What the Heck?!

Negative five. NEGATIVE. Wind: 30-40 mph.

Negative 5 + 30mph wind = WHAT THE HECK AM I DOING HERE???!!!

Chicago

So I went shopping in Chicago on Monday for the first time since we've been out here. I went with our senior pastor's wife, Wendy. We had a wonderful time - I managed not to get too flustered by Chicago traffic (which I think is way worse than California - much more aggressive), and we even found a parking space in the first garage we drove into. Our first stop was Macy's to see the windows. They had weird little furry creatures and winged things - a little freaky. The store was enormous - nine floors, I think - and every floor was decorated to the hilt. Beautiful! On one of the escalators, you can see all the floors at once, with all the decor, chandeliers and huge ornaments all over - I felt like I was in a movie! I didn't buy a thing, but I had a blast!

We hit several other stores, but never quite made it to Michigan Avenue (sorry, Danielle). It was so cold, your face felt like it had icicles when you went indoors. The thought of wandering very far in that kind of cold, and not exactly sure which lot we parked in, had absolutely no appeal. Once we did figure out where we parked, we decided to check out this little outdoor area near the garage that had all sorts of German vendors and a gigantic 40 foot Christmas tree. Very European. One stall had hot cocoa - very appealing. We ordered some, and the girl asked if we wanted whipped cream. Well, duh! She grabbed the can and pressed, but nothing happened - it was frozen inside the can! She actually had to go to the "warmer" to get another can - the REFRIGERATOR. Ugh.

Cold Enough for Ya?

So I hear even Malibu got some snow with this storm that's been working its way across the country. Now THAT'S something!

As per our "not normal" winter, we've now had three major storms, winter officially starts two days from now, and we're ahead on our total snowfall from our record-breaking snowfall of last year...

The nice thing is a snow day. We've had a couple of days canceled from work. I still get paid for those! We had one the day after I got back from California - I wasn't sad to sleep in! We had a partial day today, but I have a cold anyway, so no pay. Ick.

I spoke with a friend the other day from California and she was asking about the weather. I commented on how it hadn't been too bad up until that point, with it being around 45. There was a brief pause on the line. Then I heard, "DEGREES?!!" I said, "Yes, degrees." There was another pause. "IN THE DAYTIME?!!" Ah, to be a Californian again...

God is Good - ALL The Time!

Yes, friends, it has been a while since I last posted. Life just kinda gets away from me at times. Honestly, I think I just kept thinking of so many things I wanted to blog about, that the list was so long, I didn't figure I'd have time to sit and write the darn thing. So I'll try to keep them shorter and more frequent. Deal?

Life goes on in this great white tundra. We've actually started acclimating to the weather. Very frightening. Jonathan said when he left for work last Sunday morning around 7:30 how nice it was outside. Then he drove past the bank thermometer and saw it was a toasty 27 degrees... He's not the only one in this house - I actually thought the same thing last night while getting into the car - a very warm 19. Ugh. I actually think it feels warm. I guess that can happen, especially after comparing it to a day with wind. The wind chill factor just about smacks you across the face. Ouch.

I want to take this moment to once again thank Mom and Dad for the very cozy electric blanket they gave us a few years ago. We thank them almost nightly this time of year...!

We are hoping that this week, Thanksgiving week, we will be able to get to Michigan to see Pa and my aunts, uncles and cousins. It's normally a 6+ hour drive for over 300 miles (totally worth it!), but this Wednesday, we'll be traveling with every single other person who owns a car. We'll be leaving early. Our biggest concern is the weather (ah, isn't it ALWAYS?) Ice on the roads for 300 miles just isn't a good idea. Keep us in prayer, as we also just really need a good taste of home and family. It's been so long.

Actually, I drove there myself a couple of times these past several months, most recently just a couple of weeks ago. I had a great time, just me and Pa, and got to hear some great stories about his life that I hadn't heard before. I also had the privilege of being a passenger in the SUV with my cousin, our ringbearer, as the driver. Can that be possible? He did fine, but I though Dale (Dad) was going to pop a vein in his neck...

The peace we have felt with the sale of the house is unlike anything I've felt. God is so good! Although we sold it for significantly less than we were originally hoping, the fact is that we SOLD a house in this economy. It took a full year - to the day - but it sold. We're especially grateful that it sold before the bottom fell out of Wall Street in October. I can't imagine still having it right now. But... even if we did, God has provided this whole time. Would you believe that the job I had at GHC that was supposed to be for two weeks has stretched into a whole YEAR? There was a three week lapse between getting traded to another department which was the ONLY time we had to dip into savings to pay a bill. I hated to pull from savings, telling Jonathan, "This is for rainy days, what if we need it?" To which he replied, "Honey, it's raining!"

After we burned the final mortgage bill, my first thought wasn't, "Let's go shopping!", it was, "Okay, I'll make an appointment for the animals to see the vet, and the truck really needs a new windshield..." Practical. We did, however, treat ourselves to filet mignon at Outback, where the young waiter happily celebrated with us by bringing a sundae. Ahh, simple pleasures!

Mortgage Burning

Well, the moment we've been waiting for since August 27, 2007 has finally arrived. I think the video says it all:



Thanks for your support and prayers - we really appreciate it!

The Sky is Falling!

Brett Favre is retiring - the world is collapsing! Seriously, I think we lost several hours of production in the state yesterday. I'm not sure if any cheese got made. The news was unbelievable. Brett's retirement was covered for over ten minutes - head story, of course - and covered every angle, from the #1 fan St. Vince, to some dubious fans, to the other players, to the press conference the Brett himself did not show up to. Ten minutes. Then the newcasters goes, "...And Huckabee is stepping down - McCain will be the Republican nominee for president. Clinton has won Ohio, we're not sure about Texas yet. And now on to the weather..." Thirty seconds. A minute, tops. Then the weather person was lamenting the fact that it wasn't a dreary day to match the mood of the people of Wisconsin. Geez.

Party at the Pet Clinic!

Well, maybe not really a party - unless you call a bunch of stranded motorists a party. Crazy snowstorms back here. It's been snowing so hard all day that GHC closed down the doctor offices and the admin building early. Some cities were even recalling their snowplows! Jonathan was commenting the other day that the news had said Madison was running out of salt - they hadn't anticipated this much snow. I asked him what the city was going to do? "Oh, they're going to start tossing Christians on the road..." Argh.

The drive home was less than fun - I was particularly proud of myself for not spinning out on the last major turn heading home. And then I headed up the hill - or, tried to head up the hill - where I promptly got stuck in the snow. The four cars that were stuck up on the hill above me should have been a clue. A few good samaritans were directing (and pushing) those of us stupid enough to think we could make it, to the emergency pet clinic's parking lot adjacent to where most people were getting stuck. There were probably about 20 cars there already, and a number of the drivers were headed to the building. (I'm sure the clinic's staff were thrilled with their full, non-animalized lobby.) I had to laugh a bit at the antics of the good samaritans as they tried valiantly to get the attention of the newest driver starting up the hill. Home was just a couple of blocks away, so I decided to hoof it. Uphill. In the storm. No scarf. Short skirt. Big bag. I did bring my snow boots. I thanked the kind people who helped push my car out, and proceeded home. My loving husband greeted me partway, having just barely making it home himself. Surprisingly, I wasn't as cold as I thought I could be - although my hands were frozen solid, and I wasn't sure if I still had a face...