Need a handkerchief?

A friend sent this link to me.

The baby isn't too sure about mother's nose blowing. Given all the respiratory illness we have had around here for the last three-and-a-half months, it is good to have a laugh at it!

Celtic Movements

Emily, John, and Lydia danced brilliantly at Celtic Movements this weekend!

Here is a video of John and Lydia in the first dance of the show, "Reel Line Up":



Here is Emily dancing in "Celtic Pyramid":



All three had a good time and did a great job!

First Signs of Spring

Please, do not remind me of how many times it could snow or get icy between now and spring. I know! It won't stop me from celebrating the first stirrings of the garden. Look carefully at the following photos and you'll see the little tips of daffodils.



This bulb has a number of little green bits coming out of it:



We will reach 60 degrees today! Rejoice!

Phase II Done?

I'll have to do this quickly, in case we lose the internet, again. The electricity has never gone off (hurrah!) but the phone and internet have been off and on today a few times today. It seems that Phase II of the storm is winding down, with just a bit of snow on the radar. There's a lot of cleaning up to do, before life can resume as normal.

Last night, the ice began to build up as it rained, rained, rained. As soon as the rain hit the existing ice, it froze. We could see the ice building up quite a bit, before we went to bed. During the night, the wind grew very strong and, consequently, it blew any dangling ice from houses, trees and shrubs, cars, etc. This morning, it began to snow, so the snow covered the thick layer of ice that still covers the ground and all flat surfaces.

I am glad that I got outside yesterday, to take some photos around the house, since a lot of that ice is gone today.

This first photo shows how the ice was covering branches of trees and shrubs. Our neighbor has a magnolia that was shielded from the wind, so its ice covering is quite thick today.



This photo gives an idea of how the ice covered individual blades of grass.



This last photo is of the stalk of a hosta. I never got around to trimming those down when I put the garden to bed last autumn, and now I'm glad I didn't! It's very pretty.



Steve spent a lot of time at various points of the day, working away at the ice on the driveway. The last time he scraped, he brought in a chunk that was about 7/8 of an inch thick.

Well, as pretty a display as we have with the snow and ice, it is good to know that Punxsutawney Phil did not see his shadow this morning.

Phase I Done

The first phase of the winter storm has finished. We could get out of the driveway if we wanted to skid down the ice, but we'd never get back up the gentle slope. Everything is covered with ice and it is quite beautiful. Not all that many people in the area are without power.

Everything has been closed down today. Even though we live on a quiet street that doesn't see a lot of traffic, I find it very strange to see absolutely no traffic or people out.

I haven't taken any of my own photos, so the following have been shamelessly lifted from the newspaper:

Yes, it is cold today:



These trees are not in my garden, but they are a faithful representation of how my garden looks:





The second phase of the winter storm is due to hit in a few hours. It is meant to be worse than last night's ice, so I imagine that we'll all be house-bound tomorrow, as well. I hope to make it outside before the next wave of ice arrives, to take my own photos.

Winter Weather

Last week, the kids and I went sledding. It was fun. After a brief search of my memories, I recalled that I haven't been sledding down a hill since 1981.

In the days that followed, the snow got mushy under the direct rays of the sun. But, winter is not over, yet.

Tonight, we're facing a winter storm. An ice storm! We're told to prepare for "extensive and prolonged power outages." That's not fun. Farther north, closer to the Great Lakes, they'll be getting lots of snow. I'd prefer snow to ice!

That's all to report, at the moment.

Nutcracker Clip

When a local radio personality was chosen to be play the part of Mother Ginger in "The Nutcracker," a family member of his filmed it from side stage. Watch it here.

Those who have seen this performance should recognize the "first dude out of the dress," as the "dude" herself put it. You can also catch glimpses of that "dude" at various points throughout her dance number.