Snow Day!

Well, the snow did indeed come, as promised.  It wasn't piles and piles of it, but we seem to have gotten a good twelve inches or so, and it's still coming down at this point.  I'll probably have to go out and shovel again before EP Dude gets home from work.

Or he could just plow his sedan right through the snowplow mound at the end of the driveway and skid to a stop as best he can before slamming into my car.

I'm going with option B.

Don't look at me like that, it's cold out and I've already changed into my comfy pants.

I did go out to shovel this morning, with Wee Ninja Girl in tow.  She was content to just stand on the sidewalk as I shoveled around her for a long time.  Then she discovered that I had cleared a path to the road, and I spent the rest of the time shoveling, warning her to STAY OUT OF THE ROAD, threatening to pick her up and bring her back to the front stoop, and then picking her up and bringing her back to the front stoop. 

So it took a bit longer to clear the driveway than I had anticipated.

But we did have lots of fun and WNG got to wear her snowpants at last.  I love the *zip zip* sound they make when she walks around!

We did not sled down the driveway into the backyard on pillows in garbage bags, cardboard boxes, or any other kind of bootleg sledding device.  We did wander around and catch snowflakes on our tongues and draw a baby face in the snow on my car.

WNG had so much fun doing just those simple things that she started crying when we came inside, despite her cold hands and the snow up her sleeves.  I had to distract her with YouTube videos of the Muppets, which has become her favorite pasttime.

I will expand on that failure of motherhood some other time.  For now, here is the snowbaby all geared up:

Batten down the hatches, ma, there's a storm a-brewin'!

It seems that we here in westernish New York are finally in for a good, old-fashioned, winter storm.  Except it's going to be about 12" total over the next two days, which sounds more like a really long but not too intense snowfall.

Sigh.

I want snow!  I want to bundle the Wee Ninja Girl into her snowpants and sled down the driveway! 

Although I suppose I might need to purchase a sled...

Nah, I think we can just sit on a garbage bag and slide around.  I may have to put a pillow inside the garbage bag, since I nearly broke my tailbone last night falling on the ice in our driveway.  I was on my way to a music practice and when I went to put one foot in the car, the other just slipped out from under me.  My head ached all the way to the practice, and sitting on a folding chair for 2 hours didn't help either.

/whimpering

Back to the snow-induced panic!

WNG and I trekked to Wegmans this morning to do our weekend grocery shopping a day early, just in case people forget how to drive and the roads are messy tomorrow.  We usually go shopping on Mondays and Fridays, so it wasn't too bad to pop out a day early.  Now we can spend tomorrow SLEDDING!  Using pillows stuffed in garbage bags!

Seriously, how bootleg can one get?

Maybe we should use some cardboard boxes instead.  That would be much classier.

Snow baby

I'm so jealous.  Everyone else is getting piles and piles of snow while we here in Rochester have just a few scant inches on the ground and fitful flurries.  Sigh.  Wee Ninja Girl hasn't been able to use her snowpants yet! 

She did, however, get to build a snowman and enjoy some wintry shenanigans last weekend when we hauled ourselves to Albany for my grandmother's 93rd birthday party (more on that in a minute).

Our trip was pretty uneventful, actually.  We took my little sister, The Queen of Musicke, along and she rode in the backseat with WNG, so we didn't have to stop once!  WNG was supposed to nap in the car, but she is the only baby this side of the Mississippi who doesn't ever sleep in her carseat.  Plus, she had her auntie and godmother to entertain her for 3.5 hours, so why would she even try?

Amazingly enough, TQOM even sat in the back with WNG on the ride home as well!  Awesome!

Randomness alert!

One thing I learned while in Albany was how lucky we are in our parish here in Rochester.  (Surprising, I know, to anyone who knows the situation in our diocese!)  We went to a Mass at one of the cluster parishes, so it wasn't the parish I used to attend when I lived there.  It was... an experience.  I don't want to badmouth or criticize clergy, but I will say that I've never in my life had this sort of conversation with a priest before:

Father:  The Body of Christ.

Me: Amen.

Father: Hey, how are ya?  Good to see ya!  How've ya been?

Me.  ...

Yes, folks, he tried to strike up a conversation whilst I was receiving the Host.  I didn't know what to do, so I just moved away and continued back to my pew.  Strangeness. 

It also made it difficult for me because this Lenten season I am focusing on the positive and trying to be more charitable in my daily interactions with people.  It took a lot for me to not seethe and rant about it (and other oddities during the same Mass), although I admit that I did vent a little bit to EP Dude and my mother.

Sigh. 

Anyway, my grandmother's party was tons of fun, and it was great to see so much of my family.  I was able to catch up with a cousin I hadn't seen since my grandmother's birthday last year!  My grandmother just glowed having all her children and most of her grandchildren there.  WNG was the only great-grandbaby present, which was a bit of a bummer, but understandable as the others have a lot farther to travel.

And yes, the candles on her cake are backwards to say "39" on purpose.

It was also EP Dude's birthday, but he graciously agreed that we should spend it in Albany celebrating with my grandmother rather than relaxing in Rochester like I know he wanted.  I'm so lucky to have such a guy!

And to make up for everything, I baked him his favorite Dr. Pepper Texas Chocolate Cake from the Dinosaur BBQ cookbook.   Sadly, we forgot to bring the leftovers home with us, but my mom froze it so we can enjoy it the next time someone from Albany makes their way westward.

Mmmmmmmm..... cake.............