It's been quite an interesting few days around here in Denver. It started shortly after my Winter Break began. Leah's sister Jona arrived on Saturday the 16th. She was supposed to stay with us for five days before leaving for Cincinnati. Lo' and behold, what started as predictions of light snow, about 2"-4", turned into numbers that kept increasing on the news through to mid-week. By Tuesday night, they were calling for 14"-24" and the weatherman was pretty close.

It started snowing Wednesday morning, and didn't stop for about 36 hours. We tried to shovel every few hours, to make it easier to move once it finally stopped. The wind was blowing so hard, though, that it got covered up quickly.

My car got stuck several times trying to pick up Jake by noon on Wednesday. After the fourth of fifth time of needing a push, I finally abandoned it a 1/2 block from his day care home. And that's where the car stayed until Friday, when Leah drove me back to dig it out. Haven't driven it since, although we have taken Leah's car for errands.

As for Jona, DIA was closed for a record 45 hours so she wasn't going anywhere for a while. She was supposed to leave Thursday, but can't get a flight out of Denver until Christmas day. Talk about cabin fever! I can't wait for things to return to normal around here, both in the house and around Denver. Major roads and avenues are good, but the side streets still need to be plowed. People on snowmobiles helped pack some of the ruts down, but it's still very easy to get stuck.

As for Jake, he enjoyed his first major snowstorm. I took him outside while it was still snowing, and we experienced our first taste of snow. He watched me do it, then I scooped a handful, held it out in front of his face, and his little tongue (and part of his nose) got a taste. This was one of those moments I will remember, one of the many "firsts" that have taken place this year.

Here's some photos from the 2003 Blizzard, which most think, myself included, was a worse storm because it was heavier snow (March 16) and there was more of it.