Snow Fun and s'NOw Fun

Seattle only gets snow about one or two weeks a year, which I generally consider to be just the right amount to enjoy, without having to deal with it on a regular basis.  Since snow is a relatively rare occurrence, when it started to snow last weekend, the kids were delighted.  And since this year we actually have proper snow gear, it actually was rather delightful to get out and play in the fluffy white stuff.

It took a few days to build up a tolerance and understanding of how to play in the snow, but after three or four days, we finally managed to stay out and play for a couple hours (most days we'd top out at 30 min. to an hour - we still have some Florida left in us, I guess).

Aubree and Bryce's favorite activity was throwing snow balls at each other, a remnant of their time with Uncle Seth (more on that soon).  Aubree could also frequently be found eating snow and building snow castles.  Thane did great the first few days, but as the snow drifts got deeper, he got frustrated that he couldn't keep his footing and kept falling down.

Unfortunately, the good times were not destined to continue.  Wednesday night the temperature warmed up just enough that instead of snow, we received significant amounts of freezing rain.  We woke up to find all of our trees coated with at least an inch of ice on every branch.  After eating breakfast, the kids and I were looking out the window at all the crazy looking trees and bushes, when, CRASH!, right before our eyes (and only 3 feet away), the tree in our front yard fell (roots and all) onto the ground.  Thankfully it fell away from the house and didn't hit any people or property.  Bryce's immediate response was to cry.  Not because he was scared, but because, as he stated, "I really didn't want that tree to fall."  My immediate response was to think, "it's days like these when I'm really glad we're just renting."

Also, since Seattle doesn't get snow often, when snow does come, the whole city essentially shuts down.  Snow plows? What are they?  So, from Tuesday on, Mark was working from home.  That started out really well (the kids didn't know he was home), and got progressively more difficult for a variety of reasons.  After the tree fell on Thursday, Mark came running upstairs and commented, "what do we need to do to prepare for a power outage, because with this weather, it's bound to happen."

Within a couple hours, his prediction proved true.  The first day without power wasn't too bad, I guess.  We have a gas fireplace that we could turn on when it got too cold and bundled up in lots of blankets.  Of course, we had cold cereal for dinner, but we were relatively safe and warm.

Though outside our home might have looked a little like it had been hit by a hurricane, Mark and I realized that the biggest difference between losing your power due to a Florida hurricane compared to an Washington ice-storm, is that in Washington there's a very simple trick to save all your fridge and freezer food from spoiling - put it outside.

The storm continued that night, albeit more mildly.  I spent many hours laying awake listening to trees crack and fall.  In the morning we discovered all the trees in our backyard looking suspiciously like weeping willows.  The power was still out and the kids and I had been cooped up* in the house since Monday (because all of our regular activities had been cancelled and the roads were impassible).  Mark braved the roads to work and I decided we were going to get out and do something no matter what! (*As a brief aside - this week taught me an important lesson: no social interaction makes Erin a very grumpy and unmotivated person).

So we trekked to Target and had (a hot!) lunch and gathered what additional supplies we might need for an extended power outage.  When we returned home, we were thrilled (beyond thrilled), to discover the power had returned.  Hurray!!!  Hurray for power!!  Oh, I feel like such a spoiled wimp, but I really, really like electricity.  Some people in our ward are still without power and I feel so bad for them (and I'm also really thankful it's not us).  Regardless, I'm pretty much done with snow this year.