I couldn't believe my ears this morning as I woke to the radio alarm: Saratoga Springs and Ballston Spa school districts were delayed by two hours. Saratoga ended up closing all together, disappointing my kids, who still had to go.

No snow this time, but frrrrrigid temperatures (way below zero) had the buses refusing to cooperate.

I snapped at my son when he let out a loud "Aw, man," upon seeing it was a delay instead of a cancellation. "You've got to be kidding me. It's like you guys have hardly even been at school lately. You need to go to school."

Of course, with another storm possible mid-week, the happy dance may erupt in my house -- again.

Apparently all the local kids have been sleeping with their pajamas inside out and spoons under their pillows. At least that's what my kids have heard through the elementary school grapevine as ways to ensure a snow day will be called.

If my husband weren't on a seasonal layoff from work, we'd be among the hundreds of local families scrambling when the district calls for a snow day or delay. Typically, I would call the Ballston Area Community Center, where my kids are enrolled in the afterschool program. They have a limited number of spots for child care on snow days, so I would get on the phone as close to 6 a.m. as possible to be sure we got a spot.

In the case of a delay, there's no getting around it: I'm going in late to work. However, I can usually work from home a bit so I don't lose too much ground.

There's no way around it for a working mom, though. Snow days and delays will get cheers from our kids -- and jeers from us.