Life–Thursday, December 5, 2013

The big news around here is that it is COLD! Of course, we live in the Great White North, so this shouldn’t be a surprise. Yet, somehow, it seems to be shocking when it happens every year. This year, our first sub-zero temps appear to be happening about a month earlier than they did last year, but still within the normal time frames for the upper Midwest.

We had some snow several days ago, followed yesterday by rain, followed today by cold, followed tonight by “stupid cold” (as PWM says). And this leaves us with ice. Not ice, like an ice storm, thankfully. But, ice, as in ice on the ground. Wild Man is responsible for keeping the sidewalks next door at the apartment complex clean and dry and de-iced during the winter, while PWM takes care of our house and shop areas. Unfortunately, the area right outside our side door is a low spot and is perfect for water to pool and freeze (and where I fell on my butt twice last year). PWM is working hard to keep it dry and ice-free this year. My poor butt is still recovering from last year.

So, we’re breaking out the heavy coats and multiple layers. And hoping for just a smidge more snow before Christmas so everything looks nice and white and fresh. But not a blizzard. Please, God, no blizzards anytime soon!

7 Quick Takes Friday – 3/26/2010

We’ve had a good week around here.  Lots is happening, but it’s mostly positive.

1. My dad had a couple of skin lesions biopsied within the last few months and they both turned out to be melanoma-in-situ, which means that they are cancer but completely contained within the epidermis.  Complete excision of both lesions is considered a cure so all he needs now is to wear long sleeves and long pants (in South Florida!) and to have his skin checked regularly.  We are incredibly thankful that the lesions were caught before they spread!

2. I finished knitting my spring sweater this week so I am blocking it in my closet.  We’ve been trying to make sure the doors to our master bedroom and closet both stay closed so that none of the cats find the sweater and decide to take a nap on top of it!!  I’m hoping to find a skirt to match so I can wear it for Easter!

3. Wild Man and Mr. Math Tutor have gotten into radio-controlled airplane flying.  They have been playing with computer simulators all week and purchased an RC plane/glider last night.  Hopefully, we will have a nice calm day soon so they can actually try out the plane.  Yes, I will post pictures!

4. I got a hankering to move furniture like I do every spring.  Thankfully, my need was satisfied this year by just moving an end table so I didn’t make myself sore for a week or anything terrible like that!

5. I took Rosie Girl and a friend to the Appleton library tonight to get books for them to read on their Choir trip next week as well as to Sam’s club to buy snacks.  Since we were in town, we went ahead and ate out at the Chinese buffet – it was a fun evening for the three of us!

6. When backing out of the driveway earlier this week, I realized one of the nicest things about the snow melting – not having a six foot snow bank to have to maneuver around!

7. I had a terrible migraine yesterday, so I had to cancel my lunch with my friend, but she came over here for an hour to visit!  I missed the Senior Nutrition Center and my weekly lunch date because of migraines, so I was really glad that my friend was able to take some time out of her work day to spend with me.  And, I think it was good for her, too, because she’s been working like crazy getting everything ready for Easter Sunday services!

Check out 7 Quick Takes Friday to see what others have been up to!!

Winter Camp Wrap-up

While at winter camp this weekend, I wrote four blog posts.  I couldn't post them until we got home, though, so they showed up on here about an hour ago.  We can't get Wi-Fi at camp, but Mr. Math Tutor was able to access the internet on his Blackberry.  Don't worry, though, he didn't use it for any entertainment purposes.  He only checked the weather.

My migraine Friday night kept me in bed until lunchtime.  Mr. Math Tutor and the kids were good enough, though, to bring me some breakfast.  I'm glad they did because breakfast was waffles and bacon - YUM!  After lunch, Ga'hoole Girl and I went on a sleigh ride.  It was definitely nippy, but fun.  If you look at the tree in the middle of the picture, you might see a brown smudge which is the porcupine that was up the tree.

Saturday afternoon, Ga'hoole Girl and I went to a class about maple syrup in which we learned how maple syrup is obtained and processed.  On Sunday, all four of us went to a class on snow ice cream.   We had tried to make snow ice cream a few years ago by mixing condense milk with snow, but I wasn't really thrilled with the results.  In this class, we mixed sugar with half-and-half and coffee flavorings, then stirred in snow.   Of course, since we were in the Nature Center, we learned about how ice cream forms, and why snow ice cream is possible.  I made a chocolate-mint ice cream, which was pretty good.

We were supposed to get 7-9 inches of snow on Saturday night, but it turned out to only be one inch.  Further south, though, there was freezing rain and rain.  We were glad that we were staying through lunch on Sunday so that the roads were in better shape.    We had a quiet night in our room on Saturday night and then enjoyed a delicious breakfast on Sunday morning.  Mr. Math Tutor and I went for a walk to and on the lake.  I still can't get over being  able to walk on the lake in January and swim in it in July.  Of course, I don't usually swim at camp since the water is so cold.  Wonder why that is?!

I was a little bummed that I didn't get to go skiing, but having a cold and getting over a migraine was a combination that did not lend itself to spending an hour falling down in the snow.  We really enjoyed the weekend, though.  It was a nice way to start the New Year as a family.

Winter Wonderland

I am writing from camp right now, but since there’s no internet connection here, this won’t get posted till we get home tomorrow afternoon or Monday.  This is our second year to enjoy a weekend in the Northwoods in the winter.  Our trip here was mildly interesting.  Before we left home, we couldn’t get the hood on the car to completely latch.  It was probably due to the cold, because we got it to latch when we stopped to pick up some stuff in town.  (We were going to stop at the car place to see if they could fix it before we left – thankfully, we didn’t have to.) 

When we were about 30 minutes from camp (about 2 hours from home), I realized that I left my coat at home!  It was cold when we left home, but I had just run from the house to the car in my sweatshirt and never noticed that I had left my coat, hat, and gloves inside.  We have made do, though.  Mr. Math Tutor had an extra pair of gloves and an extra hat, then bought a lined windbreaker from the canteen.  So, for $40, we managed to keep us from freezing.

We got here just in time for dinner last night and then hoped to ski or tube.  Sadly, though, it was below zero after dinner, so we stayed in for the evening.  I got a migraine in the middle of the night, so I didn’t do any outdoor activities until after lunch.

Mr. Math Tutor and Wild Man did some cross-country skiing after breakfast.  Then, Mr. Math Tutor and Ga’hoole Girl went ice skating.  They also did a session in the nature center where they learned to make snow ice cream.  After lunch, the kids and I did a couple of runs down the tube hill. It was fun, but I’m sure I’ll be sore from climbing the stairs.  Ga’hoole Girl and I went on a sleigh ride and then learned about maple syrup at the nature center.

We are forecast to get 5-7 inches of snow here tonight, so we aren’t planning to do any more Winter Wonderland activities tonight.  We’ll have to see about tomorrow morning.  Except for the migraine, this is turning out to be a great start to the new year!

Enough Snow Already!!!

I like snow.  I figure that if you have to put up with the cold temperatures of the Great White North, it is at least nice that you get lovely snow to look at and play in.  But, I think we've actually had more snow than I like this year.

By Christmas Day, we had had a good three feet of snow already this season.  Then, yesterday, it got really warm and some of the snow melted - mostly what was on the streets and driveways.  Before the water could evaporate, though, it got cold again so the water froze into ice and it snowed.  The forecast was for 1-2 inches of snow.  We got 5-6! 

Mr. Math Tutor was in charge of deciding whether or not to have church services today since the pastors are out of town.  He decided to go ahead with both services.  Then, on the way through town, got stuck in a snow drift!  You see, we live on the end of Main Street that isn't actually a highway.  The plows do all the highways first, then come back and do the regular town streets.  So, they had plowed part of the intersection that Mr. Math Tutor was going through, but left a drift - on top of the ice.  Our poor little Malibu just couldn't handle it.  Mr. Math Tutor got unstuck and came back home.  He got out the snowblower and took care of our driveway then waited for the plow to do our end of the street so he could plow the drift in front of our driveway left by the plow.  He got to church OK and on time for the last half of the second service.  He was supposed to run sound today, but it probably didn't matter for the early service since very few people probably came out in this weather!

The drifts of snow in front of our house are over four feet high what with the snow that has fallen plus the snow thrown by the snowblowers and plows.  It's great for playing!

Icky Weather

We have certainly had a White Christmas around here!  The Green Bay new station said that we have had about 36 inches of snow this year, while the normal is 13 inches.  Then, there were even a couple more inches this morning.  Earlier this week, it was below zero for most of the day.  Today, it's in the upper 30s and the top layer of snow is trying to melt.  And, it's getting foggy outside.

Mr. Math Tutor and I went in the backyard and put on our cross-country skis for a little bit.  We can't really do much skiing - it's more like snow-shoeing in skis - but it gets us outside and used to the skis.  The temperature is so warm that the snow was starting to melt on the skis, making them stick.

I went outside to get the mail, and the ice from the roof is dripping down right by the front steps.  It's pretty icy there, and I slipped.  I didn't fall, but I pulled the muscles in the front of my shoulder when I held on to the railing.

I'll be happy when we get back to normal winter weather.  It is supposed to be back in the 20s next week with a little more snow.  A week from today, we go up North for some skiing, tubing, and general fun at camp.  I'm praying for nice weather and lots of good snow!

What about you?  Have you gotten to play outside lately - in the snow or in the warm weather?

Cold

I'd like to blog right now, but it's so cold everywhere, and especially in my sunroom where the computer is, that I am just going to curl up under a blanket until the temperature creeps above zero - or maybe until summer.

Our Winter Wonderland

Earlier this week, we got almost a foot of snow.  Add to that the four inches that was already on the ground, and we have a veritable winter wonderland around here!

 

 

 

 

 

Here is the front of our house with Ga'hoole Girl's snow fort in front of the window.  The walls are a good 3 or 4 feet high.  Ga'hoole Girl's chore is to shovel the front steps and walkway.  She often also shovels part of the driveway and the sidewalk, although when we got a foot of snow, she let Mr. Math Tutor get those areas with the snowblower!

In the backyard, we have a very small sledding hill as well as a very small cross country (cross yard?) ski track that I set up a few days ago.  When Mr. Math Tutor blows snow off the driveway, he piles it all up in the backyard for sledding.  The kids pulled out sleds and have been sledding for a few days.  Mr. Math Tutor got the skis down on Tuesday so I could start skiing, one of the very few exercises that I actually enjoy. 

It's hard to see the hill and the ski tracks in the above pictures, but here you can see Ga'hoole Girl on her sled (yes, they stand) going down the hill.  It's more like a large bump than a hill, but they are waiting for more snow so they can enlarge it.

I would have never thought that I would have become a fan of winter since I grew up just a few miles from the beach in South Florida, but I figure that if I have to put up with snow for 4 or 5 months of the year, I may as well learn to enjoy it.  So, how is winter where you are?  I got a picture from my brother-in-law in New Orleans showing some actual snow on the cars this morning!!  If you are a Southerner, how did you enjoy your glimpse of "real" winter?

 

Life in Rural Wisconsin

Coming home from dance class and shopping tonight, I saw a van with a recently hunted deer tied to the back end. Now that I have been in rural Wisconsin for almost 12 years, I am getting used to this sight. For the first few years, I was taken aback every time I saw a car or truck with a dead animal strapped to the top. Eating such an animal never really occurred to me at the time, being brought up suburban and all that. But times change. Now I'm happy to get deer meat from friends who kill more than their own families will eat. And, my family is thrilled, too.

Our first year here, I had an interesting experience with deer. I was on obstetrics call one night in the fall. Sometime after midnight, I was called in to deliver a baby. The birth went well, and I finished all my paperwork. I decided to take the "back way" home since it was a little quicker. We lived about eight minutes from the hospital and the "back way" involved going out of town into the country by several farms. On the way home, I came across two deer, almost hitting one. As I got into bed at about 3am, I told my husband that I'd better go through town from now on to avoid deer. A whopping fifteen minutes later, the hospital called and needed me to come in immediately to see a pregnant woman with elevated blood pressure and preterm labor (that will sure get my blood pressure up!). Of course, I decided to go through town instead of taking the country roads. As I got into town, I turned on the main residential street with lots of old homes, and saw, to my great amazement and dismay, three deer walking side by side down the road - just like in that TV show "Northern Exposure"! They were facing away from me and didn't make any move to get out of my way until I was practically on top of them! I got to the hospital and took care of the patient, transferring her to more appropriate care and headed back home. When I settled into bed again (this time around 5am), I told the story to my husband and said that if I came across a moose walking down the street (a la "Northern Exposure"), we were moving back down South. Needless to say, the deer and I have made peace, and we are still enjoying life in the Great White North!

COLD!

Yes, I know that since we live in the "Great White North", I should expect cold weather. But, I'm having a hard time getting myself revved up to go outside now that it is -15 degrees F. But, Wild Man is singing in church with the rest of the kids, so I really need to go to church. I guess the question is how much do I love the kid? Well, that's an easy one - so, I'm all layered up and ready to go.

The really crazy thing is that there is going to be a football game at Lambeau Field this afternoon - even though it is going to be in the single digits. Maybe it's not so bad for the players since there are heaters on the sidelines, but the fans who sit out there in this frigid weather are just nuts!

Addendum: I just went out to start the van. As a friend of mine says, "It's a real nostril-freezer out there!" Indeed, it is. Even with a scarf over my face, I ended up with icicles inside my nose. After less than five minutes. EEK. What a day! And, Ga'Hoole Girl has an audition this afternoon for an Honors recital. Guess I'll stay all wrapped up.