SNOW DAY (S??)

The "unofficial" report just announced on the TV news is 13" of snow from the storm for our city ~ still under a "Level 2" snow emergency and schools have already announced a "delay" for tomorrow...but now the weather is calling for the winds to pick up tonight....so with the new wind chill advisory and 13+" of snow drifting on the roads, I'm guessing that our "one" snow day will be extended.

So, how did we celebrate? And, yes, we celebrate snow days - the wonder and beauty of the falling, swirling flakes, the unexpected "vacation day" for Hannah, the "excuse" to practice the "art of doing nothing" and not feel guilty....

• Waking up, then seeing the giant "snow-globe" flakes and snuggling back under the covers, and catching just a little more sleep, knowing that school had already been cancelled the night before.
• Good oatmeal...the REAL kind - with brown sugar and blueberries. OK, and yes, mine had a couple big scoops of flaxseed, too, for good measure.
• Having the time to catch up on emails and laughing...
• Finding time, at my leisure, to do my yoga - and inviting Hannah to join in....she passed.
• Watching Hannah snowboard again out the back door!
• Sharing great hot chocolate after the snowboarding --- check out Penzeys Spices Hot Chocolate Mix (they are now ONLINE!) - awesome, especially with a sprinkle of Penzeys' cinnamon on top! Mmmm!!'
• Watching a DVR'd Anthony Bourdain's "No Reservations" - trip to the Azores (never knew about the connection to Fall River, MA - home of my mom and Grandmother....although they are pure Yankee!)

Tonight's celebrations plans? Home-cooked meal...chicken piccata, couscous, spinach salad; some time with "the beads" :-); and then mother-daughter bonding over the latest episode of LOST....and then I'll be catching the return of "Life on Mars" Woo-Hoo!

WEEKEND ESCAPE

Hannah found herself with a FIVE day weekend (!!!) off from school (although not from work ~ alas!) and was lamenting the fact that many friends were "escaping" the "great white North" (or least the "great cold Midwest" for what they hoped would be warmer, more southern locales...while we didn't have the time or resources to do that, we did attempt a "girls' getaway" to enjoy - and I THINK we were successful. Here's a peek at our 48 hour excursion:

While we were only about 30 miles away, we felt quite pampered by checking in to the new Hilton Hotel and "splurging" (thanks to a AAA offer) by a stay on the Executive floor, complete with breakfast and perks. The whirpool was warm, wonderful, and EMPTY...except for us both nights ~ how perfect!

Our first night Hannah picked Cheeseburger in Paradise for our dinner plans - another great "escape" (the decor, the music, the food and drinks - you could ALMOST forget the weather outside!). After dinner and a warm soak in the whirpool, we relaxed with an in-room movie that neither of had heard of but both enjoyed a lot, City of Ember, - a sci-fi/fantasy (not my usual fare - but it was really good - comes out on DVD tomorrow if you want to check it out!):

Then - a great night's sleep - after some "Twilight" reading in bed, of course (she's on the 4th book; I'm on the 3rd one!)....

Next morning, after our almost private breakfast in the Executive Lounge, it was time for some mother-daughter shopping at the mall next door (with a very quick sprint from the car to the closest store since the actual temp. was -15...yes, -15!). We started off with "Mimi" shopping since we found the very BEST "Mimi" store - "Janie and Jack" which also was having an awesome sale!! Oooh, Sarah will be very, very happy! :-)) Then, shopping turned "serious" as we split up to get the most done before our movie time...we both ended up with what Hannah is calling our "rocker" tees (LOL!!) -- this one is hers (the one she got is black and it actually comes from a Christian line of products called "Sanctify").

And this one is mine - LOVE the color - and the words, of course, speak volumes - what can I say? Rocker? I dunno...

I also picked up some LaSource items from Crabtree and Evelyn to "take a bit of our getaway" home with us (same items that the Hilton uses -- smell great!!).

Then, off we headed to see the BEST movie ever -- if you haven't seen it - RUN now or make plans immediately to see it. It was a "sleeper" that now is the frontrunner to sweep the Oscars - seriously - and it should! AWESOME film - "Slumdog Millionaire"

We were finished in time to get back to the hotel, unload our goodies, and arrive at the in-house spa for our scheduled...ahhhh....massages.....did I say, ahhhh, already??? Oh, yes!

Dinner, again Hannah's pick, was Molly Woo's - she went with sushi and I tried Molly's Feast, a vegetarian dish with great tofu. Our waiter was an incredible "dish," as well, and I kept telling Hannah that I just might need to rethink my thoughts about younger men!! LOL!! She, on the other hand, suggested that she might be ready for older men - ha!

Our evening was complete with a visit to Barnes and Noble (now you know who picked that one) :-)....and dessert at the Cheesecake Factory - YUM-OH!! One more soak in the whirpool and some more "Twilight" reading before nodding off -- and our quick, close mini-escape came to a close in the morning with an awesome breakfast buffet before scooting off to get Hannah back to reality (aka "work").

SUNDAY COCOONING

Sunday cocooning on a winter's day means...

• time to design and create four pairs of earrings ~ and who knows, the evening's young!
• a warm, soothing cup of "Comfort and Joy" tea
• watching intermittent "snow-globe" snow out the patio window
• catching a sight of 6 deer running through the woods...and keeping Scout at bay :-)
• enjoying the best screen "almost-kiss" yet again (how can you forget that scene in the rain?) and getting ready to enjoy the best screen kiss as I watch, yes, one more time, "Pride and Prejudice" (why does Mr. Darcy make me swoon?)
• finishing Three Cups of Tea -- highly recommend! and looking forward to now moving on to the next in the Twilight series, Eclipse (hoping I can read this even though Scout got a hold of it, too - yes, our dog has a "penchant" for "good reads" apparently, too! LOL!)

First Snow

It's snowing! Our first one ~ and it's not a wimpy, spitting, oh, let me thing about it, maybe I'll just be a flurry snow....it's that beautiful puffy, floating - you're in the middle of a snow globe - snow...I could sit here curled up on the sofa and watch it all afternoon. Well, at least until halftime's over 8-) - GO BUCKS!

The "muse" was working overtime last night, and I've gotten a couple of the new items listed in the shop ~ still a couple more to list.

~ Scarlet and Gray Elegance Earrings

~ White Ice Earrings
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The Blizzard of '08

Yes, we've survived the "Blizzard of '08" or as I jokingly have called it the last few days....(drumroll please)...."The Storm of the Century" (I kept waiting for some newstation to come out with that one ~ no one did)....I think our "official" snow total is around 20" although it is very hard to tell with all the drifting. It's just a lot of snow -- haven't seen this much since our upstate NY days!

Being about 2 miles out of town and down a very long gravel drive, we were very much housebound until a good friend came to plow us out this morning (thanks, Dave!). And then, the shoveling began (thanks, Hannah!).

Not everyone was disappointed by the snowfall as you can see by the "thumbs up" picture and the romping in the drifts. Fun, fun, fun!

Is it spring yet?

P.S. Ooh....a local weathercaster just referred to our blizzard as "a storm for the ages" (that's almost "The Storm of the Century") LOL!!