Category Archives: Weather

What a difference a day makes

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Two days ago we received a surprise snow storm. While it was very welcomed, news reports yesterday suggested Denver will have the driest winter on record since the late 1800’s. To all those worried about the tulips, here’s what a day later looked like in the Mile High.

Happy Thursday. Our close personal friend Friday is just waiting around the corner to put more smiles on our faces. Make it a great one!

What a difference a day makes

Just in case you forget what springtime in the Rockies can look like. Love this state.

Springtime in the Rockies

Live, love, bark! ❤︎

Update to Toxic Tuesday

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A number of you indicated you were unable to open either of the two images that were included in today’s earlier post for which I apologize. After spending far more time than I thought possible trying to ‘fix’ that post and the images, unsuccessfully I might add, I thought I’d provide the links from where they were obtained so you could at least have the benefit of useable information (I sent emails to those of you for which I had contact info). The comprehensive and extensive list came from this site. The photo image can be seen here. So sorry for the SNAFU. Technology very often vexes me.

As a consolation prize, here’s an image from today’s somewhat of a surprise winter storm that landed in the Denver area. Finally…some snow. Sorry little tulips.

Stay safe effurry-one.

Springtime in the Rockies

Live, love, bark! ❤︎

Monday Musings

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Well…so much for the winter storm alert (note the pitiful, teensy weeny skiff of snow on the ‘shroom). Apparently the storm veered south of us. There was bupkus snow on the ‘shroom when we passed by it again over the weekend. I originally thought someone had maybe hauled it off but then realized I was looking in the wrong block. Sam wasn’t all that impressed with its size or the lack of snow. Maybe he’s just bummed there was no snow for him to romp in. But then again, I reminded him that he’d have had to wear his snow boots and he assured me that would not be the best way for him to start the week off. 

Bigger but not better. What’s with the no snow show?

Wouldn’t it be grand to have a job where you could be wrong nearly 100% most of the time and still get paid oodles of dough? Don’t know about you, but I think I’d like THAT job!

What kind of fun was on your weekend radar?

Live, love, bark! ❤︎

Reunited Friday

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Well thank heavens, it’s finally here. Thank goodness for Fridays! Got any swell plans for the weekend or any wicked pranks set for tomorrow?

The forecast is for rain and snow today and tomorrow. We’ll see if that fickle Mother Nature delivers or if she continues to tease us. Here’s hoping your weekend is grand.

Live, love, bark! ❤︎

Into each life some rain must fall

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The title of this post was written by that popular nineteenth century American poet, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow in his classic poem “The Rainy Day.” It’s meaning is ‘this too we shall survive.’

It was that meaning made me reflect on some uncharacteristic weather that we’ve experienced for the past several days. Lots of grey overcast conditions, nothing like the 300+ days of sunshine those of us who are lucky enough to live in Colorado generally experience. The weather in fact was not only grey and dreary, the humidity was significant enough it left us a rather large present along our typical cityscape ambling yesterday morning. While little mushrooms aren’t uncommon after rainy weather, this one took me by surprise.

‘Shroom anyone?

The little Miss Ninja wasn’t that keen on trying to avoid photo bombing her brother so much either. But her reliable stay…well…let’s just say it ain’t all that reliable and no need to take unnecessary chances, right? It was a feat keeping Sam sitting next to this huge mushroom that sprouted up overnight, keeping Elsa out of the frame and me able to hang on to her with a bag of poop to dispose of, all the while not dropping the phone or dropping the leash. But us moms are jugglers if anything. Over the years, I don’t think I’ve ever seen that large of a mushroom after a day of rain in Denver and had to capture it. I know it looks like a gnarly tree stump but trust me…that was one. mega. fungus!

Cheers for a great Friday and an even better weekend. Yikes, just realized April starts this weekend. Got any April Fool’s Day pranks prepared that you’re willing to share?

Live, love, bark! ❤︎

Those Were the Days…

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We have been extraordinarily busy with loads of hospital visits and some out-of-town travel visiting with family so we’re playing catch-up for the next few days trying to read blogs as well as post ourselves.

With apologies for another light-on-content post and because we haven’t had much of the white stuff here for a while, I thought I’d share this ‘throw back’ pic of Sam from February of 2012. We had just had a nice dumping of the white stuff and back then Sam was an ‘only child’ and helped out by snoopervising the shoveling efforts (note the paw prints on the right side of the walkway during the inspection tour). As I recall, it was quite cold in addition to somewhat deep. Sam seems to be channeling a “hey Mom, I think you may have missed a spot” look.

We’re still hopeful we’ll eventually get some snow before winter is over so maybe Sam will get another opportunity to survey a white landscape and chaperone removal efforts. Fingers and paws crossed. No word as to whether the Ninja will be a helper or a hinderance with snow removal efforts. My sense with the few sparse storms we have received so far seems to indicate she’s more into bouncing about snow than snoopervision shoveling.

Snoopervising snow removal, Feb. 4, 2012

Snoopervising snow removal, Feb. 4, 2012

Live, love, bark! ❤

Clean Your Paws

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While we haven’t had an over-abundance of snow yet, other locales across the country have been inundated. What does this mean when you have a dog? Well in our case, it means when we go outside for daily walks, we run of the risk of harming fragile paws from neighbors who over-enthusiastically spread snow melt on sidewalks and driveways. Great for humans, not so great for the ‘paw set.’

img_1261Sure, putting on boots for extended walks protects them but installation on 8 paws isn’t possible all the time or particularly appreciated by the fur-gallery around the Ranch. Sam reluctantly allows boots, but Elsa on the other hand starts pirouetting around like Mikhail Baryshnikov. I haven’t been able to convince her yet that snow boots are not some torturous form of Chinese foot binding. So we often end up walking in the gutter area of the street when there is a lot of salt spread on walks and I have to keep her from licking her paws when it builds up. Conversely, avoiding salted walks by walking on snow-covered streets sometimes results in ice balls building up in their pads so we have to stop and remove them since they probably feel a little like a small stone in your shoe. I know I can’t walk like that and don’t expect my fur-kids to do so either.

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We had hospital duty over the weekend and maintenance always over salts the walkways from the parking lot to the entrance even though the snow from our last storm was over two weeks ago as well as probably 95% melted. Luckily I carry individual wipes with me whenever we go to the hospital during the winter.  And with all sorts of potential germs in a hospital setting, I don’t want Sam licking his paws when we get home. It also inspired me to look for a recipe I could easily make that would help comfort and protect paws, especially in winter.

And voila! Just look at this one with minimal ingredients. Should be easy to protect the fur-kids’ paws when we don’t wear snow boots. Calendula is super healing, avocado and coconut will be extra moisturizing and beeswax will help coat and protect the surface of their paws.

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How do you protect your pups’ paws in winter?

Live, love, bark! ❤