Preparing for St Patrick's Day

In November at our local Giant supermarket I photographed some chrysanthemums, cunningly disguised as Thanksgiving turkeys.

Now that St Patrick's Day is on the horizon there is a new chrysanthemum creation on the shelves..

If this is not your thing then you could purchase some green carnations..

Or a 'shamrock' plant..

In the chilled food section the ingredients for a St Patrick's Day meal have thoughtfully been assembled..

Perhaps this year we will try cooking a joint of Corned Beef Brusket just to see how it comes out...

Sun on Snow

This morning, despite the very low temperature (-14C at dawn) the sun was shining and everything looked brighter!

There were icicles fringing the roof this morning and they grew during the day..

Some were ridiculously long and had to be dodged.

At the end of the day one of the conifers had created its own decorations..

Probably our greatest surprise of the day was when we saw from the kitchen window a little movement under the snow - a good distance away - and a little chipmunk popped up to survey his changed surroundings..

We feared for his safety as he was rather prominent in the white landscape and we had seen the hawk again at his lookout in the trees.

Snow Day

At first light this morning there was no sign of snow and we wondered whether the Snow Day would in fact be a Rain Day - it had rained all night.

However, once it started it snowed steadily all day and despite the often tiny flakes it quickly accumulated so that by this evening there was some 8-9" on top of the residues of the last fall.

The birds were having a hard time and even the squirrels, despite eating their way through the day, looked disheveled and fed up..

One came to the window to see if things looked better on the inside..

At lunchtime, David thought that it would be 'a good idea' to go for a walk to Fox Mill and have some lunch.  We set off..

The Reston Parkway was pretty clear, except for a convoy of snow ploughs..

Coming home it was deeper than ever and I had to walk in David's footprints to stay upright!

Poor old trees and shrubs..

Poor old yeti woman..

Ice Patterns

I am returning to a previous theme - patterns forming in the ice on the drive where water runs over the concrete.

I am intrigued by the fact that the shapes made in the ice are often triangles..

This last photo appears to contradict the triangle pattern but in fact the circles are air bubbles under the ice which were slowly moving.

We have had unusual weather today.  Snow still on the ground but much warmer air, creating fog sitting close to the ground over the snowy areas.  

Tonight it is pouring with rain but there is a 'Winter Storm Advisory' in place from midnight until Thursday evening as the temperature falls overnight and the wind from the north brings snow.. maybe the last of the winter?

In anticipation of bad weather and difficult travelling conditions Fairfax County have closed all schools and David's office is shut for a 'Snow day'...

Hiding in the tree..

The cold weather always means more visitors to the feeders and as Spring approaches the birds seem to be more colourful than ever.  The bluebirds are always so improbably bright..

The nuthatch and the female cardinal are not quite so vibrant..

The male house finch is showing a colourful red blush..

There are some conifer trees on our neighbour's boundary, just a few feet from the bird feeders.

On Sunday David spotted this hidden, silent visitor in the tree.. waiting and watching..

Outside and In

This morning the day dawned with a covering of ice over everything and freezing fog too.  However once the sun came up and the melt started, the remaining snow was undeniably pretty in the sunshine.

This evening with the sun gone it was  chilly inside and so we lit the fire..

Icicles

Over the last couple of days the slow melt of the snow on the roof combined with still very cold temperatures has meant that we have a proliferation of ever-growing icicles along the edge of the  guttering.

One in particular has got very large indeed.

Today the forecast was for snow and sleet, followed by freezing rain.  Everything is now covered with a glaze of clear ice, weighing down the trees and plants and making paths very slippery ..