Saturday fun - household chores

After a morning spent cooking (chocolate cranberry tart for tonight's dinner party & new batch of granola), the temperature actually got above freezing so Mrs. Phactor decides we should take down lights and other outdoor ornaments. Walk around the estate showed that the rabbits were delighted that the flowering quince did not get protected by fencing; it is now thoroughly pruned. They also ate the needles, but not the twigs, off a newly plants white pine that has limbs near ground level. As good "parents" we put the Wisconsin born Norwegian forest cat kitten in her harness and let her explore the great snowy outdoors, a new experience. It was great fun even if paws did get wet and cold. Oh, these pampered house pets have it so soft. And it's so funny that all those squirrels you see outside the windows just never seem to be around when the cats go outside. Funny how that works. But good thing to get some outdoor chores done because more winter weather is on the way this coming week. 49 days of snow cover so far with February yet to go and our average is about 40 days. This is not a bad thing for the plants at all. And the granola seems like a good batch; no two are ever completely alike. The tart is spectacular.