{Snow day}

Hans and I woke up this morning to snow
and more snow
it was snowing like crazy
the ground and sky were (are) white

being from california, i'm not used to this
i took loki out for a walk and he rolled in the snow
that's such a norwegian forest cat thing to do

i made maple syrup taffy, from the little house on the prairie books!
although laura ingalls wilder actually made the taffy when she lived in wisconsin,
not on the prairie
it's so simple:

(1) gather up some clean, fresh snow and pack it into a pan, tin, bowl, whatever and set in freezer to keep cool
(2) pour 1/2 c REAL maple syrup into a small saucepan
(3) over medium-high heat, bring to a boil and put a candy thermometer in
(4) when the syrup reaches 235°F (soft ball stage), take it off of the heat and immediately drizzle it over the snow packed in the pan
(5) let cool for a minute or so, then eat!
i want to see a cardinal so bad
h. saw one last week but it flew away by the time i got to the window
on one of our many weekly trips to whole foods i purchased a birdfeeder
it's all green and recycled from plastic
there's a little roof and a cage-like apparatus that keeps the suet cake from falling out
h. climbed the tree outside of our bedroom window and hung it there!

takes me back to my childhood when i would make birdfeeders at home:
(1) take a pinecone
(2) spread peanut butter all over it
(3) roll in birdseed
(4) tie on a string
(5) hang in a bird-friendly area