Snowtober ...

Yes, that is indeed what the local newspaper has dubbed our freaky October snowstorm that has left millions in the northeastern states without power and with lots of property damage. While it was predicted that we would get 6 - 10 inches of snow Saturday afternoon and evening, it's clear that the weathermen missed the mark. Here at our place in Holden we measured about 16" on the deck and 13" on the railings, with all that snow falling within about 10 hours time.

It sure looks pretty on the trees -- at least early on!

What we woke up to in the morning (Sunday, October 30th) 

About 13" on the railings and about 16" on the deck.

Our pile of snow just from shoveling the front walk!

Our lights started to flicker early in the evening and then totally went out about 10 p.m. Fortunately the house never really got so cold that we couldn't manage by bundling up a bit. I think it dropped down to about 56 degrees at one point but once Sunday morning arrived and the sun started pouring in, we warmed right up!

Power (luckily!) was restored here about 5:30 p.m. (on Sunday, October 30th) so we didn't have to endure another night of darkness and cold. Others in our area didn't fare as well. Many areas are still without power. Since Dow Chemical was closed today (Snow Day!) we took a drive around the area and soon discovered why. The heavy snow broke branches off trees, split many trees in half and uprooted others. We saw clean up crews moving trees off roofs today and trees and power lines down and blocking roads. While it was difficult to pull over to take pictures, we did get these while in North Brookfield ....

Everywhere we drove there were trees still lying in the roads.

Wires were pulled down when trees fell over ... many were still blocking the road like this.

Have I mentioned that no matter where you go in Massachusetts there are rocks? Big ones!

We really enjoyed our ride, even though it was heartbreaking to see so much storm damage. It was obvious people had been out with chainsaws as branches lined the roads waiting for pickup. Schools were closed all over the area (some places have even postponed Halloween) and many businesses are still closed as they wait for power.

We took a drive up to St. Joseph's Abbey in Spencer (this is a cloistered Roman Catholic monastery of monks of the Cistercian Order of the Strict Observance, popularly known as Trappists) to see what they were all about. What a beautiful place. It's here that the monks make the famous Trappist preserves.

Next time hopefully the gift shop will be open and we can pick up a few jars of these yummy preserves!

The grounds are incredible and the chapel and retreat house are beautiful as well. I had to stop and take a few pictures. I can imagine how peaceful it must be to stay here ...

The St. Joseph's Abbey Visitor's Chapel

A view of the roadway leading up to the chapel and retreat house.

Is this a view or is this a view?

I just loved this steeple. I wished we could have heard the bells chiming.

Another view of the chapel.

Beautiful stonework on the arches at the entrance.

Just loved this doorway!

Another view of the Chapel and Retreat House

And now we're home again ... waiting for the kids to start ringing the doorbell, driving Rascal and Daisy crazy. It's surely been an interesting Halloween (and end to October!)