As Winter Grows Weary

Nearly a week ago, I was asked by a kind friend when we would be posting on our blog again, and I told her she would see something by the end of the week. I was sitting in the kitchen today writing thank you cards with this blog post in the back of my head, my commitment haunting me as I finished up each letter. Finally, I could not handle the pressure any longer and ran back to retrieve my computer in the office. When I got it out, it would not log me in and I had to go in and fix the registry before it started again. 

From there, I did the first thing one does when they are lacking inspiration for a post: grabbed the camera in hopes of doing a picture post. However, we have taken very few pictures since my last post (which was almost an eternity ago, I am well aware) so I realized I was going to need to create inspiration. From my own brain. Which has not happened for a really long time. Like since the last time I wrote words for a majority of a post.

Winter is to blame. As far as I recall, this has been the coldest, snowiest winter since we got married. After the Christmas rush settled down and the new year came upon us, I expected winter to simply thaw out and become spring like it does in my dreams. Unfortunately, my dreams are waiting to be fulfilled another year. I have been frozen stiff to my seat and feel like I am accomplishing very little these days.

Matthew has made a lot of progress on his car since the last time it was featured on our blog. If you recall from my last post, it had been pretty much totaled by a deer. He found a hood, grill, airbags, and dashboard from a salvage yard and installed them all on his own, along with an old pair of headlights from home. Then he came home last week with a new windshield and the car looks as good as new. Today, the only things that might tip you off that something is wrong are if you tried to use the air conditioner (Who am I kidding? It's winter...) or if you have a keen sense of smell that can sense the pungent fluid leaking from the bottom. Insert from Matt: this has nothing to do with hitting the deer and is simply a maintenance issue that I will be getting fixed soon. The Impala is picture-perfect once again.

BEFORE

AFTER (Excuse the cat prints all over the hood)

We traveled to Michigan for my cousin Mitchel's wedding in January. The wedding was beautiful and we enjoyed the weekend, although we barely managed to survive the blizzard on the way home.

The reception

We enjoyed the photo booth!

My brothers...

A random couple who posed for us at the booth.

Massner Family Words to the Wise #1,363: Be very specific about your preferences when asking Jonathan to take a picture of you.   

On account of inflated LP prices, we decided we did not want to fill up the tank until the price was reasonable again. Therefore, we have been collecting firewood and using the wood stove in the basement for heat. Our LP tank has only gone down about two percent since we started. Matt cut down a tree this afternoon with Andrew, and this is the fruit of their labor.

Our first Valentine's day together got off to a wonderful start when Matt woke me up with breakfast in bed. We had heart-shaped pizza for supper...with heart-shaped pepperoni! And while we were sitting there trying to think of a romantic way to spend our evening, I found my old crochet hook and made him a nose warmer, so now we can both have one! The one I made looks more like a beak than anything else.

"I -heart- U"

I got flowers one day in January so they deserve a place on this blog.

The siblings-in-law requested that I make a dish that my husband did not like, and I finally managed to do so last week when I made a Moldy Cheese Casserole after slightly altering a recipe I found online (I will not give out the website in hopes of preserving the site's PR). The only alterations I made were using unsweetened almond milk (as opposed to cow milk) and a half a cup of moldy cheese instead of regular. I did not realize it would so drastically change the taste and we did manage to choke it down for two days before he told me it had to get thrown out. So now we are back to cold cereal until I find my ambition again. The use of moldy cheese as a substitute has been discarded.

Last weekend we learned that my Grandma Schmidgall passed away in Morris, so we brought the boys over to Princeville for the weekend for baptisms as planned and Mom and Dad went up to Morris instead on Sunday morning. That night, we stayed with the boys at home and then brought the clan up to Morris for the visitation and funeral on Monday and Tuesday. It was a crazy-busy weekend of being "Mom and Dad" and we were sure glad to hand the boys back over to them! The weekend was a good chance to remind us to be thankful for our parents, especially as we said our farewells to Grandma and remembered her always kind and patient example.

I got a picture of one of the haircuts I've given him! I can't believe I am actually capable of handling a razor...the first time was frightening, but I thankfully had my whole family around to coach me with their input. 

One thing to do when bored at home in the winter: Hide behind your window shades so it is impossible to tell you are there, and then have your spouse take a picture of the shades. Brilliant.

And here we sit on a Saturday afternoon in our quiet abode, reflecting on the joyous days of our first winter together as the snow starts up again. Another blizzard is on its way.