Wow! That was quite the wind storm yesterday. Not only was it powerful enough to bring down trees and power lines, but it magically transformed the mood of my two little minions. Our day did a complete 360' from the previous 24 hours, and it was all thanks to some high winds, flickering lights and runaway debris. Who knew these boys were just itching for something a little out of the ordinary to brighten up their I-Am-So-Done-With-January blah's!
The excitement all started when we noticed an abandoned Christmas tree blowing down the middle of the river. We grabbed the binoculars and watched it make its journey down towards the ferry crossing. Then we saw an ice shack! This sight really vamped up the boys' enthusiasm.
I think it's Tim's shack?
Mom, Mom . . . It's Tim's shack!
We can't tell that from here, boys.
I hope it lands on our beach. Wouldn't that be awesome!
Wait . . . here comes another one!
And for the rest of the day, every time we saw something blowing down the river, we had to pause what we were doing, grab the binoculars, and wish that it would land on our beach. Our grand total at the end of the storm was 2 Christmas trees, 4 ice shacks and 0 treasures on the beach.
Then, yours truly played a little game called "See How Much I Can Get Done Before the Power Goes Out!" . . . tee hee!
I baked my first gluten-free bread. The verdict is still out on this recipe because although it tastes good, the texture is very strange, and as Mr. Level-Headed pointed out this morning, we are some very texture-sensitive people around here.
Then I cooked some pork and potatoes in my new crock pot. The verdict is definitely in on that recipe with a resounding Nay! from all the wee Websters. According to Baby Girl, the rosemary gave it an "old lady taste" . . . whatever!
This game also came along with an added cardio feature for the mama; every time the power flickered, which was like every ten minutes for the first four hours of the day, I had to run around the house and turn the crock pot, the stove and the dryer back on. I gave up on all the clocks after the second flicker.
At lunchtime, the boys ran the gauntlet to throw out some compost. Typically, this chore causes intense bouts of whining and complaining; however, add a little hurricane-force winds and some monsoon-like rain, and you get nothing but giggles and laughs. Who knew!
Sadly, the storm did not bring joy to all of our household members. Poor Scout was not a fan of the wind or the rain, and so he would sit at the door for indeterminate amounts of time to decide whether or not taking a pee was worth braving the elements.
Then he would decide that no, it was not in fact worth it, and so he would retreat back into the safety of his warm abode with those pleading puppy-dog eyes of his:
Please mom, can you just make it stop!
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| He is so cute! |
In spite of all the distractions and all of our games, the boys finished school at 2 pm. Woohoo! Then for a little post-storm adventure, we dropped Zoe off at her tutoring job and drove through some of the nearby neighbourhoods, oohing and ahhing over all the damage caused by the storm.
Mom, look! That huge tree is down!
There is no power in this neighbourhood!
Eeek! Look at those power lines! They are almost touching the ground.
The boys quickly became very concerned about how their Grammie fared in the storm; so we made a quick stop at her place. Although I do not doubt they were concerned, I think this sudden need for a Grammie visit had more to do with their intense desire for some sugary, carbonated drinks and salty, gluten-filled Pizza Pops. Ya gotta love grandparents!
And so our wind storm adventure ended on a positive note; Grammie was safe and sound, the boys' bellies were filled with blacklisted treats, and we never lost our power. All and all, it was a pretty exciting way to wrap up January. Nice play, Mother Nature, nice play. Now, if you could just return the white, fluffy stuff, my minions would be oh, so very pleased.
Happy February!
