A New Year of Gratitude

Hello, my Dear Friends, I want to thank you

for your kind words on the loss of our little Ling Ling. 

Your kindness is like a warm hug

and sweet solace for a bruised heart. 

I am so grateful for your sweet friendship. 

xoxo

We've had a lovely snowfall

to bring in the New Year 

and bring peace to our hearts. 

The dogs couldn't wait to go out and play! 

Of course they love snow - they are American Eskimo dogs! 

You can see the many footprints they have already made

from running and jumping, and eating the snow!

I am always thankful that these loyal protectors
and companions are always by my side. 

The mountains are completely hidden in the falling snow.

The lilac tree makes beautiful lace etchings
outside the living room window. 

Let's put on our warm woollies and take a walk 

in this winter wonderland, shall we? 

We'll leave sweet Maggie snuggled on the bed.
She's been missing her best friend
so we have been treating her
with extra gentleness and kindness.

The first thing we must do is check the hummingbird

feeders. When it is very cold, I have a heated 

feeder that I plug in for them, although they prefer

their usual feeding stations, so I must defrost them all. 

They are very territorial!

Little flocks of Dark-Eyed Junco's are searching 

for seed, so we must fill the feeders while we are out.

There are still plenty of maple seeds clinging to the trees 

for the squirrels. 

There's a quiet hush in the forest as we walk 

among the ghostly trees. 

This ancient cedar stump has ax marks from 

the turn of the last century, and is finally falling apart. 

You can imagine how old this tree must have been 

when it was cut down - perhaps 500 years old or older.
It makes me sad.....

We frequently see deer and elk here - mostly at night. 

Ramblin' Man's tool shed is nestled between holly and cedar.
Can you see Kai in the snow?
(He is on the right - you can see his ears poking up)

The shed was painted red years ago, 

and I would like to change it back

and put a country fence around it :) 

I found this charming plate last year and it reminded

me of our little shed. 

I found 11 more of these vintage
'Welcome Home' dessert plates

 just before Christmas, at 'Replacements.com'. 

I was so excited to find them and now I have 

enough to set the table for the holidays, 

stacked on my white dinner plates. 

A little gift to me :)

The holly by the shed looks so beautiful in the snow. 

I keep the bird feeder up here

where the birds can hide from predators

 among the dense holly branches.
They will eat all the berries by spring.

We like to sit here on warm summer days in the shade of the cedar tree.

Summer seems so far away today!

All snuggled in......
Maggie is on the bed behind
the lower window.
The upper windows are in the loft,
which we have been working on,
but which has been put on hold
due to life's many responsibilities....
This will be our future bedroom
and the lower level will be our library:)
Most of my many books are in storage right now.
Hopefully this summer it will be done.
Something to look forward to.

Whitey Bear loves burying his face in the snow!

Surveying his tundra......
This is the site of Ramblin' Man's new tool-shed,
which he hopes to have built this year.
His old shed will then be mine.
I can't wait! I really need my own she-shed!
He is retiring in just 3 more years.
No more Rambling for the Ramblin' Man after that,
so he needs a place to putter and I need a garden shed.

'Nana's Tree' looks so pretty in the snow.
We haven't planted it yet, but we have decided
on the perfect spot.

Ramblin' Man's company vehicle
 that we nicknamed 'the land yacht' :)
(Ford Flex)
for which we are very grateful.

You can see the hard working
 wood-stove chimney
on the house.

We are very grateful for our wood-stove this time of year.
Even though we have electric heat,
the wood-stove brings us a coziness and warmth
during these bitterly cold days and nights.

Late afternoon sunshine glows on bare tree-tops......

and on snowy mountain tops.

Time to go inside and get cozy!
Thank you for coming along on this winter walk with me,

Dear Friends!

Today I am linking with:

Saturday's Critters

It's a Small Town Life - Thankful Thursday

Please - Won't you join in?