I had been moving about the house for almost an hour Saturday morning before I finally looked outside and saw the snow. And it was REAL snow. Not a light dusting but the stuff you could build a snowman with. Which is exactly what I did.

After breakfast Leanne (my nine year old host sister) began almost literally bouncing on the walls waiting for Lukas (host brother), Nora (host mom), and I to get ready for our snow walk. She had already been out once earlier and didn't want to lose her opportunity to attack us with snowballs before everything melted.

When we got outside the weather was perfect. Brisk air and sun. I was able to enjoy it for about five seconds before I was nailed with my first aforementioned snowball. We walked/ran through the snow covered streets trying to avoid the thrown snow until we came to the fields where there were less cars. The four of us worked together to build a snowman while simultaneously shoving snow down each others backs.

It's not everyday that someone finds themself with the opportunity to build up an arsenal of snowballs and begin launching but if someone is going to force feed you snow you know I'm going to fight back. Problem is that the "force feeder" was a foot taller than me with incredibly long arms and I was no match. I can now say I know how it feels to have an older brother. Thanks Lukas.

Somehow a snowman did come out of our battle. It was big and quite impressive if not a little dirty. I super loved this day. It was a bonding moment for me and my new host family and we all had a ton of fun. Nailing each other in the face with snow changes a relationship and in this case for the better. I'm super happy in this family and can't wait to spend the next five months with them.

The next day the snow had disappeared and it was sunny and 10 degrees (50F). It felt warm. Spring is that you? I guess we'll have to wait and see.