Ice Storm

We had plans to visit with relatives and stay overnight on Thanksgiving, but the weather had other ideas. Ice was forecast for Thanksgiving night, and for the next several days as well. So fearing a power outage and all the problems that can cause on the farm, we cancelled our plans and stayed home.

Visions of broken power poles, destroyed fences, frozen livestock waterers, downed electric fences, and other delightful things ran through our heads Thanksgiving day as we braced for the event. I did all the laundry, and ran the dishwasher while I cooked our turkey dinner, while Harland made preparations at the farm. We have generators we use in case of power outages, but you should put as little electrical burden on them as possible.

All day we had rain which turned into freezing rain that night. I didn’t sleep well. I kept waking to see if the power was still on.

That morning everything was ice covered, but we still had power at the house. Harland peered out our ice covered bedroom window in the predawn light to see if the security lights were on at the farm a mile away, and they were. With a sigh of relief we went about our day.

We got more freezing rain off and on the next few days. Feeling a little housebound, I went out Sunday afternoon to clean up some downed tree limbs and take a few pics.

Ice (6)

Ice (7)

Planted about 6 years ago, the cedar trees in the windbreak north of our house were bowed down by the ice, but cedar trees are hearty so we weren’t worried about damage:

Ice (9)

Ice (4)

Ice (2)

Ice (3)

The cedar trees planted in a windbreak south of the house last spring, and only about a foot high, were bent over to the ground by the ice:

Ice (5)

The apple tree hadn’t lost it’s leaves yet which were encased in ice:

Ice (8)

Ice (10)

For all the damage ice can do, there is an element of beauty to it:

Ice (11)

Monday afternoon the freezing rain finally stopped. And we dodged a bullet – we never had a power outage. The ice melted over the next couple days. The cedars in the windbreaks all bounced back up and are fine.

We are very blessed and relieved that everything turned out ok.

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxox

Suzanne

Cattle, corn, wheat, beans, mud, snow, ice, and drought. Plenty of fresh air and quiet. Our life is sometimes heartbreaking, sometimes joyous, but never boring.

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12 Responses

  1. Alica says:

    I can imagine how you must have felt, anticipating possible power outages on the farm. I do the same thing, and I don’t sleep well if it’s icy or really windy. So glad all went well! It sure is pretty, though, you’re right! Happy belated Thanksgiving!

  2. Alice says:

    Happy all turned out well this time…..but the question is, are you toasty warm in your “new house”?

  3. I’m so glad things turned out okay for you. Ice does create beauty, doesn’t it? Stay warm.

  4. Jeanne L says:

    It’s so good to know that the ice storm wasn’t too bad. You got some fantastic photos of the ice covered plants! Way to go!

  5. Dianna says:

    So glad you never lost power. Everything else seems tolerable as long as you have electricity!

  6. Rebecca says:

    So happy to hear you guys made it through the storm.
    How is the comfort level in your home after all the reno?
    Loved ALL THE PHOTOS! Stay well.
    Florida hugs,
    Becca

  7. Linda says:

    Ice storms are so bad. I’m relieved you kept power, and that you didn’t suffer any particular damage. Interestingly, if we’re going to have a serious freeze down here, people often spray down their sensitive plants with water, to encase them in ice. It helps to protect them from freeze damage. Of course, that’s rather different from huge trees and power lines falling because of the weight of the ice!

    I’m eager to know how the house performed, too. Is it warm and cozy?

  8. Nancy says:

    Beautiful photos. Glad you weathered the storm without damage and power loss.

  9. Tina says:

    Glad you are ok.

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