A Touch of Winter

 As I've often said, I love winter.  It is such a quiet time.  The snow muffles the sounds of the world around me and covers the debris and detritus of the rest of the year with a fresh coat of white.  It's a time to reflect, to slow down, to burrow deep beneath the covers...to breathe.  We must consider each step in the winter, look about us for slippery spots, drive a bit more carefully, make sure to dress warmly and prepare for extreme temperatures.

We put suet cakes and mixed seeds out for the birds.  They add a touch of color and busyness to an otherwise stark and quiet landscape. We get a wide variety of winter birds here: cardinals, blue jays, chickadees, phoebes, woodpeckers, titmice, grosbeaks and others.

 Fresh, untracked snow is the main reason why I don't like snowmobiles.  Of course, they are also noisy machines, and their ruckus interrupts my winter peace.

If you look very closely, you might see a cardinal perched in the branches of the tree.  When I first looked out, there were three males, all in bright-red plumage, but I wasn't fast enough to get that picture or, for that matter, close enough to get a good image here.







It's very cold here today, below zero early this morning, and not warming up very quickly at all.  The furnace is working hard to keep the house comfortable, but the sun is shining brightly so it doesn't feel quite so chill.  There was a lot of snow near us yesterday, but we got just a few inches.  A niece who lives a few miles to the west of us reported that at one point yesterday, they got nearly four inches of snow in a half-hour period.  There is also snow falling and predicted to fall all over the South, so there will be many children there who may be experiencing their very first snow!  I hope that they'll get enough to have some fun in it.

More on Christmas
I got two boxes of chocolates from my kids and grandkids for Christmas...click on the image at left for a better view of the tags.  The little ones were up and around before their parents on the day before Christmas, and they opened a few of the gifts before they were supposed to. They also helped themselves to my chocolates.  The other box of chocolates looked very similar to this one, but with more empty spaces. = ) 

My friend Shelly is deployed to Germany at the moment, and she sent this MOST excellent polar bear hat for my grandson.  Robby loves it, and has been wearing it almost constantly since we gave it to him.  I have some wonderful friends.

And so, for 2011. 

I am not a believer in new year's resolutions as they are rarely kept, but there are a few things I would like to aim for.

1. Acceptance of things I can't change

2. Not letting the bad things upset me

3. Being happy with what I have instead of sad about what I don't have

4. Shedding fifty pounds

Well, that last one is my doctor's plan for me...skinny little dude that he is (sigh).

Happy New Year to us, every one.  Let us hope for a better year to come.  If you see me without a smile, lend me one of yours, and remind me that I need to find one of my own.