I had a request by one of my millions of (or maybe six) followers for an update on the snow. In a matter of days, we went from barren ground to snow-covered; up to 2 feet in some places. The predictions for this winter have been warm and light snow. The natives have been grumbling about it and reminiscing about the big snow back in 2008 when it was 127 inches in Coeur d’Alene.

You’re probably asking: are there different types of snow? Why yes, there are. There is that oxymoron snow, the dry snow. We got that first. It was all light and fluffy, and dry as far as frozen water can be dry. The following day we had winds 20-40 mph and that light fluffy snow blew all over the place. Most of it ended up in Washington, because there sure wasn’t much left at our house. The next snow fall was wet snow.

So what do you do with all this snow? You shovel it…every day. Remember that huge deck that seemed so awesome when we bought the house? Not so awesome when you have to shovel off the snow. On the third day, as soon as we had finished clearing the snow off the deck the sun came out and started melting the snow off the roof which proceeded to fall on the deck. Lather, rinse, repeat.

We finally had enough snow to try out our new snowshoes. We tromped around the yard testing our skills in powder and on our hills. I fell in about two feet of powder because I didn’t pick up my feet high enough. Shawn had a good laugh before helping me back up. It was beautiful in our little piece of forest.

I’ve been waiting for a good snow to do a little quilt photography, so I finally got the opportunity. My lovely assistant held the quilts.

One issue we have with the snow is our long, semi-steep driveway. Our neighbor keeps it plowed, but spots can be icy, especially the where the end of the driveway meets the road. This morning, when the repairmen arrived to fix our wood burning stove, they knocked at the door and asked if we had a four-wheel drive truck. Their truck couldn’t make it up the drive. Shawn had taken our all wheel drive SUV, so they trudged back down the driveway to get their tools. They made several trips up and down the driveway in the course of their work. I must admit I have been very impressed with the work ethic of the young people I’ve met since moving to Idaho. These guys didn’t complain and finished the job with a smile.

So far, I’m enjoying the snow. It’s fun to snowshoe in, pretty to look at across the valley, a good workout to shovel, and mesmerizing to watch as it falls. Of course, I don’t have to walk around in it looking for food like these guys.