Our First Winter Storm! Part One

If you've been reading the blog over the past nine months, you've seen several firsts we've experienced in our time here in Kentucky.  We took our first road trip (to Cincinnati), welcomed our first visitor (my Mom, Gwen), and even did our first local camping trip (to Red River Gorge).  Last weekend, we notched another first - our first proper winter storm!

The front of the house, covered in snow

We've both always enjoyed watching the weather, but since moving to Richmond, we've stepped things up a notch, since we have weather that actually changes fairly frequently (not that I didn't love living in Phoenix for our 20 years, but fast-changing weather patterns weren't one of the city's defining features).  Thus, when all of our weather services started issuing warnings of an intense winter storm coming - Winter Storm Blair, to be precise - we were already aware and had started our preparations.

Frosty neighboring cows

It's snowed a few times since we moved in, including over the Thanksgiving holiday while Dad and Risa were visiting; however, we'd not yet experienced the gifts Blair was bringing us - inches of snow starting on Sunday mid-morning, turning into freezing rain on Sunday afternoon, and then more snow with gusty winds into Monday.  For those of you who don't know much about freezing rain - and we certainly didn't until last week - it's liquid rain that hits a frozen surface and solidifies upon contact.  That means iced over drive/walkways and stairs, but it also means frozen power lines and tree limbs; ice weighs a ton, and this makes lines much more likely to snap (or be damaged by falling tree parts), particularly when wind is added to the equation.  

Looking across at the front yard

Since the storm was due to arrive on Sunday, we spent Friday and Saturday getting things in order; Chris hit up Lowe's before work on Friday to collect a gas-powered inside space heater (along with small propane canisters) and dog-safe ice melt, and first thing Saturday morning, I went to Kroger to ensure we were well stocked on groceries.  We also filled both vehicles and the generator with gas, and we secured the RV in its storage yard (it's living offsite while an outbuilding is being constructed next door).  Laundry was done, medications were checked, the Starlink was updated, and electronics were charged (including multiple secondary power sources we've acquired over our years of camping/RVing).  We went to bed Saturday night feeling nervous but as ready as we could be.

Chris also spent part of Saturday installing this dude, our new weather station.

"I want to watch the storm data!"

If you also want to sample our data, here's a public link

We woke on Sunday to an overcast day; snow wasn't forecast until mid-morning, so we had a chance to get the girls outside and romp them around for a bit.  As you can see in the screen grab from our back porch camera, we could still see our yard at this point:

That's me, watching my feet very closely, apparently.

Given my propensity for falling down, this is probably a good idea,

Within a few hours, the white stuff started coming from the sky, and it quickly piled up on the ground.

The girls took this opportunity to get cuddled in for a long winter's nap, while Chris started a focaccia recipe from King Arthur Baking.

Zoe looks comfy, right?

Little Bea, all snuggled up

The snow continued falling until around lunchtime, and with a break before the freezing rain was set to hit, we took the kiddos outside for another bathroom/exercise opportunity.

Four inches!

These maniacs love snow - they were tearing around all over the place

"Mom, is she going to jump me when I get down there?"

"Oh yes, kiddo, to be sure."

The two nutters enjoying their snow day

The snow was super light and powdery, so while it wasn't good for making a snowperson, it was great for creating a snow angel - something I attempted to do, leading to me getting absolutely obliterated by the smaller of our two maniacs:

Making a snow angel, perfectly happy.

Also, totally unaware that a 35 pound fur missile is headed in my direction.

Chris wasn't quick enough to capture this in pictures, but the SimpliSafe camera didn't let us down:

Oh, Bea.  No lasting damage was done to my face, thankfully.

Snow time done, we all tromped back inside and warmed up in front of the fireplace.  The dogs re-snuggled themselves, while we humans enjoyed freshly baked bread!

Again, looks comfy, Zoe

Noms!  This was so good, and Chris has plans for herbs, like rosemary, going in next time

She found a comfier spot

We spent the rest of the afternoon all cuddled together, watching NFL football and waiting for the freezing rain to begin...more on that in the next blog!

Later!

Amy