Boreal Witch

I was catching up with my sister Blythe when Arthur came running up to me, all excited about something. I thought he was going to tell me about how his backhoe had picked up some stones or shells and had put them in his dump truck or that is tanker truck had delivered juice to the thirsty children. Instead, he said:

"Mommy! There are moose outside!"

He was right: two giant moose were eating some of our spindly backyard alder. They wandered around without any real intention of doing anything (besides eating) or going anywhere (except foraging). They got pretty close to the house and then traveled on to the road where they were met by a couple in a Toyota who had pulled into our driveway to snap a picture or two.

The way they trudged through the snow was impressive. All 25 inches we received meant nothing to them. In fact, they are the first creatures to make any sort of mark in our yard since we got all this snow.

Blessed be.

Since we heard the temperatures would be pretty cold during the next week, we decided to check out the Ice Park this weekend. Although it wasn't terribly warm, we did managed to make it through the single block categories and the kid's park.

There were a couple of ice carvings which were pretty cool. I think my favorite was a carving of a huge spider sneaking up on a grasshopper. It reminded me of Shelob, from the Lord of the Rings series. I suspect it was made by the same individual who had done a praying mantis several years ago which was also amazing. That person has quite the eye for insects and is incredibly adept at carving such delicate features.

Of course, once Arthur saw the forklifts, it was all over.

As we made our way to the large slides, we saw about 2 or 3 forklifts that were harvesting ice out of the nearby pond. Arthur was so interested in them that he didn't really want to go on the slides anymore. We convinced him to go on one with Robinson. After his single trip he was done and wanted to watch the forklifts some more.

To his credit, it was pretty cool to watch the forklifts in action. I've never seen ice harvested before and it was fascinating to see how careful the forklift operators were, even though they drive such huge (and clumsy-looking) machines. Later that night, I was surprised that Arthur didn't make a Lego forklift and drive huge blue "ice" blocks around the living room (he was still stuck on the skid steer).

Maybe next year we'll go a little later to see the multiple blocks category. I always feel like that's the one thing I never really get to fully experience.

Blessed be.

"Arthur! Come look out the window!"

Arthur leaped onto his bed and peered out the window. Parked in front of our house was a trailer attached to a red pickup. On top of the trailer was a skid steer.

Moments later, the driver started the skid steer and directed it down the trailer's ramp. I asked Arthur if he wanted to go outside to watch the skid steer shovel snow. I told him that meant we'd have to get our jackets on.

He didn't hesitate. He flew down the steps calling, "Hurry, Mommy, hurry!"

We dressed and headed outside.

It seems that our neighbor had friends in high places because the operator started pushing snow to the side of his driveway. Then he cleared the driveway of any additional snow. Luckily the temperature was somewhat warm. We must have been out there for a good 20 minutes, just watching the skid steer's progress. I think the only think better than seeing a skid steer in our neighbor's driveway would be seeing one working in our driveway.

Blessed be.

The best gift we ever bought Arthur is his little red shovel. I think he would sleep with it if he could. Every time it snows, he begs to go outside to use it.

By Monday night, we got a good 18 inches of snow, which is very unusual for this time of year. Most of our snowfall occurs in the early winter, not February. For almost two days straight we had blizzard conditions and when it was all over, everything was white (including the roof of the house, which Robinson had shoveled not two days before). The driveway was a mess Monday morning and Robinson had to do some quick shoveling to pull out without getting stuck.

Arthur and I shoveled most of the remaining snow before Robinson came home that night - no easy task. The snow was dense and the wind was ruthless. I had to pull on my parka hood, something I don't usually do even in -40 degree weather. With toddler help, I managed to get a good half of the driveway finished that afternoon.

The winds smoothed out the yard like a polished stone. No footprints or tracks remain. Now I wonder what kinds of "treasures" await us when the snow starts melting in April. Doubtless there will be tools and toys...but what else might we have forgotten under the snow?

Break up will probably be pretty miserable this year.

I'm trying not to think about it...

Blessed be.

My mother-in-law passed on January 27th. She had terminal cancer, so it wasn't really all that unexpected; it was more a matter of when. In a lot of ways, a second death of a close family member is easier, but in others, it's harder.

My grandmother lived a pretty full life. Since she lived pretty far away, I didn't really expect Arthur to have a strong relationship with her. Additionally, since she was my grandmother, it didn't really matter if he had a relationship with her. What mattered was that I had a good relationship with her. I still think about her often. I'm looking forward to this summer, when I can plant a garden. I'll probably start crying as I put the seedlings in.

Arthur was much too young to understand what was happening to his Oldma. The last time we went to Washington to visit, Karen was on oxygen most of the time, but she still accompanied us on trips all over the place: the Children's Museum of Tacoma, the pumpkin patch, and the Bouncy House. Robinson and I tried to convince her to take it easy, but she wouldn't have it. I think she knew this was probably the last time she'd get to spend time with Arthur in this capacity and she took advantage of it.

January was rough. We often video chatted with Oldma and Oldpa, but since Oldma was growing so weak, those video chats gave way to short phone conversations. There were times Karen didn't say anything because she was too tired.

Everything was a blur after Karen passed. I was asked to give one of the eulogies and Robinson and his brothers would be singing at the funeral. The hardest task ahead of us, though, was not putting words on paper or singing with a clear voice, but how to explain to our almost-three-year-old son that his Oldma had died.

Tickets were booked, items were packed, the eulogy (mostly) written, and then we left for Utah. We had a few days before the funeral to spend time with family and adjust to the time change. The funeral was lovely. There were so many kind words spoken and so many emotions expressed. At the cemetery, the grandkids were given balloons to let go. Robinson's brother, Thomas, hired a bagpiper to play at the cemetery.

Perhaps the most interesting part of the whole affair was that I really realized how much Karen did care for me. We weren't the best of friends, but out of all of the daughters-in-law, she and I had the most in common. A bit surprising, but considering how similar our worldviews were, not surprising.

Sometimes the only way we know how much people care for us is when they're gone.

Blessed be.