When weather gets you down, do farm chores!

It's official: winter and I are not on speaking terms right now...

But I realized something this morning,

when life (or disagreeable weather for outside activities) gets you down,

do farm chores. That's right!

The old saying, 'just keep smiling' only works when you have something to smile about.

And farm chores are something to smile about.

In good weather or bad,

in sickness or health,

the goats are still waiting for you with their big goaty smiles needing to be milked.

The cows, gross and disgusting as they are in this cold muddy season,

where donning mudders is a must,

still need to be milked, and while you're out there, you find reasons to smile.

Little things, like the ecstatically happy calf over his breakfast.

Dad gets back (from the local farmer) with the first load of hay,

and I laugh at the way they unload the round bales...
Apparently, this (above) is the regular bale-unloading routine.

I smile at the way Stephen sweet talks and simultaneously taunts the by-standing horses.

I am happy at the sprouts in the greenhouse, despite the near freezing temperatures at night (in the greenhouse).

My freshly mulched flower beds, with my irises popping up in confusion, were subject to a great shock when the snow and ice came off the roof!

This scene was a big grin for me; the calf and filly meeting awkwardly through the fence.

Productivity makes a person, or persons, happy too. Cleaning the snow off the greenhouse.

Water for the greenhouse.
Watering the animals.
  [A conversation I overheard a few mornings ago: Donna: "Ah going, Johnny?" Johnny: "Outside." Donna: "Donna go ah-side too?" Johnny: "No. I'm going outside to work." Donna (with 'grown-up' realization): "Do fawm choes. Oohhhh." :) ]


Mom's freshly weeded herb beds, all decked out for Christmas! :-P
And our freshly worked garden...

A little snow doesn't stop the kids, however, as I saw our mint is still being nibbled on.

Brr! Poor Strawberries!


So, I think we've pin-pointed the culprit for this untimely snowfall... We have a friend visiting from Nv. who was dying to see some snow. She got her wish! It came in the form of a nasty storm on the night that her plane was scheduled to arrive, sending her back to Chicago for the night. And, go figure, even after that bothersome delay, she's still happy for it! :) 

Picking her up from the airport.

 (The car ride home was pretty fun!)
But anyway, she can be happy for the snow; I'm going to be happy for our ability to do farm chores and the ever-longing hope of spring!