SNOW DAYS!

What a WEIRD week.

Ramsey was sick with a cold and fever on Monday, the 12th.  He did not go to school.

Then... big storms were coming through the area, supposedly starting the evening of the 12th.  The school called school off on the 13th.  But, the snow didn't start until after lunch on the 13th, so maaaaaaaaybe the kids could have been OK for school.  The bus ride home definitely would have been an issue though, with crazy flurries causing very low visibility after 3PM.

The snow came.... and came... and came some more.  We had TWO big storms this week.  The crazy blizzards (two different systems) caused the entire remaining FOUR days to be canceled.  I don't even recall a time as a child that they called that many days off in a row.  One snow day... maybe two, tops!

Tuesday night:

Wednesday afternoon:

Ramsey and Jango came to visit me at my office window.

The snow subsided, but another system was coming in Wednesday night and Thursday.

Thursday, here's the emergency notification that came across our phones:

Literally...NO ONE, unless you were emergency-type personnel, was going anywhere.  The local roads were closed for days, being absolutely impassable.  Mentions of town on Facebook were GRIM; emergency routes only and even those were awful.

Statewide, interstates and roads were closed.

Thursday, day:

Thursday Night:

Friday:

No school... but may as well go have some fun in this white stuff!  Well, Ramsey and his neighbor friend, Raelyn, anyway.

Ramsey loved "shooting" his [play] gun from his big snow fort.

The drifts were so high in places, there were times I could not see the children.  At least twice, I hyper-panicked and thought at least one of them had fallen and been covered in an avalanche amount of snow and that we'd have to go searching!

The snow was clear up to the top of the yellow slide (nearly 5' above the ground).

They played for at least an hour.  When they came in, they looked like little abominable snowmen, completely covered in snow.

I made them some hot chocolate, gave them a little treat.  And, I had a fun activity for them.   I had glued the mini gingerbread village houses together with icing a few days prior.  I got out the candy and let them start decorating.

Ramsey was more interested in eating the frosting than decorating, but he put a few little villas together.

And, there was a whole lot of goofing around.  They had fun!

After a hot shower and clean pajammies, snuggle time with a good movie is always nice.  

Overall, I think we may have gotten around 22", but there was so much wind, it's so difficult to tell.

This storm reminded me of a Little House on the Prairie episode, where they were snowed in for days... and the snow was up to the top of the barn!  

This is going to be one crazy winter, I think!. Oye.

Holiday Fun, Living Nativity

 I love Christmastime... soooo much!  I love the glistening snowflakes, the warm fuzzies that arise from being at church, the internal bliss we get from giving to others, and being enlightened/reminded of the reason for the season.   This day was a long day, full of great fun, joy and personal fulfillment.

The weather was going to be beautiful; sunny and mild.  The trees and everything were covered in thick sparkly frost.  A nice uplifting bit of scenery, for sure.

Ramsey and I went to church in the morning.  Advent is a very special time.  Last year, we were all SICK for the entire month of December (thank you, COVID), so we are giving extra thanks this year that we're all well. 

After church,  Ramsey and I picked a tag from the church's Angel Tree for Senior Living folks.   The request was for wooden birdhouse kits.

Then, we had a bite to eat and went shopping.  

Once we got to Walmart, we found the Angel Tree for the Salvation Army too.

Ramsey was rather enamored reading the children's tags and seeing what they liked and might want or need for Christmas.   We each chose one from this tree.

Ramsey showed this one to me.  He was laughing his butt off!  I was not impressed that he was laughing at an angel tree tag, but then he pointed to the "Gift Ideas".   That smart little stinker found a funny typo on the little 6-year-old's tag!  I couldn't help but bust out a bit myself!

Ramsey chose a tag for a little boy his age.  I chose a tag for an older child.  

We found the bird house kits, some nice clothes for the older boy, and a fun remote control car for the little guy.   We had fun looking for gifts.  I certainly hope this instills the gift of giving to Ramsey.  It's so important to empathize with others and understand people's struggles in life. 

We left the gifts for Salvation Army at Walmart and placed the bird houses at the church.

At church this afternoon, there were fun crafts to make for others in need and the living nativity.  But first... there were snacks that had blessed meanings and symbolism.

Then, off to play a few fun little games and make little presents for others...

We braided soft material together to make tug ropes for puppies at the Humane Society.

And, we drew homemade Christmas cards with crayons and markers for the elderly.

In the midst of the fun, we found the puzzle collage of the Sunday and Wednesday School kids.

Ramsey thought it was super fun that his name was right next to Jesus!

The Living Nativity would be starting soon.  But, the animals were on display outside for people to see and pet.  Because Ramsey wasn't overly thrilled at the petting zoo at the county fair, I wasn't sure how he would react.

There were the sweetest mini donkeys in pens.

Ramsey did pet them.  He thought they were so cute.

He petted the little baby goats, but wasn't sure about them at first.  He had fun visiting with the owner for quite some time.

He did ask to hold the little sweetie.  

He was in LOVE with the adorable baby kid.  I was too. Aww!!   Eric would have LOVED this part - he's insane for baby goats!

We went in for the living nativity after that.  It was such a wonderful event, with so many people involved to make it happen... to include his past second grade teacher and her family.  

A New First for Ramsey: Hockey Game

 Another new FIRST for Ramsey - his first hockey game!  Wahoo!   We were greeting by Santa and Mrs. Claus not long after entering the building.  Photo opp!  ;-)

It was our neighbor girl's birthday (one of Ramsey's "sisters") birthday.  The party was held at a Wings game at the local ice arena, in a private suite.   Since there would be adults at the party, I went to the shindig too!    We got there a bit early to check it out.   The suite filled up with friends quickly.  The suite had a bar, drinks, heaters, and food. 

The Wings are a Tier II junior ice hockey team (teenagers).   The young men actually go to school here in town for the season, staying with host families.  

At one of the intermissions, "Winger", the mascot, and the canon-bearing 4-wheeler driver came onto the ice.  The kids went wild, waving their hands, begging to get a free Wings T-shirt.

Ramsey was the lucky one in our suite to get a T-shirt.  He was thrilled!  

I was happy for him, but also happy because it was more my size than his!  ha!  Mine!!!

It had been a close match-up, but things heated up in the last period.

 There had been a few scuffles throughout the game, but there was one fight that broke out that was pretty wild!  I had to capture it on one of the monitor's replay since I didn't have my camera ready.  These boys went fist to cuffs for a bit, swinging rather violently.  But, at the end, they gave each other a fist bump and went about their business.   

I asked why the refs didn't break up the fight.  Apparently it's such a common occurrence, they just let them throw their punches, get it out of their systems, then go on with the game once the tiff is over.

After the game ended (The Wings won!), the team captains and the referees gathered and knelt for a unity prayer.

I will say, it was much more impressive and entertaining than I thought it would be - I wasn't sure what to expect from an advanced youth league.  It was loads of fun!  

Before we left, Ramsey got hold of the suite's crazy clanger.   He's not one for loud noises, but he had a ton of fun ringing the bell.

Homemade Christmas Gifts

 What's Christmas without a few homemade gifts?    We found some special little items that were paintable to give as presents; a bird house and picture frames.

I helped Ramsey a bit, cutting in edges, but for the most part, the painting was all him.

I printed out ornaments and flowers on paper.  Ramsey colored them and I cut them out and decoupaged them onto the items.

Then, Ramsey wrote "Merry Christmas" on them.   He was quite pleased with himself and hopes the recipients are happy with his creations.