Spring is Here!

I know that spring arrived officially about ten day ago. I am sure its arrival is quite welcoming in most of the country especially on the east coast which had record snow fall this year.

Here in the northwest spring seemed to arrival quite early. In fact, it feels like spring started at the beginning of 2015. It is not quite true but very close to it. In February we had temperatures reach into the low sixties which broke the high temperatures for quite a few days. In March it has not changed much either. This last week the temperatures reached into the mid-sixties, and this week more likely the same.

Back in September there was talk that we would have a mild winter; however, I never did expect it to be this winter this warm. In mid-November we had about ten days where the temperatures were down around freezing but the rest of the winter the temperatures were in the low forties. After that we only had a couple days where the temperatures reached freezing in late February. I know because I had to scrape ice off the windows of my car.

Though the temperatures have been abnormal for the northwest we did have our normal rainfall. The mountains did not have their normal snow levels. In fact, they received very little snow so the skiing season has been very short lived. So February and March have felt more like May and June instead. Though we have had normal rainfall the sun has come out more often than usual. If you are not familiar with the northwest most days when it does not rain we still see very little bit of the sun usually the days are overcast. The days it does rain it does not do so all day long. We usually find that there are times of the day where there is no rain. Often it does not rain later in the afternoon or evening. A lot of rain happens in the morning and late at night. The days where it does rain all day long usually it does not rain very hard either; though in November, December, and January do have some days where the rain will go hard all day long. It may last for a few days in a row as well. Those three months are when we get most of our rainfall.

I certainly miss the snowfall. Recently in one of our daily newspaper they said that the electrical power companies are not concerned about the lack of snowfall. They saved up enough water through rainfall. Snow is an extra luxury; however lack of snow could be a concern for having forest fires. Also, they say in the next fifty years this could be the normal in the northwest. I know it has become milder during the winter than we had when I was a child. I remember a number of years we had quite a bit of snow. Of course being a small child you can think the snowfall is more than it really was; however, we were sent how from school early, and missed some school days more often than not.

I am not sure what is expected for next winter since we have had three mild winters in a row. I am sure that we will have a lot of snow next year unless we have another mild winter. Other words going good to really bad; anything more than four or five inches of snow at one time will freak people out. They have enough trouble driving in normal conditions.

I hope wherever you are that you have a wonderful spring. May you have good health along with many blessings.