I find this hard to believe, but when I first moved to Ottawa twelve years ago, I actually didn’t mind the winter. Sure, it was freezing cold here and there was a ton of snow. But Toronto winters are so dull and grey and boring, whereas Ottawa winters are bright and sunny and filled with lots of fun outdoor activities.
When you have three kids who have to get into snowpants and boots and hats and mitts every time you leave the house, then have to squeeze into three car seats (OH MY GOD, do I ever HATE car seats)…winter kind of sucks. Not to mention days when it’s too cold to leave the house, so we’re all trapped inside, at each others throats all day. Ugh.
The other day I was whining about how much I hate winter and how long the next few months are going to be, and then Gal Smiley chirped up and said, “At least there aren’t any bugs!” Which is true. I hate bugs almost as much as car seats.
So I thought I’d challenge myself to come up with a list of things that I actually do like about winter. Well…things that are on the positive side of the line, at least.
Let’s see.
Still thinking.
Here’s one. It’s so cold out right now that there is ice forming and water pooling on the inside of all of my windows. The thickness of the ice is allowing me to see exactly which windows are troublemakers in terms of the insulation value of my house. I now know, thanks to an inch-thick layer of ice all around it, that my sliding door should be the first to be replaced. When we get around to replacing the windows. In 15 years or so.
Oh, and there’s the fact that the Frankenboots repel all winter cold and wet. They are like Superheroes of Winter. Every time I get them out of the closet, Sir Monkeypants says, “Man, those are SOME UGLY BOOTS.” Then the Frankenboots laugh in his face and kick winter in the ass. That’s nice.
Hot chocolate! That’s a good one. It’s yummy.
And, I don’t have to shave my legs as often. Except for the fact that I take Little Miss Sunshine swimming once a week. Damn, so close.
There’s crockpot soups. I love them. I still eat them in the summer, but somehow they are just have more soul in the wintertime. Of course, in the summer we have the BBQ to provide the soul food. And right now our BBQ is covered in three feet of snow. But this is a list of positives! We’re being positive about winter! Yes!
There’s the gas fireplace. Since we had it cleaned it’s been working perfectly — warm and cozy and non-smelly. I do love curling up on the couch at night with Sir Monkeypants in front of a bright fire. And speaking of being cozy with Sir Monkeypants, I love our flannel sheets. Snuggly!
And…um…oh! There’s no bugs.
What do you like about winter?
TurtleHead 
At the risk of being a party-pooper, I’ll just say that what I love about winter is that I can still (sometimes) wear shorts in January. Well, in California I can anyway 🙂
Seriously, though, I do share your perspective of the difference between winters in Toronto and in Ottawa. I have particular fondness of skating on the canal.
What do I like about winter….hmmm..that’s a tough one. Although I must admit I love when there is one of those heavy snowfalls overnight and we wake up to fresh, clean, sparkling snow covering all the tree branches – so beautiful
I traditionally moan about winter all winter and wish the months of January through March away. This year though I am making a conscious effort not to complain. I’ve been feeling wistful lately about how fast my kids are growing and changing…when April finally arrives I’ll wonder where the time went and how the kids got so big. So, I am trying my best to just enjoy each day this winter, but damn it’s cold! And all those snowsuits and carseats are a pain in the ass. But still, I’m trying to like it all.
I have a tough time with winter. But I do enjoy taking the boys to the outdoor skating rink in our neighbourhood. And M is super excited to learn how to skate, so as soon as this cold snap passes we will be teaching him.
I suppose I like skating on the canal. When it’s just the right temperature. And there is no wind. And the ice is pretty smooth. And there aren’t too many people.
But a couple of years ago when the canal never really froze and there wasn’t much skating and everyone was whining that there would be no skating on the canal that year, I did not complain ONCE.
In fact, I usually responded, “People! It’s a good thing that the canal hasn’t frozen! It means it’s not f-ing cold!”.
So what do I really like about winter?
Absolutely nothing.
I don’t.
Okay…well I suppose I do like
“Fairy Snow” the fresh snow that glistens or twinkles in the sunlight is called ‘fairy snow’ around here.
Sweaters, blankets, slippers, layering all that…I like wearing cozy clothes.
Snowstorms and snow days.
That might be it…I don’t like much about winter.