Robert and Mickey Kunkel of McCandless decided to create some nice ice when Mother Nature recently dumped record-breaking snowfall and below-freezing temps on Western Pennsylvania.
Mickey Kunkel, a busy homemaker raising their two toddlers, Ernie, 3, and Cedric, 2, initially saw a video about making at-home igloos on the internet.
The DIY project looked intriguing.
“At first I said “no.” I mean, we have two kids and it’s too much work,” Kunkel said.
Undeterred, the couple decided to use the snowstorm as a teachable and fun family moment and to create their own colorful igloo.
“My boys are bad with their colors so this was a good way to teach them,” said Mickey Kunkel, who used food coloring and large trays to create frozen blocks for the igloo.
The nearly 6-foot-tall igloo took several days to construct, with the Kunkels working around their kids’ preschool and nap schedules.
The project cost about $50 and took about 200 frozen ice blocks to make.
“It was a labor of love in these freezing temps,” Mickey Kunkel said.
She said she loves to get outside during the winter and this project fit the bill.
“I had fun doing this. I love being outside, and I like to be outside with a purpose,” she said.
Ernie and Cedric have played inside the igloo a few times, but the igloo really garnered attention during the family’s Super Bowl party Sunday night.
A portable light was used to illuminate the igloo at night.
The igloo sustained some damage when a party guest fell into the igloo, but it’s still standing.
The family plans to let nature take its course with the igloo, which was completed Feb. 1.
Unless Robert gets to it first.
“My husband wants to act like the Kool-Aid man and run through it,” Mickey Kunkel said.
The Kunkels said their boys are now igloo-savvy and are proud of their icy creation.
“The boys were so excited during the whole process,” Mickey Kundel said. “They do know what an igloo is now and talked all about it at preschool. It was like making magic for the kids.”
