I know "time flies when you're having fun" or my frog's version "time's fun when you're having flies" but this winter isn't fun anymore.  Maybe it's the pneumonia (now in the head-cold stage), maybe it's not getting enough exercise...no, wait, I got exercise yesterday when I finally got out to run errands and got stuck at the far end of the driveway on the way back in...had a nice long walk back to the house in the softly falling snow.  Not often that snow falls softly here...it usually comes in sideways with gale force winds.  Hubby and son-in-law got the pickup unstuck after work and then hubby went out this morning with the tractor and moved snow for over an hour before going to work.  It's dealing with the driveway that's making this winter seem so long.  We had visions of movie nights with the kids and play dates with the grand daughters and the usual winter bonfires but mostly we just move snow...then it snows some more and the wind puts it back in our way again.  More to come this week and the ground drifting is already filling in the tracks Rick left this morning.  It is very pretty though!

 

I have a personal rule that if I can't see the driveway, or the highway at the end of it, I'm not going to drive on it.  I broke that rule this morning.  It wasn't stormy,just a little ground drifting, but the sky was white, the snow was white, and I couldn't SEE the driveway.  But I wanted to go to Meg's to borrow some flour (and hold the grand baby, of course!) so off I went.  I got a little stuck on the way out but I rocked the Dakota a little and moved on.  I should have gone back to the house right then, but I didn't.  Had a fine little visit at Meg's...Keira is growing and starting to play and coo at almost three months old.  Then I drove the couple miles back to my driveway and discovered I really couldn't see it at all...I aimed for the house almost 1/2 mile away and started driving.  Didn't get far before I'd gone off track, overcorrected, and went into the snow up to the grill on the other side.  There's no getting hurt here (except for my pride)...it's all flat except of the snowbanks which are getting deeper every day.  I shoveled for a bit but the temp is well below 0* so the windchill is -20*something...I did the smart thing and called Rick, my hero, to rescue me.  He drove all the way out from work, parked at the end of the driveway, walked to my stuck pick-up,shoveled me out and drove it the rest of the way down the driveway...did I mention he's my hero?  So, we're at the house...I decided to cancel the rest of my plans for the day (going to town) and sent him out the door to walk back to his Bronco at the other end, carrying a pan of bars for the funeral lunch I had volunteered to help serve.  I called in my back-up at church and am staying put until Rick is here to drive!

Update on the grand babies...Keira is almost three months old and is as perceptive, smart, and strong-willed as her mother...and just as pretty too.  Rosemary came home from the hospital on January 10th and is gaining almost an ounce a day...she'll soon be 5 lbs!  She's had thrush this week but is doing better now and is healthy otherwise, which is a miracle for one so tiny.  Thank you for your prayers!    

After five days of labor and a couple of false starts Megan looked at the weather Tuesday morning and decided to take her doctor up on the offer to break her water (since she was dilated to 5 and contractions were three minutes apart since Saturday)...so she and Corey headed to Fargo to beat the weather. The doctor broke her water just before 6pm and three hours later"Roo" was born. They never would have made it if her water broke at home since we are two hours away on a good day.

Keira Verina Baxter
7 lb 10 oz
19 1/2 in.
born October 26, 2010
Dad, Mom, and Baby are all healthy and happy!

Keira is a third generation Verina...a name my mom made up by combining two of my great-grandmothers' names...though I do see it now in baby name books but have never come across someone personally with that name.
She's a fourth generation oldest child...and some of you know how us big sisters can be!

Our son Ryan beat us to the hospital and was holding Keira when we walked in...he's going to be a good uncle! The kids will be getting home this afternoon and spending the next few days settling in before Corey goes back to work.





If I thought having children was like having pieces of my heart walking around outside my body I can see that having grandchildren only means more pieces of my heart out there. That is the nature of love and I am so blessed!

Thank you to all for the prayers and good wishes!