What a weekend...

Please excuse the following photo for it's vulgarity. I found this glove on the couch and it was just so perfect at describing our weekend I had to snap a photo of it! See, even the winter accessories are full of attitude!

So we here in southern Texas had a big freeze starting last Thursday. OK, for you in the northern climes, this was not a BIG freeze. There were no temps below zero and no freeze advisories giving the time in seconds until exposed skin would be frozen. You have to understand, though, that we usually measure time below freezing by the hours. We don't even own true winter gear. No mittens, scarves, long underwear or even really heavy coats.

On Thursday we suffered through rolling blackouts. Up to four hours with no electricity. Even Levi's school was affected, but they kept going and held school anyway. They had no power for about 3 hours, but they do have some back-up generators and the kids loved having a day of sharing classrooms (those with windows) and eating sack lunches. On Friday they were predicting snow so they shut down everything. No school, but also no snow. Only a little ice. Geez, only in Texas! The boys really wanted to play outside so I bundled them up. Layers of shirts and sweaters, then a hoodie under their coats. They played for an hour which was fantastic.

Friday night we realized something was going on with our septic system. Everything was starting to backup and the pipes made strange noises. Turns out that either the blackouts or the cold did a number on our system. So since friday we haven't been able to flush toilets (except when REALLY necessary) take showers/baths, or do laundry and dishes. (Oh how I am crying over that one....NOT) It's like camping out in your own home. Of course, we had to wait until Today to get the repair people here. They should come this afternoon. Let's hope it is an easy fix and we can all take a nice hot shower soon. Until then, we are staying home and away from the public!

Then there is the stuff going on with Ashley. Twice this week she has been in the ER. She now has pleurasy, an inflammation around her chest wall/lung, and it is painful to breathe. Saturday they loaded her up with anti-inflammatories and pain killers and sent her home. Last night she ended up there again but this time they said it was more of a panic attack. She felt like she couldn't breathe and actually hyper-ventilated. She has a Dr. appt today and then is seeing a rheumatologist asap. I have been so worried about her I haven't been sleeping. Saturday night/Sun morning I got up at 12:30am and didn't get back to bed until 6:30 am, slept 1 hour and then got up for the day.
I know this pic came out tiny, but here she is at school in a wheelchair. It made it possible for her to attend last week. I think she enjoyed it.......hee!
And what do we do around these parts when the weather is crummy and little boys are all antsy and wild? We play Beauty Parlor! This actually started with them giving ME a makeover. This normally results in me looking like a hideous monster and needing a lot of soap and water. This time, they all begged me to make them up, too. So I present for you, the female alter egos of Levi, Seth and Ahren.

Meet Erin. She likes Salsa dancing, moonlight strolls and kissing.

Here's Beth. Her favorite things are passion fruit, walks on the beach and Barbie dolls.

And finally, Lisa who loves animals, chick flicks and a good sense of humor.

Aren't they just Beeeyoootiful?

Don't worry, we have the savings account all set up to pay for their therapy......