Just For You

It seemed it would never stop coming down~

and sideways, too!

So, I thought I'd share more of our morning!

I know, this is rare for me, to post twice in a day,

but, it kept coming, just for you.

Besides, I get so excited to see so much fresh snow

so I simply must show you how clean the world around

me looks today.

After all of these months with little snow,

we finally got what we were asking for.

The Lord just knows.

He knew we needed some moisture.

He sure has a sense of humor.

As gorgeous as what the clean slate looks,

it's heavy, wet, snowman stuff.

There are 3 cross-boards on this fence.

Yes, we got all that within the early morning til about 10 a.m.

Click on this next picture of the driveway.

Can you see where Bill drove out a few hours ago?

Somewhere under that white stuff is Andy's car.

There goes the dump plow adding salt to the road at the same time.

Andy got stuck first thing this morning, taking a vacation day so

I put him to work on the tractor to push a path. Boys like big toys.

It took 3 hours to plow the U-drive around the house.

Click this photo and you will see the mail did not go thru today.

Not for us, not for anyone.

I love this birdhouse. I'm so glad the robins were still

basking in the sun much further south.

Nice drift curling off the woodshed.

Now I was just thinking~~~wouldn't this Hydrangea make a great

Gnome Home?

There are frozen fingers everywhere,

some even touching the ground.

Even white on white has it's appeal.

You can understand how blustery this blizzard was

when the snow is even on the inside branches and the trunks.

Now, this is more like what we're used to,

but by Dec. and always in late Feb. and March.

In other words, we know when to ' hunker down '

for the Big One.

Our house is somewhere behind the trees and the snow piles.

We even have plenty of ice on the driveway under the snow.

Ahhhh, late winter, early spring, we are survivors.

But this? This we never like to see.

Looks like double trouble to me.

Icy roof~~~~has been giving us grief, but

we think we have finally found a solution.

That's another story.

Hope you didn't get any of this,

unless, of course, you too, needed the moisture.

You can thank God for that. He's such a kidder.

When Bill gets home from work,

we will attempt to find the cabin under its blanket.

It's been a pleasure.

BlessYourHeart

Northern Blizzard

Wow, it's nasty out there. The schools are closed, some of the major highways in our surrounding area are impassable or closed, snow, rain, ice and high winds are smothering us with blizzard conditions. At least it's warm out., but that can be a really bad thing making the snow nearly impossible to move, even with the aid of the tractor with a nice blade. The county graters and snowplows are the only vehicles on the roads. Even they are moving slowly.

My man got the Ram out this morning but called once he got to work saying it took him 20 minutes to drive there. We only live 5 minutes from the mill. By now there is usually a rush of vehicles heading to town to their jobs, but this morning, I have only seen 2 weather the storm. We are forecast for the ' Big One ' to hit today.

My hope now, is that the power will not go out. I don't expect that miracle with this wind and the amount of snow already bending the evergreens to the ground.

There is a truck under restoration in one stall of the garage, and the Ram gets the other. Bill's Lil Blue, his tractor, even is sitting out in the elements.

Today is plow day once again.

Now, Where's the car?

The entire country is feeling the effects of this storm in one way or another.

I pray you are all safe.

Thanks for stopping by and

BlessYourHeart

More Forecast

I took a drive at six-thirty this morning,

to the east, then down the hill to the south,

turned by the opened gate, thus

turning west, winding my way up and down

the hills and around another curve to the south again,

finally arriving here.

The snow is quite deep in the woods

and on the deck and benches.

I need to return with a less-broken shovel~~~

to lighten the load of snow already covering everywhere~~

Before, yes, before the Big storm arrives with it's

wet double-digit amounts of winter's Feb. blast.

My Man has plowed the roads wide to make room

for it's coming. It always happens this time of the year,

for what would the end of month two and the beginning

of month three be, without one last dangerously heavy

snowstorm. All of my northern family and friends are very aware.

So, out with the shovels, to warm the handle and

begin the practice. It's coming. It will be here by

midweek for us. We await it's fury. Then the

BIG shovels come forth to scoop and throw.

Stay Safe and Warm

We particularly wait for the warmth of the south

to blow northward after the storm to melt our snow into the ground.

It will replenish the soil so the gardens grow strong.

I will share my winter whites for your spring greens.

Any time.

BlessYourHeart

OK, I Give

Are you kidding me?

OK, I Give up.

There is nothing I can do about this blast of winter again,

so the snow forts continue to be the center of attention for winter dull-drum!

There are pop-up holes in the top also doubling as a light source within the fort,

tunnels, winter home theme going on.

It's getting longer, and fun to travel with the several side rooms,

windows, and shelves.

Look closely at the next picture by clicking on it to enlarge it,

and you will see another of the many tools of the trade,

this time, the very end of a garden hoe, hanging on the wall.

He must be finished for the day,

for he's coming out for the night.

For those of you who have been following the progress of

' The Snow Fort,'

you probably have been fooled.

The first four pictures of the fort efforts,

are from when my son was 10.

The snow fort pictures of previous entries,

are of my son and His 3 sons.

The next two pictures show the progress

of this winters way to pass the time til the tire swing can resume it's duties.

My grandson is taking a break just as they are finally

seeing the end of the tunnel.

All that's left to do is to make the 10 inch hole

large enough to travel through.

My oldest son was home during this last snow.

He and his son enjoyed ' one last ride,'

before the trails get too rough.

A ' no school ' day and it's time to play,

even tho Dad recently had surgery on that foot.

Nothing stops a day with the kids.

Another ' project ' was pulled into the yard.

The shop is busy with grinding rusty bolts, tearing down an

'86 Ford to restore, just enough to make into a

' fun truck ' for hunting and fishing.

Boys and their toys!

Me?, well, I've been baking to warm the house

and use up an excess of ' ready ' bananas.

This banana bread turned out great.

One loaf for My Guys, one for the Northern Archery ice fishermen,

and one was sent via UPS to MN. upon request.

Spoiled kids!

I've also been trying to eat healthier.

I love cucumbers, so a quick salad with onions, salt, pepper and

fresh squeezed lemon juice is just the ticket to go with Steamed Salmon Fillets

for dinner. Apple slices sprinkled with cinnamon and Stevia to sweeten, to fool me

into thinking I'm eating Apple Pie.

Like Grandpa Jones would say when asked, " What's for supper?,"

Yum Yum!!!

.

BlessYourHearts

Sweet Williams

I love all flowers for their immense beauty,

Most sweetly scented, but some downright offensive,

But one of my favorite blooms is still the

Nearly Un-scented Sweet William.

They simply surround you with their tiny eyes.

Their blooms can be seen from a distance if

They are sporting their spring jackets.

I'm not sure why

But I'm overwhelmed this morning.

My Sweet William is far from opening.

I await.

BlessYourHeart

Change, Anyone?

The sun is shining,

but it's very cold outside.

The weatherman says it's going to feel like minus -30's today, with all of the wind. I believe he's right this time.

I'd rather just crawl back under the covers.

It also snowed again. Goodness Sake, already!

How about a bit of humor~~~lol!

Someone was visited by the tooth fairy!

Chop-Chop!

Have a fun weekend, wherever you go, whatever you do.

and

BlessYourHeart

In An Instant

I am in awe at God's artistic hand,

for,

In an instant, sometimes before I can even grab the camera,

He creates such outstanding change,

Right before my eyes.

Just look at that gorgeous sky.

How can one not stop, gaze and say WOW!

Enjoy the miracle as I have

From an engaging fog to a stunning good-night.

I couldn't wait to share.

Good night all.

and

BlessYourHeart

Bare All

I wonder!

I wonder if my succulents,

Succulents like these,

and these,

Will have survived~

Living here all winter,

Under the snow and ice on the

South side of the garage~~~

With another month's full moon,

Under the icy glare of moonlight,

Have they survived?

It doesn't seem possible, does it?

We will just have to wait until

Mid-May to see

If they found a way~~~

A way out from under the harsh elements of winter.

Thanks for stopping by on this chilly morn.

BlessYourHeart

A Gorgeous Weekend

Nothing to complain about here.

No, not a thing.

It was a gorgeous weekend in northcentral WI.

The weather was fair., fog lifting over the field first thing in the morning with the sun rising behind the trees.

No complainin'.

Follow the lifting fog to see the trees frost before our eyes

as the day begins to warm, as warm as the low 40's above F.

It may get ' long on winter,'

but Jack Frost knows his way here to

remind us that there are warmer days ' a ' comin.'

The sun did shine for brief moments,

enough to show a few shadows during my walk.

My twin drove in for a visit.

I really think he stopped to see his nephew.

They used to work the same shift and they miss one another.

He was pretty impressed with the use for the auger, and no,

it's not just for fishing, anymore.

This lone oak leaf lay exposed in the snow.

This will broaden my walk and search in the spring.

I do not recall seeing an oak for at least a mile from here.

I'd like to strap on the snowshoes and follow this trail.

It is the one of the bobcats that we have been seeing.

I will wait for my man to come with me....soon,

before the trail melts away.

Difficult to see, but the bottom of these two tracks is that of the

Bobcat.

Click on any of the pictures for an up-close view.

Another track, that of a

Crow.

and, a deeply set

Deer track.

and even the wee

Mouse.

I love my warm weather winter walks.

When I returned, three of the GrandLoves and their Daddy,

were still hard at work,

digging a tunnel and fort.

Remember the auger? It's in my son's hand in the next two photos.

He uses it to dig through the snow, pulling it to the surface,

so much less digging the hard way. He's using the hand auger

with the little ones around, rather than the power auger.

It works like a charm.

Once the snow is loosened from it's packed hillside,

he rakes it out with the squeegee...anything to get the job done quickly,

cause~~~

even tho it feels like a heatwave to us northerners,

it's still ' frigid-aire ' out there.

After awhile, you get wet, playing this way, and then

the cold really sets in and it's cocoa time.

Of course, before the boys came in to warm up and dry their snow gear,

they still had to make the hill longer and higher. After all, there are now plans to make rooms and windows and otter slides.

I'm just so happy to see the tradition of outside winter playtime, being passed down another generation. Our son is reliving his childhood with his boys. He's remembering the days and weeks that he, his brothers and cousins spent doing the exact same thing. Only difference was, they never had to push more snow in piles.

There was always at least 5 ft. of it to dig in. We did not even have a foot of it this winter, but it didn't stop them from creating their own fun.

Awwww, Life is Good.

I just know you all had a wonderful weekend too.

Thanks for stopping by and

BlessYourHeart