Winter is TOTALLY here!

 

Idaho got off to a slow start on winter this year. Really slow. We still had green grass in evidence in early December. On Christmas Eve we were blasted with our first bout of snow and cold. Once started, Idaho went crazy. What followed was a month of sub zero temperatures, cruel wind chills, and inside recess days. It was miserable. My van hated it, and as a form of vengeance started having troubles. It would start overheating every morning ... which would mean pulling over and letting it cool down (which, given the weather, didn't take long). The heater also ceased to work properly. It usually took about 30 minutes to start feebly throwing out lukewarm air. Like I said - miserable.  I ended up having to replace a cracked water pump, serpentine belt, and thermostat this past Friday.

 



 

We got one cold day off from school on January 14th, as temps were -20+ F and wind chills clocked in at -30+ F. Ugly stuff. It was SO nice to huddle in the house that day watching the gas and electric meters spin.  On the 16th, I attended an informational meeting on retirement.  They advise that you do so a few years before you retire so that you understand the process etc.  It was a long day, but I learned a great deal  A portion of our retirement money is invested in stocks ... and I learned what exactly I have stock in --  IBM, Proctor and Gamble, Mircrosoft, Apple,  Goldman Sachs, Johnson and Johnson, Walmart (ewww), Exxon Mobil (double ewww), Wells Fargo, Coca Cola (triple ewww) Samsung, and Schlumberger.  In view of all this cold and miserable weather, retirement and the need to haul my body over the river and through the woods to work every day, seemed mighty tempting.  Luckily, just as my spirit was beginning to wane, the inversion to blame for it all finally broke (on Friday). There was much rejoicing in the land.

 

Of course, once the inversion broke, the winter storms moved in.  On Sunday morning we woke to about 5 inches of white stuff.  Today several more inches were added, plus a great deal of wind.  Once again, schools are closed.  The roads are a nightmare, so I am very thankful that I do NOT have to fight them in order to get to school.  No sign of snow plows yet, so we're more than happy to hibernate.  We actually had a leisurely breakfast.  I'm going to do some laundry and bake some bread.  I am really thankful for this little gift of time that winter gives us sometimes.  I just wish more businesses had the sense to put the welfare of their employees ahead of their pursuit of a buck.  I hope that those forced to go to work in this mess arrive safely at work and then reach their homes safely tonight.

Bailee and I shoveled out yesterday, but today we were "rescued" by our wonderful neighbor, Alberto.  He is the best ever, and arrived early this morning to shovel us out.  No small job, and I was thankful the snow was lighter than yesterday's fall.  It at least made the task somewhat easier.  We certainly are blessed with good neighbors. 

Merry Christmas

The Cratchetts

 

Scrooge's visit from the Ghost of Christmas Past

 

The finale

 

Bailee's dance studio put on "A Chirstmas Carol" last weekend.  I thought they did a wonderful job.  Bailee has almost recovered as well, though she is still craving sleep.


I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas.  We had one of the best Christmas Eves in a long time.  It started with an early morning trip to The Prepared Pantry for neighbor gifts and some bread mixes for Mom.  Then it was time to make deliveries.  So much fun!  Bailee had a great time being our elf.  It also snowed - so we got the White Christmas no one thought would be possible this year!  I was really happy.


We went out to a late lunch at Olive Garden (Bailee's favorite spot).  The snow was coming down heavy, the fireplace was cozy, and it was perfect.  We had a fab time.


After we ate, we headed to St. Paul's for the 5:30 p.m. children's church service.  Our neighbor, Sydney, was in the pageant.  It was cute - all about the best gift of Christmas ... Jesus.  The one draw back ... they did all the singing of carols.  We did get to sing "Silent Night" at the end, which always chokes me up.  Dad and I would always softly sing this carol in German - heads together, softly, just something special we shared.  I felt very close to him as we sang.


After church we came home and relaxed.  We watched some Christmas movies, snacked on Diana's meat and cheese platter, and then decided it was time to reinstate the Zinzer tradition of opening gifts on Christmas Eve.  Bailee thought it was a pretty great tradition.  ha ha


Christmas was leisurely and laid back.  I made a breakfast casserole, and then did a spiral ham in the slow cooker.  All in all, a good day.


I hope your holidays were happy!

Bring it On!

You sometimes get to that point where life gets so hard that you just turn on it and say,  "You want a piece of me?  Fine, bring it on!"  I'm there now.  If life wants to find out how tough I can be, then we are there.  Bring it.


During the past five weeks, as most of you know, Diana and Mom have been to the emergency room five times.  That statistic alone is total insanity.  Who does that?  No one I know.  Just us.  I don't like being the pathetic poster child family for "a rough time."  Those comments of , "Again?  You had to take them to the ER again?" are well meaning, but they might just earn the next person to utter them a smack on the head. 


Luckily, there MAY be a light at the end of the tunnel.  Diana seems to be doing okay.  She hasn't mentioned passing a kidney stone in days.  Of course, she may just be afraid to bring that topic up around me at the moment.  Still, she seems fine, so I will declare her fine.


Mom is marginally better.  The pain seems to be easing up, and she is acting a little more like herself.  She's still got a long way to go, but this is the first real improvement we've seen in two weeks.   I will take that and be glad.


Bailee is spending ALL her time at dance.  What little time she has at home is devoted to homework.  Her school is rather ridiculous in that regard.  She's had 5 large projects assigned for December.  Ugly.


Her studio will be performing "A Christmas Carol" on December 15th.  Bailee is the Ghost of Christmas past ... plus several other roles.  That means that the coming week will be absolutely insane. 

So ... here's hoping we make it through the next week!  Keep us in your prayers - no more trips to the ER!

Rain? Seriously?

It has been pouring rain for the past several days.  Yes, you heard me right - rain.  I have been looking out the window in absolute disgust.  Somehow "I'm dreaming of a muddy Christmas" just lacks a great deal.  This rainy weather and the howling wind that is accompanying it is making me quite irritable.  I figure if I have to live in Idaho, then I should at least have snow at the appropriate times of the year.  This rain is ridiculous.  Enough already!


Mom scared the daylights out of us on Friday.  She told me at noon that it hurt when she breathed.  She's had pleurisy numerous times before, and she said that is what it felt like.  Since I had a workday at school, I told her to call me if the pain got worse to call.  It did, and she didn't.  When Bailee got home from school, she was in quite a state.  She got hold of Diana and ratted Grandma out.


Diana dropped Bailee at dance, then headed up to the ER with Grandma.  Yes, this was our fourth trip to the hospital during the month of November.  Not a fun thing at all!  I did my job at the Dance Shop, then drove over to the studio and picked Bailee up.  Together, we headed up to the hospital.


You know ... I seriously think some nurses need a few classes on how to handle people who are in the ER.  It's a given that they are frightened.  Telling them (and their family members) that they might have a blood clot in their lung and could die any minute is NOT good bedside practice!!!!!!!!!  Do these people think?

Thankfully, the CT scan and chest s-ray just showed pleurisy.  Bad enough, but much better than a blood clot or pneumonia.  Grandma has been in a great deal of pain, but is at least breathing easier now.  We are very thankful for that miracle. 

Let me tell you - I do NOT want to see the hospital again for a good long time!