For the Love of Winter

It is so easy to complain about Winter... the darkness and cold press in and keep us indoors, feeling like we've been cooped up for so long. When will Spring come!

Well, with still a few months of chilly weather to go, let's make the best of it. :)

So here is my personal list of things I love about Winter- you know- those little magical moments and moods that you can't get any other time of the year. 

Feel free to contribute, and let's love Winter together. 

❄ ❄ ❄

Thick tendrils of lazy wood smoke drifting up into a gray sky...

The ruckus of crows and a swarm of their ruffled jet-black feathers as they congregate 

in the bare branches of a gnarled tree, scanning a snowy field... 

A spontaneous trudge through the drifts after a snowstorm,

Wandering, wading, breath puffing, seeing the world 

has changed coats in the mere course of a day.

Mittens, scarves, fuzzy socks and flannel shirts...

Staring up at falling flakes in the dark as they flurry about you, and feeling 

like you're racing through a star-field in outer space...  

Peering through warmly lit windows from 

the outside.

Frostbitten stars gleaming in a cold, clear empyrean...

Snowflakes gathered in piles on a windowpane from the outside...

Finding Jack Frost's intricately frozen artwork 

on a frigid glass tapestry in the morning.

That sharp breath of unexpectedly peppery winter air that zings through your lungs...

Cheerful tiny sparrows frolicking in snowy branches as morning sun rises...

...Frosty whiskers on the cows and their steamy 

breath while coming inside to milk.

Gorgeous, vivid sunrises that not only grace the horizon, but envelope the entire sky.

Cold wooden floor boards under my feet in the morning, 

soothed by slippers...

Daddy's boot prints in the snow, imprinted with smaller feet that had to jump to fill his strides.

Hot tea steaming in the air...

Twinkling soft Christmas lights...

Trips to Grandma's house.

Finding little rabbit or mouse trails in the drifts, 

and wondering what they were busy with this morning...

Candle scents of pine, cinnamon, nutmeg, and sugar cookies...

Being tucked into a cozy bed at night and hearing distant snowmobilers, and being all the more grateful for my current state of warmth...

Feeling the wind moan in the walls and knowing I'm safe from harm. 

Practicing my handwriting on the foggy window-glass. 

The first snow...

...the smile I get with the thought of someone that first snow brings to mind. 

Hot cocoa topped with whipped cream or melted marshmallows, 

and sprinkled with peppermint candy dust... 

in my favorite mug. 

Hot soup and warm, buttered bread.

Unexpected, welcome visitors. 

The satisfaction looking at a large pile of split, stacked wood. 

When the trees are encased in ice and the sun glitters through the prisms. 

Glorious sunsets that dance in the clouds- streams of light, color, and majesty. 

  

For the Birds ❄ Christmas Treat

Ingredients: 

2 cups beef fat

6 tablespoons birdseed

4 tablespoons dried cranberries 

One morning, after I had had barbecue short ribs in the slow-cooker the previous evening, I took the pot out of the refrigerator to whip up a treat for the birdies. ;) 

All that good fat rises to the top up the broth and solidifies in the cold, so it's easy to scoop off and put to good use. 

It actually looks really appealing... like soft soap. 

 

To make it easier to use, you'll want to put the fat into the microwave for about 30 seconds, just until it's softened and a little liquid has pooled on the bottom like here....

( The kitchen smelled like barbecue while I did this, and the two spoiled kittens we have running around the house thought I was making something for them. They planted themselves in front of the microwave and mewed their little noses off. )

Now mash it all together with a fork...

We had a bag of premixed seed for wild birds such as sunflower seeds, cracked corn, and white millet. You can select whichever seed your bird-feeder frequenters tend to prefer.

I threw in some dried cranberries, too. It's Christmas... I can share...

~~Mix it all up~~

Line a baking sheet with wax paper and select your cookie cutters.

Carefully distribute your mix, and use a toothpick to guide the "batter" into all of those little nooks and corners to get the full shape in your finished product. 

 Now you can either slip it into the freezer, or set them outside to chill. 

I thought I would be clever and put a toothpick in each one so that when they were hard I could slip a ribbon through them to be hung up. That didn't work for me. 

The holes were too small and the toothpicks were too firmly stuck inside for me to remove them without breaking the hardened suet. 

I didn't want them to thaw any, either, or they could get ruined. So I ended up breaking them off and just tying ribbon around the middle of each. So the molds with pointy little edges like those leaves are the best to use. 

   

The giant rose bush is where all of those little finches and sparrows hide out on these wintry days. So that's where this suet gets hung.  

The Lord even cares for the sparrows.

So I say that Merry Christmas is for the birds, as well as us. :) 

Cozy Collages

Tiny white flakes

Fall softy down...

Spiraling, dancing,

Fall to the ground.

Chill Winter morn',

A deep forest scene:

Frost on the earth,

White on dark green.

Sparkling new stars

Glint on dark pines

A galaxy of feathered flakes

Herald memorable times.

Silver ice glitters,

Shivers 'neath sun.

Birds blue and red:

Add these, then done...

A frozen artwork

Of frosty jewels,

Vivid colors on white,

Varied thread spools.

The forest alive

With colors so bright,

Crimson and indigo,

Evergreen, snow-white.

~Snow by Hannah Scarlett~

I own none of these photographs, I simply gathered a group of my favorite cozy, winter, vintage images on Pinterest and spliced them together. Stay warm this Winter, my friends. :) And enjoy the snow, for soon we shall pass into Spring....