Snow Days

Today is the third 'Snow Day' out of School this week. I was there briefly on Monday, and the School Yard was one huge sheet of ice. Since then it has repeatedly snowed and freezed...fruzzed...frozen so we await the thaw.

I'm trying not to panic over the state of the Music for the Carol Service which happens Friday 17th, ready or not! But I have been promised free rein on Thursday to catch up with all the classes in the School- can you imagine what it'll be like?

Anyhow I have put the time to good use, craft-wise, and have been crocheting and knitting away. This morning I went shopping with Mom and the pavements in town and the parking lots remain just awful. It doesn't seem to have occurred to very many Businesses that clearing the paths outside their own doors would be a kindly public-spirited gesture.

However on the whole it seems that many people are looking out for their neighbours, and certainly, out by us, the farmers are all keeping the roads as passable as possible...say that ten times fast!

Still, roll on the thaw! I know that very many of you, like Ulla and Elaine and Diane deal with much worse snow and ice for the entire Winter months, but as one of you said last year, your places are better at coping...if this is going to become normal for Ireland, we are going to need to take lessons from you people!!

P.S. I've been playing with my Banners and have kind of matching ones for here and the shop! Don't you love stars?!

Thankful Thursday

Hey look, you guys! I actually remembered that it's Thursday!

Whoop-di-doo! Tally ho! Tiddly-pom! and all that sort of thing!!

So here goes:

Firstly: Thankful for the beautiful sunshiny amazing weather we've had this week! Sub zero temperatures, snow and ice, but so very, very beautiful!

Secondly: Thankful that my car has, so far, decided to stay on the road, despite the temptation to slalom through ditches and across the fields...as it did last winter! Its been very well behaved!

Thirdly: (I'm not blowing my trumpet here, I'm just really grateful), I received TWO blog awards during November.

This one from Kathy at Cottage Garden Quilter:

with a lovely comment...

and this one from Hazel at Hazel Loves Design:
with another lovely comment!
As Deborah says- Kindness Matters! Its nice to receive nice comments!

Fourthly: Thankful for firewood, a warm house, and the finances to keep us warm this winter. Not everyone is as lucky, I know.

Fifthly: (is there such a word?) The car got a puncture last night, late, but it was whilst the Hub had it, not me. I'm so thankful it wasn't me trying to change the tyre in the middle of the night at -5 degrees (where's the little 0 for degrees on the keyboard, by the way?), and he was thankful too. With just one car(that goes!), rural living can be complicated enough...

Off now to visit Greg's and link my Thankful Thursday post- is Greg ever going to fall off his chair when he sees me after all this time...or what!!!!

Last Saturday...

On Saturday morning I got up to...
a take over bid of my kitchen by cinnamon men biscuits!

and an industrious Youngest...

Snow on the skylights...

...and an iced up lane way!

We made it to Church on Sunday, despite a further snowfall and below 0 temperatures, the main road was like an ice rink.

But when we got back a neighbouring farmer had been out spreading hot cinders on the hill, so we didn't have to abandon the car at the barn as we feared.

Middlest arrived in Church and came home for the day, which was lovely...well, until the snowball fight moved indoors...two shrieking teenagers, two large over-excited dogs, a number of flying snowballs, and a warm kitchen, sure make for a soggy combination!!

And a Happy Advent to you too!!

Wham! Doink!

I had a blinder in Church this morning, although the idea has been bubbling since the beginning of Advent. Please visit? I tell you what though, if the Lord wants this new blog to be updated regularly He'd better wangle me some extra time in the day!

The Hub was taking the Service in another Church in the Parish, so after attending Communion in the Cathedral we headed out to Morning Service! The roads were fierce icy this morning, we slithered from place to place, and when he was walking out to the car the Hub did a glorious cartoon-style slide down the drive onto the road! It certainly would not have been amusing if it had happened to one of our elderly congregation. Also, on the way to Church we were stopped by the Guards and he was breathalysed, which everyone found uproariously funny. Needless to say the insults were fairly flying and if there's one thing the Irish do well it's creative insults!

Have you heard Rhydian's new album 'O Fortuna'? It has a very rich sound, and Kiri Te Kanewa sings on it too and I just adore her voice. At the moment it is drowning out 'The Mask of Zorro'- I don't need to be distracted by Antonio Banderas when I'm trying to think!

Catch Up!

I came to a rather abrupt halt on 15th December when I woke up unwell, but by the grace of God, and nothing else, managed to get through all the Carol Services, School and Churches for the rest of the week. I'm told they all went well but since I felt awful and couldn't hear from one ear I have to take their word for it!

Monday 21st I went to the Doctor who agreed that I was sick!! After a week of antibiotics, ibuprofen, and a bunch of other stuff the old system has been beaten into submission and I begin to return to the land of humans! Anyhow I played in Church all the services I had to, even though Christmas Dinner was left totally to Mom.

Christmas Day with the Dean giving out the children's presents, after they had each shown him what they got from Santa!
Christmas Day about 9.45am- Walking to get the car from the cow-byre where it was left all week due to the ice and snow up our lane way in order to get to Church.

Sunrise Christmas morning.

Christmas Eve the sun shone and the countryside was just beautiful.

Every so often freezing fog rolled up the valley, which made it look kind of like the Swiss Alps! We had great fun taking photos.

The snow is melting now, the water pipes have thawed so we have water again, and we pranged the car coming home from Church this morning, for the second time this week, wedging it sideways across the lane. The Hub managed to dig it out and slide it down the lane to a wide verge to dump it, but a neighbour did the same thing further up the lane and her car is stuck until the ice melts, as is the neighbour's tractor.

How people manage whole winters of this sort of weather beats me.