The best place to be when the highway might be a touch slippery: Following a salt truck!

Groundhog for Saturday Critters

Today is Groundhog Day. Let’s hope his behaviour today makes a good prediction of an early spring!

Dear Mr Groundhog, 

Don’t be afraid,

If your shadowy image you see

Please DO NOT FLEE!

Stay around without fear

And let us know that spring is drawing near.

A sunny or cloudy day

Shouldn’t a legend make

For, anyway, many think you’re just a fake

Enjoy your day that’s named just for you

And please give us a good report, please do!

Because dear Mr. Groundhog,

I believe in you

I am linking today to Eileen’s Saturday Critters which can be found at viewingnaturewitheileen.blogspot.ca. Have a wonderful day everyone, you too Mr. Groundhog!

Overwintering wild apples

These wild apples still clinging to this wild apple tree are a little too high for the deer to reach , but soon as we get nearer tp spring and the weather starts to warm a bird I will probably find a few American Robins nibbling on there frozen beauties.  No matter the season, Mother Nature seems to provide for all it wild creatures as they strive to survive the cold winter season.

-16 degrees Celsius this morning as I got up at 5 a.m. Although the skies are now cloudy, sunshine is promised later on in the morning.  I think that I will make a return trip this morning to this apple tree location, just to have another look. as I enjoy the beauty of these wild apple berries.  A good day to you all readers!

Its October Pumpin Month

Here in Canada we celebrate two special occassions in October: Thanksgiving and Halloween.
A pumpkin represents two possibilities to aid in our celebrations; the possible outcomes being Pumpkin pie for thanksgiving dinner or handsome Jack for a Hallowe'en night Jack O'Lantern.... So your choice is "yum, yum,"  or "Eek!" Deciding which occasion you would favor foe a pumpkin use  just feast your eyes over these local beauties seen at the local supermarket which you can buy for $3.99.
I prefer buying several pumpkins to serve as seasonal decorations to line the side of our little cement sidewalk which leads up to the door on our front porch.  However with my plans for decorations comes the risk of having to scrape the pumpkin parts off of the street  in front of my house the next morning as often they are taken from our sidewalk path and smashed on the street sometime during Hallowe'en night.

Whichever your purpose or choice is: Have a great Hallowe'en.

Blackberry Season Now

While in wooded area yesterday morning I saw these beautiful Blackberries.  the scene held much potential

for a multitude of ripening fruit. They held much beauty also.

February Pansy

My most recent Pansy news. The same Pansy as I the previous post has survived many winter snowstorms and as the snow

disappeared from the flower bed, I found a beautiful Pansy bud still intact on February the 17th., 2016.  I eagerly await spring, warmer temperatures and its continued growth and opening.

Late Pansy bloom in November

A check in my flower bed this morning revealed this beautiful Pansy blossom in bloom! Yesterday morning it had been rimmed with frost! I had bought cold resistant Pansy seeds in the spring and started them indoors as bedding plants sometime in March or April and then transplanted them as seedlings into my flower bed sometime in May; hoping that I might have some late fall blooms and I am rewarded for this project with this beautiful late Pansy blossom on this cold day of November 26th, 2015.

Gardening joys, Tomato harvest

I started these tomato plants on a cold snowy, blizzarding day in April 2015, now look at them!!!!.. ahhh the joy and tasty anticipation, not to mention the delightful beauty of these ripe red tomatoes in my garden, now that's its August.  The wonder of harvesting!!

 

 

Blueberry picking time

Yhere was no time more exciting than blueberry picking time when I was a child  We each had a small domestic shortening pail and we would be off picking for the day.  The big reward when we returned home with full pails at the end of the day was that Mother would make blueberry biscuits for supper.  Fresh homemade biscuits straight from the oven slathered with butter smothered with stewed blueberries.

ries.  There was no taste comparable!!

There are two to these pairs

The theme for today's Thursday's challenge is pair and yesterday I saw a beautiful, handsome pair of Wood Ducks! I think this pair is a most handsome species!

On the previous day I found two handsome Canada Geese sharing a puddle together.
Spring is such a colourful, beautiful, exciting time of year.  I wish a wonderful good day to everyone.  
I am linking this post to Thursday's Challenge which can be found at:http://www.spunwithtears.com/thursday.html

Ice-fishing Shacks

These picturesque little buildings on the river ice are used for fishing.  A hole is made in the ice with an auger and the person inside the shack fishes through the hole in the ice.  Some of these shacks have a little stove in them also; you can see a few chimneys in some of the buildings. I would like to take a photo of smoke rising from the chimneys .

Happy Groundhog day!!!

                     
Dear Mr Groundhog,

Don’t be afraid,

If your shadowy image you see

Please DO NOT FLEE!

Stay around without fear

And let us know that spring is drawing near.

A sunny or cloudy day

Shouldn’t a legend make

For, anyway, many think you’re just a fake

Enjoy your day that’s named just for you

And please give us a good report, please do!

Because dear Mr. Groundhog,

I believe in you.

 

Another blizzard is forecast for our area today, however on a more positive note, with such a forecast, so  a groundhog perhaps won't see its shadow.. think positive!  An early spring may be forecast.  I certainly hope so!  there is no more room in our yard for snow!!!

 

Have a wonderful Groundhog Day everyone!!!

Snow Removal after a Big Storm

Early in the morning , even before daylight, the flashing lights outdoors revealed a man hard at work plowing snow from our driveway. But there is  news now that there is an even bigger snowstorm on the way!  Oh, well I guess that is to be expected during these cold, winter, months!  although this winter seems to be far less severe than last winter's storms.

                             
And once the snow plowing is completed, along comes the village sidewalk snow blower .. Sometimes part of our cleared driveway gets snowed on again.  Oh well I guess that's winter living. Everyone tries their best to do a good job of removing the unwanted snow.  Thank You to all the winter workers!

Candlelight

When waking last Thursday morning, I flicked on the light switch and I remained in the dark!.. Oops, a power failure was the result of the overnight snowstorm! What to do?, What to do? I hadn't prepared the night before for the possibility of needing an alternative light source, but fortunately my husband had and he handed me a flashlight!  Thank goodness!!  I proceeded downstairs, brrr... no heat as our oil furnace needs electricity to power its fan necessary to circulate the heat!  With the use of the flashlight I found some short candle stubs and luckily I remembered where a cigarette lighter was.  (We gave up smoking years ago), but you never know when a lighter is needed, like then! and viola, LIGHT!!!

How wonderful light is!  and electricity!!  How I miss it when we are in the midst of a power outage!  no heat, no light, no hot coffee! I will have to find some sort of setup where I will be able to boil water for tea or coffee  with a candle... Perhaps a fondue-set?  I am sure this is  not the only power outage we will experience this winter!!  But isn't the candlelight beautiful?!!
we have since purchased  several new candles, red as a matter of fact, for the season.  The candles in the above photos are now in my bedroom with a lighter beside it, so that the next time I awake in complete darkness with no power response in the light switch I shall be prepared! and I will just reach for the candles and lighter. I amnow  prepared.
Happy season to you all.. May there be light!!!
Even our snowblower is powered by electricity... groan.. I see that the ground covering outside our window today is white!! and the forecast is predicting freezing rain.  But there is very little depth to the snow and I don't have to venture out on the roads today! and that in itself is a blessing! Retirement is wonderful! , especially in the winter season!

A Tranquil Day in Spring

Sprting is the time of year when I feel relief that winter is over and almost any beautiful outdoor scene brings a sense of tranquility to me.  
Today, while looking around my favourite pond I spied a duck on the calm waters.  However when I got my camera in position to take a picture, the duck disappeared by diving under the water.  I waited patiently until the duck surfaced again and then I took its picture.  
The duck was a female Common Goldeneye and I found the scene tranquil and beautiful

I am linking to Thursday's challange where the theme this week is 'tranquil'.  If you would like to add your own contribution or view whwt others have posted then please link to thursday's challenge at:
http://www.spunwithtears.com/thursday.html

Last Day of March 2014

The month came in lamb like and it is going out like a lion.

Spring in my backyard.. Lion graphic compliments of shutterstock.

A winter street scene

we had more snow on the weekend and the shovel was used extensively this time rather than the snowblower as the snow was so light.  As can be seen in the photo the sidewalk has already been cleared.  I used the handle of the shovel to frame the walker on the street.

I am linking this post to this month's photo challenge hosted by Donna at My Personal Photo Challenge. donna's photo challenge can be found at:

The Winter View From My House

 Earlier this week I had taken this side view of a local railroad bridge but never did get it posted. What I really liked about this bridge was the overhanging reaching branches of the tree to the right and its stretching limbs. I then wondered if I could photo edit so as to highlight these branches. .

                                 First I changed the photo into black and white and I liked the results

Then by experimenting with filters. I 'winterized the branches and they appeared as if covered with snow.

So This is Winter

                                   A cpture of a sudden snow squall yesterday!  I don't like winter!

Go Away Stormy Weather