March-- In Like a Lion, Out Like a Lamb

The temps here in Michigan bounced up a little bit in the first few days of March.  Some days were even slightly above 32.

But this morning we are back to the single digits edging up to the teens by the afternoon.

Since yesterday was warmer we did have a lot of melting of accumulated snow.  The sidewalks are mostly dry.  Love that.

But since we have maybe a foot or more on the grass what melted was mostly on the top surface.  When that wetness met today's cold temperatures we ended up with a glossy, icy sheen on top of all the snow.

If my children were small I know they would want to try sliding on this.  But you can see from the above photo, it won't hold much weight.

It's very beautiful though.

I love the variety of weather, and especially the variety of snow/ice conditions we get here in Michigan.  It's most pleasant in March because we know that Spring in all its glory is right around the corner. (Well, getting close to the corner, anyway.)

It has come to my attention recently that not everyone is familiar with the expression, "In like a lion, out like a lamb." Sadie Stein at Paris Review has written a nice explanation of the proverb.

“In like a lion, out like a lamb” has always seemed a straightforward enough proverb: when March starts, it’s still winter, and by the end of the month spring has begun. True, in many climates the weather hasn’t quite reached the lamb stage by the end of the month—it’s more like a surly cat, maybe, or one of those awful territorial honking geese. But we get the idea. I have seen the phrase referred to as an “eighteenth-century saying” in more than one unreliable Internet source, while Wikipedia calls it “an old Pennsylvania” saw.

You can read the rest of her post here.