Flock o' seagulls robins

Yesterday we were out and about and drove by a golf course that has lots of small trees with red berries. I don't know what kind of trees these are, but underneath the trees were, and I swear to you I am not exaggerating -- hundreds of robins! There were robins everywhere! In the branches, on the ground, in the air... And tree after tree had just tons of robins under it. And, though it snowed a couple of inches last night, they were there again today. And yes, Kali, I'm sure they were robins and not small cats. Dennis confirmed it.

Around here in this part of the midwest, it's usually sort of a harbinger of spring to see a robin flitting about. I'm not sure what it means when one sees hundreds!

Anyone else ever seen a flock of robins?

Snow/ pajama/ crochet day

Last night, Eureka got 5 inches of snow. It's only 15 degrees (headed towards a high of 1 degree tomorrow) right now and the wind is blowing. Hence, the school district declared a snow day, which meant Annalivia's preschool followed suit. Which means -- we had no place to go today!

I had been lamenting last night to Dennis that we had to get out of the house every day this week. I'm generally ok with that, but this week has been snowy and cold, cold, cold. I wasn't looking forward to having to bundle everyone up and warm up the car, just to drive a couple of blocks and then return to take off dripping wraps to let them dry for a couple of hours before we did the whole thing again.

But today, we get a reprieve! I went back to sleep for a bit this morning, we had leftover potatoes fried with an egg for breakfast, we're all still in pajamas, and my big plan is to work in afternoon naps for all of us. In the meantime, I'm streaming some of my favorite radio programs and working on finishing a crochet project before starting another one -- or four. :)

Here's to snow days!

Sure-footedness

I am abnormally paranoid about falling in the winter. It has always been one of my great fears, but then my arm was broken in a car accident and never healed and in one of my last appointments, the doctor said something helpful like, "Well, you can live with it, as long as it doesn't cause excruciating pain until it breaks again, which it will when it is hit or you fall or it takes some sort of trauma..." Add a pregnancy and my anxiety level regarding being outside in the winter is through the roof.

But, enter now these wonderful contraptions Annalivia is modeling on my shoes -- the YakTrax. My sister Lil got these for running in the winter and bought my mom a pair after mom slipped on the ice last year. They both swear by them, so I got some. And they are amazing. I walked home from church yesterday night on icy sidewalks with no salt and did not feel my feet even falter. They go a long, long way to quell my winter falling-fears. Not all the way, but a long way.

If you share my paranoia, the YakTrax are $19.99 at Gander Mountain or Dick's Sporting Goods and even less expensive through various internet sites. And seriously, they are worth every single penny.

Let's celebrate the first day of spring with... um.... a Winter Storm Watch?

Yep. That's what we're going to be looking for tonight and tomorrow. Good Friday services are going to be contingent on what happens after the stinkin' Winter Storm comes through.

This winter just doesn't want to give it up, does it?