Ice...sometimes nice!

... well, not to some that I know (one friend still can't get out her steep farm lane!) but I hope that lots of other people were able to appreciate the beauty of this recent winter storm. The weather people have been uncharacteristically accurate lately,and we got exactly what was predicted! (Fortunately on the lower end of the snow part).The studio view was pretty dark and undramatic the day after the ice arrived, and it wasn't until today when the sun came out that the lingering ice "turned to diamonds" as one friend observed. A quick trip around the farm gave me the chance to catch these photos. (Be sure to double-click on them to enlarge).

Some of them reminded me of Horton Hears a Who, or the dream world of my artist-friend Marti who recently wrote and illustrated an awesome book entitled HapiLani- The Natural History of a Dream Land. I hope you are able to find time during this hectic season to see the beauty in the small things around you (even if the ice is a real pain in the X)&$!*!)

Embrace the Weather!

From the studio window, 12-15-10

My "word of the year" has been Embrace, and as we approach this year's end I'm fondly reminding myself to continue to do this. This morning the temperature reached 3 BELOW, and it's not even technically winter yet! It is very rare for it to get this cold in central Kentucky, especially outside of January or February, and we've already had half of an average winter's total snowfall. To make matters worse, everyone is bracing for a winter storm tonight that may include up to 6 inches of snow and then a topping of.... that word we all dread around here.... ICE. (The last icestorm, in 2009, left us without power here for a week!)

Fortunately I had home schooling as my excuse to stay indoors this morning, and it was a glorious day to be along the Kentucky River as frost tinged the treetops.
It warmed quite a bit throughout the day, and the wildlife were actively out looking for food ahead of the storm. I saw a lot of birds on the feeders, wild turkeys scratching for acorns, and this adolescent deer (among others).We decided to take a walk, and Munchie, as always, was excited to come along! Mirian wanted to bring her lambs Shelby and Pepe (now almost fully mature), as we just moved them to a new paddock closer to the house and they've been baaaing for attention. It is so pretty by the river when there's snow on the trail.The horses followed along partway from inside of their field, begging for a sample of sweet feed.
It was pretty cute when Mirian's horse Gringo knocked her hat off! (I love this picture of a happy horse and his girl!)
And, another happy horse and his girl....Both of us were wearing Quarters Caps that I knitted from Kristin Nicholas' pattern. They are a really fun, addicting and easy knit, and I think I've made at least 6 of these. I was wearing the one that Mirian has on during a cold volunteer shift at the World Equestrian Games (knit from handspun alpaca/wool/and angora yarn), and a young fellow volunteer who was a college student went nuts over it! Through a series of coincidences, I recently met her mother and guess what she's asked me to knit her daughter for Christmas?!I have a feeling I'm going to be especially grateful for my warm alpaca knits this winter! Come back to see a studio shot of tomorrow's weather, and check back soon for a GIVEAWAY of some alpaca items from our farm! Everyone be safe out there....

Hallelujah!!!!

With humble gratitude to electrical workers/linesmen, Ben Franklin, Thomas Edison, and others who have contributed to making our lives ever so much more comfortable, I say THANK YOU!!!! Our power finally came back on this afternoon. I think that for me the biggest issue was simply having any semblance of routine completely disrupted. Even the smallest things were so much more challenging. What did I miss the most? I think it was simply cooking and baking in our kitchen, with regular lights and a sink with hot water readily available. Ahhh, the things we take for granted.

For those who are cold or stressed from being "cut off", you are in our prayers. We know that despite our turmoil, we had it much better than so many people.

Here are a few more images to remember... above is Robert in the hot tub after sliding around on the ice, right before the power went out. Below is an old tobacco barn that is literally beside our road (snow and ice-covered here). Besides the novelty of this barn being just a foot from the pavement, it holds a unique memory for us. Last year, a local young man strung it with white lights on Christmas Eve with the words, "Will you Marry Me?" (We assume she said yes!). You can barely make out Marry Me with the ice on the lights.Our driveway went from icy to snowy to icy again before Paul plowed it. Mirian kept saying it looked like Narnia here.The shear magnitude of the ice was amazing as it formed on fences and trees.
Munchie wasn't very thrilled with the weather, he is all about comfort... (and I guess I'm a bit like that, too.)

No Power, Day 5

The Ice Storm of 2009 is becoming an experience to remember! On the one hand, it IS time for the kids to go back to school (hopefully tomorrow). I will say, though, that they are adapting pretty well. No TV or video games and little to no internet has been great for them. I must admit that I have enjoyed catching up with my blogs this morning, as it is such an enjoyable part of my day. One of the blogs I enjoy, SouleMama, is written by a very interesting and creative Maine mom (and sometimes Papa, too), and it is interesting how they so cheerfully embrace winter in New England- this post is a good example of their beautiful photography and writing as well as resilience to winter.

On the positive side, I feel very, very fortunate that we have a working generator (and that Paul hasn't sold it out from under us!). Paul's business sells generators and chainsaws (in addition to being a John Deere and Kubota dealer), so this has been an incredibly busy time for them!!!! They have literally sold hundreds? of generators over the past few days due to the widespread power outages (fortunately his business does have power), and this is the first time ever that they are opening on a Sunday. Our generator doesn't power our furnace, but can do several things at once so we can at least have some hot running water and other luxuries, just not as conveniently as usual.

Like so many tribulations, this one is making us all appreciate things SOOO much more!
Yesterday, Robert was at a friend's and Mirian and I went for a drive to take pictures and get a hot lunch at Wallace Station on beautiful Old Frankfort Pike. Some of the largest and most beautiful horse farms in the world are just a few miles from our home, and the icy landscape was even more stunning than usual. I hope you enjoy some of the scenes we took in along the way:

Jinxed?

Okay, okay, I know after we returned from Florida earlier in the month I listed many things I would miss if I lived there..... but this?

We have had one heck of an ice storm here in central Kentucky! The storm started on Monday night and we managed to hold our power until the worst of it Wednesday morning. I hoped that it would be temporary but it is looking like we may be without electricity for a long time (the current forecast from Bluegrass Energy is 5-15 days!).This is what our nearly half-mile long driveway looked like in it's worst place on Wednesday morning while the freezing rain was still coming:Without Paul home (he was contending with a string of cancelled flights while trying to get back from Washington, D.C.), I would have been at wit's end if it weren't for our new resident and friend in our cabin, Danna. It turns out that Danna has her very own chainsaw and knows how to use it! She lived in S. Mississippi during Hurricane Katrina and was without power for 6 weeks- her chainsaw was compliments of FEMA. What a woman!

We cleared the driveway, started fires in the our fireplaces, gathered supplies, and then I pouted around for a while saying to myself, "You are tough, you are NOT getting soft, you are NOT a princess." Truly, those were my thoughts and I was feeling pretty sorry for myself, having restless kids at home and praying for Paul to get here safely. To complicate matters, our new farm help couldn't get here (and now has to take off for the next week for personal reasons), and when we have no electricity it also means no water since we're on a well and have cisterns at the barns. At least our phones are working again after two days of being out.

Thankfully, Paul got home safely and spent yesterday as resident hero, problem-solving our water challenges at the barns and getting generator power to the house. I concentrated on caring for the animals, brought out all of our alpaca blankets, and told myself, "Yes, we CAN do this, I am not a wussy."

I have figured out a few things about myself in this decade of my life, namely that I don't like stress and change and don't handle it well... for about 1-2 days. Then I try to ADAPT (my word of the year, remember?) and think positive. Also, I am reminding myself that we have it SOOOO much better than so many people, the elderly and some with many small children, that are holed up in cold homes all over our area. I am not feeling sorry for myself any more.Besides, this storm has left incredible beauty behind, along with the damage. I'll have other images to share as I can get internet, here are a few, though they don't do it justice. I hope that wherever you are, you're warm and safe.

Weather "Event"

I couldn't figure out why our dog Munchie kept scratching at the door at 1 AM... then I realized it wasn't him but Mother Nature trying to get my attention. She was throwing down snow, rain and sleet all at once, and it was bouncing at the patio door and windows all night long! Would you believe that it hit 60 degrees here last Friday? We always say if you don't like the weather in Kentucky, just wait a little while....Most of our animals have shelter, but the alpacas and dogs are pretty content outside. It is amazing how the ice doesn't melt on the alpaca's backs since they are so well insulated. The kids helped me feed because our helper couldn't make it on the slick roads, and Robert enjoyed sledding down the icy hills. Being the worrier I am (I take after my Mom that way), I'm preparing for the worst... a power outage like we had after the 2003 ice storm, and Paul is out of town like he was then.
It's currently raining pretty hard and icicles are forming everywhere.
Oh well, the chores are done, I've got bread rising, Mirian has just baked some of her special chocolate chip "tortillas", and Robert has a friend over. We have lots of rations, candles, and firewood. I'm finishing up some more scarves, and with lots of knitting I'm pretty content inside our warm home rather than out in this:
Be careful out there, my friends.