We all were looking forward to February 14th - not just because it was St. Valentine's Day - but because our good friends were coming down from Cincinnati to visit us! And because my parents just so happened to be on their super long trip to the Philippines, we thought it would be super fun (that is, spacious and accommodating) to host them at their home instead of our own.
After a morning of a yummy Valentine's breakfast and running last minute errands, our friends arrived just after nap time. The kids immediately took to playing with each other, while us parents caught each other up on life. We treated our guests to a yummy dinner - Justin's famous mac & cheese, my pulled pork, and green beans - and enjoyed some Ohio buckeyes for dessert, courtesy of our friends. The kids were tired early, so we put 'em to bed and stayed up late sharing stories and playing a rousing round of Mexican Train.
Valentine's Day breakfast and games
With our Cincy friends Ollie and Lily
The next morning, Sunday, I discovered that we were gonna be hit by an abundance of snow and ice that night. Our friends were already planning on leaving after Mass and lunch (a super short visit, I know!), but Justin and I were planning on staying one more night at my parents' place to enjoy the bigger space and do a final cleaning before heading home. Thankfully, though, we stopped by our own house to drip our faucets and grab some more clothes and food - just in case.
And, lo and behold, the next day we woke up to the sound of ice and freezing rain. The driveway, yard, and street were covered in a two-inch thick sheet of ice. There was no way that Justin, who was supposed to go in to work that afternoon at 2pm, was going anywhere. We took the kids outside to see the beautiful ice, but they were finished after five minutes - plus there wasn't much to do in the ice outside anyway. So, instead, we hung out inside and celebrated Mardi Gras a day early with a King Cake. We played games, enjoyed some homemade play-doh, played hide and seek, and cherished each other's company in the warmth and comfort of Lolo and Lola's house.
A pre-Mardi Gras King Cake
They practiced tracing letters with homemade play-doh
Then Tuesday came along. The sun had come out, but the roads were still terrible. My parents' huge hill seemed okay to get out (Justin managed to make it out to the nearest Walgreens to buy needed dog food for Rupert), but we called a neighbor at our own subdivision who warned us to still stay away since both entrances were a mess and the parking areas were ice rinks. And so Justin called out of work again, and we made the most of our family time. The kids weren't interested in playing in the cold snow/ice until we called it an art project and had them paint it. We did some leftover Valentine's Day art projects and did an impromptu "burying of the Alleluia" to prepare them for Lent. We enjoyed hot chocolate, built an indoor fort, and played more rounds of hide and seek.
Snow painting
Snow spraying
We wrote "Alleluia" and colored it....
and the buried it in an envelope to see it again on Easter!
Hot chocolate moustache!
Our fort
Making some crafts that Ollie and Lily gave us
We didn't get any respite from the weather on Wednesday, when two inches of snow piled up on top of the ice. Fortunately, this was a scheduled day off for Justin, so that worked out in our favor. We started the day playing outside - we built a tiny snowman (the snow wasn't very packable), the kids attempted sledding (thanks to my parents' neighbors), and we made some fresh halo-halo (thanks to my parents' pantry supply). We even ventured out to Kroger to buy a few more items since we heard another round of winter weather was going to hit on Friday. The kids were starting to get restless, though, and I was praying for at least a brief break from the inclement weather so that we could make it home.
Fresh halo-halo
Sledding!
Our pitiful snowman
Thankfully on Thursday, with the sun shining down on us, we were able to make it home. We left most of our stuff at my parents' house since the driveway was still an icy mess, packed up the kids and dog, and went home. Justin, too, was finally able to get to work after what had turned into a six day weekend. We were definitely most grateful to be in our own beds, and I was extremely thankful that our house didn't get any damage.
We can't forget Chinese New Year! My feeble attempt at homemade fortune cookies.
Friday morning started fine - the kids and I ventured to the Y so that I could get some much needed marathon training in after having taken some unexpected days off - but the snow began again in the afternoon, and I was worried that 1) we would lose power, and 2) Justin would be stranded at work. By the grace of God and through lots of prayer, neither of those scenarios happened. While the lights flickered a few times, the power stayed on, and Justin was also able to close the pharmacy an hour early and made it home.
Everything started to turn to an icy slush on Saturday. We were able to make it out and about, but the rain was unstoppable. But now, on Monday, everything seems to have mostly melted. Just in time for my parents to make their way home from the Philippines.
In retrospect, I'm very pleased with how the week played out. I'm glad we got to spend time with our friends, and I'm glad that they made it home before the storm (although it would have been so fun to have the company!). It was nice being able to spend time together as a family - especially since we've been so busy lately between work and school and training. Also, since I didn't have my sewing machine or crocheting stuff, I was truly able to relax and enjoy some downtime watching movies and catching up on some shows.
It was a blessing that we were stranded at my parents' house because we were able to make sure their house was safe, while we enjoyed the extra space to run around and play. (Plus it helped that we were able to switch up scenery mid-week when we went back to our own house, instead of being stranded in one place for the whole week!) Also, we were fortunate that Justin's schedule that week was accommodating for him to get coverage and not have to go in to open the store. And, if nothing else, being stuck indoors helped Xavier with his potty training. Haha.
I am grateful that it's over, though. I'm also so soooooo ready for spring.
