The 'Blizzard' of 2010

 

Tuesday night (2/9) the snow began to fall just before 5 pm. Thankfully, Shawn made it home safe and sound. It snowed all night and continued to fall all day Wednesday. This was the scene from our front door when I woke up on Wednesday morning. Notice that our mailbox is already almost completely buried.

Our neighbor, Paul, was up bright and early that morning and had already taken his mom to work, gone into work himself, come home and started to blow snow off our sidewalks before we had eaten breakfast or drank our coffee.

I made french toast (after all, that is the meal of choice in snow storms, right? You have to have your bread, milk and eggs...) and bacon for breakfast. Yum! After eating, Shawn went off to help our neighbor and begin cleaning off our cars. We also told the neighbors they could park in our driveway again. Here's the path Shawn shoveled to get out our door and to our car. And he's in the background next to my ride getting the snow blower out.

The snow continued to come down, but the real 'story' was the wind that went with it. It seemed like it was snowing sideways. I was extremely thankful that we didn't have to go anywhere. Calvary Preschool was closed, Millersville was closed, and Shawn was able to work from home. Here's the view of our backyard. All the trees and bushes were covered, and the deck that had just been cleared off was covered again.

Thankfully our roof hasn't leaked in this snowstorm (and pray that it won't!). The guy that fixed it said it was a 'tricky roof' in how it was made, combined with the fact that that's one of the coldest parts of the house because of the way the wind blows and the down-spouting, etc. Hopefully it's fixed now, or at least it will hopefully get us through until it's warmer!!!

 

I heard all the hoopla about this being a blizzard, but we didn't really feel the effects of it (thank the Lord!). We didn't have any emergencies, we didn't lose our power, we didn't have to be out driving, we didn't have any fires or buildings collapse. I would say we were very fortunate. I would have liked to have some sleds. We didn't take the kids out at all. For one, the snow is taller than Caleb and two the kids both seem to have runny noses again. When the weather is really cold, it seems to adversely affect Joshua's breathing. So we stayed in the warm house and played.

Above is our street this morning. People are still out and about. Yesterday we saw kids sledding from the snowbanks that the plows had built up down to the street. It looked like fun! Most of our neighborhood was out. Today it's a bit quieter (probably folks have gone back to work). We heard the school being dug out last night at 11 pm. We also saw our neighbor out snow-blowing that late. The snow had just stopped, and he was digging out snow by the light of his blower. I couldn't figure out what he was doing. He started attacking the snowbank next to the road sign. I knew his mailbox was closer to his driveway, so I was puzzled. This morning, I saw what it was and smiled:

He had dug out the fire hydrant in the middle of the night to make sure it was clear in case anyone needs it. I never noticed before the line above the fire hydrant. There was just the faintest little line sticking out of the snow to tell him where to dig. And dig he did! He used his shovel, snow blower and sheer muscle power to uncover it.

Shawn took some pictures this morning for me before leaving for work. We have tons of icicles coming off our roof as the sun is now shining. Look at how our fence is almost completely covered!

The icicles are dripping down, making our path a sheet of ice... watch your step!

 

We have a LOT of snow! Back to back snowstorms make for lots of white stuff. And they're calling for more this weekend. Since I haven't had to go out in it, I don't necessarily mind. But, I'd also be ready for summer, if given the opportunity. I miss running outside and getting out whenever we want to go for a walk, etc.

 

I think Shawn dug out our mailbox.

 

It's a winter wonderland! See the icicle from the view inside. Looks dangerous! Can they kill you if they fall from that height???

 Even the top of the light got some snow. It's still windy today, so they are saying that drifting is going to be a big issue. The wind chill is supposed to be 14 degrees. Shawn is back to work. :( :( :(

Maybe we'll get to play outside today? And then again, maybe not... I'd like to, but I also want to do what's best for the kiddos.

Hope you enjoyed the pictures from the 'Blizzard of 2010!'