"What's on the line?"

Those photos I took on the line a few weeks ago are finally going to pay off. The snowfall this past weekend has ended my treks out to the clothesline between two trees. Since it snowed so much, I thought it was only appropriate that I share a quilt that was inspired by another snowfall.....meet "Charlie's Snowman"...................
I made this little wallhanging several years ago. Inspiration for it came when I looked out my window one night and saw the lonely snowman the neighbor boys, Michael and Charlie, had built on the hillside near their house. I drew a quick sketch and voila! a snowman was born! If you double-click on the photo you will see that the snowman has a little coal eyes, a long carrot nose, and tiny raisins for his mouth. I made them from Sculpey clay (you can bake it in your home oven). A wool scarf keeps the snowman warm but I really should have added earmuffs for him, too. I'm working on another version of this one that will have a few added touches. Remember this project because it will reappear in January and I am going to share the pattern with all of you. Think of it as an "after Christmas gift, something fun to do in January" project!

In the photo below, you can see why I will not be going out to the trees in our backyard to hang any quilts. This is what it looked like on Saturday morning about 9:00 a.m. ..........

Snow had been falling steadily since 1:00 a.m. and it was heavy, wet snow that weighed down the branches. When I looked at those trees I thought "how pretty!" but I also thought "we are going to lose power". I knew that the way those trees looked meant that branches would snap and take power lines with them.
Kaiser wasn't crazy about having to go out in such weather. The flakes got in his eyes and the snow was so deep in places that he could barely walk. Now the thing you have to know is that earlier in the week it had been in the 60's for several days in a row. We weren't wearing jackets and the grass was still green. You can't even see the grass anymore! When I had been at Bible Study on Tuesday, some of the ladies were recalling the great Armistice Day blizzard of 1940. It ranks as #2 of the top*five weather events in Minnesota history in the 20th Century. Go here to see photos and then for an interesting account of the storm, read this.

Our weekend storm wasn't nearly as bad as the Armistice Day storm but it left a lot of people without power and there were a lot of fender benders (fortunately no one seriously injured). When the power went out, I already had my flashlight handy but I got out the candles and put on an extra pair of socks and a sweatshirt. With no furnace running, it only took a couple hours before the house was a bit chilly! By late afternoon, I was craving something warm to drink so I had to get clever. I had to have something that I could put a candle in so I could set a cup of milk on it and make a hot chocolate. I found this one at a thrift shop this summer and it was perfect! It took several minutes to warm the milk but it worked!! Those candles were my evening light and the chai vanilla candle from my friend, Laurie, adding a soothing scent to the night. To keep warm through the night, I just added two extra thick quilts to the bed. I was nice and cozy! I threw an extra blanket over the dog and we waited patiently for the power to come back. If it sounds like my husband wasn't there.........well, he wasn't. He was trying to fly home from a business trip and having a difficult time doing it because of the storm and cancelled flights. He finally got home Sunday morning. Interestingly, he was home just a few minutes when the power returned. And here I was thinking we might have to go take a jaunt through the snow and find some place for a nice meal. LOL! I was so happy to hear that furnace click in and the lights come on that I headed straight for the kitchen and another hot chocolate.........and it was much easier to make it in the microwave than over a hot candle!

This storm was a very good reminder of just what a good old-fashioned winter can bring. I had plenty of food on hand and projects to work on and thought I had it all covered........but losing your power puts a whole new "light" on just how dependent we are on modern technology. I am very thankful to the power line crews that worked long shifts in snowy weather to get the power back to so many of us. As I write this there are still a few thousand folks still without power but all are expected to have power by Monday afternoon. This won't be the last winter storm of the season but I sure hope it's the last one that we go through without power!

Have a great Monday wherever you are!
Sandi