Blooms, Snowbirds and Students

Well, here's the weekend report from beautiful downtown Bel Nor. We didn't get ice beyond 1/4 inch last weekend, and we didn't lose power. But this weekend (Saturday the 15th and Saturday night) we had almost 7 inches of snow that fell in two waves.
But first, The Amaryllis is Blooming! This is the first plant to bloom but another has a stalk almost a foot high and it should bloom by Christmas. After I posted the photo of this one in bud, brother Don in Garden City sent photos of their amarylli in bloom at the same time.

So while Mom Linville's legacy bloomed on inside the house, The Juncos, who had arrived a couple of weeks ago, were testing the thistle feeder. Our wintering gold finches seem to have taken a short vacation, and haven't been around, so these guys had to hop up and perch to get their dinner. This photo was about noon, when only 2 inches of snow was on the ground. I'll put up some shots of the aftermath of the storm in another post.

Although the weather outside was frightful, a small group of determined students from the school newspaper showed up at our house for their holiday party, anyway. And they all made it home safely, although one didn't call me about his arrival until 1 a.m. Here are Matt, Elizabeth, Carrie, Paul, Justi and Thomas (kneeling) after dinner and just after we opened white elephant gifts. They love to play a game called Apples and Oranges. It helps to know an adjective from a noun to play this game.

My relatives in Tulsa had a bad time in the ice storm down there; six days without power for Debi and Mike, and their daughter and other family were still waiting yesterday to get reconnected. Debi has posted pictures of their storm damage on her blog, Debide's View (link in the box of Blogs at right.) Norm's brother Don said Garden City escaped the ice. We hope all the other sibs did, too. Norm's niece Debbie Berndsen in Hutchinson, Kansas, has ice storm news on her blog, Creative Reflections, as well. (Link also at right.)