Okay, all of you by now know just how much I love the winter, the snow and making snowmen. I just love snowmen, and making them with our kids is just a memory that I love to think upon, although there was a Christmas, a Christmas in which our snowman making took on a whole new meaning, and goes down in history as one that will stand out forever!!! Here we are, my husband, Steve, me of course and all five of our children, bundled up almost to where we cannot move, having snowball fights, sleighing down our small hill, and laughing. I can still here the sounds now. At the time we had a big, beautiful Dalmatian, Lucky was his name. He is no longer with us, but oh, how we loved him. This day, as I had on a puffy, I mean puffy, bright red coat, the kids wanted me to get on the sleigh and go down the hill. So of course, I go back, get a running jump on my sleigh, and behind me far in the field, I see Lucky, he is flying through the field, he has his eyes set on me! I am thinking, "What in the world is this dog doing?" I mind you, all of our kids are standing right there watching and waiting. Just as I begin to run, I hit the sleigh, and Lucky hits me, only he doesn't just hit me, he wraps his paws around me and is going on the ride. As I am riding the sleigh, he is riding me! I am yelling, screaming for him to get off, but the more I move, the more he moves, and this unholy sight takes place all the way down the hill! I hear Jake saying, "Ooh, Mom, whats he doing", I hear Whitney saying, "Oh, mommy what is that thing", as Ashley and Lacey are saying, "Oh gross!!!", Dustin and my husband are at the bottom of the hill laughing so hard they cannot move!! Needless to say, I never wore that red coat again, and I never went down that hill again. My husband says, "Oh, I wish we had that on video!" So as our Christmas memories come to mind, this little story has been told to many, I have been the joke of many laughs. You never really know what will happen at the Prater home on Christmas, but one thing is for sure, we will be laughing for years to come! I pray your Christmas will be filled with memories that make you laugh, bring tears of joy to your eyes and those that you can pass down for generations to come.
