March Musings

We made it to March, friends, and in just over a week we change the clocks - woo hoo, spring is surely on the way! 

Hello From The MountainTop!

Hello at long last from the frigid mountaintop!! It's been eons since I've posted anything on here, I can't believe how the months have flown by. I'm sorry I've been away so long - every day I think about you all and plan to put up a post, and then the days/weeks/months slip by once again. 

The Garden, Then & Now

We got hit with a whopper of a storm this week, and the snow is still coming down. This evening the temperatures will plummet to -10 Fahrenheit, and will remain frigid for the next three days. 

Brrrrrrrr! It's only January and my daughter announced today that she's so OVER winter!

Frigid Frosty Mornings

Well, we survived the big snowstorm this weekend, and despite all the hype we barely got a foot of snow. 

Merry Christmas!

Wishing you all peace and love during the holiday season!

Thank you for your friendship!

Debbie - MountainMama

xo

What A Glorious Morning!

We've had a lot of snow up on the mountain top for this early in the season. 

When it's not snowing, it seems to be cloudy and threatening snow. 

Yesterday it was a mixed bag of tricks - rain, sleet, snow, ice. You name it, we got it. 

Grateful, Thankful, Blessed

It's hard to believe it's only November and we've had snow more than once already!

Last Thursday's storm dumped over a foot of snow on our little mountain top. 

Winter Storm Riley

We had quite the Nor'easter this past weekend! Winter Storm Riley settled over the mountain top and dumped 3+ FEET of snow!

The entire mountain top as well as many neighboring villages were without power for 30+ hours, and some areas are still waiting for power to be restored. 

My Cozy Home

We had our first snowfall yesterday, which was pretty awesome to see. 

Not much stuck, just a dusting. 

Just enough to make it the perfect evening to crank up the woodstove for the first time this season. 

The Nor'easter That Kicked Butt

Yesterday on the Mountain Top and in many other parts of the Northeast it snowed. 

And it snowed. 

And then it snowed some more. 

Winter Mornings on the Mountain Top

Winter has settled in to stay on the mountain top and we are heading into a deep freeze for the next few days.

 

Sunday night we will be hitting zero.

 

Uggghhhh.

Baby, It's COLD Outside!

Brrrrrrr - it's frigid on the mountain top today! We're hitting a low of -2 tonight - winter is here with a vengeance!

Winter Wonderland.....WHAT?

Saturday on the mountain top it was nearly 70 degrees. In late November.

 

What??????????

Welcome To My World

So, it's not even Halloween yet and we are having our SECOND snowstorm of the season on the mountain top!

Yup, welcome to my world. 

A Wacky Weekend

This was a strange weekend on the mountain top. Life up here can be so bizarre. I feel like I'm in a Twilight Zone episode at times. 

Seed Starting in the Snow.....Part II

We certainly did get a whopper of a spring snowstorm this weekend - wowzers, oh golly!!

Healthy Creamy Chicken Orzo Soup - Just the Thing for a Spring Snowstorm

Yesterday I told you all about the 5 inches of snow we woke up to.....in April, none the less. 

Sigh. 

Winter Is Back With a Vengeance!

Well, it happened! It's winter again here in the mountains of Upstate NY. 

We got about 5 inches of snow last night and the wind is fierce today. 

Spring was Squashed!

As you know, I was super excited about all the signs of spring around my garden this past weekend. It was a glorious weekend and most definitely whet my whistle for a true taste of spring. 

But, alas, it is not to be. 

Not yet. 

It was about 10 degrees when I awoke to a winter wonderland this morning. We got a few inches of fluffy, powdery snow....perfect for skiing, not so much for gardening. 

I knew it was too good to be true. 

The sunshine. The blue skies. The warm temps. 

The Prosecco on the garden swing. 

And that's not the worst of it. I don't mind a little of the white fluffy stuff. 

After all, it is early February. We expect it at this time of year. 

But this winter has been such a tease!

Winter...spring....winter....make up your mind!

The worst part is....we are in for a true arctic blast. 

Just look at that forecast for Saturday. Are you kidding me? Negative 10?

Nothing will survive in the garden. Or the garden cottage. 

That's the end of it all. 

Daisy (AKA The Monkey) has the right idea. This is the kind of white fluffy stuff I want to spend time in at this point. 

Did I ever tell you one of Daisy's many, many nicknames is Squish? 

I don't remember why, it's been so long now....perhaps because she squishes every single pillow in the house into her own cozy little warm nest. 

Squish says that Spring has been Squashed. 

Thanks for nothing, Squish. 

Bold brat. 

Snow, at Last...and a Nightmare

Well, it's a little too late for a White Christmas but we finally got a couple of inches of snow last night - just enough to make it finally feel like Winter around here!

It's not the nice white fluffy stuff but rather a wet, heavy snow with an icy crust on top. 

The kind that's just killer to shovel. 

And not so much fun to drive in. 

Remind me again why I was so anxious for snow?

Oh yeah, because it's WINTER and I live in the mountains in upstate NY! By choice, I might add - I like my four seasons!

I woke early this morning to the awful sound of my alarm - beep beep beep beep beep - isn't that just the worst noise? I was grateful for the wake-up, however, as I was in the throes of a terrible nightmare. 

In my dream I was back in NYC in a skyscraper, up on the 46th floor, and we were in the midst of a tornado. The building was swaying in the storm and for some reason we thought we'd be safe up there, in this strong brick building that had stood for a hundred years.  

We were watching the storm rage outside the windows and while it was terrifying, we were all together and safe indoors. 

Suddenly the bricks started popping off the walls and I could see the wall imploding. I screamed and threw myself to the floor, over my little dog, Daisy, in an attempt to protect her from the bricks. And the wall collapsed inward, showering us in debris, right before the building started to collapse. 

I was scrambling around frantically, trying to locate all the members of my family and gather everyone to safety....and then I woke up. 

It was a terrifying dream and it has stayed with me all day. 

I know that awful dream came about for two reasons - the first being that we were watching news footage last night before dinner of the terrible tornadoes and severe weather in Texas and the Midwest. 

My heart goes out to all those families - I can't imagine the terror they felt as the tornadoes approached their neighborhood and they tried their best to outrun the storm. 

The other reason I believe had to do with the strong winds that were whipping the trees around outside my bedroom this morning. Nothing like the tornadoes in Texas but pretty intense none the less. There was sleet hitting the windows as well, making for quite the little winter storm raging away outside. 

The wind was blowing some of the lighter snow around so at times it looked like a blizzard out the kitchen window. The thermometer was reading about 20 degrees. 

First thing I do in the mornings is start up the Keurig and brew a cup of coffee. Then I go out to the garage and get the feeders out for the little birds. 

This morning that involved a long down coat I put on over my fuzzy bathrobe and my winter snow shoes with the heavy duty treads. My sweetie bought those shoes for me a couple of years back so I wouldn't fall while feeding the birds - he calls them "snow tires for my feet." What a honey he is, always looking out for me. He's right, they helped tremendously. 

I must say, I looked a bit like a homeless ragamuffin in that hodge-podge of an ensemble this morning, though! Glad my sweetie wasn't around to see that!

I wonder if it's safe to leave the feeders out now? Can I risk it? Do we think Mr Bear may be sleeping for the winter now? I'm a little worried since winter has only been around for a day or two now....he may be still up and about, looking for poor innocent bird feeders to rip to shreds. 

Meanwhile, I had my coffee in my leather chair next to the toasty warm fire this morning and I said a little prayer for all those folks who weren't so lucky. 

Look around you and count your blessings today. 

I will be doing the same. 

And counting you among my blessings, sweet readers. 

Stay safe and warm, wherever you are.