The 7MSN at minus 27 degrees

Just before I went to bed Wednesday night, I checked the temperature – it was minus 16 degrees. How is that even possible? I was in disbelief and denial. But the snow had stopped, the wind wasn't blowing, all the boys and girls in the barnyard were tucked in with plenty of food and water. There was nothing left to do but worry.

Around 1:30, I got out of bed to stoke the fire in the woodstove. I turned on a light, only to discover that the power had gone out. Now isn't that special? No probem, I have a generator. I'll just turn it on in the morning when I need it, I thought. Then I remembered I hadn't turned it on since August. Then I convinced myself it would never start up. Then I laid awake all night devising Plans A, B, and C for getting the morning chores done without water (the well pump needs power). Then one of the smoke alarms started chirping, driving Smooch into a frenzy, and I went out into the garage, got the ladder and changed the battery by candlelight. Are we having fun yet? Then I started filling pots with bottled water to heat up on the woodstove. Wynonna would need her hot oatmeal, and Hank would need his hooves soaked to remove the ice balls, and I would need to dump a pail of hot water in the solar trough to free up the float (otherwise, the water in the trough has stayed liquid, amen).

Anyway, by now it's almost dawn and I ventured outside to see if the generator would start, knowing full well it wouldn't. But it proved me wrong! I danced through the morning chores, I was so happy.  The boys didn't seem any worse for wear, and once I dug Wynonna out of her straw, she was fine, too. The chickens were mad that I wouldn't let them out of their coop, but I convinced them it was for their own good.

Once I got all the chores done, the light was looking particularly nice so I grabbed my camera.

I had never seen frost like this before.

Alan and George were both working the Andy Rooney eyebrows.

I thought Hank's frosty lashes looked rather stunning.

Alan's eyes might have been frozen wide open at this point...it was Cold.

Both burros seemed very tired – as soon as the sun came up, they stopped eating to soak it in.

I was worried at first when I saw both of them standing with their tails tightly clamped against their butts, 

then I decided this must be a burro's way of keeping his core warm.

If I had had a tail, I would have been clamping it down, too, but I went back into the house instead. Once I got the coffee made, I turned off the generator, pulled up a chair in front of the woodstove, and planned to read until the power came back on, which it finally did around 8:45.

I turned on the computer and looked at the temperature widget to see how cold it was.

All I could do was shake my head and say a little prayer that we all made it through the night
and that the generator gods were on my side.