SMYRNA, Ga. — The weather outside may be frightful, but one Smyrna dad is making his backyard so delightful.
"This 20-24 inches (of snow) is the most I've made," Marc Casey said. "With this amount of cold days, I'm just trying to see how much snow I can maximize."
His backyard resembles a winter wonderful you typically can't find in the South. It features sledding, snowballs and a snowman.
"Every year, we try to do it and get out and get the kids out in the neighborhood," he said. "So far, it's been a success. There were only a couple of nights where I've made ice versus snow and that's just trial and error."
This is Casey's fourth snowmaking season. He started playing the role of Jack Frost when his daughter asked Santa Claus for a snowy Christmas.
"I started looking up and researching and Googling exactly what I could do here in Atlanta," he said. "I found that you can make a snow gun, which consists of connecting a pressure washer and an air compressor to make snow in cold temperatures."
He said the weather has to have the right humidity and temperatures below freezing. Nighttime is typically the most productive time to make snow. Daytime is when the kids come to enjoy it.
"The favorite part for me is just seeing the kids' faces when they come in and them sledding and seeing how snowy they get," Casey said. "Some of the kids in the neighborhood, this is their first time seeing snow or playing in it. They're trying to figure out, 'What is this stuff, why is it like this, and why is there so much?"'