I woke up this morning looking like this:

I am so done with the snow. You can’t even enjoy “playing” in it since it is like 10 feet deep. Even the dog is like, “Um, nah, I’m good, I’ll hold it for a while.” I don’t want to hear about a time to rest from gardening, enjoy the different seasons, blah, blah friggin blah. I AM DONE.

I must admit, however, there were three things that did occur today to lighten the mood just a bit.

First, my garden blog pal, who I worship like no other, Allan Becker, sent me a personal email including a blog post from last winter that highlighted a number of winter worthy shrubs. Check it out here. I am a monstrous fan of the Cornus ‘Arctic Fire’.

   
Second, that kick ass wife of my mine whipped up another stellar dinner. Today it was spaghetti squash with meat sauce. You can find a very similar recipe here. In case you haven’t tried it, the spaghetti squash is baked and the strands of the squash can be removed to replace the actual spaghetti. Bellissimo!

And last but surely not least, my daughter made me a picture as she is also fed up with this weather and is ready for spring:

     
She knows the way to my heart.

John 

I hate the winter. And that hatred continues to grow exponentially each year.

In fact, I started my “what do I hate more than winter” list and the list isn’t nearly as long as it has been in the past. Here are the only items that currently rank higher:

1. People who stop in the middle of an aisle at a store and are oblivious to others around them
2. The New York Yankees
3. Shredded coconut
4. The term “due diligence”
5. Kate Gosselin
6. Impatiens

That’s it. Winter ranks that low. But, I do understand and buy into the need for winter interest in the garden. It is one of the few things that gets me through the hellish months of January and February. I think I’ve improved in that design element the past few years but still have a ways to go.

In between my nose hairs freezing and forming an impenetrable blockage into my nose and the icicles forming on my eyelashes, I managed to snap off some photos the past few days that personify “winter interest”. Some may be a stretch and others may require a close-up view, but if they keep me interested, that’s all that matters. On to the photos:
             

Arborvitae ‘Rheingold’ – don’t know if I love it or hate it, either way, the foliage color changes draw me in. 

Have a great weekend.
ONG

After a fantastic and relaxing Thanksgiving weekend, I expected to be one miserable SOB on Monday morning. Like a kid who doesn’t want to go back to school, I contemplated pretending to be ill. Maybe food poisoning? My work would never question that, right? 

Before I could plan out my work abandonment, Casey, our labrador retriever of 11 years, was up and barking at exactly 6:42 AM. I kid you not, it has been exactly that time each morning for maybe the past 8 years. Girl has a routine and she sticks to it.

I opened the front door to let her out to do her “thang” and was immediately drawn to the frost filled yard. It was stunning. I completely lost track of feeding the dog, waking up the kids and getting ready for work. I ran in to get the camera and headed outside without any shoes. Even Casey was way confused:  

I just starting snapping off photos and couldn’t have been happier. For one day at least, I forgot how much I hated the cold. The photos:   

Eupatorium ‘Gateway’ and Miscanthus ‘Morning Light’

Ilex ‘Blue Princess’

Barberry ‘Crimson Pygmy’

Carex Buchananii ‘Cappuccino’

Hydrangea ‘Endless Summer’

Ajuga ‘Chocolate Chip’

Euonymus ‘Silver King’

Miscanthus ‘Gracillimus’

Chasmanthium Latifolium’

Boxwood ‘cultivar unknown’

Hypericum ‘Albury Purple’

Yucca ‘Golden Sword’