Sad snowman

It's hard to believe that a few weeks ago it was freezing cold. This picture was taken ten days ago - it's the remanants of the snowman built by OH and the children, now looking rather sorry for himself but was still hanging on for dear life even though the sky was blue and now warm enough to venture out without a coat on. In fact I even did a bit of gardening (you can see a pile of deadheading on the floor by the bird feeder). 

Only four days before he was being built. How fickle is the British weather?!

He grew to rather an impressive size...

The Beast from the East was most definitely a monster wasn't it, that wind was bitterly cold. The children were pleased though, as they got two days off school. I couldn't stop thinking about all the poor homeless people. It doesn't bear thinking about having to sleep out in weather like that. I also worried about the wildlife, so first thing I did every morning was don wellies and a big coat, and put out some rolled oats, bread, bird food and fresh water. No sooner had I come in on the first day then Mr Blackbird had swooped down for his breakfast. I was a little worried I may hurt him, as I had put hot water in the drinking bowl (so it would last longer before freezing up again) but he had a few sips so he must have enjoyed his hot cuppa!

I also spotted a pair of magpies, a little wren, and was excited to see my first fieldfare. Apparently they are social birds, but this one was quite happy finding food by himself. Unfortunately I didn't get a photo of him/her, as the zoom on my phone camera wasn't strong enough to get a clear picture. 

Strange to see photos like this in March. In fact they are pretty much identical to the photos I took way back on the 10th/11th December. Don't you just love opening the curtains in the morning and finding a snowy blanket. Even better when it's still a pure carpet of white, untrodden upon except by the occasional little bird who ventures out in the cold. 

Snow angels

And snowmen (he looks cute but a little alarmed doesn't he!)

There was a good eight inches of snow fell, and temperatures dropped to -7 overnight and in the early hours of the morning. 

This is my favourite snowy photo. Even though its evening and the sky is dark, the snow lights up the ground and gives it a magical appearance. 

It wasn't until I ventured out into the garden I realised how much snow was resting on the roof of the greenhouse. That much weight on a sheet of glass didn't seem very safe, so I carefully slid it all off with the broom

That's it, I'm all snowed out, well done if you've reached the end! Hopefully that's all the snowy photos done for the year (unless we have some more in December). The warmer weather has lulled us into a false sense of security though, as apparently this weekend we are going from double figures to just above freezing during the day, and bitterly cold winds again 😩

Speak soon

XxXx