This is what zero degrees Fahrenheit looked like here this morning.



We make a big deal about snowstorms and single digit temperatures around here because we don't have them very often. We have several snowstorms a year, but we can never count on a white Christmas. We got 6 inches between Sunday afternoon and yesterday afternoon. Our record low temperature is 19 below zero, but it's been a long time since it's been zero or below.

I love the way snow covers up my undone chores and makes everything look pretty. I'm also struck every time I go out in a snowstorm by how quiet it is. I am very aware that I would not see it like this if I could not retreat to my cozy house whenever I wanted.

By the time I thought about covering the remaining carrots, it was too cold to go out and do it. Maybe the snow will insulate them.

I worry about the wild horses who live in the hills around here. I may be posting photos soon because we have been seeing them in the next block lately. There was one pawing through the snow on a neighbor's lawn when we left this morning; it was up to 7 degrees by then. I have mixed feelings about them. On one hand, horses are beautiful and I used to read all the Marguerite Henry books about wild horses. On the other hand, they are not a native species and they can do a lot of damage when they are forced to eat landscaping to survive. I'm also scared of hitting one in the middle of the street at night (we don't have streetlights, and most of the horses are dark brown). No one can agree on the best thing to do with them or about them.

But don't worry about the voles—I'm sure they'll be fine.