Last Minute Winter Stuff

Yes, you read me right; we had another snow storm this weekend, with wind chills in the twenties so it was another indoor weekend for us. Marc needed to take it easy anyway as he had some minor surgery on his back with the removal of a cyst which inhibited his ability to move his shoulder and left arm. At least this allowed him to rest up after his arduous week in ND, where he logged a 73 hour work week! We are very excited to note however, that the forecast for this coming weekend will be spectacularly warm for us—the 60’s! That means we’ll be able to complete the garden fencing and painting of the posts.

I finished up my yard totem and got it planted and completed the first flower plate faces as well. Marc has purchased copper pipe which will be used for their stems and they will be planted in the gravel area where no real vegetation is intended. I really enjoy the search for their parts, then piecing them together and seeing how they “grow” into originals, so I plan on doing more. Compared to some, mine are rather tame so I need to keep an eye out for more colorful glassware. My final project was a beaded wind dancer which sparkles in the sun. These also are a fun project so I will likely be making at least one more. I may eventually paint the PVC pipe.

Last evening was nice enough and Marc was moving well enough to tackle pruning the lilac forest. I’ve wanted to eliminate the dead wood since we’ve owned this property; we figure the bush is likely from the 1940’s since that’s when the original farmstead was built here, in the area where we are planting the garden. The poor thing has been badly neglected for years and years so hopefully this is the start of bringing it back to health and more blooms. Now I’ve got two huge piles of branches and twigs to pack out across two lots to our burn pile as today’s major chore!

It was not winter's last gasp as we had hoped. The morning after another big snowstorm dawned gorgeously still and quiet. I think they may be about done for the year with the possible exception of some flurries coming up late this weekend. This one didn’t last too long due to warmer ground temps and the ground shows up once again even though we got about 8 inches. 

This gives you an idea of what we are planning for our garden with the possibility of a few flowers thrown in around the house. The lawn area we tried to plant last year on our excavated ground turned into runaway crabgrass and clover so after killing it off this year I will need to start all over again. I’m looking forward to the upcoming days and weeks of warmer weather spent outside working on things. I’ve never really had a yard to develop and I never got into gardening at a younger age but am avidly looking forward to it at this point. We have lots of plans; now just to see if we can make them work out!

Marc is away in Bismarck, ND this week but managed to add a huge safety feature to his big saw so he no longer has to reach across by the running blade to guide a long piece of lumber. It’s quite cleaver, done with rollers and folds up out of the way when he is done. That man is so inventive!

I took advantage of his absence and visited Goodwill for more yard art project material so hope to have some photos of those by the time I blog again.

Winter's Last Gasp?

We’re hopeful we’ve seen the last snowfall of the winter earlier this month because recently our temperatures have been so warm we are completely rid of snow. Next come the spring rains so we’re not out of the woods by any means, although we are getting some days of warming sunshine. 

Marc has taken that time to do some outside chores like the apple tree pruning; something he didn’t get the chance to do at all last year. In addition, we spent the weekend working on our garden area and fencing. To make it tall enough to keep out the deer, he is doing two courses of four feet field fencing with a lower layer of mesh at ground level to help prevent rodents. All of that is weaved together with fencing wire to make something strong and secure so it’s no easy or quick task. He also had one pole left to set which I now need to paint and there is yet a gate to be built. Since our last killing frost can be in mid-May it’s really not safe for us to plant much until the end of April so we still have time to get things in order.

We’ll actually be working a whole bunch on outside tasks this summer as we have lots of landscaping planting plans. In addition, there is some major fix up to be done to the RV and Freightliner which we are considering putting up for sale. We can’t envision ever fulltiming again and there is no need locally for such a large RV so if we can ditch this one we may eventually get a 30 foot bumper tow we can pull with the Dodge. But we’re not even sure if we’ll do that since Marc only has two weeks’ vacation a year so other than weekend use it would likely sit a lot. Marc has continued to work in his basement, putting together his work area and building drawers for storage, etc. Once he feels he is practiced enough, there will be laundry room cabinets to build and the kitchen island and hood.

He did decide he’d like to get out fishing at some point soon so he picked up a clean little boat & trailer the other day. He has to go through his old motor to get it running but maybe before long we’ll have some fish stories to relate. I was holding out for a pontoon boat but remain hopeful maybe we can add to the fleet a little later with one. Wisconsin has over 11,000 lakes and 300 rivers so there is just way too much water fun to be had to live in this state without a boat or two!

Ice Shove

Marc wasn’t witness to this as it happened on his latest trek to Marquette, MI but caught the results on camera. Ice shove is when floating ice in Lake Michigan is rapidly pushed ashore by high winds and it’s surprising how far and how high it can pile up. Ice shove is happening early this year in honor of our mild winter so spring must be just about here!

Our February World

Right before the latest big storm, we looked like this with freezing fog then the snow started.

It wasn't long before snow started moving in and then it ramped up.

Within a couple hours, it was looking like this and was snowing in earnest.

It makes for a beautiful world when all is said and done!

It's Cold Here!

With a wind chill of -20 we're getting lots of transference of the cold onto metal inside the house. I guess it's time I chipped the ice off the door knob before it leaves a melting mess on the floor. (Please don't mind the messy door; it's a used door that we haven't had time to paint as yet.)

Our winter sunsets can't be beat lately.

A Couple Things...

I snatched this photo off the web of my daughter Rachael and her boyfriend Eric on a New Year's hike in Oregon. I thought the originality of the photo was just breathtaking...and striking!

Along with that, I thought you might like to see my latest artistic creation for my living room wall. Marc managed to stop and pick up some birch bark for me on one of his forays to the Upper Penninsula of MI in Marquette, where he has a project. The drive takes him through hours of thick forest. Earlier I had picked up this framed art at Goodwill because I liked the frame, figuring it appeared to be wood (it's not) and rustic enough that somewhere along the line I'd be able to put it to good use, matting and all. So I started playing around with the birch bark and decided I could trace out a Northwood's animal. I initially tried a moose but it was just too intricate for the bark being cut with utility scissors, so I ended up with the bear. From a distance it is hard to tell it's a bear; it looks merely abstract and one has to study it up close to get the nuances. I rather like it like that.

Marc has been away a couple days at a work conference in Wisconsin Dells and then had to also check on his Madison project, so it will be late tonight when he arrives back. He's still working on his happy place in the basement as he has time. There's just not a lot new to report from this snow covered tundra.