Mila is a bear in the morning. Actually, that's an insult to bears. Mila is more of a rabid rattlesnake who has just been stepped on by its ex-wife who ran off with all of the money. I've always thought I was bad at the whole waking up thing, but then she came along and showed me what bad really looks like. Mostly it looks like a tiny little kid growling and sneering and generally refusing to cooperate in any way. Mila doesn't turn human until she's been awake for an hour and even then, it's best if she watches some TV for a while before being expected to interact with mankind.
That's the long explanation for why I wake her up earlier than I need to before school every day. Technically she should be able to get dressed, eat, and brush her teeth in under ten minutes but HAHAHAHAHAHA. It takes Mila that long to stop glaring at her waffle long enough that she can take a bite out of it.
She is SO bad at mornings.
So. Very. Bad.
But then came this morning.
As is the case every school day, I burst into the bedroom and flipped on the light. "Rise and shine, Mila!" I always proclaim. Then I drag her out from under the blankets and carry her down to watch TV for a while. This morning was a little bit different. This time Mila curled into a tiny ball while in my arms like always, but I used one word to pry her little eyes open.
"Snow, Mila. Look outside," I whispered.
Mila clumsily pushed her hair out of her face and gave a side-eye to the window at the top of our stairs. It took a second for her eyes to lock in on what had changed overnight, but then her attention was pulled out the window and to the ground.
Her eyes open wide, Mila whispered back, "It's so boo-tiful!" She nudged her way out of my arms and walked straight over to the window where she stayed for several minutes, quietly admiring the soft coating of snow all over the grass. "Can I go to school? I want to play in the snow at recess!"
And that is the story of why we're moving to the North Pole. If all it takes to get Mila to cooperate with going to school is snow, BRING ON ALL OF THE SNOW.
