This morning as my two older kids were piling on their winter gear for the trek to their school I had a flashback of myself as a child of around the same age and how much I loathed my snow pants. Oh how I loathed them. Especially on days when I had to wear a dress, though I don’t know which was worse, a dress in snow pants or the saggy crotch of the leotards that were just a little too short in the legs, but I digress …
It generally takes some prodding to get Owen and Lily to put their snow pants on. Yesterday Lily tried to sneak not putting them on and I made her take her backpack, coat and boots off and start from scratch. Today as Owen slowly put one leg in and then the other he complained about how long it takes to get them on, and then I said it like only a mother can …
Me: “If you don’t wear them you’ll freeze to death and then what will you do?”
Owen: “But it takes so long to put them on and eats up my recess time! Like half of it!”
Me: “Too bad. And you might want to try putting them over your boots properly so snow doesn’t get in,”
Owen: “I don’t care if snow gets in my boots, I’ll be fine.”
Me: “You won’t be fine if your feet fall off from the cold.”
What? Me? Prompting people to wear winter gear? Properly!?! This can’t be right. I’m the girl who only bought a pair of winter boots (the first in over a decade) about 3 years ago. I’m the girl who, in high school, figured wearing a leather jacket and a pair of earmuffs was enough coverage for -20°C weather. I’m the girl who bought a parka (for you non-Canadians, that’s a winter coat) just to set a good example for the kids – and then realised a good winter coat makes a difference. I’m the girl who loathed snow pants.
Loathed. Past tense.
I don’t know if it comes with age or because I’m a mother or because I have a massive driveway that needs to be shoveled frequently in the winter, or simply because when I go outside I don’t want to be a popsicle, but I have found myself looking at new snow pants.
Like to buy. For me.
My parents were right. Please don’t tell them.
