SNOWmaggedon! BLIZZaster! No, just winter in the Upper Midwest.

Well I can't say that things lived up to all the hype, though I must admit we were not in the middle of all the truly heavy precipitation. Now I'm not saying we didn't get a big storm because the wind was terrible and the drifts are very high, but I can't imagine anyone in this area not able to get out and about by Wednesday afternoon.

We started with some snow on Monday into Tuesday with the worst predicted for Wednesday. Boogie and I took advantage of the break to run a few errands and make sure we had plenty of animal feed. Play group was canceled, but we visited a friend who does daycare so the little guy got a bit of a play fix in anyway.

The bulk of snow and wind came on Tuesday night into Wednesday morning, with it all ending up about 4 am. SO most of Wednesday consisted of running the snow blower, shoveling and getting the truck up the drive way. I also hauled up a bunch more fire wood in anticipation of frigid temperatures expected for Wednesday night. The drifts in the fenced yard behind the house are as high as the fence and the puppies can just scramble right out!

Yes, there IS a wood pile under there, some where....

We now have three doe kids and Boogie loves to help feed them.
All three girls waiting for breakfast

I hope you all survived the 'big one' with relative ease, upside is Phil says spring is just around the corner. You can always trust a ground hog, right?

Handy, Dandy, Quick, Cheap and Easy Fire Starters!

There is nothing better then wood heat and the dogs certainly love sleeping by the wood stove. No matter if wood is your primary source of heat, supplemental or just a cozy fire now and again, getting the darn thing started can be a challenge.
Try these home made fire starters, they are quick and easy to make and they work really well.

All you need is a cardboard egg carton, wood shavings and some paraffin. Here I am using pine bedding, but any bedding or sawdust will work. I'm also sure you noticed my wax is red. It is cheese wax that I found on Freecycle, but canning paraffin, beeswax or even old candles will work.

While you are melting your paraffin, discard the top of the egg carton and fill the cups with wood chips.

Pour the heated paraffin over the shavings to fill the cells, tapping gently.

Allow the wax to cool then break into individual cups.

When you are ready to use, just light the paper cup and place with your kindling.
They will continue to burn long enough to get your fire going.
For a pretty starter, wrap a pine cone with candle wick and dip that in paraffin.

Boogie has been helping with my knitting, here he models a Moebius Cowl that I made for myself. Visit my Hyena Cart if you want me to knit one for you!
Cowls, scarves and hats can be hand knit to order.
We are expecting the temperature to drop again this weekend, so enjoy your wood fire and get some knitting done (or at least wear something hand knit ;-).

Winter Wonderland - Frozen Fog

After waking up to this winter wonderland, a high temperature of 45 degrees with rain is forecast for Thursday. Dare I hope we skip winter and head right on to spring? Time to start planning the garden!