Slippery, slippery slopes

You will never, ever guess what happened to me today. Actually, it wasn't just one incident, but several and guess what they all had to do with? Yes, the weather. As in SNOW. Snow, as in what was apparently flying outside when we opened our eyes this morning. Who knew we were getting this little storm? Not us, no sir. Snuck up on us, this one did. Good ol' sucker punch right to the gut.

Hubby cleared the driveway not once, but twice before heading out with one to a soccer game. It was not long after he left when I had to leave to go out, but boy did that Relentless Snow have something to say. Poor Sienna slipped and slid all over the driveway. After I cursed and screamed at nobody realized I was trapped, I parked her and went for the sand.

But because the snow was relentlessly NOT STOPPING, the sand was useless. Actually, it was only semi-useless. I think it did get me halfway up the driveway, when Sienna stalled and sputtered and spun her tires, but not without giving a little bit of her spunk because it was barely noticeable, but she was most definitely inching along. So I pressed my foot to the metal and kept going. And then I got nearly to the top. And then she started to slide a little bit sideways. But I was so, so close to the top, you see. And I refused to back down. Come hell or high water or spring thaw or whatever, I was going to get out of that driveway and I was getting out when I decided and not grumpy old Mother Nature, who seemed to really have it in for us.

And do you know what? i won. After some slipping and sliding and rocking back and forth, Sienna got her nose out to the road. And then, though she was most definitely in drive, she went nowhere. Barely an incline on the road, and after her battle to get out of the huge incline that is the driveway, she just didn't have it in her. I was shocked. I was actually stuck on the main road while Relentless Snow kept falling all around us.

I put on the hazards and other cars passed us while we tried to go forward, but just didn't. Oh, she could go in reverse just fine. But going forward was just not happening. So I decided to turn around and go in the other direction, which although headed northward, actually goes down hill. Success!

By the time I got finished and was headed home, the roads were much clearer. Even my driveway was all cleared, thanks to hubby clearing it a third time.

Then the three younger boys and I went to a birthday party. And the house where we went has a driveway just like ours, only instead of going down to the house from the road, their driveway goes up from the road to the house. And their driveway was well cleared too because some cars parked at the top, while most cars parked on the street. I parked Sienna in the driveway and just to be safe, since she was on a hill, I put the trusty emergency brake on. We all got out and the boys headed up and then I shut my door.

And then Sienna started to slide back down the driveway. And then I screamed. And then Jeffrey screamed, "Mom!" And then I ran after Sienna, intent on saving her from a terrible, awful crash. But I only wound up crashing into the #@!&! snowbank, soaking my jeans and shirt and coat. I probably would have been able to get myself back into the driver's seat to hit the break if it wasn't for that Godforsaken #@!&! snowbank, too. Relentless, this snow has been this winter. Relentless. The snowbanks are forever high.

I really believe my guardian Angels were watching out for me because if it wasn't for them, Sienna wouldn't have come to a stop before getting to the bottom of the driveway. Yvie's garden is right there next to where Sienna was slipping away, after all. And I was wearing Yvie's Life is Good shirt, not to mention Lauren's Oakley.

I parked Sienna on the flat street, sans the useless emergency brake.