November gales in Lansing

This week went by quickly with little excitement since I sat down Tuesday night to write, so this week's blog will be short and sweet.  

The weather has been mild all week, which has been marvelous.   The girls have spent hours outside during the day while I worked.  I caught them just lounging in the warmth many times during the day, but of course there were plenty of games of chase and lots of wrestling as well as numerous yard patrol sessions.  It reminded me of Spring and just how much Peaches has always enjoyed spending the days outside  then.  

On Tuesday and Thursday, I spent the little over an hour of daylight after my workday doing things around the yard and preparing for the Winter, which is coming whether we're ready or not.  Trimming trees, cleaning up perennials, and other small jobs were my focus Tuesday night.  Thursday was spent mowing.  And after an hour or so of work, I would spend the last 20 -30 minutes of dwindling daylight playing fetch with the girls.  We came in both those nights just before it was dark to eat dinner and then settle in for the night.  

I spent Wednesday night at the shelter for our weekly Wednesday night Dog Walking Club.  Sadly it was the last Wednesday night walk we'll do in daylight until February.  The shelter dogs had a great time and I was grateful for a nice night for the walk.

Friday at work was busy and the girls again spent a lot of the day outside.   After my work day was over, I headed outside once again for more work in the yard.  I had a small section of the yard that I had to mow still and then I planned on finishing the leaf cleanup in the front yard and along the curb, since the leaves are officially gone from all my trees.  

I did what I could and it was dark before I decided to call it a day, leaving a small section along the curb to finish later so I could get the girls inside for dinner.   They ate and we played a few rounds of fetch before they decided it was time to settle in for the night.  Apparently they both thought my lap looked comfy.

Saturday we had a forecast with the potential for rain and wind, and while we had hoped to get out with Vanessa for at least a shorter hike on the NCT, I wasn't feeling 100% and decided to scratch the idea of hiking and just stay home instead.  

The morning was still warm and dry so the girls headed outside to enjoy the day before the weather turned.   By mid morning, some rain had moved into the area so the girls came inside and we spent the rest of the morning snuggling and watching TV.  

We ran a few afternoon errands, but for the most part we just spent a quiet lazy day at home.

Late afternoon, the storm moved  in, and while we had nearly no rain, we had some pretty bad winds.  I saw that there had been gusts of 60 MPH just down the road at the airport. 

I headed outside with the girls to ensure they got in a potty break before the storm arrived, but neither of them seemed concerned about the ominous clouds and wind gusts.   Peaches was looking for birds and Mina was playing with her friend, our neighbor dog.  But I didn't let them stay out for long with the wind we were experiencing.

As we sat inside watching the trees blow in the huge wind gusts, we lost power.  It didn't just flicker or go out and come right back on like it normally does for us...it was out.  It was shortly after 5:30, and I knew it would be dark soon enough so I gathered what I thought I'd need to make it through a dark few hours.

The girls ate their 6pm dinner and took a quick trip outside to potty.   Peaches then  immediately put herself to bed and Mina sat on my lap as we watched the daylight fade.  It was a long, quiet, dark evening.  

Our power was finally restored sometime in the wee hours of the morning.   I heard the beep from the stove as the power came back on, but I didn't look to see what time it was.  

Changing the clocks back an hour this morning was easy since I had ro reset them all due to the power outage.  Surprisingly, the girls weren't up at any crazy early hour due to the time change and we've had a quiet morning so far.  

Today we're going to get out for a walk along a local trail because we all need that.  I've got some stuff to do around the house and some trip planning to do for some short day trips I'd like to do before Winter arrives.  And before the day is over, I plan to take advantage of the nice weather to get my Christmas lights up outside so they'll be ready to turn on in just a few short weeks. I can't believe it's only 12 days until Siver Bells in the City, and only 18 days until Thanksgiving!

Hopefully next week we'll have more fun to share, although with the sunset before 5:30, weeknight adventures are hard.  But I guess it is time to start settling into our Winter routine.  Hope you all have a wonderful Sunday and a great week.