Call me when...

school is back in session. In the meantime, please stop the emails and automated calls...particularly those at 6:30 AM updating the delay to a cancellation. I don't want to hear anything that is status quo.

As we all snuggle in together under a beautiful blanket of snow that just keeps growing, Ron captured this picturesque view of our home--don't let the peaceful facade fool you. Also, add 6 more inches of snow today.



I cannot help but think of Robert Frost as I look at my snowy woods.



Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening

by Robert Frost

Whose woods these are I think I know.
His house is in the village though;
He will not see me stopping here
To watch his woods fill up with snow.


My little horse must think it queer
To stop without a farmhouse near
Between the woods and frozen lake
The darkest evening of the year.


He gives his harness bells a shake
To ask if there is some mistake.
The only other sound’s the sweep
Of easy wind and downy flake.


The woods are lovely, dark and deep.
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.

Please...have mercy!

AAAaaaaaarrrrrrghhhh!!!

School is cancelled again. In mere anticipation of wind. Wind. Let me tell you about wind. Wind blows across the prairies of the West. Wind blows in Big Timber, MT AND kids still go to school. Mine even walked to school in the wind. The anticipated wind of 5 to 10 mph evidently lowers temperatures to single digits, and suddenly it is too cold here to have school.

My reality here is that there will not be school for the rest of the week if the snow begins to fall tomorrow afternoon again. School will continue through the month of June.

Obviously, I am not coping well. We have a schedule to keep here. It is called Summer. Winter is for school.

Perspective: Costco with four kids, as I managed to leave one behind, intentionally, of course.

My list.

1. milk
2. cereal
3. fruit--keeping in perspective food sources that don't require heat
4. and more...

Splurge...Pink Panther DVD collection...Sanity...Priceless.

No big surprise...no school. Roads still are not fully cleared. Electrical services are still being restored throughout the region. I did see a headline this morning that a couple deaths over the weekend were attributed to carbon monoxide as people sought to keep warm without electricity.

Admittedly, last Friday I was humored by the hordes of people headed to the grocery store, but today, I am going to join them. The forecast claims more snow is on the way for the rest of the week, but 6 more inches is supposed to fall tomorrow. I suspect this may close everything for the rest of the week, so I am going to be prepared this time. I thought I was more than prepared last time...and I was (and probably still am...); however, I was not prepared for the challenges in snow removal in a city that does not regularly experience snow. Evidently, Pittsburgh only gets 12 inches of snow at a time every 15 years or so...so obviously they are not well-equipped. What do I know?? This storm is the fourth worst in the history of Pittsburgh. It is so different for me...it just seems like it should snow like this here...

Anyway, far more disconcerting than the snow is my love of power...electricity, that is. However, my children may argue this...and perhaps my husband :) Nonetheless, I love heat. I love hot water. I love warm ovens. I love my stove. Of course, I do not always love my appliances until the threat that they may cease to be operational looms...then I fall in love again. Ironic, isn't it? Just in time for Valentine's Day.

Kids

Winter Wonderland. Irresistible.



Are you watching?



Shoveling, Nikela measures the final tally--22 inches.

It is really snowing!!

Yesterday there was a flurry of activity in Pittsburgh, as the citizens prepared for the anticipated snowstorm...the most snow predicted since 2003...up to twelve inches!

Of course, I found this very entertaining. They started calling school off early in the morning when it was still overcast. Then our school cancelled all activities for the evening at noon...and still nary a flake in the sky. Finally around 2 o'clock the first light flakes began to fall, and by 4 o'clock the giant flakes were falling rapidly and the snow started to accumulate. As the night wore on...the snow lightened, but it kept falling.




This morning we have over a foot of snow. It is the most beautiful snow I have ever seen. It is piled neatly everywhere. Gorgeous.



It finally snowed here.



The area is completely shut down. A disaster has been declared. Over 100,000 people are without electricity. 16 inches has fallen with more to come. The city is paralyzed. At 6 PM today they will lift the winter weather warning. In the meantime, it is a record.



Another record for our Pittsburgh adventure. 6 Superbowls. A Stanley cup in the same year. Now snow. Real snow.

We still have electricity, thankfully, though admittedly with the weight of the snow we may not sustain it for long. Ron has a generator in the back of his work truck.

I hear the four wheeler. Ron is playing in the snow with his snowplow. It is a really heavy wet snow, so I am sure it will keep him entertained for a while.

I haven't seen a snowplow since yesterday. Allegheny Co. owns 64 trucks, so I anticipate I will not see a truck anytime soon.

Adventure. Hopefully the kids will not land in the snowbank by noon today :) Grandpa assures me that if I have flour, sugar, eggs, and chocolate chips I will be fine!

...Check back later for more photos...Kiahra headed out to get better footage!

Penguins

On Monday afternoon, an engineer that had been presented with tickets to the evening's hockey game approached Ron and asked if he would like them. I am sure he remembered that Kade really, really wanted to go to a professional hockey game...and he has a boy in Chicago...and a very big heart.

A Penguin's hockey game in a box seat (AKA Igloo) is a once in a lifetime opportunity for my son. His homework was completed in a flash. The dawdling eater cleared his plate in record time (I blinked) and was off to the game with Dad!

According to him, as they approached the lines the building looked like a football stadium with a bubble (dome). Then he continued to share that they found their seat in another bubble, the Igloo.

The game was against Buffalo, NY, so there was some healthy rivalry! However, the game was close, so both teams refrained from fighting to Kade's disappointment. Though he followed all the action closely and was delighted as Crosby made three goals with assists by Malkin (whose hat he now sports, and I suspect will until it falls apart). Plus he witnessed a hat trick! One of the bags fell short of its goal on the ice, so Kade had his moment to assist it over the wall, much to his delight!

He met the mascot, Iceburgh.






Kade's enthusiasm is so much fun to watch! I smile often as he recalls another detail from the night to share.

This morning I asked him about the long walk back to the truck after the game in downtown Pittsburgh. He said the alleys were pretty dark and creepy, AND that Dad kept teasing him that if anyone jumped out Kade could take them and he would run :) He was grinning from ear to ear.

Once upon a time there was a young woman who dreamed of making a home her own, and a friend once complained that she was tired of building and remodeling homes and selecting everything, and that young woman thought to herself, "I would never get tired of that opportunity."

Never. Never say never. Through the years I have grown weary of remodeling. There I said it. I am tired. I love my home. Long ago I loved the challenge of changing the space and updating it. I still love it when it is done, but at the moment, I no longer enjoy the process.

When I tackled this bathroom, it was not intended to become a full remodel...but inevitably it did.

First Ron had to remove the shower (because my excessive cleaning caused some tiles to fall off and reveal the need...). This process revealed all the concrete in the floor beneath the tile, and to repair the floor perhaps it was best to remove it all. Demolition was grueling. Thankfully the small space made it a one man job!

Then I needed to make a plan for the bathroom. I procrastinated. Eventually, Costco had a shower on sale...one with glass :) It was perfect. It was actually what I wanted, but I hadn't wanted to spend the money on the ones I had found. I bought the white shower without a plan.

I still couldn't decide what to do. I didn't even pick up a great magazine or surf the net. I complained to my sister. I told her that the colors needed to stay neutral, so I didn't have to repaint (lazy) the white trim and doors and to keep the small space from looking smaller. I told her I had found some neutral tile that I liked...a natural version of white with small black squares. I wasn't sure... She told me I could add wainscoting to the wall where the tile had previously been attached with tar leaving gaping holes. I could paint the wainscoting black and distress it with the sander and go neutral for the the wall and ceiling. Excellent idea. Ron has always like black. I loved it. A plan. Ron was thrilled we were making progress, so thrilled he didn't really listen to the details...:)

Anyway, my gorgeous master bath before...



The fabulous new shower that was absolutely grueling to install. I have paraphrased my husband's feelings here as he attempted to decipher the poorly articulated instructions (I could have written a better book, albeit longer, but definitely better :). The experience fully reinforced his theory, "If it comes in a box, don't buy it." Actually, he would just prefer I don't buy anything, the box is just a convenient target.

Nonetheless, the patience he has acquired through the years was pivotal in the utter success of the project...doesn't it look good???!!!



The tile looks awesome too! I love it.



I am finally excited about this bathroom. So excited, I plan to paint the wainscoting tomorrow. This is significant, as I have not properly contributed much to this project, not even the plan (Thanks, Kristi for bailing me out here...). My husband has patiently done everything. I know I am pouting. I don't want to move again. I am afraid to fall in love with this project. He knows this too, but he loves me anyway between select words.

One more detail I like...