R U Ready for Spring?

Got warm enough today for this little guy to crawl out from under a rock.
It is getting colder though, so I think he went back to sleep for a little while.
Has anyone else seen signs of spring yet?

I've been seeing the squirrels running around at the woods edge for a while now. The only sign of spring I have to report is the huge mud fest in my back yard today. Its getting colder out now, so I think I will crawl back under MY rock and hibernate. Wake me up when its spring. ; )

I don't think that there was a time this winter when I didn't see squirrels, black, gray and the little red. Those guys were out in droves attacking the bird feeders whenever they could.

Those chippies cannot take the cold though.

We are getting some nice puddles too. Hopefully the predicted "just above freezing" temps will melt that white stuff slowly!

Saw quite a few tracks this morning on my walk. Possums and porkies have been out all winter, but saw skunk tracks. Lots of Otter tracks and large coyotes. Skunks hibernate too I think, but you can see lots more wildlife movement with the warmer temps. It is a step in the "spring" direction for sure

Yes, we dont have all those critters around our house but the poor little birdies have been out alot more too!! Those pesky squirells are always in my bird feeders also.... They were suppose to be squirel proof LOL. They are pretty crafty. cparts do you live by a lake for you to see the otter tracks?? How cool do they play in the water....When we went to Taqh. Falls last summer we seen some in the river Wow was that ever cool!!!! Man our dirt drive way was a slick ice skating rink this morning...But the warmer temps were wonderful! Kinds surprised when I let the poochie out this morning. The answer of the question for me is YES I am ready for Spring!!! Do you see my arm is up in the air??? Way up higher for you to see... HAHA. Ronna

got my arm up too!!!!!! I saw the skinnyest robbin this morning I felt sorry for it!! hope it finds some thing to eat
Gloria

Gloria, I have seen robins around all winter before, they will eat out of the bird feeders, if they need to. Nice to hear that you saw one. Another sign of spring!

Ronna, my dog loves the snow, but didn't like that bitter cold. He wanted to go back in the house for the first time this year.

Yes, we live on the lake, but our property boarders the river and we have a creek running through it too. So the otters are all over. I usually see them in the spring, sliding up on the ice and dipping back into the water.
When I go for a walk, you see where they walk, their little tracks side by side, then when there is a little hill, they slide.
Also on the creek, you can see where they go over branches and leave muddy body prints.
I love seeing where all the animals have been in the spring.
Some of the hibernaters tend to be very grumpy when they first wake up. I got the bear spray back out. I should have had it with me yesterday morning, but luckily I didn't come in contact with any grumpy animals.

very cool cparts... would love it!! my husband loved see them last summer...

We don't see them very often. You just have to be looking when they are there.
In the summer on a hot day, sitting on the deck with company we may see so many animals and birds, like deer, water birds, eagles, muskrat etc, you just have to be looking.
There were 2 coyotes running across the ice on Sunday morning. (they were really big)
(that was posted before in another thread, sorry for the repeat)
We live on the marshy stumpy area of the lake. But that is where the action is. We love it.
Animals and birds are really fun to watch.

I'll have to start looking for the robins. I did have a bunch of grossbecks eating my crabapples outside my kitchen window. There were a couple of those red headed woodpeckers munching happily also. I have heard more singing by the birds.

I'm ready for spring. Can't wait. Tired of sitting on my butt all winter.

Brenda

Do newly exposed dog turds count? ; )

HAY I GOT SOME OF THEM LOL
Gloria

Hahahahahahaha, the doggy do do, does count!

I am lucky, we got our dog when he was a couple years old and someone taught him to find a tree or bush and back into it.

He mosty goes in the woods. I have never had to pick it up. Sooooooo nasty!

My first squirrel up by the house today. This was so fun to watch...The Shorthair Vs The Squirrel.

He spotted the little tree rat as soon as I let him out. Chased him up the tree and the squirrel wasted about 10 cussing him out from above. Meanwhile Trevor has gone into typical German Shorthair mode....he frozen in place and locked on the squirrel, who apparently forgot about the dog because he came back down and started eating fallen bird food.

For the next half hour the dog alternated between freezing like a statue and slowly sneaking forward one step at a time. Amazingly, he was less than three foot from the squirrel when he couldn't take it and charged. Equally amazingly, the squirrel got away, back up the tree!

I'm so desperate for spring that I'll even be glad to see the poop-cicles sprouting in the yard. I never thought I'd think brown is better than white.

I couldn't stand it any longer and started some seeds.

My two bichons mostly poop on the cement outside the back door. I keep a pooper scooper nearby and try to pick it up daily so we don't step in it. I keep a garbage can with plastic bag and lid on all the poo. Every now and then Joey will run out into the yard and poop so I have to hunt for it so I'm sure I have some frozen doo around. First day the white stuff melts I'll be out there picking it all up. I have tons of bunny turds all over the snow. Darn thing comes in and nibbles on my roses and trees. I wish somebody would eat him. I swear.

I'm kind of hoping the snow melts a little at a time so we don't get major flooding.

Lol, between the squirrel hunting and the poop-cicles.
Our dog just barks at the tree rats, thinking they will come down into his mouth. What a silly pup.

Yesterday the sun was warm enough to warm the river. This starts to open small sections of the lake in narrow strips of water.

In a couple hours, 4 geese and a couple ducks were already in the small sections. But at supper, I saw 2 large white objects fly over.
They were a pair of swans! Now if that isn't a sign of spring, what is?

I know it is spitting snow this morning, but it is 30' out at 6 am. I will take that.

the river is open most of the winter here so I see swans once in a while but when spring is comming I see flocks of them there were 2 the other day there so beautiful !!
Gloria

I see geese and ducks during the winter, but never the swans here. Isn't that funny, how a few miles differs?

I know I wait for the canadian geese to start flocking up here its so loud that you can hear them in the house and the water is just coverd with them its amazing some times
Gloria

Oh yes, nature gets very loud in the spring.
We often wonder what they have to gossip about and yell all night long.
Between the geese and the peeper frogs you cannot sleep with a window open.

Hi I'm home from work now and yes thay are loud but I love the sound I can sleep like a big fat babie LOL
Gloria

All that honking, I call it nature's traffic jam.

38' out right now. This is good, don't want all this snow to melt too fast. So far, so good.

you bet its a traffic jam there are thousands of geese out there I cross the Curtis rd bridge every day and the fiels and water are black with them its a site to see LOL
Gloria

i know the birds are going crazy with all the chirping!!!

Saw sandhill cranes yesterday evening.
But I haven't seen a redwing blackbird yet.

The wind changed yeasterday afternoon. Suddenly is was blowing up from the ground instead of down or across. It smelled warm and wet and musky. It's gone today, but I know it will be back and then I'll open my windows to smell it , not matter how cold it is.

Go out today and feel and smell it. The ice is melting and running down the sidewalk.
But i told you all its nice on the 13th of march always!
I have bulbs arriving today from a co-op! :) cant wait till i can get outside and plant them!

spring!!!!

Its been sunny for several days in a row here. Cold, but sunny. Imagine my surprise to see the newly exposed yard covered in a blanket of snow this morning! Only about an inch, but man, what a drag! I was out yesterday picking up the tons of fallen branches and sticks, and had planned on doing more today. Did anyone else get a surprise this morning?

No new snow here. I do see a few open patches of ground, but still have 10-12" of the stuff on the level. In the woods it is deeper yet.

The snow is so crunchy from thawing and freezing it is scraping the leather off my boots.

That sun sure makes it look warmer than it is, but is melting slowly. That is what we need here.

yes i have spots of grass here and in other place 3ft drifts!!!! We did have a flurry but it left a trace!!!

Gee, sorry to have missed that.
Hahahahahahaha, oh, that was mean.

Keep that up, and yer off the Christmas card list. ; p

LOL, sorry.
I am just so full of mirth with the sun and missing the last few snowfalls. (they all went south, that was crazy) Friends from Ohio got 20" (I tried to cover the phone when I laughed)

I have to laugh too, because DH said last week that it was going to snow.
I said that I was officially tired of snow and I refused to let it snow. It hasn't snowed sence.
(now it will, you all will hex me)

We had snow flurries last night but it didn't amount to anything. Sun was out all day today and even though it only got up to 38 I think it was nice. I wish I could say I thought we were done with the cold and snow but I don't think we are.

I did see something cool today. I saw an American bald eagle on my property. He landed in a tree down near the pond. He was way up high. I was in the van with my granddaugher and daughter in law. We stopped and just watched him for a a while. I think he likes the open water in my pond but I'm not sure. I have a huge windmill that operates an aereator in the pond to give the fish more oxygen and it keeps that part of the pond thawed out. I've seen eagles here before but am always in awe when I do. I don't know if they live in my woods or if they are just visiting. I'm about half a mile from the lake.

I also saw a deer with a broken back leg. :( He was crossing the road. We watched. My DIL rolled down her window and we talked soft to it telling it we were so sorry. My little granddaughter who is at the stage where she mimics everything she hears said, "Ut-0h........awwwwwwww......... deer". :) The deer stopped and turned around and looked at us for the longest time while we talked to it then it just scampered away the best it could on three legs.

We've been doing all our driving this week in the baby little Honda Insight hybrid car. Gas prices are unbelievable. It's a tiny car but gets about 55-65 miles to the gallon so we just take it. I feel sorry for my son whose work van is a diesel. Their fuel is even higher. I wonder if the high prices translates to fewer tourists coming up here this summer. I sure hope not since so many businesses here depend on the tourist money.

I'll keep looking for signs of spring. I've been seeing lots more deer out in the farmer's fields trying to find a smidgen of food. I just hope they don't start nibbling on my fruit trees.

Brenda

we are having little signs of spring here also I saw a red winged black bird this morning on my way to work by the river and the swans are grouping up and flying up and down the river I so love to watch them there so loud when they fly by Bj ( my dog) wants to be out side with his nose in the air and the birds are chirping every where just a couple more weeks and the snow should be gone
I got my first shipment of lily bulbs today yaaa so there in the fridge I dont know fore sure if thats the right thing to do some of them are sprouting may be I should pot them up I'd cry if I lost them well have a good night
Gloria

Great sightings of eagles and redwing blackbirds.
I woke up this morning to a skiff of snow. It is suppose to get to 40 today, so it won't last.
We lost some snow yesterday with that sun. Our bank in front the the lake is exposed. The lake is opening up slowly.
Eagles here hunt for fish and waterfowl over the water all the time. It is great to watch them. Always fun to see an eagle.

morning cparts I love to watch the birds on the water I heard some honkers on the lake last night but to dark to see them hope you have a nice day!!
Gloria

Thanks, they were honking alright!
There was one goose that was extra vocal. Not sure what his problem was.
DH said "that is NOT a soothing sound to sleep by"
I just laughed.
Have a good day at work!

tell him I love it I sleep like a big fat babie LOL
Gloria