I feel like most of what I talk about these days is weather, and I'm a little embarrassed to be making a big deal out of "a little snow", but to me it is a big deal!
When I bundle up to take Brizz dog out every night about 10:30, I think back a few months to when I could just open my back door and watch her play from the comfort of my sofa in my cozy PJ's. Now I tuck my pajama pants into my snow boots, wrap my scarf around my neck as tight as I can, put on my puffer, hat and gloves and venture out into the slushy, snowy night. This is a 3 times per day occurrence, and I've given up on my hair ever looking not flattened and static free. At least I don't have to take her out at 6:00 a.m.....that's the husband's shift! I have learned though, that no matter how "warm" it make look outside, to always put on all layers of clothing for optimal warmth. Whenever I decide to skip an article of clothing, I regret it. And, if anyone is in the market for serious snow boots, these are the ticket:
merrell saratov snow boots
I'm telling you, they do the trick! Waterproof, insulated, anti-microbial, ultra light, good cushion, good traction, and they're leather! I wear these puppies every day!
I ordered some booties for the Brizz, but they haven't come in yet. Almost every dog I see has on booties and/or a sweater. Some of them have hoodies...so cute! I don't think Brizz is in need of extra layers though. She's doing awesome in the snow...she loves it! I think she'd much rather live in this climate than the hot, humid south. Chomping on ice cubes is one of her favorite past times, so she's living the dream right now! I can't keep her nose out of the snow long enough to actually take her for a walk. Tonight I let her run around in the park off leash with a bunch of other dogs. They were so cute playing together in the snow!
The first Chicago snow we experienced was last weekend. It was so strange for the local news stations to not be reporting 24/7 on "winter storm 2010". They described the snow as a light dusting, which ended up being about 3 inches. There was no panic or mad rush to the grocery stores for bread and milk. All the businesses and schools actually stayed open! I tested out my new awesome snow boots, and we took a stroll along the riverwalk to get our first taste of Chicago covered in snow!
decorations outside our building
I was even more amazed this weekend when they were forecasting a blizzard and stuck to normal TV programming! Justin and I woke up this morning to the blizzard. The huge snowflakes were swirling on the air currents in all directions, even straight up. We have been going to church at 4th Presbyterian on Michigan Ave., which was our plan this Sunday until we saw the snow tornado. After some discussion, we decided that if we set the standard of staying in when the white stuff is around, we're going to end up being hermits all winter. In the South it's fun to stay warm and safe inside and watch the pretty snow, but here life must go on....and it does. We drove to church instead of hiking to the bus stop like usual. The main streets were clear and we had no problems. There were people out everywhere getting almost blown over from the crazy wind gusts. I was in awe and amazement of the fierceness of the storm and the people. I guess Chicagoans just know how to deal with it and so they do. We passed one man wearing ski goggles....I so wish I could have gotten a picture!
view of 4th Church in the blizzard
After church we went up to the roof of our building to check out the blizzard views of Lake Michigan. It's quite a different scene from just a month ago! Lake Michigan has the feeling of the ocean because it is so big. Seeing the lake covered with fog and snow is a little surreal but beautiful!
where's the lake??
I'm sure it won't take long for the winter weather to get a little old, and I'll most likely being singing a different tune pretty soon (high of 15 Monday...yikes!). But, for now I'm enjoying being a Chicago snow bunny!
