Well there you have it folks, according to Punxsutawney Phil we have 6 more weeks of that blistering, windy, frigid, oh so cold weather we call winter. AND you wanna know what? I am actually o.k. with that. I have decided over the last few months that if I'm going to live in the Midwest for the rest of my life that I should embrace the cold weather and not ferociously dread every passing moment of it.
I mean the only other place that I would want to live would be England (I pray often that Matt takes a job in London, partially so my children would say things "blimey" and "wellies" in a cute British accent. I would be concerned about their teeth though). The point is, it's darn cold and wet in England too, so I might as well get used to it. Since I got Cuddl Duds (the best long underwear EVER, thanks Mom) I feel like I have cold weather armor on without all the bulk.
Matt and I are going skiing this weekend in Wisconsin on Cascade Mountain. Our friends Derek and Janna are going with us. We are so excited to get away. 3 out of the 4 of us have never been before. I am hoping I like it so we can make this a yearly tradition. It would make the long winter a little more bearable. Something to look forward to in the dead of Winter.
Speaking of the dead of Winter did you know that Ground Hog day came from a European tradition called Candlemas Day. Apparently February 2nd has always been a significant day because it marks the dead of winter. On this day, the clergymen would bless candles and hand them out to the people. As an old English song went;
"If Candlemas be fair and bright,
Come, Winter, have another flight;
If Candlemas brings clouds and rain,
Go Winter, and come not again."
History goes that the Roman legions brought the Candlemas tradition to the Germans, who constructed the idea that if the sun was out and an animal, in their case a hedgehog, cast a shadow, there would be six more weeks of winter. When the Germans came to Pennsylvania, they found groundhogs to be similar to the hedgehog used in their tradition. The groundhog was then adopted as the animal who determines the course of the winter season.
The official groundhog is named Punxsutawney Phil, who appears from his hole at Gobbler's Knole in Pennsylvania every year. The first recorded celebration of Groundhog Day, then still known as Candlemas Day, was in the year 1841 in Morgantown, PA. However, the first official Groundhog Day at Gobbler's Knole was in February of 1887.
Anyway, I hope you all enjoy today and maybe we should start thanking God for the Winter weather, I 'm trying.
