Spring?

This has been a very long, harsh winter.  February brought snow storm after snow storm and temperatures well below average.  It seemed like we had to snow blow and shovel daily. The snow on the roof got deeper and deeper, then needed to be shoveled off to reduce the weight.

View from the Roof

Interestingly enough, it wasn't really scary up on the roof.....there was so much snow that my legs were buried almost up to my knees -- so sliding off wasn't a possibility.

On some roof surfaces, snow turned to ice, which in turn melted and dripped into the house.  For weeks we had strategically placed buckets and towels to catch the indoor rain.  Water coming in around the front door caused it to freeze shut, making it unusable for a month.

I follow blogs from England, Ireland, Washington state, and Oregon.  All were filled with pictures of green grass and spring flowers.  While we were stuck in a world of dirty white.

Well, it's mid-March and the snow is still there.  But it's melting.  The roof is almost clear of snow and ice.  The wreath that hung so festively on the door in December and then fell into a snowbank is almost un-buried.  I can see the top of the birdbath.  And we got the front door opened.

Unfortunately, we're seeing a lot of damage too.  Some fence rails have broken off.  Shrubs are bent and broken and will need serious pruning.  Walls and ceilings need repair and re-painting.  We need to figure out why ice forms in one particular area on the roof.

One thing we have enjoyed this winter -- our bird feeder.  We've seen so many birds flitting around, eagerly gobbling down the seed and the suet.

There's still a lot of snow....but the air smells like spring.