We survived the ice storm

The day was December 9, 2007 and we were introduced to the great weather phenomenon, somewhat common in this area of the country, known as ICE STORMS. An ice storm is made up of freezing rain, which is a form of precipitation composed of rain that turns into ice upon, or quickly after, contact with the ground or some other object. This kind of storm usually occurs when the weather is cold enough for ice, but the rain for some reason does not quite freeze. The result is amazing!! Everything gets covered with a sheet of ice.

It was a Sunday morning, 5:30 am; we were wakened by a telephone ring. It was a member of our ward informing us that church was canceled. I don't think either Chris or I can remember a time in our life that church was ever canceled, for any reason. It was very strange to say the least. Then when we went outside to investigate, it was amazing! We have never seen anything like it before. Everything was completely covered with ice! The trampoline netting was a 1/2 inch thick sheet of ice with netting in there somewhere. The cars were covered with at least a quarter of an inch of ice on the sides and more like a half an inch on the tops. Getting un-iced was a chore. We were glad there was no church because it would have been embarrassing to walk in an hour and a half late. At about 11 am our power went out. Our whole trailer is run on electricity. We have a generator but unfortunately it's not in working condition. So we layered up and Chris and the boys tried to chip away at the ice. The power stayed off. Finally, at about 4 pm, we decided that we may not be very safe staying in a trailer with ice all around, and no power so we decided to go to a ward members’ house in town. They still had power and were kind enough to accommodate us. So we camped at our friends’ house. The kids’ school was cancelled on Monday and Tuesday so it was kind of like an early winter break, only really icy. The roads were so icy that it made for very dangerous driving. Many kids, including our own are bused in from rural areas. Finally, after 3 days the power came back on and we were able to move back home.

Soon after we came back home we found out that our water heater which had been performing poorly was now dead. We were quickly introduced to cold Missouri winters, first, with no electricity then with no hot water! It definitely made it for very uncomfortable living. We have learned that our "piece of Heaven" isn't always "Heaven" during the winter months. The winters here are different than what we are used to. At times it can be really cold!!! We have been down to 5 degrees Fahrenheit this winter. However, at times it can be really warm too. We got all the way up to 70 degrees one day in January. Things don’t seem to stay frozen for weeks like they did in Utah. Snow does not stay on the ground for long. Our winter has been somewhat complicated by the fact, as we found out after the cold started, that there is little and in some cases, no insulation on the bottom side of our double wide. It makes for some awful electric bills and some colder than average nights. So, we have been getting creative and should have a solution to that problem shortly. This winter has been a test of our pioneer spirit. We are looking forward to spring.



These pictures were taken only 10 days after the ice storms. As you can see the ice melted and this day was 50 degrees! We were out exploring our land with no coats! Amazing! Missouri has strange, unpredictable weather patterns.