A new post

Every so often you come to the site hoping for a tid bit of new information and how disappointing it is when there hasn't been a new post. So, for those out there...here ya go.

After a VERY frigid cold streak, I think the worst is now over. Today's "balmy" 20 degrees was a relief compared to last week's single digits and below zero wind chills. It'll be nice this week with temps in the 20s and 30s to have the kids go outside for recess. Last week, with four days of indoor recess was near crazy. The kids just don't burn their energy inside like they do outside. Other teachers and I would gather in the lounge and comment on our "escape."

This weekend was a fun time. Karl and I needed to go up to his parents in Ludington and since they have much more snow than Holland, we thought it'd be fun to bring our snowshoes, just in case we had the chance to venture out. Thankfully, Karl and his dad fixed the car Friday night leaving all day Saturday for whatever we wanted to do. Karl's mom wanted to come so we all layered on the clothing, packed up the van and headed to Riverside Park in Scottville for our snowshoe outing. The snow had been falling all night and was continuing to fall throughout the day Saturday. I believe that area received about 1 foot of new snow. Big puffy flakes, too. Very pretty. About two hours later, Kathy, Karl and I made our way back to the van, which was fully covered in snow, with great relief because we were pooped. As the layers fell off, Kathy and I couldn't help but giggle as Karl steamed...literally. His temperature was so hot, steam was rolling off of him. :-)
We had our membership class at Church the next morning so we couldn't stay another night. The weather wasn't getting any better as the day rolled on so we decided to head out while it was still daylight. Good thing, too. It took us an additional 30 minutes to drive home; 2 hours total. The roads weren't great but they weren't awful either. *sigh* Ho hum, so is winter in Michigan. :-)
We did have a bit of sunshine today, though. That was a nice break.

Karl and I are intensifying our endeavor in the house searching process. We've been gingerly looking at houses, mostly just for the fun of looking. Now we're in the midst of talks with a broker. The biggest fact for us, and one that is on our side is that we're in no rush to purchase a house. What a burden to carry, on top of student loan payments. We're taking it slow and I believe that's only going to benefit us in the long run. We have a very sweet and knowledgeable realtor with years of experience. He's not pushy, he's interested in our best interest while offering advice when we seek for it.
We're looking in the Grand Haven area, perhaps even up to Spring Lake but not much further north or south. The choices South become expensive and few while Muskegon isn't the greatest place to live (to say the least). Besides, it would be 50/50 drive for Karl and I. As more develops, more will be shared.

We're heading into the "dog days of Winter" when it becomes frustrating to wear the bulky coats, hats, mittens and gloves. Whip out the board games, we only have about 2.5 months of coldness left (of course, considering we're in Holland).

So for now, have a good week at work.
Hugs.