One Crazy Week

The storm's name was Alfred.  A random snow storm in October that fell trees, power lines, and left us without electricity for one week.  Our beautiful magnolia succumbed to the weight of the snow and snapped in to three pieces.  The kids trick-or-treated amidst fallen branches and wires at 5pm before it got dark.  Our neighborhood enjoyed it's annual Halloween get-together at a house warmed by a generator.  A treat since ours was around 50 degrees.  The girls and I slept in the basement because it was warmer down there.  After four days, I loaded them up to spend 2 days/nights in NH and another 2 days/nights in MA with family.  A crazy week for sure.

I was grateful for the safety of my family.  For my car that we could drive around in to warm up and so Aubrey could nap.  I was grateful for my landline and cell phone so I could keep my family in UT updated.  I was grateful for hot water and a gas stovetop.  I was grateful for the new slippers I had just purchased at Old Navy, and the battery-operated candles I picked up at Costco.  I was grateful for family who took us in.

Here are some pics:

So this is a pic of our backyard.  In the center, you can see the magnolia.  Two large sections fell, one to the right, one to the left.  Front left hand corner is a lilac bush that is usually higher than my garage.  The weight of the snow pushed everything down to the ground.

This is a tree in my neighbor's yard.  A good representation of how everyone's yards looked.  The cleanup effort has been tremendous.

Kiley and Aubrey decked out for Halloween.  Kiley wore snow boots in stead of her princess tutu.  Aubrey's cupcake costume fit over her snowsuit, but it was kind of hard to tell what she was.  At least she was warm!