Orchard Park, N.Y. (WBEN) - The warmer winter weather in Western New York arrived just in time, as kids across the region were able to enjoy a morning of fun as schools kick off their mid-February break this week.
"It's really nice, for sure. I love the snow, so it's great," said Kurtis, enjoying the sledding hills of Chestnut Ridge Park in Orchard Park.
"Winter, it's my favorite because Christmas and Valentine's Day, and other holidays in winter," added Ian. "I love sledding. It's been my favorite thing in the winter of my whole life."
While the kids enjoy the sledding and other outdoor activities during the week-long break, even the parents are enjoying the time with their family.
"It's wonderful. The kids get an opportunity to be outside, it's a perfect day for this. It's not freezing cold like it has been, and this is a great hill for them to enjoy," said Jamie from Clarence.
"It's wonderful. It's so fun to see the kids so happy. It's nice to get out and be active," added Alanna from Buffalo. "We're so hearty here in Western New York, so it's just fun to bring that hardiness outside to the winter. And it's just fun to see the kids enjoy each other, interact, things like that."
While the chance for some sledding and tobogganing at Chestnut Ridge Park was on the docket for many families this week, there's plenty of other winter activities to enjoy as a family this week.
"It's awesome. We've done a few things outside already - built a snowman, a little snow fort, and also just hanging outside and playing video games," said Peter, Kurtis' dad.
"It's their favorite thing I think about winter is having this week to be able to do things that they maybe don't always get to do during the school year," Jamie added.
Monday's conditions were great for sledding and other outdoor activities, with temperatures surpassing the freezing mark and remaining clear of precipitation. Many families are pleased that the cold winter temperatures have lifted, and appear to be on the way out.
"It has been really brutal this winter, so to have these nice days, you can get out and snow shoes, ski, enjoy that winter sport season we get in Buffalo and Western New York has just been great," Alanna said. "And it's nice to be able to drive in the Southtowns for once. So yeah, it's been great."
"It's nice to be able to be outside. It was too cold to have them outside for any extended period of time, so the fact that we could be out here sledding for a couple hours is great," Jamie added.
And the weather lifting also allows for some parents to get to work on some important to-do items as the spring approaches.
"The biggest benefit for me is I have a very large ice dam on my roof that I'm excited to get cleared out. I need a little bit of warmth to get that gone," Peter said.