Friday, December 11, 2009

A Frigid Day and Outside Tour

First of all, what the heck was I doing outside walking around taking pictures today? We have next to no snow cover, our high temp of the day was 9° and there were occasional gusts of wind. It really felt COLD.

The loop trail we have in our "backyard" that goes up to the ridge at the top of our property suffered a huge amount of blow down this past fall. One day this week Roy took the chain saw and hiked it cutting up all the bigger trees that had fallen blocking the path.

Today he started the job of wheelbarrowing the cut wood down to our wood pile.

We . . . ah . . . have a little bit of wood waiting to be cut and split. Yes, we ordered yet another 12 cords of wood in 8' lengths. And since our horrendous windstorm several weeks ago, Roy has been adding lots and lots of cut wood from our property to the pile. Now that he's retired and has lots of time (ha!), he's determined to get waaay ahead on our firewood supply. (At the first sign of decent weather this spring, you'll know where to find us!)

I left him at his little task this afternoon and went to check on the pond for ice skating. As you can see, we've definitely got ice and because we haven't had any appreciable amount of snow yet, conditions are looking pretty good for skating. No one has ventured out there to see just how thick the ice is yet though. Volunteers? Anybody?

Because of a couple of glitches and hang-ups, construction on my pantry room hasn't progressed as quickly/smoothly as we had hoped. But my husband (the one who has all kinds of time on his hands . . . ahem) isn't ready to close down the project yet. Stay tuned for further progress.

Our two granddogs have been visiting the last half of this day. Here they're checking out the garden beds . . . the garden beds with the barest covering of insulating snow thus far. (Our own wimpy dog chose to stay inside close to the stove. Wimpy perhaps, but smart.)

I told them both to sit and pose for a picture . . . and they did. Until Tucker saw a chickadee land on the feeder to his right. (No, he's not sitting in the picture. That's as high as his little 4" long legs take him.)

I know I shouldn't complain because the roads are free of ice and snow and it's easy getting around, but gosh, I really think it would feel warmer (that being a relative term, of course) out there if we had a nice, white layer of snow. Besides, we want a white Christmas!

5 comments:

Erin said...

I can't believe you didn't get dumped on from that huge storm! I, too, hope you get a white Christmas, just not "snowed in" kind of white! Loved the pictures, and are those Chicken Mama's doggies? Cute! I am currently sitting on the couch with a copy of "Boundary Waters Journal" while my husband is CROCHETING!?? next to me... Yes, you heard that right - I feel another post brewing!

Mama Pea said...

Hi, Erin - All of that mass of snow went south and east of us. All we got was wind and cold.

Yep, those are Chicken Mama's "kids." Tucker is a Cardigan Welsh Corgi and the happiest dog you will ever know. Maisy is a Golden Retriever and LOOOOVES people and food. (She waits outside the bathroom door for you to come out . . . probably hoping you'll go get her some food.)

Um . . . your husband is CROCHETING? I can hardly wait for that post!

Jo said...

Wow -- that's a lot of firewood! Way to go! I am very jealous of your ability to heat with wood. Not only the utility savings, but just the ambiance of a wood stove. Just curious, how much does a cord of wood cost? I suppose it would be lots more for me on the prairie than for you in the northwoods. Rats.

Sue said...

Sorry you missed out on the fun-we only got about 10"-far less than they called for. A few towns north of us got two feet. Hubby was glad that missed us-he is, after all, the one that cleans it up!
As for retirement, he is busier than ever and often wonders how he fit work into the day........

Mama Pea said...

Hi, Jo - A cord of wood in 8' lengths is currently going for between $80 and $90. If you order it cut and split, it's more than twice that amount. 'Bout the only wood offered for sale is either maple or birch. Both hardwoods and the best for heating. But because we have popple (poplar) in our woods, we burn that, too. It's a softer wood and doesn't last as long but give a good hot fire if it's dry.

Hi, Sue - You should be assured of a white Christmas now!

My retired husband says about the same thing as yours only in a different way. He says he doesn't know how he ever managed to get ANYTHING done while he was working because his days are filled to the brim now and he still doesn't have enough time! (And then there are those who don't know what to do with themselves when they retire!)