NEW DEADLINE

Yes, the first contest of the month for November is supposed to end at noon today, but since today is Sunday I am extending the deadline to noon Monday the sixteenth.

Yesterday we got several inches of snow and our yard and our neighborhood look like a white wonderland. It's beautiful, but I'm not ready for winter to begin. My cousin and her husband from Alaska are visiting with us for awhile and they say the snow makes them homesick. Though I have wonderful memories of playing in the snow while growing up; playing fox and geese, ice skating, toboggan runs, trying to keep up with a dog sled, snowmen, forts and snowball fights, etc., I can't say that I experience any sense of homesickness for snow. I enjoy its beauty and love the way it covers up the ugly browness of late fall, but city traffic and snow are no fun. I don't particularly like wearing a heavy coat or boots either.

The birds that come to our yard all year around are a pleasure to watch, but there's something special about watching them swoop from the trees to the feeders and back during winter. By the way, the big hawk that poached on the birds around our bird feeders last year is back. He's beautiful and hawks have to eat too, but it saddens me each time he kills one of the littler birds.

Each time a car passes on our street, I hear the crunch of ice, and I'm thankful for central heating, a warm bed, and books to read while curled in my favorite chair before the fireplace. The first heavy snowfall of the year brings mixed feelings. I feel sad that summer is over and my flowers are gone, yet I feel a pleasant urge to turn to cozy things like hot chile, warm cocoa topped with whipped cream, baked squash sizzling with melted butter, thick clam chowder, flannel pajamas, a fire in the fireplace, and pulling the comforter up to my chin when I crawl in bed.

Here's one last chance to enter this contest. Tell me about your favorite winter thing.