Thursday, February 5, 2009

Thank goodness for running water!


We're all doing a happy dance here for running water. It's similar to a rain dance, I think, but more in the thankful line than the asking line! We woke up this morning to all frozen pipes. It had dropped into the single digits last night, and we forgot to take the precaution of letting the faucets drip before bed. We do have an outdoor freeze-proof faucet so I was able to bring some water in from outside. While trying to defrost, we enjoyed these yummy breakfast puffs made from a recipe posted on be the thread. Then just as we were finishing up our late brunch and I was trying to figure out the best way of cleaning up without water, Ivy tried the faucet and it spluttered! Thankfully we had water again and no broken pipes, which is always a worry for when they thaw out.

I'm longing for warmer weather. Usually we get through the winters pretty unscathed here. We normally have a couple snowfalls that keep me from getting my minivan up and down the driveway for a couple days, but usually we can get my husband's 4wd Blazer in and out. Last week we had no power for a day, and this week no water. It was the first time in over five years that we have lost power for more than a couple minutes. It was out about 12 hours. I don't know which was worse, but I think I am going to go with no power because our furnace needs power to operate. So it was a wee bit chilly last week, and we wound up packing the tribe up and walking over the hill to my parents' house. They live right next door. (Down a treacherously slippery driveway if it's covered with snow and slush. I only fell once...) I'm going to double check with hubby, but I think it's a very good possibility that we forgot to pay the weather man off this year!

While doing without, it always strikes me how much we rely on things like power and running water. We don't even realize it until we have to go without. For instance, last week, I had taken a few candles into the bathroom and was returning to light them. As I walked into the bathroom, lighter in hand and eyes focused on the candles, I reached to flip the light on! Duh...there's no power--that's why I'm lighting candles! This morning as I was cooking, I kept turning to the sink to rinse my hands or wet the sponge. It's so much extra work having to bring water from outside (even if the faucet is two steps from our porch) and heat it on the stove. I considered doing dishes--even had gotten so far as to fill the sink with hot water when I realized I needed something to rinse the dishes also and that brought my plans to a screeching halt. I felt pretty secure in the knowledge that nobody was going to bother trudging up our hill in this cold and snow, so I left the dishes until we had water. It makes me admire our ancestors who really worked for the simple things we take for granted and thankful that most of the time we do enjoy these conveniences.

And look what arrived today in the mail! A little Dotee doll named Ruby and all dressed for the cold weather. I received her as part of a red Dotee Doll swap on Swapbot. She came with the cutest card and story, too. She's from Wales where it is also a bit chilly, and she admired the wooly warmness of the sheep there. So that's why she is all wooly and warm. Plus she has her snuggly hat and scarf to keep her toasty--and a good thing too with the weather we've been having! I did have to fight Ivy for her, but I think I prevailed! Thanks Haloquin for sending her!

6 comments:

Leasmom February 5, 2009 at 4:03 PM  

We had no hot water for three days, we only had cold. And that was hard enough to do I can imagine! And I couldn't imagine going without any heat for a day, its just too cold.

I someone blew a fuse so I needed to see to switch the breaker over and I kept trying to find my flashlight but the light was blown and I'm thinking...what am I gonna do? Then it dawned on me, duh, that I have a candle. So then I used it, but I could've spent trying to find a tiny bulb for that flashlight without ever thinking about candles. Yeah, its amazing that they did what they did, we are very weak people compared to them! Whose more primitive, us or them? I think we'd all die if we had to do even a quarter of what they did. We just aren't tough enough nowadays

Haloquin February 5, 2009 at 4:38 PM  

Aw! She looks so happy in her new home :)

I have another Dotee up as a giveaway on my blog as part of One World, One Heart, if you'd like to sign up for it you're more than welcome to!

www.haloquin.wordpress.com

Thanks for your kind words :) hope you stay snuggly now!

Jennifer February 5, 2009 at 5:15 PM  

I awarded you the "Tree of Happiness" award. Visit my blog for details, but please don't feel obligated in any way, only if you want too!

Anonymous February 7, 2009 at 8:25 AM  

Hello neighbor...you are the closest blogger (geographically) I have met yet. I am only 30 min from the W.Virginia border.

Your property looks beautiful.

Thank you so much for commenting on my blog.

I love your blog background. I need to do something cute on mine...

Felicia February 7, 2009 at 8:47 AM  

I am so glad you all have water! You really do not realize how MUCH you use it everyday for small things.. like brushing teeth!

Those dolls you got for swapping are so adorable!

Thank you so much for your sweet comments about Graham. It is so hard to see them sick!

Stephanie Appleton February 7, 2009 at 11:27 AM  

I didn't realize you are in WV too! Hope you are getting the spring like weather we are today!

About This Blogger

I am a thirty-something mother of two girls and a boy ranging from preschool to middle school. My husband and I keep working and reworking on our goal of raising our family healthier. Our house is a constant work under construction--adding on and remodeling. We're happy to have bought our property a few years ago, but as any homeowners know, owning a home just adds to your list of projects and chores because there's always improvements to be made and maintenance to be done. On our burgeoning homestead, we have chickens, guineas, a few goats, and our most recent additions-rabbits.
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About This Blog

I picked the name Petalz and Finz a couple years ago when I decided to try Etsy out. I wanted to custom make some baby related items and have things for girls and boys. I felt the name incorporated both my kids (at the time) into it--petalz for Ivy and finz for Finn.

I haven't had time to do much of anything with my Etsy for a while, but it's still my in my long term goals. In the mean time, I'm having fun with this blog thing. I've found some creative inspiration through my own posting, but also through many other wonderful blogs out there.
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