Going with it

Every morning I wake up to new snow.

By afternoon the clouds are clearing and the snow has melted.  

This is the flow in the Northwest.  After almost 9 years I still haven't learned to surrender and just go with it.  Many Californians can't take it and leave.  Long, cold, dark winters and then this.  It is not supposed to snow in spring.  However, I am coming to realize that snow in spring is not a negative.  By watching the natural inhabitants, I'm catching on.

Snow does not make the birds sad.  They are active and cheerful no matter what the weather. They seem to like snow, maybe because they appreciate all the moisture it brings.  Moisture in any form - snow, hail, or rain, is welcome.  It brings life.

A Robin looking for morsels in the leaf litter.

A Pileated Woodpecker found the suet.

Finches (undoctored photo) found the other feeder.

                                  

And a Nuthatch (doctored photo).

It may be a bit early to start seeds outside, but indoors the flowers sprouted in only a couple of days.  The grow light works wonders.
It's 33 degrees, sun breaking out of the clouds, at 9:00 am.

Barnalanche

You weren't planning on going anywhere, were you?

The J crew came to the rescue and tackled it, just in case we needed more mint chocolate chip ice cream in a hurry.

Another avalanche: Snow from the roof of the house.

This is the front porch after J shoveled. When the snow kept coming and coming, we got lots of new cracks on the walls and ceiling, and ominous noises were coming from the roof. Some of us were spooked and decided to sleep downstairs until the roof was cleared of snow, while others (okay, it was just one of us), were unperturbed. We have many debates in our house about such matters, and let me just remind folks that it is not the pessimist's house that collapses under the weight of four feet of snow, but the optimist's.

Despite all that hard work, the roof still sprung a leak above my closet, where ice got under the shingles. Getting ice off of a roof is a tricky task. Some try to melt it off with a blow torch. J used a hammer to dislodge it. We will have to deal with roof repairs in the spring. Oh winter.

The weather is wild, and everyone is exasperated. Roofs are collapsing, and snow shovels are breaking from constant use, and good luck finding a new one. The chorus around here is, "so much for global warming!" But to the contrary, I see this strange weather as an indication of something out of whack. Of course I keep my mouth shut. Because I'm a good girl. And a big chicken, braaak, brraaaack!

The bird feeder - this is what our house must have felt like under all that snow.

The tractor is still in the shop.

After weeks of snow, now we have a dramatic twist - the pineapple express is here, from Hawaii! Rain and howling wind hammer the house at night, keeping me awake. I like it, it's a nice alternative to the white death blanket. The blanket is receding, which is the good news. The bad news is that it's leaving an ice rink and slush in its wake. The driveway is very tricky, I think I may have killed the car trying to navigate the mountains and valleys. Oh, fun!

And we all thought that last year was crazy. I don't know what the snowfall total for our area is, but it's well over 6 feet for Spokane, so I imagine we've had 8 feet or more!

The kids have had several snow days. They went back today, which is why I have time to write this. What surprises will the weather bring us next?

This all makes me think of that wonderful book by Arnold Lobel, Owl at Home. "You must go, Winter! shouted Owl. Go away, right now!" I believe it is time for some tear-water tea.

Snowdays

Happy Birthday Xenon.  I love your song!

_____________________________________________________________________

It's been snowing.  And snowing.  And snowing.  Two school snow days in a row.

The driveway is impassable.  The crew attempted to dig out.  Uncle's tractor is broken.  
It may swallow the house...
And the trees...

                           
And the children...naaaahhhh.

It's super fluffy snow, because it's been so cold, so it's easier to move.  Tomorrow's high is predicted to be 3 degrees, as another arctic blast is coming.  I told you the ice age was coming.

It's 31" deep in front of the porch.  Not a big deal.  Except...it's still snowing, and more storms are in the forecast all week.

The sun came out for a few milliseconds!

It's 23 degrees, light snow at 12:00 pm.

First flower

The crocuses are blooming. The lupines were planted from seed a couple of years ago, it looks like they're finally established.


The path is still under snow.

It looked like this in winter, after shovelling the roof. We couldn't get firewood to the porch without climbing over hill and dale.

Here's how the cats have fun in winter.

Now Rusty is getting serious about hunting. He's in stealth mode, watching Mr. and Mrs. Finch.
They knew he was there.

It's 50 degrees.

Snowy morning

It looked like January this morning.

That's the bluebird's nest box, by the tree. We put it on a metal pole this time, to keep the cats away. The birds have been looking at it, but so far no takers. The other one we put up in the trees has chickadees in it. The sunflower eaters don't seem to mind the weather, but the insect eaters are not as happy.

We had a lot more snow than usual this winter. The shed didn't survive.

                                                                              Going...

Going...

                                                                                 Gone.

It was kind of an eyesore, so I'm not too upset. J took it down last weekend. Yes, it looks even worse now, but it'll get better. The back part was built by J and J, and it stood up to the snow, unlike the Sears portion. It'll be perfect for a small goat or other furry lawn mower. Maybe that will be better and easier than chickens. I'm still enjoying the "leavings" they made though. You can't beat free fertilizer.