Groundhog Day

I think we're all familiar with the legend of Groundhog Day - on February 2nd, the groundhog comes out of his hole after months of hibernation to look for his shadow. If he sees his shadow, it signifies six more weeks of bad weather, and he returns to his hole. If he doesn't see his shadow it is a sign of spring and he stays above ground.

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I'm working from home, and just saw the live announcement that the groundhog did NOT see his shadow and that it will be an early spring. All I can say is, it better.

Does anyone else feel like we're living in the movie Groundhog Day?

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It seems like we keep getting hit by the same storm, over and over. The weather reports on the news could have just been replayed in a constant loop for the past 6 weeks because they keep saying the same thing. Don't drive if you don't have to. Consider leaving late for work. School closings across the state. Its going to be another bad one.

For those of us who have to drive, our commutes have been doubled and tripled in the past few weeks. These are some scenes from my commute last night and the neighborhood this morning that I've seen far too many times:

I've tried not to complain about the storms, snow, ice, awful commutes, endless shoveling, and freezing temperatures. But please make it stop! An early spring would be amazing!

On a happier note, I am very glad to work from home on Wednesdays, and did not have to brave the storm this morning. I've had endless mugs of tea to stay warm as I hear the pellets of hail hitting the windows and the continuous groan of plows going up and down the street. For breakfast I had Overnight Oats for the first time. I have oatmeal almost every morning, but had never tried these! They were very good, and I look forward to trying different variations.

Last night I put 1/3 cup oats, 1/4 cup milk, 1/4 cup water, about 1/3 cup pumpkin and a few shakes of pumpkin pie spice in a large mug. I stirred everything together, covered it in saran wrap, and stuck it in the fridge. This morning, I took it out. Considering how freezing it is outside, I microwaved for 30 seconds, just so the oats wouldn't also be freezing (this step will be omitted when the sun decides to grace us with her presence). I then sliced 1/2 a banana in the bowl, put a large scoop of vanilla Greek yogurt on top, and finished with a dusting of flax seeds.

 

This breakfast is a great source of fiber, protein, omega 3s, vitamin a, potassium and calcium. And its delicious!

Good luck and stay warm to everyone who is braving these storms! For those of you who aren't, would you like to have me as an extended house guest until spring arrives? I'll bake for you!