We got a record amount of snow in the Chicago area.  12.9 inches.  It was really fun and even shoveling it wasn’t too bad.  Here is a photo of Ashlee’s car just about buried.  Another little known fact is that there was a 4.2 magnitude earthquake too.  Maybe the weight of all the snow triggered it.  The dogs and Hannah are loving the snow, but it is too deep for everyone except Cinder.

When I woke up this morning it was actually 0 degrees!  How often does that happen?  I could do some of my beloved “research”, but Hannah and I are busy eating our hot oatmeal.  Maybe later.  It is now a whopping—

Lyons Police Department, Lyons, Illinois (PWS)

Updated: 1 min 44 sec ago

1.8 °F Partly Cloudy Windchill: -16 °F Humidity: 63% Dew Point: -8 °F Wind: 13.0 mph from the SE Wind Gust: 15.0 mph Pressure: 29.92 in (Rising) Visibility: 8.0 miles UV: 0 out of 16 Clouds: Few 2000 ft (Above Ground Level) Elevation: 615 ft

I know that it will only get colder as the winter progresses.  So fun!  I just love the Midwest!

Just a reminder, as we are about to get a bunch of snow, that it is still winter in Chicago. I woke up and the weather report was all zeros. The temperature was 0, wind chill 0, wind speed 0, wind gust 0, UV index 0 (a dermatologist’s dream), and visibility 10.0. I thought that was pretty funny to see at 7am.

I have copied the weather warning for our area and pasted it below.  Currently, it is -16 and feels like it is -30.  When Aaron checked the temperature this morning the actual temp. was -20.  You can not possibly imagine what that feels like until you walk outside, unbelievable.  It literally takes your breath away.  Washington sounds so nice, thankfully we will be there next weekend.  Schools are closed here because it is so cold.  Stay warm

Here are the official temps from weather.com and weather underground.

Issued by The National Weather Service
Chicago, IL
2:47 am CST, Fri., Jan. 16, 2009

… WIND CHILL WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL NOON CST /1 PM EST/ TODAY…

WEST WINDS AROUND 10 MPH COMBINED WITH TEMPERATURES WELL BELOW ZERO WILL RESULT IN WIND CHILLS OF 25 TO 45 BELOW ZERO THIS MORNING. TEMPERATURES AND WIND CHILLS WILL SLOWLY MODERATE AFTER SUNUP AND RISE OUT OF WARNING CRITERIA BY NOONTIME.

THESE LOW WIND CHILLS ARE VERY DANGEROUS. IF YOU VENTURE OUTSIDE… MAKE SURE TO COVER ALL EXPOSED SKIN.

Today is a very fitting day for the first day of winter. We started out the morning by trying to go to church and being stuck in our parking space because the snow plow blocked us in with icy snow. We eventually just decided to go get in the truck. When we got back from church, with the help of my neighbor we freed both our cars from the ice with a pick. That Ashlee calls an ice pick. Check out the pictures and video. There are wind chill advisories out and even the salt is not keeping ice from forming on the roads. It is -6 right now with wind chills in the -30 range. Pretty cold, but at the same time, I am always happy for the winter solstice. Even though I know the worst of winter weather is yet to come, the thought of the days getting longer really helps me feel like I made it through. Unfortunately at the summer solstice, the best part of summer is still to come, but I start to get depressed. Anyway happy winter and I hope it is warmer where you are.

My poor mother is flying into this tomorrow.  Hopefully, we will not get hypothermia and die.  When it is that cold here you can not even breathe outside and it feels like your eyeballs are going to freeze.  This really makes Aaron and I miss Washington and makes Hannah mad that she had to be born here.  Stay warm  and enjoy the snow in WA.  We miss you!

Issued by The National Weather Service
Chicago, IL
11:02 am CST, Sat., Dec. 20, 2008

A WIND CHILL ADVISORY REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM 3 AM CST /4 AM EST/ SUNDAY TO 12 PM CST /1 PM EST/ MONDAY.

WEST WINDS WILL INCREASE TO 20 TO 30 MPH WITH GUSTS OF 35 TO 45 MPH LATE TONIGHT AND CONTINUE THROUGH THE DAY SUNDAY. THE STRONG WINDS WILL COMBINE WITH TEMPERATURES NEAR TO JUST ABOVE ZERO TO PRODUCE WINDS CHILLS OF 20 TO 30 DEGREES BELOW ZERO

A WIND CHILL ADVISORY MEANS THAT VERY COLD AIR AND STRONG WINDS WILL COMBINE TO PRODUCE WIND CHILLS OF 20 TO 30 DEGREES BELOW ZERO. THIS WILL RESULT IN FROST BITE AND LEAD TO HYPOTHERMIA IF PRECAUTIONS ARE NOT TAKEN. ONLY VENTURE OUTDOORS IF YOU MUST VENTURE OUTDOORS