Oh.. Oh.. Oh.. It's Magic... It's Snow!!

There are many marvels that are among us on this planet, and I must say that winter phenomenons are one of those. How can it be 32 degrees in MS and 32 degrees in PA, and it only snow in one place? Why can a winter wind take your breath away when it's your only source of oxygen and the reason for breathing? Well... I've discovered another one of those wonderful winter marvels... ice sickles!

On my way to work, I take the Schuylkill Expressway which travels below an overpass that is Kelly Drive. Under this bridge were 3... yes, count them... 3 HUGE ice sickles! They were one of the those things that caught my eye and by the time I realized it was ice sickles, I'd already passed them by. They stayed there for a few days (Wednesday and Thursday). My first thought was... "Oh, look... ice sickles!!" My next thought was, "Good grief, those things looked like primitive Eskimo weapons!" They were huge... like I mentioned before... wow... don't want to be under those when the fall!

Yesterday was the first sighting of snow! It started--for me in Bala Cynwyd--around 3:30 PM, and it was really coming down! It was a bit icy and didn't want to stick, but finally, it happened... I got to see my first northeastern snow. I would get so excited when the forecast would predict this winter wonder, but so far, I'd heard stories of snow and hadn't seen it yet.

When we woke up this morning, there was an inch of snow on the ground! The first snow storm of the winter came through our area last night! It was a sight to behold. We got dressed in our winter gear (boots, pj pants, sweatshirts with hoodies, and I was wearing a sweater hat, too), geared up the pups, grabbed the camera, and headed out. The dogs were so funny!

At first they didn't know what to think... Max tried his best to avoid the fluff, but eventually realized that he couldn't. Marlee dived in with all 4 paws. She was so excited to see the snow... of course, it was just because it was new and something she'd never experienced, so we had a great time on our morning outing at 6 AM!!

It snowed very hard until about 10 AM then it tapered off, eventually stopping completely. As we were driving home, we saw the remnants of the snow storm, and there were still icy patches of snow in our town and neighborhood.

Now, we are just watching the weather and staying warm. We definitely enjoyed the snow today. It was beautiful and magical! There are pictures on the Picasa site... Just click the link labeled Troy and Mandy's Photo Journal to the left... below are a few to get you started!

Is It Winter Yet?

Last week, our weather was quite interesting. The highs were in the upper 60s, and on Saturday, we got to 71 degrees. It was supposed to rain, but little did we know, it would pour. We went to Exton, PA to shop for a bit yesterday, and I finally broke down and gave into my frivolous side. I bought the iPhone I've been wanting for a month or so. It's the coolest gadget ever!

This morning we awoke to 18 to 30 MPH wind gusts. I thought the windows were going to shatter when I heard the wind blowing into the side of our building. We bundled up and fought the wintry weather to get some breakfast at Panera Bread and hit Target for a few weekly items. When we got home, we gave the pups a rawhide bone each. Marlee has jaws of steel, so her bones don't last very long, but little Max savors his bones. He's now been working on this bone since about 9:30 this morning!

At one point, Marlee walked over to him, took his bone, and got hers as well. It took Troy and me to get his little bone out of her mouth. Now, she is on a mission to get what is left of his bone, but unfortunately, she can't fit under the couch as well as he can!!

He is being quite the protector... he even took his bone outside to potty, and he brought in another treat. We couldn't let either of them chew on the leaf, but he was pretty funny running around with his rawhide and leaf sticking out of his mouth.

We are gonna end our weekend in the safety of our apartment out of the blustery blasts of the almost winter wind. Enjoy!!

Mr. and Mrs. Santa Paws

I got Max and Marlee Santa and Mrs. Clause hats at Target the other day. On Wednesday, we had a photo session that we alot of fun. I made the mistake of putting the bowl of bones on the floor, and Marlee tried to eat them like food. She had bones sticking out every which way. It was pretty funny. I wasn't able to get them to sit still together, but got individual shots. They didn't mind their hats as much as I would have imagined... Max looks pretty darn cute, if I must say so myself! Enjoy, and I know it's a tad early but... happy holidays from The Blacks! Just for the record... I am really looking forward to Turkey Day! I am going home to see my family. Troy will spend time here with SWA and the pups. Check back for more pics!