back from/to a blizzard

Whew. Let me tell you--I am so done with snow. I've seen more snow in the past week than I'd care to see all season. Washington, DC got hit with a major blizzard the day after MH and I arrived (we even heard stations calling it "The Blizzard of Twenty-Ten") and we saw it through till the bitter end. But I'm getting ahead of myself.

Rachel bought MH and I plane tickets to come visit her for our birthdays in the fall. This was MH's very first plane trip, so excitement was in the air for weeks beforehand. I'll admit--I was a little wary of traveling alone with my ten-year-old sister and being by her side nonstop for four whole days (which turned into five), so I tried to, um, keep my distance the week before. I can only handle so much tween-age.

I've never seen so much excitement in a child. Unfortunately, it was a nighttime flight so we couldn't see much, but she was ecstatic all the same. Which was actually helpful for me, nervous flyer that I am--I was busy trying to keep MH excited and not let her see that I was anxious about the whole ordeal, so I didn't have time to freak out. Worked out nicely, actually.

We sat next to a sweet old lady who was traveling to DC to help her daughter shop for her wedding dress that weekend. MH offered her a piece of gum (she was very preoccupied with making sure her ears didn't hurt) and we made friends. Thinking back, she must have never gotten to shop for a dress. Everything was closed (including every single Starbucks we tried--devastating, I know). I never did get her name, sadly.

By the time Friday afternoon rolled around, snowflakes were starting to fall and the city was shutting down. Apparently, our nation's capital does not handle blizzards well. AT ALL. We got in our White House tour in the morning, but the Library of Congress closed early, along with practically everything else in the city. We walked around a bit more as the flurries continued and stopped in at the Botanic Gardens, which is probably my favorite place in DC. Since we couldn't bring cameras into the White House we didn't get any real pictures (phones just don't count) so I have nothing to show for it. But know that if you're ever in DC, the Botanic Gardens is definitely worth a stop. Especially with a blizzard going on outside the greenhouse walls.

We woke up Saturday morning to a winter wonderland. We naive-ly decided to bundle up and head out into the ever-increasing snowstorm. Apparently our trip to the top of the Washington Monument was canceled (which we also missed when we visited last summer on account of a thunderstorm).

We walked out to face fallen trees, covered cars, and pure-white streets. The city was literally a ghost town--we saw maybe three cars sillily trying to navigate the streets and a handful of people bundled up like we were.

Walk down the middle of a busy street in Washington, DC? No problem.

Unfortunately, we didn't realize how bad the storm really was, and didn't last long. By the time we reached the mall and the Monument, we were miserable and ready to go home. I couldn't keep my poor camera dry and MH was getting blisters on her feet. Blizzards can really kick butt.

Later that night, we ordered Chinese food from the only open place around and then headed up to the roof to play in the snow some more (in dryer clothes, and more layers this time).

On Sunday, we braved the snow again and went out for a photo walk to the Lincoln Memorial (because everything was still shut down completely).

I'm still trying to figure out this new camera, and the white balance or something was off-kilter so most of my snowy pictures came out too bright.

The steps up to Lincoln were barred off (apparently people in DC don't know how to behave in the snow, either) so we had to settle for pictures with the Monument and shoe-skating on the reflecting pool.

After 5 1/2 miles of traipsing around the city (that's right, we Google mapped it--I want my credit for our only exercise of the weekend), our fingers were numb and our legs were tired, so we headed home. Another day without any real plans, but we figured it was our only option and we were headed home in the morning anyways, so we'd take it.

Since all of the museums and government buildings and stores were closed all weekend, we did a lot of movie-watching, eating, and lounging. Which was just fine with me.

Lucky for us, our Monday morning flight was cancelled (yes, they were still recovering from a snowstorm that ended Saturday evening) and we got to stay an extra day with our sister. Out of lack of other options and sick of tv-movies, we decided to try the Newseum for the afternoon.

Finally, Tuesday morning came around and we sadly headed back to BWI for our flight home. After four straight days of snowed-in-ness and over 24 inches of snow, we had to say goodbye to our hostess-sister and fly home. It was very sad.

Fortunate, though, that we got out when we did--flights later that night were already being cancelled for another impending storm. That city does not need any more snow. And now, the storm has made its way to Connecticut, and MH and I are seeing even more snow than we thought we ever would.

Snow, I am officially sick of you.

But I'll take the day off from work, anytime.

*****

Thanks for a lovely trip, Rachel! We can't wait to see you again soon! (And GET to the top of that Washington monument, some day!)

snowmageddon?

Have you heard?

We're snowed in . . . . .

More to come when we can dig out of the 20+ inches!

playing in the snow.

Friday afternoon, I didn't have to go into work and got to spend the afternoon at home. I took my time coming home from my morning doctor's appointment, went to the gym, shopped for a few groceries (I have an absurb affinity for grocery shopping) and then got some reading (for work) in.

Later that afternoon, as the sunlight was just beginning to fade away quickly, MH convinced me to go outside with her while she went sledding. I told her I wouldn't sled, but that I'd take my camera along as she played on the big hill in our backyard. "I'll sled slowly so you can take some good pictures," she told me. Sometimes I think she could be a ten-year-old photographer.

Even though I hate bad lighting and all these photos are somewhat dull-looking, the grey light on these dead hydrangeas seemed too perfect to pass up.

If only I were still so young that wearing bulky snowpants and winter coats didn't bother me, and that I could run outside happily and build forts in the snow all on my own.

This was entirely her pose. She practiced this stance for a good minute, without smiling once.

The sunlight faded fast and made the bright white snow look dirty and grey in its absence. So we snapped a few more photos (much to MH's chagrin) and tromped through the snow up to the house.

I miss the days of being young and playing outside, don't you? I'm glad I have a little sister, though, to remind me of it all.

ice skating.

This past Saturday (wow, I'm just getting around to this post almost a week later??), I went ice skating for the first time in years. I've been wanting to all winter, and finally the opportunity arose so I gobbled it up eagerly.

Put on boy's hockey skates that barely fit? Sure!
Fear desperately of the couple-inch-deep water cracking? Of course!
Try not to roll my ankles and topple over like the Abominable Snowman? I'm so there.


(Note: I know skating in a human-made rink in a public park hardly qualifies as ice skating, but it was about 40 degrees and rising quickly, so we didn't want to take our chances. By the time the sun rose fully and we were heading home, there was already a layer of slush across the ice and I was practically running off of it. No, I wasn't afraid of falling into two-inch deep water, but I sure was afraid of falling in, losing my balance, getting my skate stuck, and landing on my ass. And, more importantly, dropping my camera.)

It seems as if we're standing on absolutely nothing in this picture. In actuality, you could see the twigs and leaves frozen on the layer of cold dirt at the bottom, as if we were looking into some amber fossil with a mosquito in it like in Jurassic Park. I don't know why that scared me so much--maybe it just looked too eerie.

I guess I'm going to have to muster up a little more courage if I want to go ice skating in DC when MH and I visit Rachel in February, or gasp! on a real pond!

Do you have any traditions or must-dos for the winter season? I need some ideas to get me through this dark and dreary month!