Horror

I didn't finish cleaning my terrace after having our food outside, and we had sherbet that had melted. I didn't realize that it had leaked out of the container. When I came inside this afternoon from getting my son off the bus, I was horrified to see a little bird struggling in a pool of syrup...it was completely stuck to the floor, it couldn't move, and in its desperation, its movement was pulling out its feathers. I didn't know if it had broken its wings, and I really didn't think it was going to live.

My mind went immediately to a commercial on television for Dawn dish detergent where they were washing a duck that had gotten stuck in an oil slick. So I got a little cup of warm water and put a little Dawn in it, and poured a little bit over the poor bird. This loosened his feathers, and he was able to move. I then poured some plain warm water over him to try to dissolve the rest of the syrup in the feathers.

The poor thing hid in a corner, and I thought for sure that it was hiding so that it could die.

I went into the apartment to get a bucket of warm soapy water and a brush to clean the terrace so that I wouldn't torture another poor birdie, and the bird disappeared.

I finally found him in the fallen tree outside. This was a good thing...it meant it could fly. As the bird preened and preened, I could see that it was a tufted titmouse. He's been back to the feeder, and I think as long as he can fly and eat, he should be okay. I put a shallow bowl of water outside in case he should like to take a bath, but he hasn't used it. I really hope he's okay. I love birdies, and the last think I would ever want to do is hurt a birdie. I feel so guilty that it was because of my own negligence that the birdie was hurt, but I am happy that I think I managed to save the poor thing.

Winter Weather Advisory - Yeah, Right

Well, we had a winter weather advisory, but we wound up getting about 2 feet of very heavy snow. The tree outside our terrace fell...although I will miss our tree, its shade, its birdies, and the privacy it provides, I'm just glad it fell away from us and not on us. Here is our fire escape.

I was very concerned about the roof collapsing from all the heavy snow, but it didn't. I did hear that a roof on another condo complex did collapse, however. I hope it's not true.

Here is our shower. We had no electricity, no heat, and no hot water. We did have a trickle of freezing cold water, for which I was very grateful as many people had no water and had to melt the snow. I heated water on the stove and we used a cup to pour the water over us like a shower. It worked, but boy oh boy was it cold once we were wet!!!!!

This is why we had our trickle of water....Our water pumps are electric, so a water company came to fill up their trucks with water from a fire hydrant and deliver the water to our water tank. They worked all through the night and most of the day to do this.

When the snow finally stopped on Saturday, it was time to play, "Let's Find the Car"!

Then we drove around looking to see what the damage was like and found many more broken and fallen trees.

We had a crank radio, which is one of the best presents we ever got from my Mom, which we used to keep contact with the outside world (well, and our cell phones still worked).

Except for some difficulty with the adjustment for my son who intermittently banged his head repeatedly against the floor or wall because nothing happened when he tried to turn things on, the kids had lots of fun. We blew up some gloves into balloons, the kids helped crank the radio, we sang, we read books, and the kids ran around with lanterns in the dark.

It was so cold in our apartment that it was difficult to sleep. We put the kids in a lot of layers and bundled them under deep comforters. I think we did okay.

I'm glad it's over, though. Being in the dark and cold is really not pleasant, and having to use cold water all the time just makes the chill even deeper. We shivered ourselves to sleep at night, and I kept thinking about "The Long Winter" by Laura Ingalls Wilder and was glad that we didn't wake up with snow piled on us, we were cranking a radio and not a grinder to make bread, their only food, and that it was only four days and not seven months. I was grateful that it was winter and we could put our food on the terrace so it didn't spoil, if we did lose water there would be snow to melt, and we could keep putting more clothing and blankets on where as if it were hot, you can only take off a certain amount of clothes before there's nothing left to do. I was also glad that we had a home and weren't outside and homeless.

So, I'm really looking forward to Spring in a big way, and am grateful that we made it through all home together safe and sound even if a little cold and tired for just a little while.

We JUST Got Power Back

We've been without electricity, heat, and hot water since Thursday. I used to think Little House on the Prairie was such a romantic time, but I would have made a horrible pioneer, I think.
Will post more later...going to revel in being able to flick a switch and have the lights go on, and celebrate not having to shiver myself to sleep and think about my kids doing the same. :)

Snow!

I think all the boots lined up look so cute.
My son trying and failing to walk in the snow.

My daughter not even having success walking on the sidewalk.

Well, we're getting hammered by snow. We took the kids out to play in the snow today, and on the grassy areas, it's just about two feet deep and they can't walk in it. It was very difficult to try to make a snowman, and after a few minutes the kids were miserable so we came back in. Oh well. At least we were out.

The snow is very wet and heavy and dangerous. There are a lot of trees and branches down around here. My husband thought it was a good idea to bring our daughter under a tree so she could walk around because there was very little snow, but I reminded him about the branches surrounding him and how another could fall on them at any second, so out they came. We keep losing power...whenever figure skating comes on. Skiing, which I really don't want to watch, is all I get to see.

My son has been home from school for two days now, and school is already closed for tomorrow. My husband's job isn't expecting him in, so that's a good thing...I don't have to think about him traveling on bad roads, and I'll have help with my son.

My son has been having a rough few days. I'm not exactly sure why. He's been getting very easily frustrated and upset, and has been banging his head a lot. His forehead is raw, and I may have a broken nose because he head butted me very hard. I'm icing it, and there's not a lot to do for it besides that. It may be time to look into meds. If he can injure me, he can injure my daughter.

Autism is hard on everyone.

Maple Sugar Tour

This is the syrup they had for sale at the nature preserve where we took our tour. It's available for purchase from Justus Asthalter Maple Syrup Inc.

We went on a maple sugar tour at a local nature preserve. This weekend we were still sick, but not too sick, and it was the first nice days in ages...temperatures were in the forties and it was sunny. Also, it was my husband's birthday weekend, so we wanted to spend some family time together.

The tour began with story time around a fire. The storyteller told two American Indian stories about the origins of the use of maple syrup.

The first one is about how maple syrup used to drip from the trees and the people sat under the streams and got fat and lazy. Manabohzo, a Native American Hero thought this just wasn't right, and poured water into all the trees so the people had to work hard to turn the sap into syrup.

The second story was about a chief who threw his axe into a tree out of anger, and sap poured out. His wife caught it in a birch bark bowl, and used it to cook because she thought it was water. The food became very sweet, and that is how they discovered that the "water" could be turned into sweet syrup.

Each child received a small pouch that they wore around their neck, and with each stop on the tour, they received a small, laminated picture to remind them of the stories they learned. Here they received a picture of a birch bark bowl.

Here we learned to identify a sugar maple tree. We need to look for ovals, faces, and "Y"'s. The silhouette of the sugar maple is oval. The bark of the tree is shaggy, and you can see faces in it. Every branch forms a Y all the way from the trunk to the smallest twig. Here, the children received little twigs to put into their story pouch.

My husband is in the plaid jacket carrying our son in this picture.
Then we learned how to tap the sap. A hole is drilled that can only go about 2 inches deep so as not to hurt the tree. A hollow piece of wood or metal is put into the hole. A pail is hung or placed underneath, and the sap drips out. A cover is put onto the pail to keep out water and critters.

Here is what the sap looks like. It looks like water. We even got to taste some, and it tasted like slightly sweet water. Sap is 97% water, and only 3% sugar, so it takes a lot of sap and time to make maple syrup.

Here the children received a picture of a drop of sap for their story pouches.

Here is the heating element they use to boil down the sap into syrup. They keep it over low heat until the water evaporates. Different grades of syrup from Grade A Fancy to Grade B are achieved by using sap from different times during the season (there are grades in between these as well). Grade A Fancy is a light amber syrup from sap collected early in the season (right around now), and Grade B is from sap collected near the end of the season, which lasts for about 4-6 weeks.

Here is where the heating element is located, in the Sugar Shack.

After the tour, I bought some maple sugar candy and maple syrup. I am going to make up a story board for my son's class and send in the maple sugar candy so they can all taste it. Then we went out to dinner for pancakes and waffles, and I brought in the maple syrup. Boy, it was delicious! If you've never tasted real maple syrup, it has a thinner consistency than pancake syrup, it doesn't have the sickening sweet smell, and it has a wonderful depth of flavor, so you don't need to use as much. It's much more expensive because it's so labor intensive, but for a treat, it's wonderful.

It was a lot of fun to go on the tour, and great to get some fresh air for a change. Boy oh boy did we have cabin fever. If you have a chance to go on a maple sugar tour, you should definitely go! :)

Surprise Snowstorm!

My son is feeling much better today. He was actually feeling pretty well yesterday, but I kept him home. I was going to send him in to school today, but the bus never came. We got a surprise snow storm that nobody predicted, and they didn't delay or close any schools until after 9 am.

My husband came home from trying to drive to work just a few minutes after he left because he slid into the intersection while pulling out of our complex...he thanked God for not letting any other cars be there, and then he turned around and came back home. So, I called the bus company and told them I was keeping my son home. Just a few minutes later we got a call from his bus driver saying that she was stuck behind several accidents and that's why she never made it to us. By that time, there still wasn't even a school delay. A friend of my husband's from work picked him up in her SUV. It took them almost 1/2 hour to go 7 minutes away, so they stopped for brunch. They eventually made it to work nearly two hours later.

Back!

It's hard to go down a snowy slide... My daughter enjoyed opening gifts, but my son was too busy playing his guitar...

The stockings were hung...

The presents were under the tree...three for each child, just like baby Jesus...

My son playing his guitar later on looking all handsome in his shirt and tie...

Our New Year's Eve decorations...

Happy New Year!Celebrating with party hats and balloons...

My son yesterday wearing a very nice hat, which I'm very sorry to say, he somehow later destroyed...

Here are some pictures to catch you up on what we've been up to.

Thank you to everyone who kept dropping cards, posting comments, and reading my blog while I was on hiatus. Both kids have a cold right now, but that's normal in our home. It's nice to be back to some sort of normalcy.

Thanks again!

Sorry for Not Posting

My son has had one virus on top of another with just a few days in between, and I've been consumed with taking care of him and still trying to get everything else done that needs to be done. So, I hope he'll be feeling better soon so that I can get back to blogging.

Winter Wonderland

Assimilation to the Northern Climate

I know that to some people, where I live is considered downstate New York, but from where I grew up in "the city", it's upstate New York, and there are some major differences I've experienced living here, especially in the winter. There is no plowing or salting until there is a considerable amount of snow on the ground, which makes driving conditions treacherous immediately. There is considerably more ice up here, and it stays colder longer because there's no sea breeze to melt the snow and ice. It is hilly. All these things combined can make it difficult to get around in the winter, especially with a front wheel drive car. My husband almost got stuck at work because he couldn't make it up the hills in the snow to get home, and he had to take the train home...then he had trouble getting home from the train station, and I couldn't help him. Just walking around is really difficult, and the ice isn't even cleared from the fronts of stores or parking lots. So, we've made some adjustments after living here through two winters (yes, it took us that long LOL). We don't have the money to go out and get four wheel drive vehicles, and we have no place to store snow tires, so those were not options. So, I did some research, and I found reasonably priced, well reviewed tire chains that go on quickly and easily (supposedly), and come off quickly and easily, and can be stored right in the car. Also, I got Yak Trax last year (you can read my experience with this HIGHLY recommended product here), and got two pairs for my husband too. I already had another pair of "ice walkers" that my Mom had gotten for me because I'm not very sure-footed. So, we'll each keep one pair in the house when we need to get to the car, and one pair in the car to get anywhere else so we're prepared.

So, hopefully, these things will make the winter more bearable and help us to feel less trapped, which is the only thing I don't like about the winter. Also, I won't worry so much about my husband getting stuck in his Corolla on the way home from work.

Train Ride!!!

I can't wait for my Yaktrax!!!

Waiting for the train. Here it comes!

On the train!

Today we went for a ride on a train...15 minutes down the line, and then we switched tracks and rode the 15 minutes back home. It was lots of fun. It was a nice day to go outside and enjoy some fresh air, and the conductor even let my son keep his ticket as a momento.

Yaktrax

I am SO excited. Carolyn from Yaktrax read my blog, and she is going to send me a pair of their walker traction devices for me to try! I will be writing about my experience, and I will give an HONEST review...so if you're someone who finds themselves walking on ice a lot, or someone who would like to go geocaching and finds it difficult to do so in icy conditions, stay tuned to find out how my experience goes! (If you'd like to know just about anything and everything there is to know about geocaching, read Carole's blog So You Wanna Go Geocaching at http://www.soyouwannagogeocaching.com/ ) Be assured, that if they help ME walk safely on ice carrying an infant and dragging along a toddler with noodle legs, they will be able to help anybody!!!

Adapting to a Different Type of Winter with Lots and Lots of Ice

Yaktrax walker traction device

The view out our front door of beautiful snowy woods.

My cousin just loves winter, even though she has to chop up ice on a driveway that may as well be a private road. God bless her. I don't hate winter, but I don't like ice one bit because I am a perpetual klutz and have visited the emergency room more times than I can count. Ice scares me. Driving in snow and ice is scary too.

I grew up in Queens and then lived on Long Island for several years, and for the most part, as soon as it started to snow, or even before, the roads were salted and sanded, and driving wasn't too bad. Stores made sure there was no snow or ice on the sidewalk or near the entrance, and parking lots were pretty clear. I was spoiled. Although some places are cleared up here, the roads are not generally plowed, salted, or sanded right away, and some of them don't get done for days. Even roads that are busy. The spaces in between parking spaces are covered with ice. There is ice on the ramps for wheelchairs in parking lots. There is ice in front of stores. Everywhere, there is ice.

As we have moved up state from "the city", we are viewed as interlopers. But, we're bound and determined to assimilate, acclimate, and adapt. We came here because we love it and wanted to get away from "the city", not because we wanted upstate to be like the city...we do NOT!!! So, even though I'm sure I sound whiny, I'm sure that soon I'll be laughing at newbies trying to drive without snow tires and walk on ice in shoes without good traction. I think I'll start now...HA HA HA!!!!!
Now, on a positive note, I'm never one bit surprised by the ice. I broke my ankle down in Queens because I slipped on a surprise piece of ice. Here, the ice is everywhere all the time, and in two years, I haven't once slipped. And, my poor son slips all over the place all the time, so it is ironic and terrifying that I, the perpetual klutz who has been to the emergency room more times than I can count, has to hold him up...and I have!

Also on a very positive note, there's almost always snow on the ground all winter long. Down on Long Island, things look dead and dreary because it's more temperate there, and the snow melts. Here, everything looks perpetually pretty. I don't mind the cold. I usually don't even have my coat closed. But, oh, the ice. I'm afraid to take them for a walk or go to the playground, because everything is covered with ice. It makes the options for playing outside very limited. Since my son is hyperactive, it can make staying indoors very difficult.

But I will adapt. My husband doesn't really need to adapt, because he's part cat. He never falls. No matter how slippery something is, or if he's standing on roller blades for the first time, he's right at home and can jump and do anything he wants. He's amazing.

My Mom got me these nifty rubber things to put on my shoes that have cleats on them and give lots of traction for the ice. They work pretty well, but the cleats are only on the toes, and they're very uncomfortable when you're walking. I saw a different pair that I may get called Yaktrax. They have coils wrapped around crosswise over the toe and heel. The spiky ones are great to keep in the car because I won't have to walk up and down the stairs or on my linoleum with them, and the others will be great for walking to the bus. Other than the ice and that it can be difficult to drive in the snow, I don't think there's anything I don't like about being upstate. I think about people who have to learn to do things in different ways because of disabilities, so I think I can learn to do things in a different way and learn to love, or at least be at peace with the ice.

Snowy Morning!

We got some snow this morning, and my son had fun making footprints with his new boots. There have still been no takers on the bird feeder. I think I may break off some pieces of cereal to give my son some hope. It's no worse than Santa Claus, right? Then, I think we'll make another bird feeder with something the birds might like to eat more, and maybe he can watch the birds eat that. I feel so bad. It's such a cute bird feeder. It's too bad the camera focused on the tree branches instead of the bird feeder...I'll learn!!!! :)