I spoke with my husband in AZ yesterday and told him not to worry about us - to focus on enjoying his time with family.

Around 6 pm I heard a strange hissing noise in my laundry room. Opened the door to find our pipes had frozen and burst. The room was flooded, and the water was spraying ice cold water everywhere. This happened years ago, and we had a shut off valve installed - but I couldn't remember where it was with my eyes closed (due to the water spraying in my face), and I can't tell what I'm feeling due to the neuropathy in my hands.

I ran to the kitchen to turn off the main valve, but the water in the laundry room kept on spraying.

Grrrrrrr....My son had no idea how to fix this, so we had no choice but to call my husband. I feel like such a burden to him sometimes. I had the right valve in the kitchen - just needed to turn it a little further to shut off the water. We got the water shut off, but now the pipe in the kitchen is flowing water - a steady trickle that fills up a bucket after about 2 hours. I also noticed a faint smell of gas, and remembered they told me there was a small leak there when the village moved the gas meter to the outside a couple of years ago. I'm hoping that's not a dangerous combination - never heard of water setting off a gas explosion.

I think I'm beginning to hate this house. It scares me because I don't know how to fix it, professionals don't want to touch it, and we don't have the money to rebuild. My husband will be home tonight, and I feel bad for making him deal with this nightmare when he gets home. Being Christmas Eve, I doubt he'll be able to find a professional to help him out - and I'm not even sure if stores will be open on Christmas Eve night, in case he needs to buy plumbing materials.

I've gained a greater appreciation of water. We can't shower, use the restroom, or wash dishes - and I'd really like a cup of coffee.