I’ve been in Montana eighteen years now.  I think about other places but I can’t imagine leaving here.  Weather is not the best, though every place has its issues, I know.   Maybe too much snow or rain, heat or wind.  I knew there’d be hard winters here, with long dormant periods, waiting and waiting for the ice to melt, the mud to dry up and the spring winds to quit.  It wasn’t long before I discovered the moments of perfection between spring and summer that make up for all the rest.   Mostly anyway 😊 

Winter has its moments.  I’m not a skier but I can appreciate the beauty of fresh snow, ice crystals and the colors of a winter sky.  All these pictures are just on my property but beauty extends for hundreds of miles. There is the endless blooming balsam root, and tucked in between are shooting stars, larkspur, old man’s whiskers, penstemon, glacier lilies, and frittilaries! The spring winds have stopped, we get occasional rain and temps can reach the 70s! Oh my goodness, so much to love.For about two weeks it’s woodland perfection!

It’s dog heaven here, regardless of the weather.  There is much to explore and sniff down the back of our property.  We’ve seen hundreds of deer, the occasional coyote and fox, one elk and one wolf, and I’d imagine dog noses could spend endless hours exploring.

Without going anywhere I have good examples of weather of all kinds, but right now is the very best.  Hillsides of blooming balsam root stretching for miles helps keep perspective when the same view is foggy and frozen, though blessings are many then too, as long as you’re well bundled 😀