Kaley made it six steps before she toppled face first... again! So sure footed across any surface, except the snow. Glenn scooped her up easy, only for Kaley to kick her legs for another try. Without a doubt, their rambunctious daughter was looking to climb the walls of the family fort. She had always been ready to copy her big brother, Brandon; who at the moment, hung like a monkey on their left rampart.
Beverly raised her hand under Brandon's bottom, giving him the needed boost over the wall. He rolled into the 'courtyard', white powder covering him head to toe, only to hop back up, arms spread in his bright orange snowsuit. "I am Mountain Man!"
"Mom, where's the small spade?" Ivan was crawling out of the low doorway into the fort, taking no notice of Brandon's stomping and posing.
"Dooowwwnn!" Kaley begged Glenn again.
Amidst all the demands, as biting as the air that slipped through their gloves and scarves, Beverly and Glenn kept the balance between the strategy of their eldest and the destruction of their two youngest. Most people just threw snow into a pile into it possibly resembled a house or beaver den. Not the Marcsons. A colossal snow fort was a tradition which Glenn had brought to their marriage. Nothing less than four rooms with outer walls like a fortress, and a roof; if the accumulation was durable enough.
The snow today did not disappoint!
"Here." Glenn traded Kaley off to Beverly. "You'll want to pack in these corners for stability."
Glenn switched places with Beverly, getting in with Ivan to 'stabilize' their fort. Toddler on her hip, Beverly bent down to where Brandon licked at the snow resting on his glove. She snickered. "Good?"
Brandon waved his hand at her, nose cherry and wet. "This'll make Mountain Man strong!"
"I'm sure." Beverly put herself down cross-legged; a welcome position after an hour of stacking. Despite the cold across her face, sweat lined her brow and a mess of her hair had slipped from under her hood. Same with Kaley and Brandon's blond hair. In short, they looked like their father and acted like her.... challenging the laws of physics wherever they went. While Ivan retained Glenn's level-headedness, loving to point out what his siblings always did wrong.
However, Beverly rejected the over-analysis of her children. She was just happy to see them all wear those carefree expressions of a worryless day. There was indeed a uniqueness to the feeling of a snow day. Once Beverly had realized this, halting the 4WD brakes and celebrating the surprise holiday became her new family project. She and Glenn had talked about their rare situation- she a teacher and half of his architect contracts were work from home- and how it needed to be taken advantage of.
And as chilling and thrilling as they had made it so far, the snow fort was just the tip of the iceberg!
~To Be Continued~
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