Never mind Christmas. Winter is all that counts!I woke up early this morning. There was a big chance of snowfall in the night and I knew right away that it had happened – the light that came trough the curtains was too bright to be anything else than snow. The feeling that the first snow creates just can’t be beaten. For a moment I felt 30 years younger, a small child who can hardly stop to eat breakfast because the call of falling snowflakes and promise of snowballs and snowmen are so irresistable… But, 30 years older, the smell of the morning coffee has a certain lure as well so I had my breakfast first! After that, the first steps outside were full of wonder. When you put down your foot and hear the snow crunch, there just isn’t anything that comes close. I took the first steps slowly, looking down at the snow and listening, listening… the happy smile on my face growing all the wider…

I know that this isn’t technically my first snow of the season. I was nearly snowed under already a month ago, but somehow it’s a completely different feeling to get snow at home than on a holiday in the mountains. Yes I had a great time hiking through the snowfall (worried as I was at times). But that was there – this is here. This is the real thing. And I’d better enjoy it while it lasts. The other day, they published a long term forecast which said that it will be a cold winter (yes!) but there will be little snow (oh no!).

Back in May, we got a surprise snowfall which was bad enough to prevent me from driving to work, summer tyres as I had on the car. Instead, I walked up to the Los church and photographed it through the falling snow, so it was only fitting that I would photograph the same church covered in first snow, as well. And ironically, I still have summer tyres on the car so we’ll see what the roads look like on Monday morning!

The beautiful lining on the trees finally gave me an opportunity to take a picture I have been planning all summer. This is what I call home – my house is just a little bit left of the middle, it can’t actually be seen but the garage nextdoor is clearly visible, and my closest neighbour peeks through the trees as well. Unfortunately there isn’t any viewpoint to see my house unless you come right up the street, but the view I get from my house overlooking the neighbourhood and the hills in the distance is all the better!