Snow Day Reflections

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We had our first major snow storm last week and, along with it, our first SNOW DAY. I found myself clapping and dancing around the kitchen when those magical words were uttered (perhaps a little like a Pavlovian dog). It got me thinking . . . what memories arise in people when they discover they have a SNOW DAY?

Rachel A - Snow days were the best when I was younger! When my mom would wake me up with news of a snow day, I would jump right out of bed to go play outside in the snow. I love the winter and being out in the snow so nothing is better than that for me. After playing outside for what seemed like hours, I would come back in and make hot chocolate with marshmallows and whipped cream and bundle up on the couch with a huge blanket! Snow days are the best!

Jerry R - Snow days have had great meaning for me at every stage of my life. As a little kid–even a very little kid–first up was to shovel in front of the laundromat, which was our family business. It was better to shovel snow than to pack up bundles. After the shoveling, me and my friend Michael would build a snow fort between the parked cars and when it was done, play Davy Crocket at the North Pole til supper time. In high school, as soon as there was a hint of a snow day coming–maybe–in a few days or even a week, it meant I stopped doing homework. That didn’t always work out, but when it did…. As a grownup, skiing right down the middle of Broadway!

Kathy B - Snow days as a child were SO much fun. Hearing “there’s no school today” and looking out to see the entire street and cars covered in snow was always so magical to me. My parents would wake us up to go play in the snow or to go sledding on a nearby hill. Then we would get a call from my cousins to meet outside for a snowball fight!

Kim M - Growing up there was nothing better than waking up to the radio and hearing that your school was closed for the day! I grew up in Canada so we had plenty of snow days, sometimes we had the entire week off because the weather was so bad. My brothers and I were very big into hockey and figure skating so every year our dad would build a huge skating rink in our backyard, I’m talking half the size of the soccer field at Elmwood. It was big! On snow days, the first thing we would do when we heard that our school was closed was to get all of our snow gear on, lace up our skates and go outside to shovel all the snow off the rink and call our friends. Because we lived in the country we had a lot of space both outside and in our house so my parents were nice enough to let all three of us have as many friends over as we wanted on snow days. Some of my favorite memories were created on that ice rink with my brothers and our friends. To this day, my friends still talk about all the fun times on our skating rink.

Amy M - Snow days as a child were some of the best days during the winter months. I remember I would wake up and my mom would tell me to go back to sleep cause there was no school. Hearing those words of school not being open always made me happy. After waking up a second time, I would play with the snow in my backyard with my older brother and my dog. Usually, we would make snow angels, have a snowball fight, and make snowmen. At the end of the day, my mom would make me hot chocolate and I would wrap myself up in a nice warm blanket as well.

Steve G - Snow days as a kid, pure magic. As I have gotten older, a snow day means shoveling snow. Not quite as fun, but with headphones and a good audio book, the work can end up being kinda fun!!

Hannah L - Hi Elmwood! I hope everyone is having a fantastic winter so far. One of my favorite things to do during the winter is spend time with my family. On a perfect winter day, you can find us snuggled on the couch in our living room with our puppies, Lucy and Roxy, watching movies and sipping hot cocoa. Sometimes, when it’s really snowy and we can’t leave the house, we love to whip up some tasty treats together. Recently we were looking online for something yummy to make, and we found the recipe for our favorite Banana Pudding from Magnolia Bakery in NYC - and we could not resist from making it! It was super easy and only requires 6 ingredients! It doesn’t get much easier than that! If you like banana pudding, you can’t miss out on this!I hope you enjoy it as much as we did. Wishing everyone a happy, healthy, and safe New Year! I can’t wait to see everyone in 2021. XOXO!

Magnolia Bakery Classic Banana Pudding

Ingredients:

1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk

11⁄2 cups (360 grams/12.7 oz) ice cold water

1 3.4-ounce package instant vanilla pudding mix, preferably Jell-O Brand

3 cups (720 grams/25.5 oz) heavy cream

1 11-ounce box vanilla wafers, preferably Nilla brand 4 to 5 ripe bananas, sliced

Step 1: In a medium sized bowl whisk together the sweetened condensed milk and the cold water. Place the pudding mix in another medium sized bowl and slowly whisk in the liquid, whisking until there are no lumps and the mixture is smooth, about 1 minute. Cover and refrigerate until firm at least an hour or overnight.

Step 2: In a stand mixer with the whisk attachment or using a hand mixer, whip the heavy cream on medium speed for about 1 minute until the cream starts to thicken. Increase the speed to medium-high and whip the heavy cream until stiff peaks form. Be careful not to over-whip.

Step 3: Carefully add the pudding mixture to the whipped cream and mix on low speed until blended and no streaks of pudding remain.

Step 4: Using either a trifle bowl or a wide glass bowl with a 4- to 5-quart capacity, spread one-quarter of the pudding over the bottom and layer with one-third of the cookies [save 4 to 5 cookies for the garnish on top] and about 1 to 1 1⁄2 of the sliced bananas — enough to cover the layer. Repeat the layering twice more. End with a final layer of pudding. Garnish the top with additional cookies or cookie crumbs.

Step 5: Cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 4 to 6 hours. Cookies should be tender when poked with a knife. It’s best served within 12 hours of assembling. Enjoy!

Here’s to many magical moments in 2021! Happy New Year!