Polar Vortex - Act III

Mad Scientist's family has a monthly newsletter that goes out and sometimes, it contains a Question of the Month. A few months ago, the question was, " If you could skip one month of the year, which one would it be and why?" I can't really remember my answer, but whatever it was, I'd like to change it to January. Particularly, this January.

The boys don't have school again today, due to bitterly cold temps. We've had no Snow Days this years, but just Cold Days. We've been in the -20 to -30 degree wind chill temps again  since yesterday afternoon. Last night we had 40mph winds to boot. As our house was shaking last night from the gusting winds, I was thinking we should get our refund for January. I want my average temps in January to be in the 30's. I'm happy with the 30's. I could practically go without a coat in the 30's. Well, maybe not, but it would be a lighter coat.

Here's more of how we've been passing the time while stuck in the house with cabin fever.

Trying on giant shoes

Selfies. "Don't touch the expensive lens baby!"

"Who cares that this is the hardest maze ball ever? I got it down!"

Beater Ball with a Giant Yellow Ball and Shoes and Socks as Beaters.

Uno has been quite popular lately.

Joys of an empty box

Why do we even buy toys?

Polar Vortex - Act II

We've been cold again. Yesterday, as I was walking home from school pick up, I was wondering why I didn't drive. This thought normally doesn't come up since we live about a block from the school.

However, yesterday, we had 20 mph winds with blowing snow and -15 degree F wind chill and it was not pretty. By the time we made it home, I felt like we had endured a major ordeal and was grateful we had survived. I'm grateful for warm houses and hot cocoa.

School is canceled today. We have been mostly in the mid -20 degree F wind chill range and even got down to -30.

I recently dug out Trogdor's snow pants. They are a little big for him. You would think being a dragon baby and an Why-O-Uh baby would make him immune to the cold elements, but Polar Vortices are no laughing matter.

I have to roll up the cuffs on his snow pants a couple times, but he absolutely loves having them on. It's because he can "GO"!

When Trogdor it suited up in his Winter gear, he's quite snug. He can't really move his arms very well, but at least they are warm arms!

Because of the dangerously chilly temps, I was able to take more ice crystal pictures from my boys' windows.

Doesn't this one look like a diver or snowboarder going off a jump?

Anyway. Stay warm folks.

Zombieland

This morning, I woke and came downstairs. I heard CED talking animatedly about something. Then I realized what he was talking about. Zombies.

Yesterday, I was bored and Brandon mentioned that he reinstalled Plants vs. Zombies on our computer. He played it a while back, but I had never tried it. So, I decided to try it and it is exactly the type of game that hooks me into hours of wasted time on the computer. The boys wandered in to see what I was doing and were also mesmerized by the zombies.

So, this morning, CED was excitedly talking about zombies. To Grandma.
Yup. Grandma.

Dum dum dum!!!

He was telling her about the zombies coming to get you and that there were lawnmowers that run them over. He was telling her about this round red ball that explodes when a zombie steps on it.



Then he was telling her about these purple things that eat the zombies:



We were laughing so hard at his descriptions, because he was having a hard time describing all the "awesomeness" that he saw on the game and we knew that Grandma was thoroughly confused. We were laughing so hard had his enthusiasm. Then Mad Scientist turned to me and said, "Wait till he tells them about their heads coming off!" We chuckled at that and the CED DID tell her about the heads coming off! Oh, was I in trouble!

So, I got on the phone with Grandma and asked her if she'd heard of the game and told her, "Yeah, it sounds pretty graphic but the zombies are really cartoonish and it isn't a single player shoot-'em-up type of video games." She was imagining this and worse, I'm sure.



Anyway. Our zombies are pretty mild as things go. Seeing as our boys get nervous watching many movies, it's good for them to ease into the scary genre with cute zombies.

 

See! How cute is that? The zombie is wearing a "I Love Brains" tank top! Here's a music video about the game.



Last night, CED's happy thing for the day was he got to watch my new game with the zombies. He then asked me if there are zombies in Why-O-Uh. I explained that zombies aren't real and there aren't any in Why-O-Uh.

In hindsight, I probably shouldn't have let them watch it. Mostly because they really liked watching it and I might not have the willpower to not play it. Must Resist!!!

Indy Pre-Christmas Trip

Right before Christmas, we made a trek through icy/rainy conditions to Indianapolis to see some of Mad Scientist's family. It was a fun gathering with minimal drama and lots of good food. We even managed to squeeze in a movie since Mad Scientist's older sister, Fuchsia, volunteered to basically watch 7 kids on her own. Not sure what she was thinking, but we jumped at the chance to see Catching Fire (go see it if you haven't yet!). Note: Fuchsia lived to tell the tale!

Anyway. Last year, during our first winter in Why-O-Uh, church was canceled because of an ice storm. Since it was icy, we stayed inside and weren't really all that impressed by the ice storm.

This year was a bit of a different story. We had an ice storm right before we had to leave for our trip to Indy. We had lots of things to do before we left for our trip so we were out and about in the icy conditions. I had a dentist appointment the day before we left and after my appointment (that lasted a bit over an hour), I saw a thick layer of ice on the wind shield. So, I got out my scraper and scraped right over the top of the ice without putting a dent in it whatsoever. I ended up cranking the defrost and letting the ice melt a bit before scraping it all off. Whew!

So, we were slated to drive with this ice storm eastward the next day. We were a bit nervous and took it slow. Our windshield wipers and mirrors iced up, but the roads were not slick for the most part. It was wet and rainy, but we made it.

Mostly, we hung out and played games. On the day before we left, we were able to go to the Garfield Park Conservatory, where they had a train layout and a fun I-Spy type of scavenger hunt to find items amid the layout. We also had fun looking at the various plants and tried to keep the kids from jumping into the water.

Friendly gnome, who was one of the items to find on the Scavenger hunt

Lantern Waste

CED didn't actually pick the flower from the plant. Some other kid did and CED finally ended up with it.

Calliandra or Powder Puff Tree

Fuchsia saving the Sons of Thunder from sleeping with the fishes. Literally.

Spiral Action

Pitcher Plant

Lady Slipper Orchid

Roots of an orchid plant

 

I took the chance to do some photography and it was nice to be able to do some shooting. Don't get much chance with subzero temps that we've been getting lately.

Epically Cold - Sort Of

As posted yesterday, we have been having quite a cold snap. We did reach -40 degree F Wind Chill briefly on Sunday night/Monday morning, but mostly we've been in the -30 degree F Wind Chill range. We're a bit disappointed that we weren't as cold as anticipated (how's that for messed up?) Mad Scientist was talking to a colleague yesterday who summed it up. He said, "If it is going to get cold, I want it to be EPICALLY cold!!!" Anyway. We're chilly, but it has warmed up so far. It was only -15 degree F wind chill this morning at 9am and Mad Scientist rode his bike to work. All digits are accounted for and still attached!

Last night, as part of my daily chores, I was supposed to wipe down the bathroom sinks. We don't really use our main level bathroom much in the Winter, because it is located in the mudroom and, for some reason that we cannot fathom, the builders did not insulate the mudroom. No, it wasn't a later addition to the house. It was just built like that. Anyway. We don't use our mudroom bathroom much, because it is FREEZING cold and it is not pleasant sitting on a freezing cold toilet seat or washing hands in ice cold water.

Because of our decreased usage of the mudroom bathroom, this is the sight that greeted me as I went to clean the bathroom yesterday.

Yes, folks. That's ice in our toilet. There was also an icicle hanging from our faucet, but I broke it off before I could take a picture. Needless to say, we scurried to get a space heater into the bathroom so we could warm the pipes before they burst! Things are unfrozen in the bathroom now so that's good. We're glad things are getting warmer now. We're supposed to get up into the balmy 30's this week!

Polar Vortex

We are in the midst of Polar Vortex folks. That is what the weather people are calling this frigid weather we've been experiencing.

Currently, as I'm writing this (1:30pm CST), we are experiencing -9 degree F with a wind chill of -35 degrees. Last night, we dropped even lower than that. School is canceled today and I'm glad! Tomorrow, school is also canceled. Usually, they just cancel school for snow and bad icy conditions, but this time, we're canceled because of dangerously cold temps. When the Wind chill (temp with wind conditions factored in) gets really low, you can get frostbite in 10-30 minutes. Yikes!

Many of you might be wondering if Mad Scientist rode his bike to work this morning. Nope. We wanted all his digits intact. Because those digits sure come in handy for things.

Despite the chill, we have been keeping warm inside. I'm glad our heater didn't die like at Thanksgiving. I've also been able to get some great pics of some ice crystals forming on our windows.

 
At least we're not having a blizzard in addition to the cold temps like other parts of the country! Anyway. Thought you might enjoy a Hot Cocoa recipe that I like to make. Most Hot Cocoa packets are overly sweet and not chocolate-y enough for me. It is a tweaked recipe from Alton Brown of Good Eats fame.
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Hot Cocoa - from Alton Brown

Ingredients:
2 c powdered sugar
1 1/2 c cocoa (dutch process is more chocolate-y) - I add a bit more cocoa than the original
2 1/2 c powdered milk
1 tsp salt
2 tsp cornstarch
3/4 c sugar (this is my addition)
Hot water

Directions:
Combine all ingredients in a large mixing bowl and incorporate evenly. Fill a 8 oz mug with a heaping 1/4 c of mix and add hot water. Stir to combine. Seal the rest in an airtight container.

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I  generally try a mug and then add more sugar if needed. I also usually make 1 1/2 recipe's worth and store in a #9 can. It is SO good! Keep warm everyone!