It was a gorgeous Northern Canadian morning, only -15, barely needed a jacket. We’d only been home from our Christmas vacation a day and the kids were itching to get outside and play in all the snow that fell while we were away. There’s something special about being the first one to make tracks in untouched snow.
Looking out from my deck at the ocean of white in my back yard I was reminded of my youth when I would head out with a couple of friends into a snow-covered field near our place. We’d all bring shovels and before too long the field would become an intricate series of tunnels, paths, and snow forts. I decided to recreate those memories for my kids. Three days later we had a Winter Wonderland in our back yard.
Day 1: Shoveling
I shoveled and shoveled and shoveled. I haven’t had that much exercise in years and it felt great. By the end of the day I had created a labyrinth in the snow, several huge hills, some open play areas, and cleared the pond for skating.
I shoveled until my fingers bled and my hands were blistered.
Piling snow against the back fence for a sliding hill.
Taking a rest and admiring the fruits of my labor.
My daughter couldn’t wait to climb the sledding hill.
Creating the labyrinth was a lot of work, but worth it.
Eventually I made it to the pond. It was covered in snow. More shoveling. Now it’s ready for skates.
A view of the labyrinth from my deck.
As I dug a winding path through the snow, my son followed behind me, impatiently waiting to get to the sand table and his toys.
Day 2: Build a Quincy or Two
A Quincy is a sort of igloo. You pile snow into a long mound and let it rest overnight. The next day the snow will have packed together strong enough for you to carve out openings and rooms into the mound.
Day 2 was a balmy -5. The warm weather really helped the snow pack making Quincy construction very successful.
My wife carved a room into a snow mound to create a Quincy. She had such a good time she made two.
The kids were so excited to climb into the Quincy.
Day 3: Adding some Pizzazz
I decided to take our back yard Winter Wonderland to the next level and paint the snow. We used food coloring and water in spray bottles. We used hot water so our hands wouldn’t get too cold from the over-spray and leaky spray bottles. It was messy work but tons of fun.
Painting the snow.
Soon the whole family was painting the snow.
We headed in when it started to get dark and I took this final shot of our back yard Winter Wonderland.
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Use the comments below to tell a story of an adventure you’ve had with your family in the back yard.
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About James Hudyma
First off, put a hat on, James!!!
Secondly, wow. Just wow. At first I was floored by the amount of snow you already have and horrified by the negative temperatures you speak of, but then I saw the final two pictures of your photo journey with the colors and the paths and the quincy and I know you are creating awesome memories for your kids. Just like the vivid and lasting memories you have of your childhood. That’s that priceless stuff the TV talks about.
Well done, my friend. Very well done.
“horrified” my wife and I laughed pretty hard at that. You should be here when it gets really cold.
If only we lived closer, you could come over with the boys and we’d have a massive snowball fight.
Just want to say “hats off” to you! Seriously, I wish there were more dads like you and the world would be a better place for sure! Awesome job, awesome example you are setting ….your mom will be very proud I’m sure.
Thanks so much. She is proud. She told me on Facebook.
James these pictures were great!! Thanks for sharing them! SO MUCH SNOW!
Thanks Jen. The pictures don’t do justice to how good it looks in real life. We did get a little more snow than usual this year.
That looks like a lot of fun. I live where it gets snowy and cold but nothing like that. Your pics almost made me wish it were so. I would probably wear gloves when I was doing the shoveling though.
I wear gloves when it’s cold.
…almost… ha ha! I did start out with gloves but then I got too hot.
Fantastic!! That just makes me wanna get the kids dressed and walk over and play !!
It supposed to be pretty warm next week. You’ll have to bring over the brood.
That is just amazing! Great job there, I know the kids had to love it, mine would.
Thanks! I’m really proud of it. My kids do love it. It’s snowed a couple inches since then so we have to repaint. More fun!
i just had time to see your creation. i wish i could have been there to play with the kids. it looks fantastic. great to see my grandbabies are outside getting fresh air and exercise instead of sitting around playing with electronics.
Man, that looks like so much fun. We got 2 inches of snow over the weekend (St. Louis, MO) & my boys went bananas over it. I can’t imagine what they’d do in your backyard awesomeland. Very cool. Nice going.
-Kevin
You’re crazy and not because of the temperatures. That’s just too much shoveling. If I did that I’d probably have a heart attack.