Surviving the cold

We have lived in Indiana for almost 4 and half years now. Each winter has been very different. One year we had hardly any snow. One year we had tons of snow. One year we had a crazy ice storm. This year we have had lots of freezing temperatures and lots of snow.

It was the weekend following our 2 week, winter break. The kids and myself were ready for school to begin. The weather man started warning about a huge storm headed our way. They estimated 6-10 inches of snow as well as temperatures in the -20 range (-40 with windchill) People were flocking to the grocery store and stocking up on food. The shelves were completely empty where there was once produce, milk, bread and other staples. It was strange to see the reactions of all the people. There was a nervous excitement in the air of what was coming our way.

Sunday morning we woke up to the most beautiful scenery. A think blanket of snow covered everything outside and the snow was still coming down very heavily. This kind of storm is common in other places but for Indiana they hadn't seen a storm like this for over 20 years. We got word that church had been cancelled (the kids were devastated, haha) so we all put on our snow clothes and went outside to check things out. It was so peaceful. The kids started building igloos and snowmen. Lance was busy trying to clear off our driveway before the low temperatures began to set in.  In fact,  he gathered several of our kids and some and they went to shovel other neighbor's driveways.

The day was so peaceful and relaxing. We hunkered down. I know I am not alone when I say that weather like this makes me want to bake.  I made homemade bread and soup. Emma and I made cookies and snicker doodles for dad. Abby made muddy buddies. It was perfect.

To make a long story short the snow kept coming and the temperatures kept dropping. School was cancelled for the entire next week.  There was no way the buses could operate on our roads. We all were pretty content playing with our neighbor friends and making a couple outings here and there.

I love coming downstairs to find my hubby with the kids watching the snow fall.

 Ethan and his buddies decided that sleeping in their outdoor igloo on the absolute coldest night would be a great idea. They actually had a blast. Yes they were cold but he said it was awesome.

I think I got cabin fever Tuesday morning. I needed to get out. Lance and I had taken a drive the night before and although the roads were totally iced (the roads were all white) over they were not too bad to drive on. Plus there were hardly any drivers out and all the stores were closed down. There was a Walgreens, gas station and grocery store but that was about it. Tuesday morning I loaded up the kids and we headed to Barnes and Noble.  That was one of the few stores that was open. We were so grateful to be out of our home. We must have sat and read book for a couple hours. We were some of the only people there so it was nice. Afterwards we went to Chick-fil-a and grabbed a bite to eat and let the kids play on the playground. We were having a great day.

  

  

I called my girlfriend and she told me that our county and state were in a state of emergency, code "red". No one was supposed to drive out on the roads unless they were emergency worker. Umm. Well I wasn't aware of that. I asked the manager at Chick-fil-a why so many people were out if it our county was in the "red" zone. He said that an officer had just explained to him that our town had said it was ok for people to get out if needed and that they would not be giving tickets. I carefully drove home and stayed there...at least for the night.

The next day we went to the Rec. center to swim. It is super close and I drove so so slow. The place was actually pretty busy. It was just me with my 4 younger kids. Sam did great. In fact, that was his first swim ever! He wasn't so sure about it at first. He sat there for a few minutes and was over it. I fed him and then he fell asleep in the stroller while Kate pushed him around the pool.

Can I just say that I love successful outings like this with Sam? They give me confidence. It makes me feel like I may be able to handle having 6 kids. You know how it is, some days you feel overwhelmed with your kiddos but then you have a good day and it recharges you. I felt the same way after we took our over-nighter to Columbus. "We can do this!"and "I got this!" (not in a cocky way)

We also had several play dates with our neighbors. All in all, it has been a great week. The temperatures are back in the 40's today and it is raining which is melting away most of the snow. The kids will be back in school Monday. They are actually excited to go back.