My family, minus the husbands, went on a weekend getaway (we like to call these little trips together “Forced Family Fun”) to Toledo Bend this past weekend. We knew we would be having some cold weather and a “chance” of snow, but we had no idea what was in store for us.
Let the Fun Begin!
We arrived Saturday with a chill in the air, but nothing that was too much for us to handle. A few cocktails, a fireplace, and warm food, and we were good to go for the evening. Sunday the house was frigid. The heater was working non-stop but never got over 59… for four days.
Monday morning the snow came, the kids were thrilled. Wake up call at 4:30 from two of the kids with their excitement overflowing. Yet, a total of 15 minutes in the blistering cold and that’s all those South Louisiana babies could take.
Our weekend getaway was turning into a new level of stay-at-home order. No heat, no water for baths. We made the best of it with games, movies, naps, food, and cocktails. Three layers of socks, slippers, layers of clothing with jackets, hats, and gloves were all we could do at that point to try to stay warm.
Tuesday was slightly warmer mixed with some sunshine. Snowball fights, snowmen, sledding attempts, and fails. We knew if we didn’t leave that day then we may have been stuck there until the weekend, due to the next storm passing through. No heat. No warm water. No toilets. And possibly no electricity. We had been lucky enough to have never lost power.
Ice, Ice Baby
It only took us an hour to pack the cars, the kids, and hit the snow and ice-covered roads. The sun began to set and my fears were rising. Let’s be honest, my fears were there from the moment my foot initially touched the accelerator when we left the camp. A caravan of three SUVs full of moms and kids following an 18 wheeler going 15-25 mph. Five hours and a few moments of fishtailing and we made it to Alexandria, the furthest we could go that night. The Interstate was closed. COMPLETELY ICED OVER! I’ve never seen anything like it in my life.
The next morning we continued our trip home with less ice and snow, thank God! There was rain, sleet, and rain, but the amount of snow and ice had diminished for the most part. We made it home by lunch. I have never been so relieved to see my house, hear my pup bark, take a hot shower and feel the heat from the vents!
Our forced family fun weekend had turned into a total mess, but we have stories to laugh about for years. We also have husbands who will remind us, probably pretty often, about how they knew this would happen, how they were so worried, and maybe a little upset we took the trip after the storm warnings. But, Hey! We made it home and I will never take the accommodations of home for granted again.
