will this be a costly repair but I will not be able to go anywhere until it’s fixed and I can get my car out. I decided to embrace my “stuck-at-home” situation. I treated it like other days in the year when I am homebound. I came back into the house and called out to the puppies. “Koda! Summer! Snow day!”

PS: The door was repaired this morning. I can run my errands now. Bummer. Until the next snow day…