Features Editor

Snow is an oddity in Alabama, so when the flakes fall, everybody seems to go a bit nutty about the white stuff.

The year 2002 was ushered in with a January snow and Jan Hendricks rushed out with her children to take this rare opportunity to build a snowman.

But, today’s liberated world dictated a Mrs. Snowman, too. So, they built two – Mr. and Mrs. Snowman.

And, just like Frosty the Snowman, the Hendricks’ Mr. Snowman melted into a puddle when the sun came out, but not Mrs. Snowman; she held firm.

"Since she didn’t melt, I thought it would be fun to put her in the freezer and take her out during the summer," Mrs. Hendricks said. "I had read about a summer snowman party in a magazine and it sounded like a lot of fun."

So, Mrs. Frosty stayed icy cold during winter, through the spring and into the summer in her home in the Hendricks’ deep freeze.

Then, came the Dog Days of summer. What better time to have a snowman party than in the hottest time of the year.

Mrs. Hendricks began to make plans for a summer snowman party.

She invited the neighborhood children to come to a party on Aug. 2.

A snowman party promised to be the "coolest" party of the summer.

She baked a snowman cake, spread snowman peanut butter sandwiches and crushed buckets of ice to make snowcones. The children arrived in their swim suits to counter the hot, sunshine. They splashed in the wading pool and giggled under the sprinkler as they waited for the guest of honor to arrive.

At 10:24 a.m., Mrs. Hendricks went inside, opened the freezer and brought out Mrs. Snowman For her party, Mrs. Snowman was dressed in a bright green scarf and a summer straw hat.

For the first time in seven months, she saw the sunshine.

Mrs. Snowman was placed in an honored spot and the sunlight glistened off her. She stood there proudly as the children greeted her one by one.

As the sun beat down, Mrs. Snowman’s hat began to tilt and the children straightened it again.

Her scarf began to slip and the children pulled it up. When her head rolled off her body, someone was that to put it back.

The children ran and played and Mrs. Snowman sat there quietly melting away – just as any snowman would in the summer sun.

Then, two hours and 15 minutes after Mrs. Snowman came out to sun, she had melted away. But, the children didn’t cry because they knew that, just like Frosty, she’ll come back again one day.

She may come back soon as a soft summer shower or she may wait and come again as an unexpected snow, but there’s one thing for sure, when she does come back, she’ll be ready to party with the kids on Sherwood Avenue.