Winter's Last Stand

We have actually had a very mild and manageable winter in Vancouver this year.  I think there was only once it snowed enough to shovel the driveway, and there were a few weeks where it was bitterly cold.  With signs of spring already popping out of the ground, it was a chance for Winter to make its last stand today.

This is the back yard after snowing for a while during the day.  It has continued to snow, and snow is in the forecast for tomorrow also.  But I think this will not last long, and Spring will soon conquer.

If you follow this blog at all, you'll notice that my posts have been noticeably absent lately.  Although I have been in a garden occasionally, I have not been very diligent about carrying my camera with me, so don't have much to show.  And for the most part, my attention has been elsewhere.  For one, I have been putting in many hours on the fursuit for my 15-year-old.  But after my first few posts (e.g. this one with the paws and tail) he has asked me not to post any of my many photos until we are completely done, which will be by next weekend since Vancoufur 2014 starts on Thursday already!  We are feverishly finishing his fursuit, and I will be happy to post after the conference.

I've also been heavy into my ceramics, which I am thoroughly enjoying.  I am posting quite regularly to my ceramics blog, but here is a few teaser photos :

In terms of indoor gardening, I've gotten hooked recently on sprouting seeds for eating (mostly in wraps).  I tried all sorts of seeds, including lentils, fenugreek, and quinoa, before buying some alfalfa seeds.  They have been the most satisfying, producing a large volume of sprouts from a very tiny amount of seeds, and in a very short timeframe.  For example, this is a jar of alfalfa only 3 days after soaking!!  I was able to harvest some already after only 2 days :

I look forward to Spring, spending more time with my garden, and posting more photos to this blog.

Merry Christmas to All!

I hope you are having a Merry Christmas, or have had a Merry Christmas, depending on your tradition and your timing of reading this post.  We celebrated Christmas tonight with the kids and their grandparents.  A few days before Christmas, it always feel overwhelming at what is left to prepare, but it always comes together in the end.

I made my own Christmas centerpiece this year for the table, and was pleased by the result.  (Unfortunately, Blogger seems determined to upload this photo rotated, even though it shows up in every other app correctly!!) :

The variegated cedar and variegated holly are from my garden, as are the few branches of our silver-tipped sequoia.  The red berries were from a bush overhanding a back lane (behind a commercial building) just a few blocks away.  The container was from a centerpiece I received from a friend a year or two ago, which I kept & reused.  I would have liked a red candle, but I had only white ones, so I used that.  I've learned not to stress about such little details anymore.

I also updated my neglected front planter for Christmas, but am too lazy to get the other camera and upload a photo.  Another time.

I finally got outside yesterday to wrap up my glass path lights, so they will hopefully survive another winter, and my son came out & had some fun playing with snow while I puttered away.

My poor little fairy house, which has been through a number of winters now, may not make it through this one.  It has lost most of its roofing materials, and is leaning now (Okay, Blogger is being really annoying tonight, with these rotated photos!).

I wish you all a Merry Christmas, and all the best for the New Year!

Girls Birthday Party and Arrival of Snow

My daughter had her birthday party with 7 of her friends last night in our house.  It was fun.  I made her 24 rat-themed cupcakes, and they were a big hit with her friends, who also enjoyed playing with her 4 rats.  There was only cupcake left this morning, which my daughter will have for lunch.  She's off to a handbell festival today.  (Click any photo for a better look, then ESC to return from the photo viewer.)

The parties are getting easier for me every year.  I didn't need to think of ideas to keep her friends entertained.  Between the rats, multiple rounds of eating, fashion shows (using hats and fishing nets and other items we didn't manage to clear away from the rec room), dancing, more dancing, .... they were very disappointed when their parents started arriving 3 hours later.   My daughter has a great group of friends.  She's an impressive girl too.  She spent MANY hours in the week prior to the party, purchasing songs on iTunes and fighting multiple rounds of uncooperative technology, to finally get a playlist on her MP3 playing on the sound system within the house, so the girls could dance in the rec room in the basement.

She managed to also dig up her laser light for the dance party, so I tried a few photos of the girls in the dark, on a long shutter speed.  I think this one turned out pretty good.  My daughter is the one in the front with pink hair.

Late last night, after all the girls had gone home safely, it started to snow.   We awoke to a pretty good blanket of snow in the morning, so I snapped a few photos of the back yard, from the 2nd floor balcony :

...and from the main floor deck :

The front yard, from the porch :

It looks pretty.  Good thing I don't need to drive in it, at least not today.

Winter's Last Stand

As Spring gently advances on our land, Winter has taken its last stand, surging forward with its final battle cry, sending a flurry of massive snowflakes, covering the land with some 6" of snow.  Followed by rain, and hail, and bitter cold.  At last (or so I hope), it relents, and has gone silent.

The snow was actually very pretty, falling quite steadily from Saturday evening until Sunday morning. Before it got wet and fell (that's the kind of snow we usually have in Vancouver), it hung softly and silently in the trees, for some pretty Winter scenes.

Yesterday evening, before night fell, I carried my kitchen compost to the big bins at the top of the yard.  I took some photos of the crocuses, battered by the cold and snow, laying surrounded by a thin layer of snow.  I think it would have some pretty good photos, but I accidentally had the "blank" card from my laptop in the camera, and I guess the silly thing tried to store the photos on it, but unsuccessfully.  At least I can't seem to find them.

I'm hoping this is the last bit of Winter here, and sent only so that we will appreciate Spring even more when it comes and stays.

Winter Wonderland

We are at "our" cabin for New Year's again.  At least it feels like our cabin, since is the second year we will enjoy New Years here - we were here last winter, as well as during the summer.  The cabin was recently sold (listed for just under $1M), but we were glad that the new owner continues to make it available to rent.  We have already pre-booked for New Years next year.

We are on Otter Lake, in the interior of BC.  So instead of rain and mild temperatures in Vancouver, we are enjoying snow and clear cold weather.  The snow here is drier than we are used to, and due to the cold, hangs in the trees for a long time.  In fact, there is no sign of it falling.  It makes for some beautiful winterscapes.  Enjoy!

I wish you all a happy New Year!

Preparing for a Harsh Winter

On Friday night, it started snowing, and by midnight, everything was blanketed in white.  This is VERY early for the Vancouver BC area.  My daughter snapped this photo Saturday morning of our wooden bench on the back deck (which I've since pulled closer to the house, to avoid further snow and rain):

It had been a long week, so I didn't get up early enough on Saturday to get a nice photo, only this one after the snow was already starting to melt, and fall off the branches:

Note the small banana tree on the bottom left.  My landscaper gave this to me (an offshoot of his tree) only a couple of weeks ago.  So hopefully it will settle in and survive this winter, which is predicted to be a particularly harsh one.  Here is it before the cold hit it:

Yesterday I was able to take advantage of the clear weather to provide it with some winter protection.  I have wrapped it in straw, held in place by a roll of chicken wire, which is held in place by a few small posts, and wrapped in twine.  Then I covered it with a clear plastic bag, also tied with twine.  Fortunately, both the chicken wire and plastic bag were just tall enough.  Hopefully it will give the banana a head start in Spring, so it doesn't die right back to the ground.

I was worried that it might look like an eyesore, but I think it actually looks pretty good.  Maybe with a bit of decorating, this little column of plastic-wrapped straw will look like a small snowman:

Today I also removed the hoses from the 3 outdoor hose bibs, and put away the hose reels and sprinklers.  I unplugged and covered the transformer for my low voltage lights, and wrapped the glass fixtures in bubble wrap.  I also removed the solar light fixtures from the front yard, leaving only the stake and aluminum tubes in place so it will be really easy to replace the fixtures in Spring (I'm not sure if I should leave them there, or also remove them - any advice?).

Yesterday I noticed a small dead bird, partly covered in snow, in the bottom of our outside stairwell.  Today when I went to remove it, I found it already gone.  A crow or other scavenger must have found it and done the job for me.  So today I am thankful for scavengers, who tidy up for us.

I have cut the gunnera leaves, and piled them over the crown, to protect it for winter.  This method has worked for me in previous years, and this year I had a lot of leaves and very large ones, so hopefully that will be enough.  I cut some of the flowered ends of my beautiful big floppy butterfly bush next to the front driveway, since the wet snow was weighing it down too much, and I was afraid that more wet snow would break too many branches.  I also trimmed back some hydrangea branches which we already breaking under the weight of the snow.  Normally I would wait until Spring, but again, it is better to cut back than to wait until they break.  I could do some more trimming and clean up, but I think there is nothing really critical remaining to be done.

I think I've now ready for winter.  At least in the garden.  Driving may be a different story.

It's Beginning to Look a Little Like Christmas

There was a light dusting of snow in the Vancouver area yesterday, in the late morning. It was very pretty. I love how the hard surfaces all turn white.

I'm glad it hasn't snowed any more since then, but the sky looks heavy, and it feels like it could come at any time. I'm not looking forward to shovelling, or being stranded at home, so I hope it holds off a bit longer.

I finally got my act together, and put away all the empty pots into the shed, and hid away the hoses, and shut off the hose bib (the one which is not frost-free, the others don't get shut off). Only 1 pot couldn't be moved, since it is frozen down. And a strip of plywood which the landscapers left in the upper yard, it is also frozen down. So I'll need to wait until it rains, to put those away. But it feels nice to have everything otherwise settled for the Winter.

Today we had a chance to get our Christmas tree. We wanted to do the lumberjack thing, and cut our own, but I found a listing on Craigslist for freshly cut ones, up to 14' tall, for $25. That's a good price, and somehow we all felt a little tired, or lazy, or not looking forward to spending so much time in the cold...

Usually we buy natural Douglas Fir. These ones were Norwegian Fir, and one of the tall ones was really different than the others, a lighter colour of green, really short needles, and lots of branching. We had to get that one. So we hauled it home, set it in its stand, and I strung up the lights. Maybe tomorrow we can tackle ornaments. Here it is in the living room (at 11' or 12' tall it is looking pretty comfortable with our 18' tall ceiling).

Here's a close up of the branch. Does anyone recognize it? I found out that it is incredibly prickly - I had to use my rubberized garden gloves while winding the lights through it, and my arms were covered in red dots when I was done.

They also had some beautiful little blue spruce trees, for only $15, so we picked up a second tree for our Family Room. The kids can have that as "their" tree (as long as they help me decorate the big one, too!).

We may never be quite "ready" for Christmas, but little by little, we're getting closer.

Snowed In

If I was already saying "Enough Snow Already!" on Boxing Day (Dec 26), then it's really ENOUGH snow already now, after a few more dumps of the white stuff. It was not so bad when we were on holiday, and besides my husband was around, willing to venture out in his 4WD Jeep.

But then on Monday, school started. The city snowplow finally came on Monday to plow the 3 blocks which are the only access to the school. Even then, everywhere, the street was down to a single lane, with huge piles of snow on each side, making it next to impossible for cars to pass each other. Only the daring or 4WD drivers would pull aside into snowy driveways. Roadside parking was next to eliminated, and there were a number of abandoned cars lining the road, unable to make it back to the safety of their own driveways. And since there is only one way in & out of the school, the traffic problems in the morning have been disastrous. Good thing it's only 2 blocks up the hill, so we can walk. But even the walking has been treacherous. The neighbourhood had not kept up with clearing sidewalks, so there is a buildup about 1 foot deep in most places. To either side of the sidewalk, it is knee deep or worse, so a misplaced step can easily result in a boot-full of snow.

Then two nights ago, it started raining. Yesterday, the street, still slippery with compacted snow, had two rivers flowing down the two tire tracks. No sign of any available storm drains to accept the water, other than the one my hard-working neighbour across the street, Carissa, managed to shovel clear in front of her house.

It seemed as if the City had just abandoned us down here. The snowplow / salt truck had not been down since about Christmas. We set our our garbage cans twice, once before Christmas and then again after Christmas, and no sign of any attempt to pick it up. So it was 3 weeks today since we had a pick up. That's a long time, when you are used to pick up every week.

It is still raining now, and it would be good if it continued long enough to actually clear the snow, at least in that single lane in the centre of the street. In the meantime, I cancelled all lessons and appointments for this week. I started to feel a bit trapped, since my husband was entertaining clients last night and tonight, so coming home too late to count on him. But I am for sure the lucky one, since I can work from home, can ask him to pick up groceries if necessary, and can still walk the kids to school.

We also haven't had any problems with the house. A few friends have already started having floods in the basement, and leaks in their ceiling. My dear friend Andrea is in a basement suite, and not only had leaking from her ceiling (apparently the water is making its way down from the roof, travelling down the wall and along one floor joist, then into her ceiling), but her side fence/gate was broken by the weight of snow sliding off the roof, and piled high with snow behind, so she is unable to get out, other than into the back yard. That would be scary.

Nobody I talk with (some older than me, so would remember more winters) can remember so much snow in Vancouver and persisting for so long. There were a few highlights to this otherwise dreary season, though. One was hearing the sound of the garbage truck, finally making his way down our street today. When I saw him, I ran onto the porch to scream out "Thank you" and wave. What a welcome sight, after 3 weeks! (And even then, the recycling truck only ventured as far as our house, and didn't venture down to the 2 houses down the street from us, or into the still-icy cul-de-sac across from us. So I was glad he at least made it this far.)

The other was a magical moment, on the Saturday night before the kids had to head back to school. The neighbours below us had actually shovelled clear the road, but then there was about 6" to 12" of new snow deposited on top since then, so my husband was out shovelling our walkway (that was a great sight in itself!), while the kids slid in their toboggans down the street (which is quite steep, and has only two more houses, then ends in a dead-end against a greenbelt). I had been on a work-related phone call for more than an hour, and had come to realize that the house had gone very quiet. By the time I was done, it was past 9:30PM, and I looked out the living room window, to see the kids sliding happily, the snow falling, and my husband playing with them and shovelling the walk. I picked up the karaoke microphone, and selected a few Christmas favourites, "O Holy Night" (in the "style of Celine Dion", and "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" (in the "style of Tony Bennett"), and sang out joyfully, while watching my little family playing in the fresh white snow under the light of the streetlight. That was a pretty special moment.

But for now, I wish for the snow to wash away, and give us a "normal" winter, just the usual rain and more rain. I have a feeling, though, that there are a few more months of winter left, and we may not get off that easy.

Snow Fun

On Friday evening it changed from snow to rain. I wished it had cleared for a while and I had caught a photo of the house in snow. This was the most we've ever had piled on the house. So on Saturday my husband went out to capture a few photos before too much of the snow was lost. I think it looks pretty neat, what do you think?:

This one looks almost like a postcard of our house (except I'd need to Photoshop in a blue sky instead of the greyish one):

Here is a shot of the back yard and shed in a blanket of snow:

In the afternoon, my husband shovelled a path across the back deck, and insisted that we all go play in the snow while he cleared the remainder of the deck:

So we all set to work building snow creations. My son & I built what I will call the Throne of David:

No, not that throne, the throne of my little David:

My daughter took her turn at sitting on the throne:

The kids also built a fort (which joined into the back of the snow throne), with help from my husband (who supplied them with snow by the shovelful):

Enough Snow Already!

I hope everyone had a good Christmas, and are finding some time to relax and enjoy visiting with family (or playing with new toys - like our Wii system)!

This is more snow than I can ever remember in Vancouver (BC), and certainly in December! We must have had about 3 feet of it already, and it still keeps coming! Even the garbage trucks didn't venture down our street earlier this week, so it will be 2 1/2 weeks between pick ups this time, instead of the usual 1 week!

This summer I built a fairy house for my daughter, and have made a good start on a fairy garden around it:



When I was preparing the garden for winter (which I never quite finished, but got pretty close), I decided to leave the fairy house out, and get a photo of it with snow on the roof. Well, it didn't take long this winter to get my wish:


But then it kept snowing:

Today when I looked out, the fairy house is completely buried, only a white bump in the white landscape. I had a thought to run out there and rescue it, but then again, the snow is a few feet deep, so I'll instead wait and see if it will bear the load. Let's hope when it turns to rain, it starts gently, not a downpour.

But as the song says, since there's no place to go... Let it snow. Let it snow. Let it snow!

It's Beginning to Look a Lot More Like Christmas

I don't suppose I ever feel really ready for Christmas, but we are sure getting closer as the countdown continues. My husband helped me put the lights on the tree on the weekend (I've always done it by myself before, but this year even the ladder didn't allow me to reach the top). So then my 9 year old daughter and I put on most of the ornaments (the top ones and the star were placed from the loft). We still have more we can add, and we need to add the tree skirt at the bottom, but it's beginning to look pretty good (click any of the photos for a slightly larger view):

We tried out our new "cookie tree" kit which we bought from Regal Gifts this year It turned out pretty good, except we discovered that if you stacked only one cookie of each size (which is implied by the kit), the tree turned out too short (tree on right). When I discovered this, and started stacking approx 2 of each size (tree on left), then it looks much more proportioned like a real tree.

My 7 year old son made a cute "gingerbread" house at school, except it is made from graham wafers, "glued" together with icing:

Now all that's left is to wait to find out whether our family will all be able to join us, due to the heavy snowfall lately. My in-laws recently moved out into the valley (to Agassiz), where they've had fierce winds and even the TransCanada highway was closed one day. Here in Burnaby, it has been very cold but with little or no wind. We've had more snow (more than a foot here) than usual, and certainly unusual for this early in the winter.

I understand that the Inuit have 7 different words for what we call "snow". The kind we've had is the dry-and-no-good-for-snowmen-type-snow. So instead, the kids did their best to enjoy it in their toboggans today.

Here's a few pics of the kids, trying a snowboard approach to the sledding:


They were happy to have their cousin join them today as well:

I like this photo of him, caught in mid-air as the "snowboard" is slipping away from under his boots... (Good thing the snow provided a relatively soft landing.)