ZIP ZOP ZIP ZOP ZIP ZOP
Ah, the lovely nylon-y sound of snowsuits. Mom brought them home for Big Sister and I. They were navy blue with red reflector material sewn on the arms and an awesome belt around the waist. The material was so shiny and slick that at first, we were afraid to put them on for fear of ruining them. However, greed won out and we put them on to see if they fit.
They fit perfectly. Mom was thinking, she bought them each a size bigger so we could hopefully wear them the following year. (We were always being threatened with putting a brick on our heads so we would cease growing.)
I pulled the zipper up under my chin and buckled the belt at my waist. I pulled the hood up and Mom tied the hood under my chin. I felt all toasty warm in my new snowsuit. In fact, I was so warm, I was ready to go outside right then and there and sled down the front yard.
One problem...no snow.
"Well, they fit pretty good," Mom said, untying my hood, "So, let's get these off and wait for the first sledding snow."
Wait a minute...I wasn't ready for that. I wanted to wear my snowsuit around the house, sleep in it! I wanted to stay this nice and toasty all night long. How can you bring these into the house and not expect us to want to wear them around?
Big Sister took hers off and hung it on the peg by the door. I could almost see her halo glow brighter.
Well, Mom is not getting this off me without a fight. My devil horns started to grow.
"No! I wanna wear it around!" I held the zipper under my chin defiantly.
"Jenny," Mom warned, "you can't wear it in the house, you will get too hot."
"NO!"
"Jenny, take off that snowsuit right now." She was getting that look. You know the one, lips pursed until they turn white, eyes flashing, cheeks flushing...
"No." I said less emphatically.
"Jennifer Ellen, you take that off right now or you are going to be real sorry!"
whoops...I got both names. Maybe I should rethink my strategy.
"After my bath, can I try it on again?" I was trying to sound more childlike than my advanced age of 3.
"We will see. In the meantime, take it off and hang it by your sister's."
Slowly, I unzipped the snowsuit and undid the belt, I stepped out of it with my head hanging like a whipped dog. I glanced up to see Big Sister smirking at me as if to say, "See if you were perfect like me, you wouldn't always get into trouble."
I stuck my tongue out at her. Big mistake, I forgot Mom was standing right there. "Jennifer!"
Man, I hated it when she called me by my full name. I was always in trouble whenever she used it. (And frankly, she had used it a lot when I was a kid and well into my teenage years and occasionally into my 20's and 30's.)
That was the nail in the coffin. I didn't get to try on my snowsuit after my bath.
