Winter is officially here!

We at the Nuthouse have been having a tough run of it since the winter weather has arrived-but, we're holding up and laughing our way through.

For about two weeks now, our temperatures have been in the teens and twenties. It's cold, folks.
We had about 3 days of silly flurries, the sun was shining, yet little tiny flakes kept appearing. This was what little moisture was in the air freezing. Not enough to disrupt life in any way.

Our home is heated by propane gas, and a few space heaters strategically placed here and there. Husband informed me Saturday that the tank was running low.
Monday morning I woke up with chills. Husband was awake, watching the news. I opened my eyes and looked at him, and he must have read my mind- " we're out of propane".

oh. well that explains it. Good morning, by the way.

The day went as usual, the only major differences being the delay of school reopening due to extreme temperatures, our choice of pajamas before bed, and a few extra blankets here and there.

Tuesday Husband calls the company to come refill the tank- the house is drafty and chilly, not to mention that our stove runs on same said propane supply. no propane, no cook. They tell him that if there's enough left in the truck, they'll try to get out here in the afternoon. if not, definitely on Wednesday.
They did not come Tuesday. fair enough, that was a 'maybe' to begin with.

Wednesday rolled around, we awoke to 6 degrees outside. It felt like 30 in the house. I got up, wrangled the children out of bed for their delayed school day, and began the animal rounds.

Dog food & water, check.

Cat food & water check.

Boys fish tank, light n food, check- temp seemed ok.

Daughter's betta tank- light on, ... oh no.

The betta sank during the night. the tank temp was not even registering .
I get the net to scoop it out, wondering how in the world to tell my daughter he fish froze to death.
Start to maneuver the net over the fish- the fish twitches and wiggles away.
Oh My Lord its still alive.

I get the tank heater and put it into his tank, get it all plugged in, and hope like crazy this fish doesn't die. Spend the next half hour explaining to my daughter that the fish is NOT dead, its just, well, hypothermic. Its body got too cold to move, that's all, just like a person would. Hopefully when the water warms up he'll be ok.

Hating to leave fish duty, I got the kids to school, and off to the food store to stock up for some nastier temps and snow predicted for the coming week.
After spending over $200 on groceries, I realized I'd bought very little food to prepare without the use of propane.

When I returned home, I checked Mr.betta. This particular Betta gives new meaning to the name "fighting fish". Twice now, this fish has been revived from near death. VERY near death. It was still quite sluggish, but certainly making obvious improvements.

Husband and I spent most of the day preparing the house for the deep cold coming our way, checking insulation under the house, checking the pipes, putting plastic over the windows, and foam-filling every little gap we could find.

A bit of another side story here regarding the "plastic" for the windows:

Stores sell this nifty kit- it has a giant sheet of plastic, and a roll of two-sided tape. you apply the tape to the window frame, then stick the plastic to the tape, as tightly as possible. the last step is to use a blowdryer , to truly stretch the plastic so your window is still "perfectly clear" .

I learned the first year of using this product NOT to bother with the hairdryer, because as it tightens the plastic, it also pulls it off the tape. defeats the purpose. I also learned that the two sided tape is very useful for other things as well.

This year, Husband brought home the kit, and I started doing my thing. I applied the tape to the frame- and when it came time to stick the plastic up- I discovered that the tape had been changed, the plastic would not stick to it! Husband, ever so helpful, declares, thats because I have to use the blowdryer to seal it to the tape. I explain to him if it won't stick to the tape to start with, there's no way I can let it go long enough to even get the hairdryer!
So , I used the remainder of last years tape, and when that ran out, my handy roll of scotch tape came out. It works just as well.
But, for the cost of the kits, we'd have done as well to use trash bags and packing tape. Another lesson learned.

By 5 pm on this very cold Wednesday, The Betta was slowly swimming about, the tank temp back on the gage at 64. Still in the danger zone, but somewhat safer. Also at this time we had not seen ,nor heard from the propane truck.
Husband calls the office, and gets the "after hours emergency survey" recording. Ode to frustration. He finally gets contact with a live person, and explains we still need this propane delivered. The reply he received was "well, they must not have been there yet" .

No kidding! If they'd been here, I wouldn't be talking to you.

She tells him that if the truck doesn't come by 7pm, to call back.

At 7 they tell him the trucks are done with their rounds, they will be here in the morning. Husband is now beyond frustrated. If this operator puts us on "emergency" status, for calling after hours, we get a heavy extra charge. (Just the regular filling process is a bill we have problems with!)

Last night, the betta kept the heater, and did very well. we have had no casualties.
As of this blog entry, it is 10:00 am. The schools have closed, it has started to snow, the fish are stable, and I have a pot roast in the crock pot cooking for tonight's dinner, because the propane truck has still not arrived.

Full of giggles, we've endured. Doing extra laundry due to the extra layers of clothes needed in the house, let alone outside, school being closed almost as soon as it reopened from Christmas break, giving the children activities to amuse them,being creative enough to figure out meals to make without a stove, and generally keeping the Nuthouse true to its fame.