SNOW ARRIVES

Went back to sleep after I turned the alarm off this morning and was surprised when I woke up about 45 minutes later. Maybe my body was telling me I needed a little more rest today.
Out to do the chores in a eerily calm quiet cold morning. Snow most certainly is on the way by the feel in the air .
After breakfast I went to work on more house cleaning until lunch time when hubbie got off work early to get things ready for the snow.
He had to meet the Dish TV repairman at #1 son's house as they had to move the satellite dish after the dormers were added to the back of his house.
When he came back home we ate lunch then put out a roll of hay for the cattle and horse on this side of the road. Aa is working today and probably won't get home in time to take care of both pastures before the snow flakes start to fly.
Hubbie also had to get fire wood stocked up at each door as it is hard to push a wheelbarrow full of firewood in deep snow.

As if on cue great big flakes of snow started to fall about 2:30. Daughter called on her way home and said it looked like snowballs falling from the sky hitting her windshield !!!

The surrounding mountains disappeared and the "snow flowers" started to bloom .

It didn't take long at all for the huge snowflakes to accumulate on everything.

D-in-love had to go to the rehearsal of our friends wedding at 4:00 and #1 son had to go grocery shopping while she was gone so the kids came to stay here with us in the warm house.

Hubbie and I took turns doing the chores slipping and sliding around in all the snow that was already piling up on the ground.
We all had supper before son and d-in-love came to pick the kids up.
It is still funny how the weather folks are still differing in the snow totals for our area. Of course if it snows 5 or 6 inches they would both be correct !!!

Alot of the country has snow cover today !!!

And today another winter storm named Iras turned her wrath on the western coastal states with torrential rains and feet of snow predicted for the weekend  !!

As I watch the pouring snow outside tonight I wonder what we will wake up tomorrow with ???

It is 29 degrees at 11:00 expected to get into the lower 20's before morning and then not more than mid 20's for the high tomorrow so what snow falls certainly will stick around !!
Thankful tonight for a warm home and praying for all the workers who have to be out in this mess tonight and through the weekend. God protect each and everyone.
God Bless and Good Night.

GETTING READY FOR THE SNOW

Up earlier this morning to get chores and breakfast and get my errands and shopping done before the "oh no it's going to snow" crowd descends on all the stores to empty the grocery shelves of milk and bread !!!!
"Red sky in the morning, sailor take warning"   may very well apply to our weather as this is what the sky looked like early today  !!

At my first stop which was Sam's Club I have a business card so I get in early before the store opens to the public at 10am and it was Heavenly to be one of the very few customers in there. However I got a little side tracked by the route I took on into town from Sam's and stopped at Bon Worth clothing store (which I love to shop in ) to check out the sales racks. With deep discounts plus another 50% off at the register I came away with several things I don't actually need !!
I then went to Aldi which was very crowded by now and left me thankful that is the only grocery store I need to go into today.
I made stops at the post office and the bank then went to market to meet a customer with the 5 dozen eggs I have for sale. She called yesterday and wanted them Saturday but I'm almost positive with the snow coming in we will not be there Saturday. Market was open today and I was surprised to see several customers milling around inside. I went inside after she got her eggs and several vendors said they had a decent sales day today.  I am glad to have to choice to go some on the nice warm sunny Thursdays.
I left there and stopped by a thrift shop where I found an entire box of candle holders for $4 that came home with me. Then I went to the co-op to get some more Ceylon cinnamon and stopped by Ingles last but only for a gas tank fill up. My dad always would fill all his vehicle gas tanks before a really cold weather spell. He said it kept moisture from condensing on the inside of the tanks in the cold temps. Don't know if there is anything to this but somehow I always do as he said even though he has been gone for over 35 years !!!!   Thanks for reminding me  dad !!!!
After a quick lunch at home I did more cleaning in the sunroom today and put all the big rugs back down in there to help keep the heat in.
I also changed the bedclothes . A couple weeks ago I received in the mail a new washing cycle chart to put on my Samsung machine changing the bed clothes cycle to the delicate cycle and today I must say that worked much better when I put sheets , mattress cover and afghans in the washer together.
I have no pics for today so these are today's snow fall predictions for our area. Our entire area is under a winter storm warning from tomorrow evening until mid day on Saturday.

 The local weathermen say this storm is a nightmare to predict because the path keeps changing making the snow amounts go up and down.

One thing they all agree on is the temperature and it is going to be very very cold after this snow falls.

We are ready and prepared to hunker down in front of the wood stove and eat homemade vegetable soup !!!
I finished my day on the heating pad for an aching back from toting all the big rugs up the stairs this afternoon and moving furniture to get them back on the floors.
Thankful for a loving God and praying for the safety of all the folks who have to be out in this storm that is headed our way.
God Bless and Good Night.

WORKDAY WEDNESDAY

Ahhhh !!!  A lazy morning heading into a very busy day !!!  After chores and breakfast I got right to the work of making Christmas 2016 a part of our past.
I loaded up the last of the plastic storage bins and got them stacked in the storage shed for another year.  I listened to Christmas music while I un-decorated and enjoyed the memories each peice of decoration brought as I put them away.
After lunch I decide to take one room at a time and clean and re-decorate. I started with the living room. I got the furniture all moved back to its before the holidays positions and dusted and vacuumed amid a couple phone calls from friends and the need to give Sadie some extra food as she was looking at me with hungry eyes !!!!

She still has some swelling and is very very sore around her head but each day seems to get a little better.
TomTom the cat left me a gift on the door step to let me know he is on the job of  rodent controller !!

As I went out in the upper 30's temperature this evening to get chores done I looked up at the sky and saw the telltale Maretails that signal snow in the coming days .

It is really kind of funny and sad at the same time to look at the variety of weather predictions for the coming days. Seems there is 4 different models and they all say something different right now for our area.

They all do seem to agree that the temps are really going to be cold all weekend not getting above freezing after Friday morning so whatever falls will stick around at least through Monday .
I did weekly paperwork and paid bills tonight feeling strange that I wasn't icing cakes for market.
I have some customers wanting eggs so I may take eggs by market to meet these customers since my bank is right across the street from market but won't be taking any baked goods in or staying.
The wood stove fire downstairs sure feels good tonight as the temp at 10:30 is 34 and the wind is blowing hard outside.
Thankful for the blessings of this day and striving each day to glorify His name.
God Bless and Good Night

BACK TO PLAYSCHOOL

7am wake up call as g-daughter arrived. She was sleepy so I layed back down with her and she went right back to sleep. She slept until 8am but I just rested as she was laying on my shoulder and I couldn't get comfortable enough to sleep.
It was raining pretty hard when I went to bed last night but thankfully it is past us this morning just leaving mud , fog and another  more than 6/10ths inch in the gauge.
This was g-daughter's first day back to play school and she had to move up into the toddler class from the baby room. She wasn't sure about all the new faces and followed me to the door twice before one of the teachers got her distracted so I could slip out the door.
I came home and got all the animals fed and gave Sadie more meds and let her out in the yard hoping she would stay close to the house today.
I had a late breakfast and then did some house cleaning before I went back to pick g-daughter up.
She had done fine they said and didn't show any signs of being unhappy when I got there to get her.
She was a tired little girl and slept all the way home.
I stopped at the storage shed and brought more plastic bins to the house to take more Christmas decorations down.
After g-daughter and I had lunch we un-decorated the Christmas tree. She wasn't much help but liked to look at all the ornaments as I put them in a box.
I had plans to get more things down today but g-daughter had other ideas so we played and danced the afternoon away.
She had a snack. An apple a day keeps the doctor away !!!

More Bernie time !!!!

I am loving this little car as it has become her seat of choice to watch TV from !!

We had a great afternoon even without a nap for her today !!!!   And she learned to say "phone" !

After d-in-love picked her up I went out to get the chores done. Sadie has acted more like her old self today so for that I am glad. Maybe she is going to make another miraculous recovery !!
The clouds were closing in tonight as the sun went down.

#1 son's house project is coming along as the second dormer takes shape today.

The "H" storm, Helena was named today and she is the one that is bringing freezing temps and snow to us at the end of the week.

Depending on where the cold front line meets the moisture line from the gulf will determine how much snow we get. Some of the weather people around the area are refusing to even make a call until Thursday but the WLOS weather gurus put out this scenario today and said even it the tract is a little more north it would only double the 2" total for us.

With a high temp of 63 for today and only into the 40's overnight tonight the ground will certainly be slow to cool down to support a sticking snow.

The cold temps are coming ........

I spent some time on the heating pad tonight with an aching back. Maybe my back muscles are getting a head start on the cold weather !!!
Daughter called and said both her teams lost their games to Pisgah tonight.
Thankful for a loving Savior and the blessings he sends my way each day.
God Bless and Good Night

BACK TO THE ROUTINE !!!

Up and out to do the chores and have breakfast. G-daughter arrived at 7am to get things back on a regular schedule.
I got Sadie out of her crate and turned her loose in the yard as she is eating very good but still acts dazed and moves pretty slowly.
Hubbie, g-daughter and I made a trip to Sam's Club to see all the after Christmas deals . All we bought was some fruit and nuts. G-daughter loved the strawberries we found !!

We came home and had lunch of yesterday's left overs. Maybe we get a double dose of wealth,  health and luck !!!
G-daughter loves Bernie and I always wish he was still the young, healthy dog that used to play with g-son when he was her age.

Before hubbie and I were finished eating our lunch this is what g-daughter did !!

Her early morning for the first time in a couple weeks caught up with her !!!
I gathered the weekly laundry and started working on that while hubbie took the truck and went down to pick up Sadie who had wondered all the way down there. He said she was on her way back up the drive when he got there but was very weak from the long walk.
G-daughter only slept about 30 minutes and then she was back to playing with her Christmas car.

She is loving just sitting in it and watching TV and turning the steering wheel.
Some days her little personality really shines through !!!!

Because I had the flash on !!!!!!!!!!

I did laundry and then after hubbie and daughter went down for an afternoon nap it was my turn to go into the bottom pastures and retrieve Sadie. I have no idea why she is wandering so far from the house. I made her walk all the way back to the house then put her in a lot and gave her more food to help replenish her strength.
She hasn't layed down all day today for some reason but when we put her in her crate in the warm basement she sure layed down and went sound to sleep after eating another entire can of dog food and several hot dog pieces with pain pill hidden in them.
Today has been a nasty dreary day with only a light mist of rain. I emptied 6/10ths inch from the gauge this morning from last night's rainfall and we are expecting about that much more tonight.
The first winter weather is predicted for this weekend. We are still several days away so who knows what will happen but it certainly will be cold enough for snow.

After d-in-love picked up g-daughter hubbie and I did chores . D-in-love had a wedding music practice tonight and #1 son had to take g-son to cub scouts so g-daughter came back to stay with us for the evening. Aa who came in late last night came and had supper of our leftovers and we had a nice visit with him until #1 son picked up -daughter and they all left.
It is 50 degrees tonight at 10:30 which is more than 20 degrees above the norm for this time of year but we are going to be wishing for these temps at the end of the week.
Thankful for the wonderful blessings of this day and praying for all the family tonight in all their endeavers for the coming year.
God Bless and Good Night

WELCOME 2017 !!!!!

Wishing all my friends and family a very Happy New Year !!!!!
My day started out like any other day although it is the first day of a brand new year !!!  After chores and breakfast I let Sadie out of the basement for the first time without a leash on. She is eating her dog food and drinking plenty of water but she still looks pretty shaky. After walking around the yard for a few minutes she went up and went in Flash's lot so I just shut her up in there so she would be out of the misty rain that is falling. When I got back inside I put the big 12 pound ham hock in the oven. I will have to stay home from church today to make sure my oven don't cut off while the ham cooks its 3 hours.
Hubbie got ready and went on to church with #1 son's family.
I cleaned the kitchen and got the black-eyed peas, collard greens, mashed potatoes and corn cooked and ready when everyone came in from church. The last of the holiday placemats !!!

Hubbie went by Ingles on the way home and picked up some corn bread muffins since we were out of corn meal and we didn't want to wait to make cornbread. #1 son came in and carved the ham.

It was a delicious traditional New Years day lunch !!!!

Only #1 son's family ate an earlier lunch with us.  #2 son and Tif came by around 3:00 to have a late lunch and daughter came by at 5:00 to help with chores and had supper with us. Josh is dealing with another kidney stone today bless his heart.
After daughter left hubbie and I relaxed for the evening and rested from the busy week we have had.
Long with the a new year this day welcomed the "G" winter storm into the western states. Gregory is going to drop a lot of snow as it crosses the country and maybe we will get our first snow from him this week end.

I am looking forward to the new year with an eager heart to see what God has in store for the family as we strive to glorify His name in all that we do. My pledge for the new year  is to start taking better care of myself as I am just now finally feeling better from the 2 month long bought with a cold and cough. I feel like I am so run down from the busy last few months that my immune system has really taken a hit so I intend to make some changes in my schedule to make things easier for me in the coming weeks. Hah, wish me luck !!!
God Bless , Good Night and Happy New Year.