Horizontal Snowfall

The warm weather last week had us all thinking very strong Spring-time thoughts - and I'm not just talking about the humans in the room.  Our Farm Supervisory Crew (Inspector, Soup and Murphy) were less than overjoyed by the weather on Sunday that started with strong, cold winds and a temperature that was not much over the freezing mark.  The hens barreled out of their shelter as they normally do in the morning, but they were very much wanting to be inside by the time we got to mid-afternoon, when the winds really got going.

It is mid-April in Iowa, so temperatures and weather like this is certainly not out of the question.  As a matter of fact, I can only recall one season that didn't tease us like this with nice warm temperatures before opening the door for Old Man Wynter at least one more time.

The plants that normally begin to show up in early Spring have been very patient this year - moving very slowly as if they knew something was up.  But, like the rest of us, they couldn't help themselves.  While we were getting used to doing chores outside without gloves and less than three layers of clothing, the Daffodils, Surprise Lilies, Bluebells, Lungwort and other similar plants sprang up from the ground and even started.  We even had one daffodil open up on Sunday morning - in time to be encased in snow and ice.

The wind encouraged the snow to stick to vertical surfaces and wedged flakes in the crevasses that could found in bark and the sides of buildings.  A small hole in one outbuilding resulted in snowflakes fluttering down on me as I was attempting to do work with the mistaken belief that the snow would not reach me there.  It often amazes me how well some strong wind and a little snow can illustrate for me that there are some things that need repair that I hadn't considered to be all that important only hours before.

Even our Indoor Supervisor, Bree, could sense that the winds had changed (so to speak).  The windows that had been open in the days prior were now securely closed.  The temperature in the farm house was a bit lower than it had been for several days in a row.  

All of the signs pointed to finding good places to take catnaps.  If she could take them where the humans were, all the better.  Initially, near the humans was a good option.  But as the day wore on, this changed to being ON the humans.

I guess we said we wanted a lap cat when we brought Bree and Hobnob home, didn't we?

We know from past experience that the Lungwort and other similar plants will survive this cold snap and the snow.  They might be set back a little bit, but they will continue to bloom and the temperatures will rebound.  But, on Sunday (and Monday) they shivered with the rest of us and wondered if perhaps returning to their winter naps might be preferable to what they were dealing with in this moment in time.

Of course, I couldn't help myself.  The reversal in weather conditions after so much of the plant life had decided it was safe to emerge and maybe even flower grabbed my attention and my imagination.  I grabbed the camera and went out to see what I could capture.

Then after a couple of shots I went back in and grabbed my coat.  Yes, Spring often requires that we be prepared to make adjustments.  Even if we would really rather not do so.

The Magnolia blossoms were pretty certain the time was now and they were swelling rapidly last week, only to stall and "freeze" in place as the snow flew.  There was even one bloom that had opened about a quarter of the way.  It was still holding the same shape throughout the snow on Sunday and into Monday.  It was almost as if it heard the March Lion roar and it stopped moving in hopes that it wouldn't be seen and be spared from a mauling.

The forecast is calling for some nicer days in the near future - and by nicer I mean, warmer than this.  But, we won't be going back to 70s and 80s for temperatures for a while.  Perhaps that will be a blessing for us?  Maybe the blooms will unfurl a bit more deliberately and the greenery will reach to the sun a bit slower than it had been doing.  It could actually give us a chance to appreciate Spring at a pace that we can handle, rather than jumping directly to Summer.

Whichever way it goes, we'll do our best to participate and appreciate.