Neverending Winter Wonderland

The winter of 2013-2014 in Indianapolis has been the snowiest winter on record with more than 51" of snow! It has also been bitterly cold, so the girls couldn't go out in the snow as often as we might have liked. During the "Arctic Blast" in early January, the temperatures were so cold outside that we could have had frostbite if we were out in the elements for more than 5 or 6 minutes. All of this is to say that we've been hunkering down in our new home (and hoping that it can survive the elements) for a few months now. We did manage to get out in the snow a few different times, so below are some of the highlights of our neverending winter wonderland (complete with a video that you can click here to see).


Back before the holidays, we had a pretty substantial snowstorm, and after the storm passed, our whole family went out into the snow to build a family of snowpeople. Alan was amazing at building all of these snowpeople. I assisted by finding accessories; that was about it for my contribution. The snowpeople stayed for well over a week because the temperatures were so cold. I loved getting my morning cup of tea and looking out on Alan and the girls' artwork!







In early January, the snow came and literally did not leave until early March. Never in my lifetime can I remember snow sticking around for as long as it did this winter. The "arctic blast" or "polar vortex" was pretty intense. Temperatures were well be zero, and many people lost their power. We were fortunate in our new home--the lowest level was pretty cold with our patio door and fireplace definitely letting in drafts of cold air--but we didn't lose our power. Our kitchen pipe froze, but Alan was able to fix that without too much trouble. 

10 inches of heavy snow

Mommy and Moira's snowman while Alan shoveled

Hannah and Alan on the Polar Vortex day (we only let her out in the porch for a minute)

Making snow ice cream

In late January, our neighborhood had an ice skating party at the new youth skating rink at the Fairgrounds. Moira had enjoyed an ice skating experience last year, so we decided to try it again. Alan thought I was absolutely mad because I took both girls out on the ice by myself. But as I suspected, Moira became comfortable on the ice quite quickly. And then she found a giant orange cone that she could use to help her keep her balance, and she was off. Alan decided to join us as well for a bit, but he and Hannah exited the ice skating rink faster than Moira and I. Both of the girls liked it the most when I pushed them along the ice while holding on to the big orange cones! It was so much fun. Moira said she wanted to take ice skating lessons (maybe next year!).





As the winter progressed, we had a few more opportunities where it was "warm" enough to go out and play. Below are a few photos from one of our adventures. We took a short walk around the neighborhood, threw some snowballs, and made ice angels. 





Even though we were all excited when the first snow fell, I can confidently say that the entire Mackintosh family is looking forward to spring!

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