We Were Warned...

They told us it was going to get cold.  Actually, it's BEEN cold, here at the Patchwork Garden.  Just not this cold.

When I first woke up this morning, it was 8 (eight) degrees Fahrenheit. 

I went back to bed.

A couple of hours later, it had warmed up.  Wow...10 (ten) degrees.  That's what the old fashioned thermometer said. 

The new fangled one, that has the thermometer outside and you read it inside, said 9 degrees.  What's one degree, right?

The water along the sides of the creek was frozen.

This side looked like someone had painted it, with a heavy brush.  Or did some critters come out to skate across it?

This side was just frozen solid....the leaves all suspended in the ice.

I hope the icy grass on the golf course, was because they watered before the freeze.  That's supposed to help insulate.

 These blades of frozen grass, look like ice straws.

The prickly pear growing along the creek was frosted.

And, the gourd birdhouse, hanging high in the tree, was sprinkle with glittery frost.

Could this little guy be the one who left the skate pattern on the ice?  He looked cold, with his feathers all fluffed out.  Probably looking for a drink.  There was still water flowing along. 

It's supposed to be cold again, tonight.  I need to go cover some things, again.

You know....maybe we should've taken Santa's lead...

and headed on down to the tropics, after the Holidays.

Stay warm.

You Can't Win 'Em All

Well....looks like you can't win 'em all.  You can try.  But, sometimes it just doesn't work out.

The Longhorns lost the big game. 

Our starting quarterback was hurt within the first five plays of the game.

Our back-up quarterback is good.  But, he's a very young man, and had little or no experience in college play.  He'll be back next year, and he'll do a good job for the team.

But, on this night, in the Rose Bowl, the team just couldn't pull it off.  They gave it a good try.  There were some exciting plays.  It even looked for a while, like they'd make it.  But, it just was not to be.

So, congratulations to Alabama.  They played a good game.

We still love our team.  They'll be back strong.  We'll be there to watch.

HOOK 'EM HORNS!!

Live the Dream Again...

As you may know, we are HUGE Longhorn fans.
And, as you may also know, The Longhorns of The University of Texas are playing the
The Crimson Tide of The University of Alabama for the
BCS National Championship.
January 7, 2010
in the
Rose Bowl.

Here's hoping these young men play a good game, nobody gets hurt and
let the best team win.

and.....

Hook 'em Horns!!!

Road Trip....Fredericksburg, Texas

We've had some pretty days lately.  Cold and crisp, with the kind of bright sky you only get, with that kind of weather.

We took advantage of the day, and took a short drive over to Fredericksburg. 

Fredricksburg is a Hill Country town, settled by Germans, in the 1840s.  It's famous for it's quaint bed and breakfast lodging, and shopping.  And, of course, the old fashioned German ambience.

We went to see the German Christmas Windmill.  It's almost thirty feet high.  

Each tier depicts a different aspect of German Christmas decorating.

The bottom tier, depicts the Nativity.

The shepherds.

The three Kings.

A tier with carolers.

Wooden 'smokers'.  Small sizes of these would burn incense.

There were tiers with Nutcrackers and Angels....but, for some reason, I didn't get photos of those.

A real Christmas windmill would be powered by candles.  The 'candles' on this one, are powered by electricity, as is the windmill.  The figures parade around and around.

It was a nice day.