What’s Been Occurring
After last week’s snow that buried us in another two feet of snow, the kids and I were stuck in the house all week, unable to completely clear the driveway of snow and ice and afraid to back the van out of the garage. My son went out everyday and shoveled, especially since the wind was blowing and causing snow drifts throughout the week.
I tried Mama’s Empty Nest. I tried to focus on the beauty of the snow! I promise! But all the shoveling and wind and blowing snow and the ice. Oh, the ice! Now, honestly, I did see the beauty in the snow and the kids did have a little fun in it (though not a lot because the windchill on this hill was so horrible), but next time we get snow, I hope it will be a little bit less.
We tried a science experiment I saw on Instagram the one day and it was an utter failure. We were supposed to build a snow volcano and I was supposed to put a bowl in the middle for the baking soda, food coloring, and vinegar so it would overflow down the sides. Instead, we just poured it in the snow and, of course, it melted the snow and left a pool of red in the snow. It ended up looking like a murder scene.
After the experiment, The Boy lifted his sister and tossed her into the snow, like big brothers do, which resulted in her yelling in anger and frustration because she doesn’t have any snowpants right now (she grew out of hers). My 6-year-old stood in the driveway, her little fists clenched, and yelled (so the whole neighborhood could hear), “Thanks to you I’m going to get hypothermia!”
Spoiler alert: she didn’t get hypothermia and she wasn’t even that snow-covered. In my defense to the above photo, I didn’t know she was legitmately crying when I took the photograph and her crying stopped within seconds after I took the photo so she was more indignant than anything else.
We’ve also been having sleep issues with Little Miss. She used to never wake up in the middle of the night but now she wakes up, wants me and we have to listen to Frank Sinatra until she falls asleep. The issue with this is that I can’t go back to sleep after this – either because of itching from dry skin or a stuffy nose, so I’ve been having some really rough days of struggling through with very little sleep. I really hope this is a phase she’s going through that she breaks out of soon because I feel pretty useless most days even without the lack of sleep.
What I’m Reading
The snow delayed the arrival of a paperbook copy of ‘Til I Want No More by Robin W. Pearson but when it finally came I dove right in and haven’t been able to put it down since.
Here is the description:
When the man she loved years ago returns to town, one young woman’s complicated past rises again, threatening to expose her well-kept secrets.
If Maxine could put her finger on the moment when her life went into a tailspin, she would point back twenty years to the day her daddy died. She tells herself he’s the only person who ever really knew and loved her, and if he hadn’t left her behind, her future would’ve taken a different path. No absentee mother, no stepfather, no rebellious ripping and running during her teenage years. And no JD, who gave her wandering young heart a home, at least for a time.
But that’s over and done with. All grown-up now, Maxine has pledged her heart and ring finger to Theodore Charles, the man she’ll promise to love, honor, and obey in front of God and everybody. At least that’s what she’s telling anybody who will listen. The only folks buying it are the dog and the readers of her column, however. Her best friend and family aren’t having it―not even Celeste, the double bass–playing thirteen-year-old the community of Mount Laurel, North Carolina, believes is Maxine’s adopted sister. And apparently, neither is the newly returned JD, who seems intent on toppling Maxine’s reconstructed life. As her wedding day marches ever closer, Maxine confronts what it means to be really known and loved by examining what’s buried in her own heart and exposing truth that has never seen the light of day.
I’m also continuing Harriet Beamer Takes The Bus by Joyce Magnin, which I’m really enjoying.
Here is the description for that one:
Aging and recent widow Harriet Beamer insists she’s getting along fine with her dog Humphrey in Philadelphia … until she falls for the fourth time, injuring her ankle, and causing her son and daughter-in-law to cry foul. Insisting Harriet move in with them in California, they make a bet that her ankle is broken, and she foolishly promises to move if they’re right. Four x-rays later, Harriet’s ankle—and her heart—are broken. She packs up, ships her huge salt and pepper collection to California, and prepares to move away from the only life she knows. The only catch? She’s doing it her way. Just wait till her daughter-in-law hears Harriet will travel cross country only by public transportation and alternate means. What follows is a hilarious, heartwarming journey by train, metro bus, ferry, and motorcycle. Along the way, Harriet discovers that although her family thinks it’s time for her to be put out to pasture—God has a different plan.
What I’m Watching
This week I watched a couple episodes of Murdoch Mysteries, an episode of Lovejoy, and then I watched some favorite comedy clips, including this one from John Branyan (which I find to be brilliant):
The Boy and The Husband have also been watching Wanda Vision, which is a show from the Marvel Universe (that’s comic book language for anyone unaware of what Marvel is).
So that’s my week in review. What was your week like? What have you been watching, reading, listening to or doing? Let me know in the comments.
Boondock Ramblings 
The murder scene experiment cracked me up!!
That’s so cute that she wants to listen to Frank Sinatra! But I’m sorry that she’s not sleeping. Prayers it’s just a phase and that you can get some sleep soon!
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I think my son went through this stage about this age as well. It’s been rough but we are trying to get through it. It’s not every night now but every other night and I am sorry to say I’m not always a happy camper about it — I’m very grumpy when my sleep is interrupted.
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Haha! Oh kids are the funniest! We had the opposite problem over here today. We’re going through a cold snap in Manitoba right now… Like a true Canadian, I don’t do Fahrenheit, but its around -45C today out here and my son insisted he could shovel the rink in SHORTS!!! Why are teens so crazy and stubborn?!? Sounds like you aren’t getting too bored over there either.
Me and my husband are also watching Wandavision, which I didn’t really enjoy until the third episode, but now I’m really getting into it. How are you finding it? We’re big Marvel fans over here. Have you ever watched “Agents of Shield”? That’s another one we’re watching on Disney+ right now. It’s so good!
I’m reading a biography on Harriet Tubman right now… SO good. Her story is fascinating. (And it’s literally the first book I’ve read in months.)
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Wanda Vision was driving me a little crazy until about the fourth episode and now I am interested to see what happens. My husband is a huge comic book reader so he knows all the inside info on what they are working up to, what they are referencing, etc. I didn’t watch Agents of Shield but I sometimes take a break from comic shows because those movies and books are so big in this house we watch stuff like that all of the time. Sometimes I just need a healthy break from them 😉
I would really like to read a book on Harriet Tubman and learn more about her. I don’t read non-fiction a lot but I think I should read it more.
And that cold! Uuuugh! Sounds terrible, to be honest. I can’t breathe when the temps are too low and my husband said it was -6 this morning when he went to work.
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Ah, I see! I never read the comic books as a kid or even as an adult. However, I have loved the movies ever since I saw the first Iron Man. But I do see the need for a healthy break from them 😝
It is terrible… The cold that is. I hate winter. So very much. 😭 Ironically, my dad is from Mexico! Why did you immigrate here Dad? Why?!?
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that’s a huge change for your Dad! What does he think of all this cold weather?
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He actually never seemed to mind it too much. He loves ice fishing, so he seems to look forward to some things about winter here, but before COVID-19 he always spent two weeks or so of the coldest weather back in Mexico. 😊
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Now that’s the way to do it!
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I get it — really I do when you’re socked in with that much snow and ice like you all have. My rant was really aimed at those in my neck of the woods who whine and complain about just a few inches of snow. The big snows have bypassed us yet we do have an icy driveway but it’s still navigable. Sorry, but I laughed out loud at your daughter saying she would get hypothermia. Sounds like something our grandchild (who is the same age) would say.
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I was just teasing you. I totally know what you meant and I actually say the same thing — especially telling people “hello! You live in Pennsylvania! And it’s winter! What do you expect?!” Lol. I even told myself that when I got a little whiny – which didn’t last long really.
Ah, so you have one of those smarty pants too then! 😉😂
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I know. It’s just that “cabin fever” is real when you’re stuck inside because of winter’s wrath and then this stupid virus on top of it all. And yes, we have a “smarty pants” also – who, when she was 4, told a waitress she wanted water to drink because she was “dehydrated.” Really? We didn’t even know she knew that word let alone understood what it meant. 🙂
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Oh my gosh. My daughter has told waitresses the same thing. It’s probably something your daughter says because I say that all the time about my need to drink water. I’m so bad at it and I’ll be like “I need to drink some water or I’m going to get dehydrated!” And in the summer I say that to her, not to scare her but to remind her we need to stay hydrated. She’s never acted stressed about it. She’s just like “Welp, better get a drink! Don’t want to be dehydrated later.”
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I have yet to take my son out into the snow because I just don’t want ro deal with the tantrum that will inevitably come when it’s time to go back inside. However, I did take him out a couple days after the snow had been sufficiently cleares from the sidewalk. I’m currently reading These Violent Delights by Chloe Gong and The Kindness of Enemies by Leila Aboulela. I’m kinda watching The Crown on Netflix. It is fascinating but heavy at times so I take breaks. I find myself binge watching LOTS of Judge Judy on YouTube. I love that lady and I aspire to be like her when I’m 70+ years old. I am obsessed with podcasts and my faves lately are Scared To Death, Morbid, 90 Day Cray Cray, 90 Day Gays, Pink Shade, The Read,and The Sopranos. I really love podcasts lol
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Really?? That is crazy! And I would totally believe that the children of two writers would have a very expansive vocabulary!
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Ugh this was supposed to be in the reply area with my other comment. LOL. This is why I should not do things on my phone.
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I do that too
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Yeah — we never really used baby talk around them. Poor things – and if they didn’t know what we were talking about (because we are so intellectual 🧐 😉😂) we made them look it up in the dictionary. Ha! Not really. And we don’t really use that many big words. We are “low brow” writers. 😉
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I thought us desert dwellers were the only ones that have dry skin like crazy. I don’t know what it is like living in the snow. I always think of it like marshmallow clouds. I do know better since it snows up north here. We have been stuck in it before. It is so pretty though. Nothing much going on here in Arizona, at least at our home. We are getting a little bit of cabin fever though. In a couple of weeks we want to plan a little Arizona trip somewhere. The hiking trails here in the desert are always so packed now it is hard to find a parking spot and it isn’t so safe being jammed packed in lines while hiking, no fun. Most of the cars now at the hiking trails are all from Washington and California. I miss my Arizona early morning hikes. Maybe we can get one in next week, hopefully no crowds. I can only hope. Love the pics, thanks for sharing.
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I hope you can get one in soon. We are certainly looking forward to some nicer days where we can get out of the house and breathe in some fresh air that doesn’t sting our lungs!
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So much snow and I love the pictures! Little Miss and The Boy sound a lot like my kiddos with the picking and bickering!😉
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Haha! A murder scene. I have a couple kids who totally would have dramatized that.
The 3 Little Pigs routine never gets old, and his version is my favorite. Brilliant.
I hear you on the dry skin. I’ve had less issues since we moved into town, but we used to live on a mountainside and between single digit/ sub zero temps in winter and dry wind pretty much year-round, my hands in particular suffered miserably. I find Lanolin to be amazing for restoration. It’s sticky, but I put it on hands or lips or whatever else was bugging me at night before bed and wake up to skin feeling sooooo much better and splits healed practically overnight. For maintenance I really like O’Keefe’s hand lotion. Soaks in fast, reduces itching quickly (although if the skin is at all broken it can sting a little). Not for lips though. Do you have lotions you like? I’ve tried over a dozen but keep a list of ones other people use/ like in case I want to try something new.
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One of my lifesavers this year for the dry skin has been coconut oil. Just plain coconut oil. I find it cuts down on the itching and makes my skin feel smooth the next day. It can create a mess, however, since it is an oil.
I will have to look into O’Keefe.
Years ago, a college friend told me about Udder Cream, but I don’t even know if that is still for sale. Farmers once used it on the udders of the cows and then it was marketed for humans. That was better for my dry hands and elbows, though. This dry skin makes me itch all over sometimes. Oatmeal baths help somewhat with it as well.
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I do use coconut oil! Not as much as I used to, but especially if the itchiness is all over it’s easy to cover larger areas with it. Udder Cream sounds very much like Bag Balm, which I discovered with one baby that struggled with diaper rash. BB was also originally used for cow’s udders then adapted for human use. Just looked it up, and lanolin is the primary ingredient!
Oatmeal baths…I’d forgotten about those. Haven’t had one in years, but I do remember the skin feeling very happy after them.
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I did find udder cream on Amazon and yes, bag balm. I always thought that was more for burns and things but I did hear about Bag Balm being used for that.
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Personally, and I know this is going to sound mean, but I love her crying photos…and Jonathan’s too. 😛 Especially that one from years ago that I mention every time we talk about crying photos. You know the one…I still need a copy of that so I can pull it out later to torture him. 😉
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Your post actually made me laugh out loud for real!!!! Good to know about your experience with that experiment, it is on our list for this month, if we ever get some real snow! Snow is fun, snow can be beautiful, but dang, you all have a ton and that would be intense! Especially with windy roads and all the shoveling. And I am sorry Little Miss felt indignant, but I love that she used the word hypothermia. She is a smart little miss. 🙂
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I’ve had people express doubt my children use such large words but they do. It shocks even me at times. I had no idea she knew that word, let alone to use it in the right context so it completely cracked me up. I have a feeling some think I make up the stories of what she says (like they did years ago when I shared stories of what my son said) but if I was, I’d imagine I’d pick even larger words for them to say. If I can, I record them saying the words just so people will actually believe me.
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