Pau’s final week in America did not look like the one we had planned, but it will certainly be memorable!
Welcome to Icepocalypse 2026
Every year, Nashville seems to get hit by some sort of ice situation. This was probably the worst I’ve ever experienced. I don’t think we’ve ever been so cold! We didnt get much snow, so the problem ended up being the RAIN and the below-freezing temps.
Thursday 1/22
Thursday evening (1/22), before the storm, we were able to go enjoy a big group dinner at a local Japanese place. It was Pau’s first Hibachi experience and the dinner was a stand-in for Justin’s birthday dinner. It also end up being the last time the whole crew could get together before Pau’s departure. I’m so glad we were able to make that happen!
Friday 1/23 and Saturday 1/24
Friday (1/23), temps started to drop, and Saturday (1/24) when we woke up, the snow had begun and the birds were acting VERY STRANGELY.
Justin worked on his chili and Dexter spent all day being sad that it was too cold to go outside. We mentally prepared to be iced in all weekend and had to skip the hockey game that we had tickets to. 😭 We had no idea how bad the weather would get or that we would lose power! (We rarely lose power during the winter – it’s always summer storms that knock out our electricity!)
(Click on a photo to see the caption.)
Sunday 1/25
Sunday morning (1/25), I was rudely awoken by my child at like 830 am. This is far too early to be awake on a weekend, but he was so excited. MAMA COME LOOK. OUR POWER IS OUT AND THE TREE IS BROKEN.
The first thing I noticed was the giant branches that had come down out back, not quite missing the hot tub. Yikes!
But that wasnt the worst of it. Then I looked out front.
The trees were so heavy from the ice that they were cracking and falling. Some landed on our power line. Oh boy. This wasn’t good.
Sunday passed slowly, coldly. We had wanted to pack up and go to my parents’ house, but everything was so wet and icy, it was just too risky to leave.
We were in mostly good spirits, making do with what we had. We layered up our clothes, found candles and a lantern. Thankfully we have a gas stove so we could cook and make coffee! We played a lot of card games and the boys even got creative with shadow puppets. We took turns hanging out in the car, charging/using devices, reading, listening to music, and being warm. All in all, it was not a bad day.
Monday 1/26
Monday 1/26 we woke up colder, still without power. Guess we weren’t working today! More ice had formed on the trees, so more branches were falling. The driveway was slick with ice so we couldn’t leave, but we were definitely getting cabin fever! Pau was so bored, he went outside to clear some branches from the driveway and to break up some of the ice.
That night we were all kind of done with the situation and were planning to leave Tuesday, provided the driveway melted enough. So we sucked it up for one more night, wore lots of layers, played more games, and even tried out the trendy candle and crockpot space heater! (In a small room, it was pretty effective!)
Tuesday 1/27
Tuesday 1/27 morning, we were all antsy and itching to leave. We packed up, left the pipes dripping, and by late morning were ready to head over to my parents’ house — 3 cats, 2 kids, 2 parents, and lots of alcohol. 🤣 The cats were NOT amused, to say the least, but Skyler has been living his best life.
Wednesday 1/28, Thursday 1/29, Friday 1/30
Now that we had power (and heat! and hot showers! and real coffee!), Justin and I had to work. But we were feeling pretty beaten down and tired from the last several days, so we werent super productive. I actually had to take a nap one afternoon, which I rarely do.
But we had a lot of fun at my parents’ house. Pau’s girlfriend hung out for a while, we watched movies, played games, Giggy taught the kids how to play pool, we ordered hot food, and called the electric company a million times. Unfortunately, we still had no idea when to expect to get power back at home. Due to our downed power lines, we had to wait for repairs in addition to them restoring power in the area. We also took Pau out for one final nice dinner — which doubled as Justin’s birthday dinner — at Salento, a local spot in Donelson.
We hosted a small Bon Voyage for Pau Friday evening so the local framily could say goodbye. This kid had become such an integral part of our life here and made such an impact on all of us. We’re gonna miss him. 😭 😭 😭 😭 😭
Saturday 1/31 Pau’s departure to Spain 🙁
We took Pau and his girlfriend to Waffle House for one last meal together before heading to the airport. And then it was time to say goodbye 😭 😭 😭 😭 …. FOR NOW 😃 He may be back across the ocean, but he has a permanent spot in our family and will always have a place to stay. We’ve also been in touch with his parents who have kindly invited the whole family to come visit which we are definitely going to do! Aiming for a 2027 Spain trip!!!! 🇪🇸🇪🇸🇪🇸🇪🇸🇪🇸🇪🇸
Sunday 2/1 – Friday 2/6
A lot of ups and downs this week, but the TLDR is this:
NES finally came out on Tuesday to fix things but said they couldnt until the weatherhead was fixed. We hired an electrician. Electrical repairs were made yesterday. Inspection completed and passed. Inspector said he’d notify NES that we’re good and ready for reconnect. On Thursday, when we checked the site, it showed that we were powered up!!!! Then later in the day when we checked, it showed an outage again. lol. So Justin and I stopped by the house on our way downtown to see a show at TPAC and the line was fixed! The power was on! Things seemed normal!
So Friday, we packed up and moved back home. PHEW.
While we are eternally grateful that my parents’ had space to house us, I am sooooo over winter and am SO glad to be home! LOL Everyone start doing your “Warm Weather Dances” and let’s manifest an early spring!!!
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