Home is where the... snow is.

It melts on this sunny deck but don't let that fool you.

We have 400 inches of snow. 

We set that record while I was searching for some sunshine in Arizona. [With zero luck, I might add.] 

It's a lot deeper on the other side of the mountains ~ 5 miles west, as the crow flies. Although crows are way too smart to be hanging around here.

Snowbird has 700 inches of snow. No need to get out the calculator. I did that earlier this morning. I mean it's not like I have anything better to do. I'm stuck indoors. Because it's still snowing. 700 inches = 58 feet of snow. 

Snowbird received 5 feet of fresh snow in the last 5 days. 

Snows have reached the roof level.

It's snowing sideways right now ~ a bitterly cold wind battering this old house. It's almost April. It should be springtime. Crocus should be blooming. Maybe they are blooming! Do you suppose they do that? Beneath this mountain of snow.

I imagine you're not the slightest bit interested in my snow report.

But I just have one last thing to say: Enough Already! 

Okay. Two things: I'm glad I don't live in California ~ it's even crazier farther west.

Indoors ~ things are a whole lot prettier. Shock of the world... Everybody survived. 

As in all the houseplants left to fend for themselves during the 6 weeks we were gone. 

I don't know what possessed me... well, that's not true I know exactly what possessed me. I just hate to see all my little annuals die in the first freak freeze which happened in October. To save them, I dragged one of the outdoor planters indoors for the winter.

At first I felt kind of foolish. But I gotta tell ya... That planter is keeping me sane. 

It's so nice to have my morning coffee with these pretty little Pansies. ↓

Geraniums don't know how lucky they are. Rescued from the garden last autumn. ↓

Happy little Daisies, planted by seed. ↓

Easy to grow Kalanchoe. ↓

Did you know Kalanchoe (K. blossfeldiana) can live for a hundred years? Why yes, indeedy, they do. So stop throwing these grocery-store cuties away. They're perennials. Give them a chance to re-bloom. You'll be glad you did.

AND! Tulips!! 

I always keep a bag of Tulips in my refrigerator. Force the bulbs indoors for a little bit of Easter color.

√ It's really easy to 'force' Tulip bulbs. You basically take them out of the refrigerator and say: Okay do your thing. They'll flower with or without soil. But, of course, they appreciate a drink of water.

This year, I planted my Tulip bulbs - indoors - in the planter - before I left on vacation. And for once in this gardener's life, these flowers did exactly what they were supposed to do.

Filled my house with glorious spring colors.

It was a pretty wonderful welcome home to see them all blooming.

After I climbed over the 6-foot snow drift blocking my front door. :)

The I'm Not Kidding Ghost In The Attic

We've driven as far south as we can go - without a passport - and it's still snowing.

↑ 11 miles from the Mexico Border.  ↑

When we embarked on this Let's Head South to Warm Up, impromptu road trip, I packed two suitcases. One for hot weather - one for warm weather. Bit the bullet, got a pedicure, prior to my departure. Couldn't hardly wait to put my sandals on.

Packed three whole items for cold weather. Confident I'd be escaping the snows very, very soon. Been living in a filthy sweatshirt and a pair of dirty jeans for a couple weeks now. The only warm clothes I have. I haven't been warm since we hopped in the car, eager to leave winter far behind.

It makes sense that I'm suffering through a super snowy winter. I live high in the mountains in a ski resort.

It does not make sense that the father south we drive, the colder it gets.

After departing chilly Sedona, we headed much further south.

Tombstone was a ghost town. Which makes sense ~ seeing as how their biggest attraction is shooting each other every hour, on the hour, at the OK Corral. 

I suppose the lack of tourists stems from the fact that it was so freaking cold there nobody felt like cheering on the Gunslingers. 

This is a major thoroughfare and a two-way street.

From Tombstone, we headed farther south, to Bisbee.  We were lost the whole time we were there. I'm still laughing that it took us 30 minutes to find a restaurant that was only 1/2 mile away! 

*  FYI ~ once we did find Cafe Roka (sign in the photo - I think I hold the Guinness Book of World Records for u-turns, while on vacation) it was the best meal I've ever enjoyed.

The town gets much prettier when you drive around the corner. 

Bisbee is an eccentric, artsy, ghost-loving community. Which sounded like kind of a crazy claim to fame. Oh, lookee there! Isn't that cute? I thought to myself, when I saw that Bisbee was listed as one of the most haunted places in Arizona.

We came to stay at this lovely 100 year old mansion. ↓

When the weather cooperates, it looks like this vs. the top photo in this blog post. When it's covered in snow. 

When I booked this place I envisioned me in Donna's glorious garden. Me in a tank top, sipping lemonade, and photographing her lovely flowers... and... what? 

Eleven miles from the Mexico border - it was 18 degrees the day we arrived.

Look up! Complimentary wine but you must climb to rafters to retrieve it. :)

I fell in love the moment we walked inside. Have always dreamed of having a country kitchen in a wonderful old home like this one. Sans the ghost.

Yep. Pretty sure it was haunted. 

That's crazy! YOU are saying to yourself at this very moment. 

I'm a light sleeper - woke in the middle of the night, hearing footsteps. Figured it was Hazel (I picked up a friend at the Phoenix airport for the last half of this journey.) But then I heard her snoring in the next room. Which is right about the time I remembered why I don't travel with her that often.  :)

Footsteps. In the attic. And no dog.

Even when he's bored to tears, while I'm working on my computer, Charlie never leaves my side.

Charlie refused to come upstairs in that house. 

He's been by my side every day for the last 8 years. We sleep together every night. 

But Charlie wouldn't come upstairs to sleep with me while were staying in that house. Flatly refused. Which felt so very strange. Until I heard the spooky visitor in the attic in the middle of the night.

So there you have it. Truth in advertising. Bisbee really is a ghost town. And there's absolutely no need to book one of those super popular ghost tours the town offers. Just book the place I stayed in.

* If you don't believe me, believe in Charlie Waffles. He was smart enough to sleep downstairs on the couch.