And the heavens opened, and we were sore afraid. (Mostly irreverent.) June 14, 2009

     We were sitting in Sacrament Meeting this afternoon when the clouds rolled in and it started to pour.  Anthony was sleepily cradled in my arms, and at the quietest part of the meeting, we saw a flash of light through the windows and heard a loud clap of thunder.

 

     Because we’re idiots  Because it’s a habit we started ten years ago, we sit on the very front row in the chapel.  Imagine the delight of the rest of the ward sitting behind us when Alex and Kendra heard the thunder, giggled gleefully and Alex jumped to his feet and pumped his fist in victory.  Hannah shrieked in mock terror, and Anthony opened his eyes wide for a minute, before smiling a drowsy grin and saying, “Awesome.”  Loudly.

 

     That was pretty much how my kids spent the remainder of the meeting– listening for thunder, watching for lightning (or “strips of bacon”) (yeah, don’t ask), giving the occasional high-five when the rumbling was particularly noisy, and giggling –loudly– about how cool it was. 

 

     It was cool, even I have to admit.  (I don’t remember ever being in church during a thunderstorm, so it was a new experience for all of us.)

 

     It was also embarrassing. 

 

     My kids are heathens. 

 

 

Sunny with a chance of water balloons April 22, 2009

     Yay! I have a [fairly] quiet minute to sit down and post!

 

     Today has been one of those days where I have been busy ALL DAY LONG, but I have nothing to show for it.  Or, I have things to show for it, but not a single one of them have to do with the million things that need to be done inside my house.  It’s enough to make my head hurt.  Truly, it is.

 

     I woke up just a little past 7:00 AM, but I forced myself to stay in bed until my alarm clock went off at 7:30.  What a waste!  I should have just gotten up.  Because I slept in, I didn’t get Kenny’s lunch made in time, so we had to take it to him.  Normally it isn’t a big deal, but I had Abbie today.  Normally SHE’S not a big deal, but I was trying to get Kenny’s lunch ready, shower, talk on the phone (Rachel, again, you made my day!  I SO needed that conversation!), get some laundry going, get some updates on my mom (who had gall bladder surgery, but she doesn’t want anyone to know, so ssssshh!), get a dinner prepared I could take to my parents, and keep the house from falling down around my ears.

 

     It was a long morning, and aside from the phone call, not a very good one.

 

     I DID get

Heat me, baby, one more time… November 12, 2008

     This post is based on a 13-year-long fight over the thermostat.  Not a fight, really, as much as a sneaky contest to see who can keep the heat at their desired temperature the longest.

 

     Kenny is always turning the heat up.  He gets cold very easily, and because he’s diabetic, his circulation is poor.  His feet are always like ice, and he is never without socks and slippers.  (He refers to them as “foot mittens”.  I’m not sure if it’s a German thing or what, but it’s annoyingly endearing.  Most days.) 

Before and After November 8, 2008

     I took these pictures last Sunday, about an hour BEFORE it started to rain.  It’s hard to see in the photos, but there was such a beautiful contrast between the heavy, gray sky and the brilliant autumn leaves.  My neighbor laughed at me for standing in the middle of the street and taking pictures of the sky, but it was too pretty not to capture.  Even the atmosphere that day was exciting– you could feel the tension and turbulence in the air.  It was like the sky was holding its breath, and the sixteen-hour rainstorm that came later was nothing more than an enormous celestial exhale.

 

Goodbye, Fall! November 5, 2008

     I woke up to snow this morning.

 

     Lots of it. 

 

     Big, fat fluffy flakes that are STICKING.  *sigh*

 

     At least now the weather matches the music…

 

    

Since when do seasons follow the retail rush? October 12, 2008

     As I walked past the front window to go to bed last night, I did a double take and screamed for Kenny to come and see the snow.

 

     Yes, you read that right.  SNOW.  Snow, in early October.  Enough snow that it had covered the rooftops, grass, cars and flowers.  (sob!)

 

     We went to church this morning in a snowstorm, and by noon, the skies had cleared and the snow had melted.  Well, most of the snow.  There is still quite a bit up in the trees, and my kids are laughing hysterically at the big plop! plop! plop! the heavy, wet snow makes as it gets blown off the branches.

 

     Snow in October reminds me of when I used to work at JC Penney, and they hung the Christmas decorations in mid-July.  We were listening to Christmas carols in September, and by Halloween, we could name every song– in order!– on the background-music playlist.

 

     It was ridiculous.

 

     Let’s do one season at a time, eh Mother Nature?  NO MORE SNOW until Halloween has safely passed.  In fact, snow isn’t necessary until December.  One shouldn’t have to go from 90-degree temperatures to 30-degree temperatures in a two-week period.  It’s not natural. 

 

     I’m going to go curl up in my down comforter, in front of the heater, with a steaming mug of hot chocolate.  Let me know when it’s fall again, okay?

Spring May 9, 2008

     We’ve been experiencing a strange weather pattern here in Utah.  Last night I heard a meteorologist refer to it as a “Spring pattern”, as in, alternately rainy and sunny.  I don’t mind the heat, as long as it maxes out at 80 degrees (yes, I know I live in the DESERT.  Hush!), and I love the rain.  It’s been such a long time since we’ve had regular rain in the spring, I actually forgot that it’s normal.  In fact, the last time I remember having a rainy spring was in 1995, the year we got married.  (It rained almost every single day from the end of April through mid-June, and I remember thinking my wedding photos outside the temple would include an umbrella and galoshes.  Luckily, there was no rain on June 10 that year.  It was a wedding miracle!  ha ha)

 

     I’ve missed the rain.  I LIVE for thunderstorms.  I love the deep, grumbly, growling thunder that shakes the windowpanes and rumbles in your stomach.  My kids aren’t such fans of the noise, but they DO love lightning, as long as they are safe inside.  When they were really little, they used to call lightning “strips of bacon”.  It was a hilarious joke they shared between themselves (you know how silly pre-schoolers can be), and it will probably be something they laugh about when they’re in their 80s.  Maybe not in the shrieky, screaming, hysterical way they do now– one can hope, anyway– but with nostalgia and fondness for youth.

 

     Anyway, Wednesday was a really rainy day.  They walked home from school in the downpour (BAD mommy!  VERY good book!  BIG distraction!) and when I met them on the corner, apologizing profusely, they asked if they could watch for “strips of bacon” when we got home and they dried off.  (guilt, guilt, guilt!)  At that point I would have agreed to practically anything, and this was an easy request, so we pulled out the rocking chair, pulled aside the front curtains and set up their “strip”-watching station.

 

     Believe it or not, they stayed there for over an hour.  Just staring out the window, watching the rain fall and occasionally shouting their approval of nature’s light show.

April Showers bring May snowstorms!!! May 1, 2008

 

My tulips yesterday…

 

 

And today…

 

 

Oh yeah, that’s snow  in the background.  And it’s starting to stick.  

 

May came in like a lion.  Clearly, she thought she was March…