I'm kidding. Sort of . We got snow Wednesday through Friday. Morning temperatures have been in the low 30's. Ellie and Campbell still get super excited when they see snow. Ellie wants to go out and try to catch snowflakes on her tongue. We've been 10-12 degrees below normal the past few days and with the precipitation, it was just time for some snow. Tom and Linda came up last week and got to enjoy the end of our winter. Tom left before the snow came but I'm betting he's ok with that. Linda is dealing with the cold weather. It was 80 when they left Houston. Heh. I miss Houston in March and April. But I don't miss July and August.
We can't complain too much. I-90 over the Snoqualmie Pass has been a mess the past few days. The State Police have traffic monitored and cars are going through at a paced 10-15 miles per hour. It was kind of funny to see some of the people being interviewed. Some skiers were trying to get out there because the fresh powder and they ended up having to turn back because they spent so long in traffic. We're looking forward to some sunshine this coming week. Supposed to see temps back into the mid 50's and little rain until at least mid week. I'm ready to let the girls run wild without having to worry about mud on them or our carpet.
We've been taking the girls to our local Y for some (un)organized play time. They have great programs and we start T-ball on Monday for Ellie and swim lesson for both girls on Saturday. That should be a blast. They both love the water so we're looking forward to getting them in the pool regularly.
I took this picture earlier in the week before the snow. We have a gorgeous tree in our backyard that is very full and provides some nice shade and a little privacy. But it flowers very nicely right now. I'm pretty sure it's a Japanese Red Maple but I'll know for sure when the leaves start sprouting. I'm getting ready for the flowers to start blooming around here. It should make for some fantastic pictures. The girls and I will be ready for some short walks up at Point Defiance when that happens. I'll let them run the trails while I snap away. I got a great wide angle lens for Christmas that should help a lot with some close ups. When we got here in May last year, there were still some great blooms and the trees were solid green. Leaves everywhere (on the limbs.) I have some tentative plans for some hiking either down near Rainier or up in the Olympics on Hurricane Ridge with the girls. The scenery should be breathtaking in late April and early May as the flowers poke out from under the snow and rain. I'm hoping to find some bike trails that are trailer friendly as well. I know there are some old railroad cuts up north and if they can be traversed with the kiddos in the Chariot trailer, I'm down with that.
Down at Pike Place Market, there's a fruit and veggie stand that also sells these fantastic bundles of peppers. The long strands are only $20 and the short ones are $10. I have a strand drying in the kitchen right now and I think it's going to look pretty cool even when the peppers shrivel. The green ones are turning orange. Not Burnt Orange (unfortunately) but more like that other UT over near the Smokey Mountains. The girls love going up to the Market. There's so much to see. One really cool thing is the street musicians. Anywhere there's an embedded brass musical note on the sidewalk, a musician, band or singer can set up and play. On any given day, there'll be a barbershop quartet down the street from a folk band playing steel guitars and a washboard. Heck, the other day, there was a guy playing an upright piano on one of the street corners.
