3/1/26  A single grateful thought turned toward heaven is a beautiful prayer.

Some snow showers this morning, some sun this afternoon, clear tonight.  A light NW wind today, high 30, low -3 tonight.  Sunny and cold tomorrow, high 20, low -1, a brisk NW breeze.  A pattern change starts Tuesday, warmer temperatures  will start the sap run.  In like a lion, out like a lamb-we hope!   I

   We are reminding ourselves that Sunday is a day of rest and worship.  We do fair with the worship but sometimes the 'rest part' is elusive.  The greenhouse and animals still need tending, people need fed.  I need to box eggs before I leave for church, there are only a dozen in the egg refrigerator.  I did fill the bird feeders last night.

    May your day be blessed, may you make time to give thanks and to rest.  Sally

 2/28/26   In Maine there is a warm 26 degrees and a cold 26 degrees.  The rest of you wouldn't understand!

Clouds and ice fog.  26 degrees, Bekah says it feels like 0.  A strong south wind today with higher gusts.  Today's high 46, low 23.  Partly cloudy tomorrow with a strong NW breeze, high 26, low -3.  Mostly sunny Monday, a stiff NW breeze, high 20, low -1.  Cloudy Tuesday, a light SW wind, high 35. low 24. Partly cloudy Wednesday, a WNW breeze, high 44, low 22.  Snow showers Thursday, a north breeze, high 34, low 13.  1-3 inches of snow Friday, a NE breeze, high 29, low 24.  Morning rain/ice next Saturday, a SW breeze, high 42, low 31.  Mostly cloudy next Sunday, a WNW breeze, high 47, low 29.  Morning rain/ice next Monday, A SW breeze, high 49, low 32.  AM Showers Tuesday the 10th, a WSW breeze, high 54, low 37.  AM Showers Wednesday the 11, a WNW breeze, high 51, low 29.  A few showers Thursday the 12th, a brisk NW breeze, high 42, low 25.  PM showers Friday the 13th, snow to rain Sunday the 14th, NW breezes, highs 39, lows 22.

    My plan for today is to straighten out the cardboard pile.  We save all our plain, brown cardboard to put under mulch in the garden.  By the end of the winter the pile gets large and unruly.  We'll use every bit of it!   Grass and bamboo don't want to be smothered.  We still have to watch for an enemy to sneak through a weak spot.  Especially the bamboo. Today I want to get the pile under control.  If it warms up.

    There are trays under all the lights, my fuchsias are going to have to wait a few more days.  Some of the newly planted trays are already showing tiny specks of green.  I didn't prune the fuchsias very much before they went down cellar,  I'm sure I'll want to prune them more.

     We got next week's shipping notice yesterday.  Eight cases of plugs and cutting will be delivered between 2 and 4 Tuesday.  We are glad it is coming Tuesday instead of Monday, Tuesday is forecast to be so much warmer!  All those babies need a warm greenhouse.  It takes a lot less propane to keep it warm at a low of 24 degrees instead of Monday night's -1.

     May your day be blessed, Sally

 2/27/26  May we commit today to Christlike pauses of caring so that we may heal invisible wounds of grief and isolation in our church and community.

Sunshine, calm, 12 degrees.  Sun and clouds, a west breeze, high 32.  Clouds tonight, low 16.  Snow showers Sunday, a NW breeze, high 28, low -3.  Partly sunny Monday, a WNW breeze, high 20, low -4. Partly cloudy Tuesday, a SW breeze, high 34, low 23. 1-3 inches of snow Tuesday night.  Snow showers Wednesday, a stiff NW breeze, high 4, low 18.  Some sun Thursday, a brisk  north breeze, high 31, low 10.  Snow showers next Friday, a NE breeze, high 28, low 19. Wintry mix next Saturday PM into Sunday AM.  NW breezes, high Saturday 38, low 27.  Sunday's high 43, low 32.  Partly cloudy Monday the 9th, a SW breeze, high 49, low 34.  Showers Tuesday the 10th with a SW breeze, high 50, low 36.  Showers Wednesday the 11th, WNW breeze, high 48, low 29.  Partly cloudy on the 12th and 13th, NW breezes, highs about 43, lows 25.  Perhaps a shower Thursday night.
    Tuesday Grand daughter Sally Jo and her husband Kaden had an appointment at Dana Farber Cancer Center in Boston.  Kaden has been diagnosed with Hodgkin's Lymphoma.  A treatment program was set up.  Treatments will be at the Brewer Cancer Center with monitoring by Dana Farber.  Kaden and Sally Jo were told that this type of cancer has a 96% cure rate.  He had an appointment in Brewer at nine yesterday  morning.  It went well.  

    I visited Andrew and Gayle yesterday,  It was a celebration. Tuesday's doctor appointment showed no infection.  There will be a scan next week to double check.  He walked up and down the stairs yesterday.  That meant he could sleep in his king size bed last night instead of the hospital bed!

    Most of the seedlings that were in the front room are in the greenhouse.  Soon  the fuschias that hang from the barn will come out of the cellar and go under the lights.  Bekah planted lots of seeds yesterday.  She also ran water to the greenhouse, filling all the water storage barrels and buckets.  The greenhouse is getting hot enough these days so she can exchange the air without making the furnace run much.  The sun is getting stronger every day.  We,ve gained a little over an hour of daylight in February, about 3 minutes a day.  We are hoping that the forecast for below average temperatures in March for Maine is wrong.  In February our night time lows were not as low as the daily forecast said they to expect.

    May your day be blessed, Sally

 2/26/26  Friendship is the greatest of worldly goods.  CR Lewis

Cloudy, 22 degrees.  Sun and clouds today with a strong west breeze, high 34.  Clear tonight, low of 6. Sunshine tomorrow, a west breeze, high 32, low 16.Mostly cloudy Saturday, a SW wind, high 44, low 23.  Partly cloudy Sunday, a strong NW breeze, high 27, low -3.  Mostly sunny Monday, a NW breeze, high 21, low -2.  Partly cloudy Tuesday, a strong SW breeze, high 33, low 20.  Partly cloudy Wednesday, a brisk west breeze, high 43, low 19. Cloudy next Thursday, a NW breeze, high 36, low 16. 1-3 inches of snow next Friday, high 32, a NE breeze, low 22. Morning rain/ice next Saturday,  NW breeze, high 41, low 25. PM showers next Sunday, snow showers overnight, a NW breeze, high 42, low 31. Light freezing rain early Monday, the 9th, then showers and fog.  A SW breeze, high 49. low 33. Showers the rest of the week, highs 53 to 45.  Lows 35 to 28.  Sap will run!

   I find it hard to believe it will get as cold as the forecast predicts.  The temperature hasn't been reaching the lows predicted.  But I'm sure it won't be pleasant.  Seven boxes of pugs and cuttings come Monday or Tuesday.  The furnace will burn lots of propane.  Bekah or Jay will probably get up to check the greenhouse and put wood on the stove.  Bob Nicholas, an old farmer and sugar maker always said sap weather wouldn't come until about the tenth.

This year is proving him right.

    The ice melt worked.  The couple inches of new snow helped.  I was able to fill all the feeders this morning and throw sunflower seeds on the Christmas tree.  A chickadee scolded me the entire time I was out there.  It is a Christmas card scene today with the sun shining on the frost covered trees. Smoke is rising from the greenhouse.  

     I made the butter last night. It has been twenty some years since I was making butter, I hadn't forgotten how.   I was pleased to be able to do it, pleased that I could do it and pleased to help Bekah.  Bekah took care of the churn.  No way am I going to try washing that heavy jar!

      May your day be blessed, Sally

 2/25/26“To everything there is a season, A time for every purpose under heaven.” May "love thy neighbor" define this season of Lent and our "season" of life.

Cloudy, 9 degrees.  An inch of snow showers today, dusting tonight. A west breeze, high of 30, low tonight 16.  Partly cloudy tomorrow, a strong west breeze, high 36, low 7.  Sunshine Friday, a west breeze, high 33, low 15.  Cloudy Saturday, a SW wind, high 45, low 24.  Snow showers Sunday, a strong NW breeze, high 28, low -4.  Sunshine Monday, a NW breeze, high 18, low -5.  May "In like a lion, out like a lamb" hold true!  Partly cloudy Tuesday, a strong WSW breeze, high 30, low 18.  3-5 inches of snow Tuesday night. Snow showers Wednesday, a stiff west breeze, high 40, low 13.  Partly cloudy next Thursday, a brisk NW breeze, high 30, low 11.  1-3 inches of snow next Friday, a north breeze, high 33, low 20.  Snow showers next Saturday, a NW breeze, high 38, low 25.  Snow showers, ice, freezing rain the 8th through the 11th with highs in the forties, lows in the upper twenties.  Years ago the sugaring rule was "Sap won't start running until March 10th"

   

    We got a dusting.  Tiffany in Rhode Island got 37,5 inches.  At five last evening their street still hadn't been plowed.  They were thankful they hadn't lost power.

     It was ninety in the greenhouse yesterday afternoon.  With just the woodstove going it only dropped to 49 at 4:30 when Behah went out to put wood on the stove.  She had put wood on it at eight-thirty last night.  Before the propane furnace was installed there was a second wood stove.  Bekah was pleased the greenhouse held the heat so well.  The sides are nicely banked with snow.  After she starts the propane furnace tomorrow she'll move some plants out.

    The driveway is polished ice.  I'm going to mix some ice melt with the ashes and see if I can make a safe path to the hens.  The ice melt did a good job behind the house.  I can fill the bird feeders.

    May your day be blessed, Sally

 2/24/26  For me a goal of Lent is to slow down, set aside distractions and be quiet so I can sense the presence and guidance of God.

Cloudy, an east breeze, 21 degrees  Partly cloudy this afternoon, a light NW wind, high 28.  Some clouds tonight, a brisk WNW breeze, low 1.1-3 inches of snow tomorrow, a NE breeze, high 29, low 15.  Partly cloudy Thursday, a strong west breeze, high 37, low 12.  Partly cloudy Friday, a NW breeze, high 34, low 14.  Partly cloudy Saturday, a SW wind, high 45, low 23.  Snow showers Sunday morning, a NW breeze, high 31, low 1.  Partly cloudy Monday, a NW breeze, high 19, low -4.  Partly cloudy Tuesday, a NW breeze, high 27, low 14.  1-3 inches of snow next Wednesday, a high of 38, low 11.  Partly cloudy next Thursday, a NW breeze, high 24, low 7.  2-6 inches of snow next Friday and Friday night, high 27, low 17, a NW breeze.  Snow showers Saturday the 7th, a WNW breeze, high 36, low 22.  Fog Sunday the 8th, a NW breeze, high 41, low 26.  Rain/snow/ice the next two days.

     We were fortunate, the storm veered a little east, just enough so we only caught the edge.  There is supposed to be enough sun this afternoon to warm up the greenhouse.  Bekah will start the woodstove to hold the heat.  Thursday's high has dropped but I think it will still be warm enough to move plants from the house to the greenhouse.  They'll wrap the trays in a blanket.

     Sun is coming out!  Very thankful.  The sun is strong enough now so it will make a big difference in heating up the greenhouse.  There is a couple inches of polished ice on the back deck.  The wind blasted the sand away,  No sand will stick to it until it warms up.  I don't usually use ice melt but I can't feed the birds unless I do something about that ice.  This morning I opened the door, leaned out and threw seed on the snow.  I'm going to my sister's in Dover for breakfast, I think I'll get some. 

    May your day be blessed, Sally 

 2/23/26  When the seed meets soil, the meal begins.  Our meals are usually planned around our garden.

Cloudy, a NW breeze, 16 degrees.  A Nor'easter moves in this afternoon with 2-4 inches of snow for Bradford, snow amount increases toward the coast. Strong, gusty NNE wind today becomes strong gusty NNW winds tonight.  School has been canceled because of blowing snow for the afternoon bus run.  We are in the zone of moderate chance of power outages.  Partly cloudy tomorrow  with a strong NW breeze, high 29, low 1.  1-3 inches of snow  Wednesday with an ESE breeze, high 29, low 15.  Cloudy Thursday with a brisk west breeze, high 37, low 14. Snow showers Thursday night.  Snow showers Friday with a NW breeze, high34, low 14.  Partly cloudy Saturday with a light SSW wind, high 46, low 21.   Partly cloudy Sunday, a stiff NW breeze, a high of 32, low of 2.  Partly cloudy next Monday, a NNW breeze, high 19, low 1.  1-3 inches of snow Monday night.  Snow showers next Tuesday, a NW breeze, high 24, low 7.  1-3 inches of snow Tuesday night.  Snow showers next Wednesday, a stiff WSW breeze, high 32, low 12.  Cloud the 5th and 6th, brisk NW breezes, highs about 30, lows 5 and 10.  Snow and rain showers the next three days.

   The last three days the weather channel has been trying to make me go premium by blocking the forest with a premium ad every few minutes.  The format doesn't allow for a nice print off.  And now I have to click into the details to get the wind forecast.  With the greenhouse and animals the wind forecast is important to us.  Other sources I look at are only seven days.

   Someone put generator gas in their car so we have to go get the generator gas cans filled this morning.  If we are prepared we won't lose our power!

There won't be any cars parked under the pine tree!  The wind hasn't switched from the NW to the NE yet. As much as possible chores will be done by noon.  We get the full brunt of the wind on this hill.  The farmers and ranchers in the path of the Oklahoma and Kansas wildfires continue to be in our prayers.  Regardless of the weather greenhouse and garden plans will continue.  It is getting late enough in the year so we know what vegetables or fruit we didn't freeze or can enough of.  We didn't save enough potatoes or squash.

    May your day be blessed, Sally