Horton House Daily: Week 9

Week 9 alternate title...Where is Spring?  I just realized today that I never posted Week 9 Thursday.  Probably because our routine was thrown off due to the threat of ice.  

Day 57:  The snow finally came and it was beautiful when we woke up.  By the time we got home from work it was gone.  And we're hoping it doesn't show up again until next year. Day 58:  I enjoyed book club in my house shoes with my new favorite drink.  This pineapple moonshine mixed with lemonade is going to be the perfect summer drink!  If summer ever comes. Day 59:  Keegan had a fun birthday party at the Cullman Aquatic Center.  It was fun to get to swim in February.  This place is so nice.  Barrett loved the shallow part.  He was so excited and not timid at all.  I think this summer is going to be fun at the splash pad and the lake. Day 60:  I went grocery shopping which is one of my least favorite chores.  But I'm thankful that we have the means to put food on the table.  I'm trying to see the positive.  Some days it hard. Day 61:  For Dr. Seuss' birthday Barrett was asked to dress like his favorite character for Mother's Day Out.  He and Drake were "Thing 1 & Thing 2".  They were so stinking cute.  Barrett was in a rotten mood all morning.  He also moved up to the older class this week.  So far they say he's doing good.  I think it's going to take some adjustment.  I think they do more organized activity than the class he was in.  But it's good for him.  I was so glad that Drake got to move up with him.  These two are such sweet buddies. Day 62:  We ordered new bedroom furniture on Thursday 2/26.  They told us it would be 2-4 weeks for delivery.  Well we got a call on Tuesday (5 days later) saying it would be delivered on Thursday.  We had to get moving to clean out a spot for it.  This was in the middle of it.  It was worth it though.   Day 63:  While I was cleaning out I found this.  I'm pretty sure it's my little brother's handwriting.  I told him I was glad I waited until he had a real job to cash it in.
So there's week 9.  It was a doozy.  I've got two big projects to finish up at work this week and hopefully things will be getting back to normal around here.

Gatlinburg or Bust: Day 1&2

We just got home from a fun long weekend in the Smokey Mountains with my little brother and his wife.  This trip couldn't have come at a better time for us.  We needed this little getaway/ pick-me-up in the worst way.  We knew the weather was cold and snowy but we didn't let that stop us.  We loaded up the truck, dropped off the dogs and headed out Thursday afternoon.   We stopped for dinner at Burger King in Chattanooga so Barrett could run off some energy in the play place.  When we got out of the truck it was so cold.  We'd been keeping an eye on the temperature while traveling and it was dropping fast.  The low in the Gatlinburg area was supposed to be around 2 degrees.  We finally arrived at our cabin around 10:15.  We almost immediately realized the code that we were given to get in did not work.  I called the owner, no answer.  I called his wife, no answer.  I'm freaking out on the inside.  We found another number on the paper work for emergencies.  We called and the guy was so nice.  He didn't have our names down on his list but I guess he felt sorry for us because he gave us the code.  He seemed shocked that we were able to get to the cabin since the roads were covered in snow and had been all week.  He let us know that our cabin was dirty because they hadn't been able to get to it all week because of the weather.  We didn't care at that point we just needed somewhere warm to sleep.  We unloaded all of our stuff, changed the sheets and tried to wind down for the night.   I should also add that Barrett didn't sleep at all on the drive. We woke up Friday morning and the view was beautiful.  John made coffee, Hope made cinnamon rolls and we just laid around.  Then the water quit running.  I was on the phone with the owner at the time and he casually said "Oh yeah the pipes probably froze over night."  We were practically camping at this point. Ha!  He told us to turn them all on and crank up the heat.  He was going to send someone out to set up the heaters under the house.  John went to check it out and found a heater and plugged it up to help warm/thaw the pipes.  It didn't take too long for everything to heat up and we were good. We bundled up and headed out to see the snow.  Luckily we borrowed some warm/snow clothes for Barrett and I'm so glad we did.  He played outside for a while, which really surprised me. I loved the view. He was so cute in all his gear.

We didn't have a sled so we tried to use a plastic storage bin.  It worked okay.

I love this cutie!

We were so glad we decided to drive the truck.  

The roads thawed enough to run to the store and grab some groceries.  While were were at WalMart we grabbed a couple of sleds.  It was probably the best $20 we spent all weekend.

Seriously, it was so much fun.  Being from the south I don't think I've used an actual sled.  You could steer it and everything.  It took a few turns for us figure it out but once we did, we were unstoppable.

John was the dare devil and tried everything first.

Hope stayed on the "bunny hill".  

Maybe I should have stayed on the "bunny hill".

Patrick had a ball.  I love seeing him enjoy stuff like this.  He's always so responsible I love to see him let loose a little.  Friday night it was nearly dark when we finally came in.  We had meatless nachos for dinner since it's Lent.  Friday night was probably my favorite.  After dinner we put Barrett to bed and started our game of Mexican Train Dominoes.  John and Hope brought their set and they are double 15's.  So it took us all weekend to finish.  After we played a few rounds we decided to get in the hot tub.  It was so much fun and so neat to be sitting looking at all the snow and ice.  

Saturday we got up, ate breakfast and headed back out for more sledding.  We knew the temperatures were going to rise and we probably wouldn't get to sled anymore.

This little guy was pretty much the cutest thing ever in his flannel coveralls and snow boots.

We took a group selfie in the snow before we headed out for the afternoon.
We took another group selfie after we cleaned up.  We headed to downtown Gatlinburg to go to the aquarium.  Barrett enjoyed it but I had a total mom fail when I realized he was hungry and I didn't pack any snacks.

I loved the penguins.  They were so sweet.  After the aquarium we walked to find something to eat.  We ate at Mountain Edge Grill and it was pretty yummy.  There was rain moving in so we decided to head back to the cabin.  Not before we stopped for some candies.  Once we got back we played a few rounds of dominoes and headed to bed early because we had to be moving a little early on Sunday for church.  

I'm going to wrap this up here since it's so long.

Snow Much Fun...again

After the busted forecast in Birmingham two weeks ago, the meteorologists have been eager to redeem themselves.  They've been forecasting this "major winter weather event" for several days now and there wasn't a loaf of bread or gallon of milk to be found from Shelby county north.  The first round was supposed to hit Monday night but we only got some cold rain.  Places just north of us got a few inches.  They kept mentioning there'd be another round Wednesday evening into Thursday morning.  So to ensure that no children would be sleeping at school classes were cancelled Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.  They were taking no chances.  Barrett and I braved the cold rain Tuesday and Wednesday morning to get some work done.  Patrick called around noon on Wednesday to say he was off work that night so we headed home around 1:00.  We were so excited to get to spend the night with Patrick.  We quickly got settled in to wait and watch for this winter weather we were promised.  We waited and waited.  We heard and read reports of snow all around us but didn't see a single flake.  I was convinced we were going to get rain, rain and more rain and I was starting to get sad.  I was convinced there was an invisible dome over us that was preventing the snow to fall.  While we were eating dinner the change over started and by the time we put Barrett in the bath this is what our front yard looked like!

Patrick and I were both giddy!  It was falling hard and fast.  Lots and lots of it.  Within about 4 hours our neighbor measured around 5".   We bundled Barrett up and headed out for a bit.  He wasn't a fan of it falling in his face. The butterfly bush covered in heavy, wet snow! Sweet snow baby. We put Barrett to bed and headed out to enjoy the night.  We had a snowball fight and rode the four-wheeler around the neighborhood. It's so beautiful! Our house! My snow angel! Big red covered in snow! We came in and baked cookies. We woke up this morning to no power.  It wasn't out long and I knew the streets were going to improve quickly today but I still had a bit of panic when I woke up and it was so quiet.  I quickly realized I wasn't cold so the heat had not been off long.  Barrett was still asleep so I knew he was still comfortable. I'm such a dork.  I just think there is something so magical about snow.  Especially in the south.  It's so rare we get this much snow and for it to have happened twice in the last 3 weeks is so fun.  The fact that it all happened the month Patrick was on 2nd shift was a blessing too.  he was able to be home with us several nights he would have been at work.  It was a nice little break and broke the month up for us.  The older Barrett gets the harder it is for both us.  For me it's physically harder being the only one home at night to handle all the night time chores and on him its more emotionally tuff being away.  Ally was enjoying the view this morning.  I just love it!
Before we left for work this morning. It's all mostly gone now.  Slowly melted away.  It was 55 degrees this afternoon.  I rode home with my sunroof open.  It was a fun night for sure.  I'm kind of ready for spring but I'm trying to just soak up this season of life.  I don't want to wish anymore time away.

Snow Day

We got an unexpected snow day today! Yay!  Well "Yay" now that we're home!  The winter weather was supposed to be further south.  We got up and went to work like usual.  Around 10:00 it started snowing heavily.  It was sticking to everything and pretty soon the roads were white.  I was trying to finish a little project but the boss insisted that all two wheel drive vehicles needed to head home.  My 10-15 minute commute took me 1 and a half hours.  Thankfully Barrett slept nearly the entire time. I thought that was bad until I got home and realized that people are stranded all over Birmingham.  I was so nervous driving on the slick roads but so thankful to be home with my boys.  When we got home we bundled up and went out to play for a bit.

The driveway at work before we left.
The highway on the way home. The road to our house.
My baby and me.
We put him in his cozy coupe car and he loved it.  Patrick pushed him up and down the road and he laughed and squealed.  So sweet!

Daddy missed the snow day last year so we were so happy work was canceled for tonight.

Watching Daddy and Ally in the front yard!

Love these boys!

Another one of me and Barrett.

For fun...here we are last year.

My boy has grown!

We are so thankful that it wasn't any worse for us.  My heart goes out to everyone stranded out there.  There are mamas and daddies that can't get to their babies at school or daycare and I can't imagine that feeling.  This is definitely one snow day we won't soon forget.

And finally sweet Ally loves the snow.