From afar, Joy Stahley’s three daughters were neon-colored dots clad in bright winter coats on the untouched blanket of snow covering the Mount Vista neighborhood.
But equipped with sleds and boundless energy, it wasn’t long before white gave way to green under Eden, 9, Elliette, 7 and Esme, 5.
“Lookit!” Esme squealed as she smushed her hand into the snow.
“A handprint,” she explained, smashing her foot into the spot. “Can turn into a footprint!”
The weather forecast and the calendar seemed to conspire Monday, putting students out of school for the Presidents Day holiday just in time to enjoy a bit of late winter snow. Two to 3 inches fell in some parts of Clark County.
Stahley home-schools her girls, meaning they’ll still get some work done regardless of the weather or the holiday. Not without a play break and some hot chocolate, though.
“They were pretty excited to see it stuck,” Stahley said as her daughters began to chuck snowballs at each other.
Nearby, friends Aiko Nies, 10, and Mya Ellertson, 9, clung to each other while sledding down a hill overlooking the Washington State University Vancouver campus. Mya’s brother, 2-year-old Mason, looked on, throwing the occasional snowball at his sister and her friend.
When asked about the best part of seeing snow, Mya, a fourth-grader at King’s Way Christian School, said “No school.”
“We’re on winter break,” she said. “But still.”
Brad Ellertson, Mason and Mya’s dad, and Eiko Nies, Aiko’s mom, watched as their children ran up and down the hill. By about 11 a.m. though, the snow was already melting in Salmon Creek and was all but gone in downtown Vancouver.
“People are still making the best of it,” Ellertson said.
After sledding on a path that was more grass than snow, Mya and Aiko came to a shuddering stop about halfway down the hill. That didn’t stop Mya from taking advantage of what surrounding snow was left.
“Well, while we’re here,” Mya said, flinging a snowball at her friend before they sprinted up the hill to try once more.
