March Musings - Day 9

I walked outside this evening, and the most refreshing cool air hit me. It washed over me like the moonlight shining through a cloudy sky.

I can sense in the air the coming of spring. The air feels lighter, different, and while it's still cold, it isn't the bitter winter cold. The moonlight is flooding every nook and cranny as if to say, don't lose hope! Spring is on it's way! Sunshine is coming! Sunshine and a warm day for a walk sounds absolutely wonderful, yet at the same time, snow and bitter cold do as well. I'm looking forward to clinging to the last fleeting days of this winter before embracing the warmth and rain of spring. I love each season, despite the rain or snow or shine. I love the moon, the way the cool beams flow over the shadowy trees and then arcs around as if to make a giant smile. I love the way the stars twinkle in the winter. Soon my favorite starry friends, the Pleiades, shall bid me adieu until next time. Yet in the spring, we can spread out a blanket and star gaze sans mosquitoes or picnic in the moonlight!

Two verses regarding the sky come to mind:

"The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork."

Psalm 19:1 (ESV)

(The sky is so beautiful tonight!!)

"Like a moon it shall be established forever, a faithful witness in the skies."

Psalm 89:37 (ESV)

(This verse always comes to mind when the moon is out and I'm with John...the first time he said I love you in person was under a golden moon...talk about sweetness!)

Enjoy the end of winter nights...soon they will be gone, so grab some cocoa and a good book, or popcorn and a movie. Soon the spring nights will be here, ready for walks and star gazing, campfires and smores!

March Musings - Day 4

Brrrr...a couple days ago it was 60???

What's up with this? Simply...it's Central New York. The land of 70 degree weather in the morning, and 20 degree weather at night. Where snow storms appear in the middle of summer, and summer appears in the middle of snow storms. I've been wearing my snowflake leggings for warmth, and everyone is blaming the snowflake pattern that I chose to wear, on the weather. Oh well, I suppose it could be worse, right? It's good weather for hot drinks though. We had a lot of orders for lattes and mocha lattes tonight with this bitter cold. Despite it, I wouldn't trade places for anything. I love living in a place where my glasses freeze to my face (as to quote the Mitford series).

So do I enjoy the cold? To a degree, yes.

Would I trade the cold? If it's a sickness, yes I'd rather trade it for chocolate; but if it's the temperature, use it to make iced coffee and I'll be content.

Will I keep wearing my snowflake leggings? Yes, even in the dead of summer to drive everyone nuts...and maybe get some snow to make snow-cones out of the deal. After all, they are the cause of course! ;~)

Adios! I'm off to go fall asleep under 9 blankets, and dream of the Arctic Tundra!

That Extra One

I just donated 101 baby hats! I made them over the course of fall/winter, and just got around to donating them. I was aiming for 100, but when I counted them up the other night, I only had 99. Logically, Id make another and we would have 100 to take to New Hope. After making another, I counted them up this morning, and discovered I had 102! Quite perpuzzled, I had Mom count them again and it was 101 (I trust her counting skills lol!). Oh well, I thought to myself, and put them in a couple cute bags. When I got there I gave them to the lady and told her there was 101, and how that came to be. She smiled and said simply,

"There must be a need for that extra one."

It got me thinking, God often does that. We have an extra pair of shoes, or extra money in our pocket, an extra cup of coffee, or maybe extra time...and God uses it for a reason! Embrace "that extra one"! :~)

Hats for the Holidays! Day 30

A winter blue to bring in the beginning of December! Yes, I know it doesnt start until tomorrow, but can you not picture this with a lovely fur coat, and holiday attire against a blanket of white snow? <3

The hidden sparkles will match the sparkle in the eye of the girl when she catches the sight of sparkly snow!

Shoveling!

(Posing next to the snowbank...I'm 5'8" for a comparison)

Heehee! We've got snow. We've got a lot of snow. In fact, I shoveled at least 320 cubic feet of snow yesterday. I must say, it was quite pleasant. Actually, to be perfectly honest, I love shoveling. It astounds a few of my friends, which I find quite funny. I chatted a bit with my neighbor while I shoveled and he shoveled. He asked if my Dad was out driving home from work at the time, and I said that he was. My neighbor reminded me how awful that stretch of road has been. In fact, my family and I drove on it the other day when we went to the Saranac Lake Ice Festival this past weekend. God was with us on the way home. The weather was icky and the roads were slick, but God kept us safe and we made it home! It continues to amaze me how God takes care of us in so many different ways. As I continued to shovel, I paused to watch the sparrows. We have quite a few that live in the ivy of our house. I will admit, I stood there whistling to them. It was so peaceful just listening to them chirp and chatter among themselves. My neighbor commented on the fact that they must stay warm from the insulation of the ivy. About 20 minutes later, Matthew 6:26 came to mind. Shoveling was tough as this snow was hard and heavy, but I persevered and did it! It was interesting to watch my neighbors interact. My one neighbor came home, and couldn't even get in his driveway. So my other neighbor who I had been talking to, let him park in his driveway until they could shovel and plow it. Shoveling is hard, it requires a lot of energy, but in the end, it's worth it. You get to clear away shovel-fulls of snowflakes, each unique, each are like a sparkling crystal, each imperfectly perfect, and each created by God. Watching the dusk fall, and the night arrive, was beautiful! It was cold to start off, but by the end, I was warm and toasty from working. Snow is so beautiful, and so enjoyable. I love winter and everything about it! Enjoy winter, for it is a beautiful time of year!

Throwback Tuesday: For a Winter's Evening

 For caroling, or a sleigh ride,

for winter strolls through the countryside,

or enjoying gentle snowfalls,

'tis a perfect outfit for a winter evening!

 ~ Winter Wonderland ~

Sleigh bells ring, are you listening,
In the lane, snow is glistening
A beautiful sight,
We're happy tonight.
Walking in a winter wonderland.

Gone away is the bluebird,
Here to stay is a new bird
He sings a love song,
As we go along,
Walking in a winter wonderland.

In the meadow we can build a snowman,
Then pretend that he is Parson Brown

He'll say: Are you married?
We'll say: No man,
But you can do the job
When you're in town.

Later on, we'll conspire,
As we dream by the fire
To face unafraid,
The plans that we've made,
Walking in a winter wonderland.

My poor blog.... and something exciting!

I haven't blogged much recently...I'm just a horrible blogger...... ;~)

Seriously though, I'm going to resume Science Saturday, and I shall be putting up the next post for the Series on Prayer soon!

Something exciting happened today!!

It snowed!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! And it didn't just snow, it stayed!! 

To make up for such a boring blog recently, here's a few pictures!! :~D

Wisteria!

It looks like the tree has powered sugar on it! 

 Lightly frosted with snow!

A fairy-tale land!

Goldenrod golden-snow!

 

Delicately iced with snow-icing!

 

A sweet Mama Cardinal!

 

 

Snowflakes on the remains of a Brown-eyed Susan

 

Snowflakes falling in a world that's clinging to fall.....

Winslow was VERY excited! We'll have to find him a new winter hat! :~D

I apologize to those who do not like the excessive use of exclamation points, but today justified it! 

It snowed!!!!!!!! Ahh!!! It really is one of my favorite things... 

Science Saturday: Woolly Bears

(Via Wikipedia)

So, I think, um, I might be a little off with my weeks and my planning/scheduling on this, so I'll fix it for next week.

A few factual slighty-sticky notes for your brain:

•   A popular old wives' tale is that you can tell how cold/hard the winter will be by the size of the rust-brown band on the Woolly Bear Caterpillar. Actually, it tells us how old the Woolly Bear is! Younger Woolly Bears have more black than brown. As they mature the brown band widens.
• Now if you see one as it's getting chilly, and the band is very small, it just means it's a younger caterpillar getting ready for winter. So it's not forecasting the weather, it's just responding to the cold weather at the time you see them.
• They are such a popular caterpillar. Do you ever think about what they become afterwards? In the summer they become an Isabella Tiger Moth. Pretty much just another moth you'll see near a porch light. Not as exciting as a caterpillar, but still pretty neat.

People of Jordan: Erin and Gordan

Gordan has lived here for 20 years and Erin for 15. Gordan enjoys being able to hunt and fish out here in the country. They never really called it the country until their first date. They decided to go see a movie and on the drive to the movie theater, they saw a pig meandering down the road. He was just munching on food he found on the side of the road. They enjoy our small town because it's safe for kids. They also enjoy having the sidewalks plowed in the winter. They really like the fall festival, because it's just a lot of fun! I must agree, the fall festival is a lot of fun!

People of Jordan: William

William has lived here for 24 years. He enjoys the small town atmosphere and the canal history that surrounds our little town.He works at our Lyons National Bank, and has been working there since 2001. His only complaint for living a minute away from work is that the car is never warm by the time he reaches work in the winter, and it's never cool enough in the summer. ;~)

Snow fun!

With the 12+ inches of snow we got, there has been plenty of fun for everyone!

Winslow has been out snowshoeing, and enjoyed himself immensely.

He also has hit the slopes a few times. The fresh powder has been wonderful! He's working on his skills so he can participate in the 2018 Olympics. ;~)

Lil's G and T-Tot had some fun in the snow while I shoveled the other day.

Snow in the hair is quite chilly, but also quite beautiful.

They also enjoyed snow fights. :~)

And they are always ready for more fun!

This is called: Snow Frog :~)

Boy, is it COLD!!

It has definitely been a cold snap the past few days, and will continue to be a few more days.

I decided to post this today, so y'all know I haven't froze. ;~)

This was the temperature yesterday morning:

Cold, yes?

And just in case you can't read the TM-500 Thermocouple Thermometer it says -18.5*

Good weather for tea, chocolate, books, and kitty cats. :~)

A Windy Friday Hike

A little Chipmunk collecting berries with his mouth for winter.

I found the biggest sycamore tree leaf. T-Bug is trying to see around me. :)

Finding forest treasures. Leaves, nuts, sticks, and more. 

Around Town

They are painting by our new Tops!

Spring is coming! We've seen snow and Canada geese flying north in HUGE migration flocks!

And plants are coming up!

Snowdrops!

We are bridging the gap from Winter to Spring!

I LOVE SPRING! :~D

Spring is on its way!

Spring is on its way early, says Puxsutawney Phil. 



But I'm a a central New Yorker...

...we will have snow till next winter. 

WackyWednesday: Bundled for the cold

Un magazine de mode chat: pour des chats de style

(A Cat Fashion magazine: for styling cats :-D)

You can bundle your kitties against the cold using outfit A. A is a contemporary winter look.

A is a baby hat and a polar fleece scarf to keep the kitties toasty warm. You can also provide a wool blanket for the kitties' tummies to stay warm.

The next possibility for a warm fuzz ball is outfit B. B is a classic look.

B is a black beret so the little fuzzie ears will stay warm when they parade around down with the kute kats.

The last option is the one designed by our fur-ball fashion designer, outfit C.

C is a outfit that reflects the inner fur-ball.

Yup, he is a furry chicken, just in disguise...shhhhhhh....