I enjoy snowblowing. I usually use the snowblower to clear the driveway and the patio. Sometimes, I do the sidewalks too, especially if Ted is going to clear a neighbor’s driveway when I finish–then it’s his turn to play with our winter toy.

This year, we had a 2-day snowstorm that dropped 6 inches of snow the first day, followed by 9 more inches of snow the following day. The elderly lady, whose driveway Ted used to clear, has moved away, and the other widow neighbor hired a person to clear her driveway, so Ted played with our snowblower for the first 6 inches. I’m glad he did because, after the 9 inches fell, the snowbanks Ted created along the edges were just visible enough for me to see where I should go on the second day instead of needing to find where the concrete ended. He also cleared the sidewalks while I worked on the driveway and the patio.

The weather was very dry and very cold, so this was a light snow. You can tell by how high the snowblower is blowing it. “Light” is a relative term, however. Even if it’s light snow, 15 inches of it is heavy.

In the photo below, you can see the blown snow accumulating against the hot tub. Yes, even if it’s not clear in the pictures, I’m smart enough to blow the snow to the side, not ahead of myself.

We are a rarity in our neighborhood. Our snowblower can handle a foot of snow–usually enough in our area–but if heavy snow is expected, we take advantage of any breaks in the snowfall to clear the accumulated snow and then we clear it again after more snow falls. We think of this as a great way to get outside and to play in the snow! Our neighbors who usually wait for the storm to pass, had a hard time shoveling 15 inches of snow out of their double-wide driveways. Even those with snowblowers had to resort to using a shovel. Several of our neighbors hired a man with a small tractor and a scoop to clear their driveways.

The scoop did the job for our neighbors in far less time than Ted and I spent with our snowblower, but Ted and I had a lot more fun than those who watched the tractor guy work for a short while. When we finished, we felt invigorated and happy. Let’s hear it for exercise and endorphins!