It is still winter, after all!

I was beginning to wonder whether I would see snow "up close and personal" at all this winter.  Unlike the winter of 2010-11, when there were heavy snowfalls on both sides of the Atlantic in December and January, this year, snow has been sparse in areas where I have been.  In mid-December, I was able to see snow on the slopes of the nearby Jura Mountains just before I left for the US,

while the plain areas near the lake looked as if Spring would be right around the corner.

The closest we got to snow over the holidays was during a performance of "White Christmas" at Toby's Dinner Theater when artificial "snowflakes" began falling during the last ensemble scene.  The whole time that I was in Maryland, there was never more than the merest whisper of snow.  Even then, nothing stayed on the ground for long.   Both in Maryland and here, there has been plenty of moisture, but the temperatures have stayed resolutely above freezing except in the mountains where all the ski areas are ecstatically welcoming ski tourists.  But that all changed last night, when snow began falling around midnight.  This morning, I woke up to this

and this.

I decided that the snow was much better viewed from inside,

especially because it was also much warmer inside.

While I am very glad that I didn't miss snow entirely this winter,

I am still happiest of all that I did not have to go anywhere today!