Lookin' at the Bright Side

 I don't know what's happening in your part of the world, but as you can see, Mother Nature has forgotten to look at the calendar here in our neck of the woods :)

I decided I may as well make the best of it and appreciate the beauty.  

 The swings have not seen any action in a long time :(

When I look at this pine tree, it seems to me as if it also feels a bit depressed.

Just like the look of these saplings against the fence.

E. wanted me to take a photo of this bird house before she left for school - she likes the way it looks.  I think she has an eye for a good photo.

I made this my cover photo for my facebook page this morning. I like the perspective.

My garden has an eery, dramatic look to it.  By this afternoon, it will just be drab and brown again.

Beautiful.

This marsh willow looks like it has been whipped around in a wind storm.  Normally, the branches are upright. 

Another photo E. requested.  This weeping willow is her favorite tree.  You can see it has 2 large trunks that are almost horizontal, making tree climbing a snap!  If I can't find her, she'll be hiding out in this tree ;)

Enjoy your day wherever you are, no matter what the weather!

Marie

Early Dismissal

"Good morning", I whispered, as I gently touched E.'s arm - the same way I wake her up every morning.  She is not a morning person and I try to ease her into wakefulness each morning.  

"Nooo!" she says into pillow quietly.  "I was hoping for a snow day".

No such luck.  The sky is light and there is no sign of any precipitation whatsoever.

An hour later we walk up to the bus stop and still, no snow. 

Two minutes later, it's as if somebody has flipped a switch, and we have an instant snowstorm.  The ground is almost instantly white.  "Maybe you'll have an early dismissal today", I say, jokingly.

"What's that?", E. asks.  There has never been an early closing here, so she doesn't know what I'm talking about, so I explain.  

"I was just kidding, that won't happen", I tell her.

21/2 hours later, I have a robocall on my cell phone notifying me of an early dismissal.  

E. is going to be SO HAPPY!!! :)

This is my deck after only 2 hours of snow.  How much have you gotten so far?

I'm off to make fudge :)

Marie

Deny, Deny, Deny!

The yard is almost void of snow.

We've got robins, sandhill cranes, swans, killdeers, mourning doves, geese.

The puddles are still liquid when E. and I go out to the bus in the morning.

When we went to the ranch this past weekend to prune the apple trees, they had buds on them, and sap running.

And now we're expecting 8-12 inches of snow over the next 24 hours???

It's almost too much to bear :(

So E. and I have devised a plan.  You've heard of it - it's called Denial!

We brought some sunshine into the house.

We got the ingredients for comfort food, and some reading material.

So, we'll close the blinds, ignore the weather, and I believe we're set :)

This weather front looks as though it covers a good portion of the upper Midwest.  How do you plan on sitting out the storm?  That is, if it affects you?  If it doesn't affect you, send a little sympathy my way, lol!

Marie

Sick Day - Maybe

Thinking about taking a sick day today.  Why would anyone write a post about taking a sick day?  If you're a mom - you know.


Today I woke up early with a wicked sore throat and my head feels like a balloon that's been blown up just a wee bit too far.  And staying in bed with my trusty laptop, tea with honey, and a good book sounds pretty good to me.

Once in a while, there comes that dreaded day when my husband will turn off his alarm and not get up.

"Um, what?"

Outer calm, inner panic.

"Do you have a fever, are you throwing up?"

"No, I have a cold.  I'm going to stay home and rest."

YOU'VE GOT TO BE KIDDING!  (This is inside my head).  YOU'RE NOT SICK ENOUGH TO STAY HOME - I DON'T GET TO TAKE A DAY OFF WHEN I HAVE A COLD - GET REAL!

On the outside, I just say ok, and roll out of bed, close the bedroom door and let him sleep for a few hours more.  I resign myself to spending the day working around the big baby in the living room who has the tv on all day turned up really loud and leaves kleenex all over the floor and wants to eat every 2 hours.  Is this how it is in your house???

Why do we not take a sick day for ourselves when we need it?  I know I'm not the only one who just keeps on keeping on - I find it nearly impossible to just take a day off and stay in bed.

I think I'll give it a try today for a change.

I'll let you know how it goes :)

Fun App.

I love birding.  And I love anything techie.  So I'm excited when I can combine the two.  Here's a great deal on an app I love and have been using for 2 years now.  Pretty sure I paid full price for it, but it was worth it.  It has a pretty extensive list of birds, photos, maps, and even several recorded bird calls for each species, which is a real bonus.  How many times have you heard a bird and wondered  which bird was making that sound?  Amazon is offering their Audobon Guides for half price until March 25.  Besides the bird app, they have one for identifying trees, flowers, mushrooms, insects, butterflies, and mammals.  Fun!

Here's the link to the apps:

Amazon Guides


Marie

Who Will You Be?

When you get to the end of your life, what will be the sum of it?  Who will you be?  

Some days I'm not sure who I am.  Being unemployed, I have the freedom to re-invent myself often.  Perhaps I have too much time to think.  

But once in a while I think it's a good idea to take a spiritual inventory.  Ask yourself that question:  What do you want to be remembered for?  I think your answer should give you a pretty clear view of what is important to you.  

When I get too far off the spiritual path, this is the question I ask myself.  And then I remember where I want to be and I can shift my focus onto what is truly important to me. 

And this is is it for me.

Find your path and stay on it.

Marie

Tablets, anyone?

Sooo, I've been off my computer for a while, but NOT by choice.  The stupid thing won't turn on most of the time.  I took it in to the repair shop, and of course, the expert could not find any reason for it doing so.  No fix.  I want to buy a tablet to replace it.  But I don't know which one I want.  There are a lot of choices, and there's something to love about all of them, depending on what you're looking for.  I think blogging requires a bit of tech-knowledge (is that a word? - well I like the sound of it).  So I'm asking if any of you have any experience with a tablet and could recommend one for me.  My requirements are that it has to be Android - I love that operating system - and I need to be able to download photos, so it should have a slot for an sd card.  I've noticed not all of them have that capability.   I hope to hear from a few of you at least!

Marie