It’s Been a Minute
Yes, it’s been a minute…….it’s been a cold, blustery, stormy minute.
How are y’all doing? Make it through the weather alright? I mean, if you were having bad weather where you are. I reside in North Dakota and we just came out of a 3-day blizzard.
Well, let me tell you how we’ve been doing! This storm sure was a doozy! Actually, snow has been minimal for us outside of the two storms we’ve had. The first storm brought winter in good for us. Not quite sure of the snow totals of that blizzard, but we got hit! This second blizzard lasted for three days and now the total amount of snowfall we’ve had so far this year is approximately two feet.
And it’s technically not even winter yet!
Okay, so the day the storm started ……a few things happened. But, just an FYI, I am not such a good driver on a good day. And this was NOT a good day to be driving! Anywho, here’s how it went:
- the kids were released early from school so we closed the shop early.
- the sky was getting darker with each passing minute. my hubby and i closed up shop and he went to one school for our daughter while i went to the other school for our other three daughters. the town we live in seems to be ONE BIG HILL in quite a many areas and my car sucks on ice. the storm started with misting rain and turned into snow. under the snow, the misting rain had turned to ice. ice and snow make for very poor driving conditions on flat surfaces. the two together on hills is a nightmare. so, at an intersection about a block from the school, the road starts inclining. i stopped at a stop sign – not on the crest of a hill, but maybe about 1/2 way up – and i couldn’t get my car going again…hence, i was then stuck. two nearby and kind drivers pushed my van so I could get going again.
- after getting through that sticky situation, i pulled into the school parking lot which still slowly inclines until you get to the front of the school. other cars are coming and going with other parents retrieving their children so i had to stop once more. the driveway was iced over and the snow was still falling, getting deeper and deeper. you guessed it! i was stuck…..again. i knew if i kept accelerating, i would spin. i didn’t want to hit anyone or another car so i simply waited until none were around. i slowly accelerated causing my van to slide around in almost a complete circle. it worked out great because, at this point, a tire or two grabbed a piece of non-icy pavement and i was able to get off the slippery, snow-covered ice. i pulled forward to the doors of the school, my kids jumped in and away we went.
- remember, we live out of town, only about seven miles, but with blowing snow and icy roads, this isn’t a fun drive. but, here we go, driving and driving (slowly of course cuz i’m a nervous wreck in this weather) and finally get to my driveway which is a HILL. I pull into my driveway, only to get stuck in the snow covered, iced under snow, driveway. I’m stuck and no amount of accelerating is going to get me unstuck. soon enough, my hubby pulls into the driveway behind me. he realizes my van is pretty stuck. he tries to get unstuck to no avail. he throws hands up, curses the weather, curses the hill, and says we’re walking up to the house. my girlies bundle up in their winter gear and trudge through the snow to the house. i’m still grabbing belongings out of my car. when i’m done, i walk, with my hubby (still cursing the weather) up the hill. damn, it’s cold!
- and of course, we still have to check the animals. after that’s all said and done, we batten down the hatches for the blizzard already underway. the rest of the evening proceeds without much else.
we already know there’s no school the next day so we enjoy the evening with the kids and get ready for the no-school-day next day. it came and went without issue. we talked with the kids, played games with the kids, did Tiktok videos with the kids, ate with the kids, watched movies with the kids and took care of the animals without the kids. all the while the snow is steadily falling and there’s some wind. we’re nice and toasty in the house, but the kids start to get bored eventually. i start to get bored eventually. we got word school was cancelled the next day as well. we begin noticing the power lines whipping in the wind, much like a person jump roping with two people holding a rope.
on the morning of the third day, we wake up as normal. we go about our daily business of tending kids and livestock. the storm hasn’t really let up. the wind is whipping stronger than ever. the power lines are still jumping around like crazy. it hasn’t been mentioned, but by this time, i’m starting to worry about power. also by this time, everyone is pretty bored……tempers getting short and patience growing thin. except tending the livestock, we haven’t really been outside. lots of movies, games, bickering between kids, snacking, and tiktoking videos, lol. around 3pm the power does go out. a couple of hours later, still no power. it’s beginning to grow dark outside, the temperature is dropping, and still no power. there is noticeable change in warmth. we begin to layer up clothing and soon enough, everyone’s hungry. no power, no stove, no way to cook so now we get cold sandwiches or cold leftovers. get through the meal, if you can call it that and now its completely dark. the power popped on only for a minute or two, but then went out again. hubby called a friend we know that works for the power company…..2700 people without power in the middle of a blizzard! she tells us linemen are out trying to get the power back. In a blizzard! time to find candles and flashlights, both in short supply. the temp has really chilled down. with really nothing else to do, we’ve all snuggled into blankets to keep warm. we still have water so that’s a good thing. soon enough, with darkness and cold, we just went to bed.
welcome to our winter wonderland!
next morning, wind had diminished, snow had stopped. tried cooking on the candle flame, but didn’t work so great. hubby went out to check the animals, heard a popping noise. decided to investigate popping noise and to look for the propane heaters. found the reason for power loss. the light pole in the neighbor’s field had broken, snapping a power line. he brought the heaters inside, called our friend at the power company who relayed the message. within a couple of hours, we had power! soon enough, signs of life begin to emerge. the animals started wondering about, kids went outside and the sun came out. hubby is able to finally drive into town to get a bobcat. let the digging out begin.
y’all know that we keep animals. We have a few cows, six goats, many chickens, and a couple miniature horses. Well, as it goes, these animals still need to be fed and watered so every day through the blizzard so we trudged out to the barn in the freezing temps and strong winter winds to haul water with buckets to our animals. I’m sure my husband wasn’t too happy about it – I didn’t mind it, but we love the animals. Plus, it was a chance to get outside the house even if for only a short amount of time. You see, our driveway was blocked with snow so we couldn’t really leave. And not that we really wanted to anyway beings the blizzard was in full force.
This is our blizzard #2 experience and now, the forecast is warning yet again of bad weather. Boy, i think this winter is going to be a hard one! now, Christmas is right around the corner and I pray everyone has a safe Merry Christmas. As for us, we have plans to go to Texas for Christmas. With the weather coming in, i will keep you posted. FYI, the kids’ Christmas break began the day they released early from school. The blizzard gave them an extra 3 days of break!
As always, friends, thanks for reading.
See y’all back here tomorrow!
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