Little Surprises

March: In Like a Lion

 As we toiled through the ups & downs of this cold, life & nature marched on with little thought for our family.  Two snowstorms blanketed the streets, rooftops and construction sites with a glistening sheet of white.

Benjamin was transfixed by the snow... and the various construction site machines.

Who would have guessed that March in Washington would look like this?  

Serious cabin fever has set in as we have not left the house in days.

Not much yet... but it was starting to stick to the roads.

 A little burst of spring colors... amidst the wintry wasteland and freezing temps.

 At one point, I realized that we were running low on our food supplies.  I felt like death but Dave was much worse, so after getting Benjamin down for a nap, I pulled on my ski jacket and a warm hat and headed out.

Surprise #1 - More snow  

Again.  It had started earlier but it didn't seem too bad.  As I opened the garage door, the flakes were coming down hard and fast.  And, they were sticking to the road.  I will be the first to admit that I am a horrible chicken when it comes to driving in snow.  But, my family needed food and so I said a little prayer in my head, sucked it up and hopped in the car.  

Surprise #2 - A visitor

As I eased the car out of the garage, I glanced forward and something caught my eye.  I squinted, trying to figure out what it was that had been directly underneath my truck.   I stopped dead in my tracks as soon as things came into view; the thought of it still creeps me out.  I abruptly stopped the car at a weird angle in the drive, jumped out of the car... and then cowered at a distance.  It was a rodent of unusual size - or a rat.

So, what did I do?  I called Dave, of course.  He was exhausted and sounded mildly annoyed that I was   calling to ask him to deal with it.  He was about to come down and so I caved, saying "No, no - I'll take care of it."  This was one of those times I wished I lived far away from any bored neighbors, who might catch a view of what went down.

  See, the rat was likely dead; it had not moved.  However, I had convinced myself that it was playing dead and would hop up and run at me OR nip my ankles OR run up my pant leg OR... well, you get the idea.  There was NO way I was just going to amble up to that nasty rodent and take its vital signs to make sure it was dead.  To protect myself from any crazed rodent behavior, I casually walked over and grabbed the huge push broom.  As I viewed all of the angles, dancing about with the broom to figure out how to stay as far away as possible, I decided my "10-foot-pole" was still way too close for comfort for me.  

We've had field mouse get into the garage before; we are adjacent to some open lots, which have not yet been developed, which is where I'm assuming those little guys are hanging out.  Because of that, our garage is a mine field of various rodent-catching devices.  We have plastic snap traps, maze traps, hidden traps (can't see it once it goes in & gets killed), and sticky traps.  The latter are simple: trays filled with an incredibly sticky substance.  Most importantly, they have caught all past visitors, while the other traps have been laughable in their effectiveness (we found one style of trap, loaded with peanut butter, was just acting as a serving platter for our mice buddies).    

Anyway, I digress.  The point is, I carefully edged one of the sticky traps and slid it right at the frozen rat.  Nothing - no movement.  Ok, that was confirmation enough for me.  I quickly moved in and started sweeping... until the mouse carcass was in the empty lot next door.   I figured an animal would pick it up so didn't feel too badly about leaving it out there; a wild coyote somewhere would thank me later.

Here's the thing that puzzles me.  I can't figure out why or how it died.  We don't have any poison in our arsenal of traps.  I did notice that one of the sticky traps had moved and there was an empty Reese's wrapper with some small pieces of chewed wrapper next to it.  My only thought is that the rat got caught in the trap and did everything in its power to get out.  I don't glory in its death, but I'm glad it is gone before any real damage was done.  

My only fear is that there may be more surprises in store.  Every time I step into the garage, I have this irrational fear that a rat is going to be waiting for me at the steps.  I have unofficially dubbed it the Rat Garage, until I get the guts to go and do an efficient sweep of the place, and declare it rat-free.

Snowpocalypse, Sorta

Let It Snow and Melt and Snow and Melt and...

Snow finally fell in our little corner of the world on Saturday night - and in that one fell swoop, Winter officially arrived. Over the weekend, we received about 6", cumulatively. We got more on Monday, then it melted on Tuesday. It's back in full force today, but forecasters are promising warmer temperatures - and the Great Melt-Off in our near future.

Snow in Seattle is nearly apocalyptic in nature. People clean off grocery shelves when the flakes appear on the weather forecast. Drivers abandon cars with mere inches on the ground. People are told to stay inside, if they can help it - and they do (myself included). This year, church was even cancelled (partially because of a power outage).

Instead of sitting inside and enjoying it from a distance, we decided to get out, get some fresh air and let Benjamin go bananas in this rare, white stuff. We joined the masses at our Neighborhood Sledding Block Party. Benjamin loved it. Actually, he loved shaking the tree branches and causing an avalanche of snow to fall. The snow fell on him, or otherwise, but it didn't matter; he laughed hysterically every time it happened.

More posts and pictures to come. I'm still trying to balance telecommuting with my home life. Right now, it's snowing again so Dave's home for the Snow Day, Benjamin is tearing the place apart thanks to some serious Cabin Fever and I'm cooking up a big pot of chicken soup.

Bring on that Winter Fun!

I Knew It

Igloo-Camping 101 - or A Young Girl's Suspicions Confirmed

Last month, Dave was asked to be a "consultant" on the prep workshop for our old ward's igloo camping adventure. He agreed, with the condition that I could tag along on the snowshoeing portion of the trip. I haven't been up in the mountains all winter, and he thought it would also be a fun way for us to spend some time together.

It was a wonderful feeling to slide into those snowshoes; sadly, they were starting to collect dust in our garage after a two-year break since the birth of B. The cold air sweeping into my lungs was invigorating as we climbed what Dave later termed, "Sofie's Hill" (after one of the less-eager scouts). And the trip as a whole? Entirely enlightening.

As a young girl, I was always envious of my three brothers and their nearly constant trips to fun hiking, camping and wintry destinations. They packed their gear with the precision and zeal of a serious outdoors man, but were always sure to throw serious survival food, like Twizzlers, Reese's PB cups and gobs of candy bars. I had a feeling that it was more than just something they "had to do". I had a sneaky suspicion they were up in the back country or the mountains whooping it up - and I was stuck at home, wondering why I didn't get to go on these secret adventures.

Well, ladies, I can tell you I was right. Those awful, difficult scout trips were a cover for the most fun-filled trips to awesomely-beautiful locations.

While our motley crew headed to Stevens Pass with the intent to learn igloo-building basics, they also happened to haul up essential igloo-building tools such as plastic sleds, toboggans, & weird disc-y things. Here's the trip breakdown: 1st 20 minutes - snowshoeing to the igloo site; 20 minutes of instruction; 3 hours of sledding fun (minus a few minutes to scarf down whatever sugary treats they brought for "lunch"). See for yourself: I have the photo evidence to prove that this was more than just a tedious lesson in ice blocks and snow-saw techniques!

Dave & Yours Truly, The Undercover Reporter

The secret's out - and you heard it here first!

Ode to the Cold

Brew me a cup for a winter’s night./For the wind howls loud and the furies fight;/Spice it with love and stir it with care,/And I’ll toast our bright eyes,/my sweetheart fair.

- Minna Thomas Antrim

The beauty and brilliance that a winter storm brings to the landscape is much more evident now that we live "out in the country". We can watch as those mighty storms sweep in across the valley; one minute, darkened skies, the next - we're in the midst of one of Mother Nature's magical displays.

Last week's snow event was a fun treat and because it didn't accumulate too badly on the streets, we welcomed this storm with open arms. Right after breakfast, I dressed Benjamin in multiple layers of comfy gear & sturdy boots before we set out on a morning walk around the neighborhood. And although I don't have a picture or video, I'd say his favorite part was zipping down the slide, launching haphazardly off the end and landing in a soft pillow of snow. His laugh was contagious and I found myself wishing I could be in his shoes - well, sturdy boots.

All in all, it was a good day of snow play, stormy weather, warm comfort food and lots of fun.

And for all of those inquiring minds that didn't see on FB, here is a picture of my birthday present from Dave - the finished product. It turned out better than I could ever have imagined. And you know, it's the perfect place to stash coats and boots after an exciting adventure out in the snow.

I've officially decided that winter is my favorite season - for now.

The Seattle Deep Freeze

"Snowpocalypse 2010"

Well, as would be expected, the weathermen played down the little snow event that turned into Snowpocalypse 2010. They were pretty close on the amounts; forecasts predicted 2-4" in the Metro area, which, depending on your location, was spot on. However, the temperatures dropped so drastically and so quickly, that all of the roads (including freeways) flash froze before any plows could be deployed to treat the roads.

Horror stories of 8-12 hour commutes have been flying around Facebook. Carnage from wrecked, stranded and abandoned cars was everywhere (including the hill down to our house). Warnings to stay indoors have been given by weathermen, neighbors and worried parents.

Truth to be told, my bus was only 2 minutes late and it got me to my Park & Ride on time. Dave picked me up there and we were home fairly quickly. But, we were off the roads before the real commute - and subsequent traffic nightmares - began.

I know people say that people in Seattle don't know how to drive in snow. And, to an extent, I agree; they have little to no experience driving in the stuff, so when the white stuff comes along, the conditions cause debilitating anxiety and panicked drivers. But, I'd like to see some of those well-seasoned snow drivers try their hand at maneuvering on icy hills that have not been plowed, salted OR sanded. Even going slowly, you can sometimes lose control - or the car next to you does, and it's difficult to get out of the way. I'm not a fan of driving in it, so I tend to defer to Dave as our snow driver, unless I absolutely must go out on my own. I've done it, and I've survived... but it doesn't mean I like it.

Anyway, jumping off my soap box now. Despite the driving aspect, the snow has been beautiful and fun to have around - it's a rarity, especially at this time of year. My favorite moment of the storm was watching Benjamin experience snow for the first time. As we were driving, he just stared intently out the window at this strange stuff. Then, when I got him out of the car at home, I just stood there while his eyes went wide with equal parts excitement and intrigue. He stretched his little hand out and caught a few flakes. It would be so cool if he could tell us what he was thinking, but watching him was just as fun.

Anyway, here are some photos. Like I said, it was not an intensely heavy storm, in terms of accumulation. I think we probably got about 2" at our place. The bigger deal was the ice and the extreme cold. Since Monday, the temperature has not risen above freezing; in fact, last night Seattle hit a record low of 14 degrees. We've been toasty warm in our house, but you step outside for just a moment and the biting cold takes your breath away.

These are photos from Monday night, around 7pm. It continued to snow throughout the night and into the early morning. We woke up to blue skies and very crisp, freezing temps - but wow, what a beautiful day with the newly-white mountains glistening in the morning sun.

Benjamin was constantly looking out the window, trying to figure out what that weird, white stuff was that clung to the bushes and frosted the deck. Fortunately, I picked up a warm jacket at Costco on our way home Monday night. The fleece jackets we have for him have been sufficient to this point, but would not be enough in the cold this week. After bundling him up, Dave, who had a Snow Day from work, took him out to explore this brave new world. He was wearing some overalls (not snow pants) and decided to take a roll on the snowy sidewalk. You'll notice, the picture above right, the pants are gaping open and some snow snuck in to kiss him warm skin. Still, he loved it and was very vocal about us deciding to cut his outdoor adventure short so we could head to the store.

From what we hear, thanks to the La Nina Effect, the Pacific Northwest is in for a long, cold winter with the potential for much more icy precipitation and pretty snowflakes. Thank goodness for warm coats and a husband with a keen understanding of good outdoor gear that will keep us warm!

Happy Snow Day!