Kristy Misener – Braathen Harvesting/Misener Family Harvesters
Today is day seven (I think) of inside activities.
First we had a little rain, then snow and now cold! All told, I think we’ve had about 10-12 inches of the white stuff!
At first, Leslie was afraid to go to sleep for fear he’d miss all the lovely snow. He and Paul (from South Africa), who’s never seen snow, had a plan for a first snowfall snowball fight. As it turned out, they spent that first day trying to build a snowman. The snow really didn’t cooperate. It was too powdery. Eventually they managed to get the job done! It was a multiple day effort!
All of us have napped and slept late. Too many days in a row. We’re all tired of it.
Other snow day activities include paperwork (ugh), cooking (not bad), catching up on emails and phone calls, Facebook and Pinterest, games (monopoly, dominos, multiple card games, battleship and jenga), and more DVDs than ANYONE should watch. We’ve gone to town to do laundry.
On Sunday, we got up to go to 7:30 mass in Fort Pierre but couldn’t get out of the camper. That’s right. We were frozen in!! After a long while with the hairdryer, Dan finally got the door unfrozen and opened. We did make it to ten o’clock mass!
The windows fog over. Dan froze his blankets and night shorts to the wall (while he was sleeping). He and Leslie pull their mattresses away from the wall during the daytime. All three campers pulled the black water tanks as the weather turned and now we’re afraid we’ll have to again before warmer weather comes.
It was 4 degrees last night. It’s about 30 for a high today! A real heatwave. Mostly, it’s been highs in low twenties. All of us are leaving the water run a bit to avoid frozen water. So far we’ve done well! No frozen pipes yet! Kent heat taped the sewer valves to avoid frozen sewer pipe outlets.
Leslie plays outside everyday. He’s thrilled but it’s getting old. Cooking is eating earlier than field days, which is good but I’m trying to make all oven meals to make it warmer in here. With all the wind, using the grill isn’t an option!
But all the inside cooking is making an over abundance of humidity in here. So our dehumidifier is working continuously. Heidi, our dog, does not want to go out in the snow. She just looks at me til I make her go!!
Camper life is so fun in the cold!!!
1. Be ready to go at the drop of a hat...sometimes without a lunchbox.
2. Has removed the word impossible from her vocabulary!
3. Can hold a baby, take care of a toddler and drive a tractor or combine all at the same time.
4. Must be able to cook for a crew - large or small.
5. Must be able to read minds.
6. Must be able to banter with a parts man until he realizes you DO know what you're talking about.
7. Must be the entertainment director for those rainy days.
8. Be a wife, mom, friend, helper, cook, problem solver, taxi driver or extra crew hand at all times.
9. Can handle the call that makes you react, "You need what? When?" Dropping everything you're doing to make it happen.
10. At the end of the day say, "I really do love this life".
