Frosty morning........

The windows on my van this morning......very pretty. My husbands truck (snicker) the handle was frozen and came off in his hand. It was 10 degrees by the time he left for work at 8.30am. Not sure of overnight but it was pretty nippy.





I wish I could get a good picture of how the snow sparkles in the sun.


It was truly beautiful. Like someone had sprinkled diamonds on the bushes.
Bodi found a spot of sun, sat down and got back up right quick....think it was a tad cold on the old bottom.

Not much activity out there until it began to warm up. I wonder what the critters do to keep warm. The Chickadees were fluffed and busy flitting too and fro, I suppose just to keep warm. There is plenty of food to keep them going though. I think I better put some fat out tomorrow. Peanut butter on an apple is popular.

Meanwhile these berries were looking bright against the snow and sun.


The sky was a wonderful blue with white fluffy clouds





Frosty Morning
by Marilyn Knowles Wilke
Created on: December 02, 2010

Frosty mornings glimmer,
tiny lights from winter dew;
casting glints of shiny highlights,
upon colors or clear through.

Glazed sheets of icy splendor,
crunching crisp beneath our shoes;
peeping sun light glows upon it,
lighting of creation's fuse.

Icy sheen upon green pastures,
hiding blades of greenish hue;
once a field of feasting cattle,
now of glassy frozen dew.,

Frosty morning coldly greets us,
sliding shoes before a fall;
brings about unusual laughter,
God's creation, frost and all.





Rachel McNaughton.....Frosty Morning.

Frosty mornings.............

Frosty mornings will soon be here. Right now it's dampness clinging to the windows of the van, but very soon it will be frozen. I just love frosty mornings. Its a bit early yet but I had to look for some pictures to share. (thanks to the web)
I can smell that fresh feel of the cold in my nostrils and remember some mornings in England when the nose would almost close on the first breath. That crisp feeling of clean air. The frozen webs of spiders and my dad's hedges covered in white with all the webs frozen on top and sparkling in the watery sun..........loved those days, more in November than October. Here in Michigan it comes a bit earlier some years and by October we could expect snow. So far its still warm and sunny but this morning was cool and its coming I can feel it in the air.




Some flowers are caught by surprise and are awoken to freezing petals..........the sun will warm them for now but soon there will be no going back.



A wonderland out there, where old familiar things look different now. My bedroom windows took on a magical quality. I would have to scrape off the frost from inside to see out. Had it snowed? No, just Jack Frost painting the window pains at night while I slept



No heat in the bedrooms back then, huddle back down in the down filled matress if you were lucky or into the horsehair if (like me) you were not. Still a thick Eiderdown on the top and a hot water bottle kept the bed moderately warm, with my poodle pal Poppett snuggled in with me and sometimes my hat and gloves on, we did OK. Some times we would shiver under the pile of blankets and could never get warm, it was good then to get up and sit by the fire downstairs and wait as long as possible before going outside to the Loo. Brrrrrrrr.

Autumn..........................

The seasons change and it shows in the garden first. The garden looks tired now but will still have a few more bursts of colour before the snow fly's. Its time to begin putting the garden to bed. That means deciding what to bring back indoors before it freezes. Listen to the weather for frost warnings. Beware those lovely clear starlit nights.
The ornamental grasses and the bee balm has all gone to seed. I will leave that for the birds. Most things that lay flat I just cut down to tidy up. I also like to bring in a few new plants to brighten things up a bit. My Astors have really done well this year and are about ready to bloom. I bough a few more to fill in a few empty spots and hope they thrive.

I loved this colour. Mine are darker purple or else white. I hope this one thrives.



I seem to have problems when I get Mums. They may last but only one or two spindly sticks come back. Until this year that is. I finally made the effort and nipped them back twice this year. Now they are more bushy and I hope will continue to do well. I have bought a couple more to sit around and add colour. This is a pretty pink one.



I am not overly fond of mums as they don't smell good. Still, neither do geraniums but they are a work horse of the garden world. I have them because they bloom late in the season
At this time of year I am glad that I have pretty glass balls around to provide some colour. During summer a lot of them cant be seen because the flowers overwhelm them. Now they are peeking through again,



In the back its mainly Ivy and Vinca Vines, but in Spring it is sweet with Trillium and Jack in the Pulpit. I have rocks to give height and some texture. Thats my shade garden. I have a side garden I am working on that has Hosta but I need to get more Ivy in there to fill it out now the Hosta is established.