Ski Slopes are Closed!

It's official.  Ski season is over!  The slopes at Ski Sugar made their last runs yesterday.  It's really too bad since there is still plenty of snow on all the slopes.  But it costs more money to run the lifts than anything else, and most people are done skiing for the year anyway.  Unless you want to go out west....
It has been reported that Sugar Mountain had 131" of natural snowfall this year.  I can't remember the last time we had such a rough winter.  The forecast for this week is going to change all of that.  It will be in the 70's by Thursday!!!!  I can't wait to get outside and soak up some much needed Vitamin D.  With Easter, then Mother's Day fast approaching, I encourage everyone to get outside and plant something.  Anything at all.  It can be flowers or vegetables or simply start an herb garden.  That is my challenge to you as well as to myself.  Enjoy the weather.  I know I will.

Feels Like Spring!

I haven't blogged lately because there's been nothing new going on.  Just one snow storm after another.  It makes a person feel lethargic after a couple of months.  The weekend has brought us warmer weather and beautiful blue skies with plenty of sunshine.  The forecast says it's supposed to be in the 50's all week long.  I'm so excited I can hardly stand it.  Now I know how the bears feel after a long winter's nap.  Although spring seems to take it's sweet time before gracing us with new leaves and tiny buds forcing their way up, I'm grateful for the warmer weather.  We did wake up to look outside this morning and see great big snowflakes floating lazily down from a grey sky.  But that was just a joke, right?  I know we're in for at least one more snow, it's not spring without ONE last freeze and ONE last snowfall.  But hopefully we can get a breather for a couple of weeks!   So if you live off the mountain, I hope you will soon see the buds.  For us on the mountain, first we have to wait for the remaining snow to melt.

Winter Weather

I haven't had much to say over the last few weeks.  The weather up here seems to be on everyone's minds and I'm tired of talking about it.  It's either really cold with snow, wind, and ice.  Or warm (the 40's are warm compared to below freezing).  If it's warm, it's generally raining and wet.  Or if it's not raining it's just wet.  Currently the sun is shining and the dusting of snow we had last night is glistening.  We are supposed to have a good old fashioned snow storm this weekend, so if you enjoy skiing, then come on up and have a great time. 

Happy New Year

Our New Year has arrived with single or negative temperatures, depending on whether or not you factor in the wind chill.  It continues to snow on and off and who knows when the kids will go back to school.  The old-timers have been saying we are in for a hard winter, and they are correct so far!  You'd think the sub-zero wind chills over the New Year's weekend would keep people from the skiing, but the slopes have been packed since Christmas.  I can only hope that everyone is being smart.  This means covering every inch of skin and taking several breaks to come inside and warm up. 

On another note, has everyone made their New Year's resolutions?  I recently read one man's resolution.  He suggests instead of saying, "I'm going to lose 20 pounds." he is resolving to hike up a mountain.  Make your resolution a story and then you are more likely to stick to it.  Saying you are going to lose 20 pounds is almost a guarantee that you won't lose it.  But saying you are going to hike up a mountain, with friends, means you actually have to get out, work out, and begin losing the weight.  Otherwise, you are letting down friends.  So that's my challenge.  To turn your resolutions into a story where there is a goal, preferably with friends, so you have more motivation to stick to it.  Happy 2010!

Christmas Ice and Power Outages

I hope everyone was able to have a very Merry Christmas.  My home area awoke to ice covering everything and massive amounts of power outages.  Many trees are gone, many were in the roads and across the power lines.  Many people are still without power.  Thankfully I live in an area that had power up and running by 10:30 am.  Our Christmas morning may have been missing lights on the trees and Christmas music in the background, but we lit candles and the kids were able to make out their gifts.  They are calling for more snow tonight, luckily just a dusting to up to 2", but it may be a while before we are able to thaw out completely.  I know the rivers and streams are full so I can only hope the ground can absorb some of this mess because I'm not sure we can handle flooding on top of the snow and ice.  Whatever is on the way, we can overcome it. 

Pre-Christmas Frenzy

I think all the snow went to everyone's head this past weekend.  Many of us were stuck in our homes, unable to do much except play in the snow that was within walking distance.  So now that the sun is out and people can once again travel, everyone is trying to get caught up on their final shopping and to-do lists.  We all still need to remember safety rules of travel.  I have been nearly hit several times simply because the driver was too busy to look in both directions before pulling out onto the main roads.  I know we are all excited that Christmas is a few days away, there is snow on the ground, tourists are arriving and anxiously trying to get to the ski slopes or the grocery stores.....so let's all just take a deep breath and relax for a moment.  Accidents only ruin the fun.  And I promise the stores and ski slopes will still be open if you arrive 5 minutes later than planned.

Snow Days

Yesterday we saw a LOT of snow get dumped in our area.  Everywhere you look there are piles of snow.  So enjoy playing in it.  Whether you decide to build snowmen and igloos or go skiing and snowboarding, make sure to bundle up.  When you come inside, cozy up with a cup of hot chocolate.  More snow is on the way, so if you are adventurous and need to venture out for a drive to the store (or final Christmas shopping), take your time getting to your destination.  Happy Holidays!