Pictures and stories!

Here are a few random pictures from the last couple of days.

 

Jere was plowing snow with the tractor, and had the rapt attention of all three children!

 

Tundra is doing well, coming into the house once a day for her lessons--when I get around to doing them! She's also learning the command "Stay out." I hope. :-/

 

Now for the story. Yesterday I was needing to run to town to do a little shopping. We were about halfway ready to go, when I looked out the window and realized it was snowing, again. I wasn't sure I was wanting to tackle driving on fresh snow on already nasty roads, but a call to Jere didn't help my dilemma. He needed something in town for his job, and if I didn't go he was going to have to. So I went. The trip to town was uneventful. I took it easy and tried to enjoy the beauty of the snow all around us. The first stop was at the hardware store to get Jere's item. On coming out the wind shield was covered in melted/melting snow--and the wipers were frozen. Many times I'd seen Jere quite quickly and easily remove the build up by simply snapping the wipers as they ran, since the wipers on the van rest way down under the hood where it's hard to reach them. So I thought I'd try it. It looked so easy! But, evidently, I don't have the knack. The passenger side wiper flipped upside-down and snapped apart, pinching my fingers between it and the hood in the process somehow. So an emergency call to Jere. The answer? Open the hood! Err, um, do I have to? In the parking lot where everyone can see? Serious? Ok! So when I finally figured out how to open the hood, dropped my phone in the snow, and then figured out how to keep the hood open, it was time to tackle the wiper. But it simply wouldn't stay together. So in inspecting the other wiper I discovered a piece was missing on the broken one. Thankfully it had landed in the snow pack under where the wipers rest, and wasn't hard to find! Then to figure out how to get it all together again. . . But eventually it did. At least, it seemed like an awful long time bending over the stinky engine with snow sifting down my neck!

 

From the hardware store it was a short drive to Wal-Mart to finish my shopping. At the check-out the elderly lady behind me asked if I minded emptying her cart for her since she "couldn't reach". Well, she didn't even try, standing behind the cart and reaching toward the basket! Once I was done paying my bill I set her things on the counter, then set about getting my children bundled back up to face a snowy great outdoors. We then took the back way home, as Jere was working close to that route. We did fine, as I again drove slowly, until we reached one turn. The road I was on had been freshly plowed, and the road I was turning into had a nice ridge of snow plowed across it, going uphill, and another vehicle came around the curve just as I was funning it to get through the slight obstacle. Thankfully he was watching and moved over enough that I didn't hit him as the van slipped and slid and spun till we got over the little snow ridge and started up the hill. We dropped Jere's item off and saw his handiwork in remaking a stairway in someone's cabin. Then we continued on the back way home. Not even halfway up the first hill the van spun out and we sat in the middle of the rather curvy, steepish road sliding toward a gravel pit every time I tried to get started again. Oh, now what? After a little, I turned on the 4-ways and backed down to where it got wide enough to turn around, hoping no one was coming because you just can't see real far either direction on that road. No one came, and we turned around and went the long way home.

 

As anyone knows who has been to our place, turning on to our road from the main one can be a little tricky with the way you almost turn around to go back up. I slid past the turn, and had a hard time backing up, so it took some maneuvering to get going again. Again, thankfully, the car that came by had sense enough to slow way down and move over so we didn't have an accident. Phew! HOME! I was SO very glad to make it over the last little hill and see our mailbox.

 

And at the mailbox is where we stayed. We walked the rest of the way! This photo was taken after lunch and the little ones going down for their naps, when Jaron and I headed back to the stranded van to scatter ashes on the ice under the snow and get our groceries.

 

We took the dog and dogsled to carry the ashes down and the groceries back. The dog wasn't real happy about stopping there--he wanted to RUN! 

On our way back to the house with the groceries. Jere drove the van the rest of the way when he got home from work. :-) I'm so grateful for a man who knows just how to do things!

Last evening we gathered in the living room and goofed off for awhile. Here's the princess with Daddy's phone.

Here are the goofers.

The princess and her daddy. Pretty special!