The Big Storm And Small Colds

The snow came. My husband decided to walk the two miles to work, down-hill, towards the Puget Sound. He forgot that he has a cold, so after the hour-long walk, it took him an hour to recover from the effort. Luckily, a friend offered to take him to lunch and bring him home.

Meanwhile, I’m at home with the kids. We all have a cold and are in various stages. Some of them are coughing, Babygirl’s nose is crusty and I have a headache and other unpleasant symptoms. How did I ever live in Michigan with its six-month winters? I already have cabin-fever and we’ve only had snow here and there for a week!

And now, back to my regularly-scheduled life. I have to cook dinner, which will be another gourmet delight. Or Chicken Helper (like Hamburger Helper). You guess.

Multi-tasking and the Crocodile Hunter

We are waiting for snow. School has been canceled in anticipation of this big event. I live near Seattle, after all, where snow does not routinely fall. I had to laugh at the news–they were showing people at the grocery stores stocking up for the Big Storm. Uh, hello? Newsflash! The snow will be melting within twenty-four hours.

Anyway. Any excuse to prolong Christmas vacation, I guess. School started two hours late today and I still can’t figure out why. The icy streets were only about twenty degrees, but so? The kids lounged about, watching television and playing Nintendo before school, a very unusual event, indeed.

And now, a few words about Steve Irwin, the “Crocodile Hunter.” Here’s a link to the news story.

First of all, the man was merely multi-tasking. He was holding his baby in one arm while feeding a crocodile with the other. I’m guessing Katie Couric never had to multi-task when her babies were young or she wouldn’t have shaken her head with such disdain at the video clip of the Croc Hunter’s “bad judgment.”

I’d like to confess right now that I have endangered my babies lives.

While holding them, I have:

1) Ironed clothes with a steaming iron, “cotton” setting;
2) Peeled and sliced potatoes;
3) Stirred a boiling pot of food;
4) Fried bacon;
5) Put on eyeliner (good gosh, you could put out an eye!).

Could there be more? Does it matter? At any time, I could have slipped and dropped my baby into the hot steaming water or perhaps I could have sliced off a baby toe with my chef’s knife. In response to Matt Lauer’s suggestion that the Croc Hunter could have slipped and fallen, thus turning Baby Bob into crocodile dessert, the Croc Hunter pointed out that a meteor would have to hit Australia before he’d accidentally slip and endanger his baby. I agree.

I bet Michael Jackson’s Public Relations Team cheered when they heard about the Crocodile Hunter’s foolishness. They couldn’t have planned a better stunt to take the focus off the self-proclaimed “King of Pop” (the freak).

Breaking News! A Big Storm Coming!

Snow isn’t supposed to fall in Seattle. We’re famous for our rain. Yet, it snowed Wednesday, Friday and now again today! The first day it snowed, we happened to be talking about prayer at the dinner table. How do you explain prayer to kids who recently prayed that Santa would bring presents? (Funnily enough, they didn’t notice on Christmas Day that there was nothing from Santa, nor was he mentioned.)

Finally, my husband stepped in and said, “Guys, God is like a good parent. He will give you what is good for you, what you should have.” I piped in. “Yes, sometimes God says no.” Shane added that sometimes God answers “wait.”

So, we settled the issue of prayer. Until bedtime. Zach got a gleam in his eye and suddenly bowed his head and prayed while I was getting his pajamas on. I knew that he was praying for more snow. I didn’t have the heart to tell him that God doesn’t alter the weather just for five-year-old boys.

Ever since, snow has fallen. Great big, midwestern-sized flakes. The nights have been cold and the snow lingers. The high temperature is supposed to stay below freezing for the next few days. Not unusual for many places, but very strange for Seattle. This is the type of weather that causes “Breaking News” reports to interrupt regular programming. “The Big Storm” and such, which is really hilarious for a few inches of snow.

Meanwhile, Grace has a cold, complete with disgustingly sloppy nose and occasional cough. She seems a little annoyed, but otherwise unbothered by her symptoms, though she is more demanding than usual. The boys have had a terrific time throwing snowballs and making snow angels. I’m kind of sad to see Christmas vacation end. But did I mention that I’m reading for Spring?