SNOW ICE CREAM AND HOT CHOCOLATE

Well, the kiddos are out of school again so we're just hanging out around the house today.  Here in Arkansas, we don't get snow very often, maybe 2-3 days of snow per year.  We don't have snow plows here, so if it snows, the town pretty much shuts down.  School is almost always out if there is snow on the ground because of the roads out in the county that may be shaded and don't get much traffic.  This makes it dangerous for the buses to run, and therefore, no school.  So, we spend our time playing in the snow and throwing our clothes in the dryer and playing in the snow and throwing our clothes in the dryer again and eating things that I shouldn't be eating, considering I'm trying to lose a few pounds.  Our favorite thing to make is Snow Ice Cream.

SNOW ICE CREAM

8-10 cups of fresh, clean snow (put out a big bowl as soon as the snow starts)
1 can Eagle Brand
1 tsp vanilla

Dump it all in a bowl and mix it up with a wooden spoon or rubber spatula.  I do not recommend using a metal bowl or utensils.  It makes the snow melt to fast.

YUM!  Isn't Eagle Brand just the best stuff ever?  It's so yummy!  I've cut my finger on many a Eagle Brand can trying to make sure I get out every single drop of it.  I even cut my tongue on an Eagle Brand can once.  Not proud of it, but it did happen.  And, in case you're wondering about my diet, I only had a couple of bites and I did include it in my calorie count for the day. 

I know Snow Ice Cream is a big snow day tradition at many homes in the south.  Our other tradition?  Homemade Hot Chocolate.  When I say homemade, I mean the kind on the side of the Hershey's Cocoa can. 

HERSHEY'S FAVORITE HOT COCOA

1/2 c. sugar
1/4 c. Hershey's Cocoa
Dash Salt
1/3 c. hot water
4 c. milk
3/4 tsp vanilla extract

Mix sugar, cocoa and salt in a saucepan; stir in water.  Cook and stir over medium heat until mixgture boils; boil and stir 2 minutes.  Stir in milk and heat.  Do Not Boil!  Remove from heat; add vanilla.

See, the thing is, my kids love hot chocolate.  LOVE IT!  They even ask for it in the summer.  Usually, I just warm up their Ovaltine chocolate milk, because I'm too lazy to stand over the stove on just any old day.  BUT, on snow days, we have to make the real hot chocolate, the Favorite Hot Chocolate.  It's a tradition.

We also love to have snowball fights.  C kept throwing snowballs at me, so I finally had to pelt her back. 

Yep, got her right in the eye.  It was actually an accident.  She turned around right when I threw it, bus she's okay. 

The sun is out today and the snow is melting so I feel sure the kids will be in school tomorrow.  It's been a good few days of snow with them home. 

What are your snow day traditions?  Do you make Snow Ice Cream too?

I'm linking up to The CSI Project's Winter Challenge.