254/365 First real snowfall

When I woke up this morning, my first thought was of snow. I still love that childlike excitement that comes with not knowing what to expect when you roll out of bed. Will it have fizzled out? Will it have dumped inches on us?

This morning's snow was as expected -- about one inch. Nothing amazing, but fun nonetheless. So the first thing I did after breakfast was lace up my snow boots and trek outside.

The pond had a thin layer of ice on it, on top of which was a mottled layer of melted and frozen snow. What caught my eye was this pattern that surrounded and branched out from each captured leaf:
These were scattered all over the pond, and I have no idea why or how they formed.

The horses were out in the field, enjoying their breakfast. Oprah and Shep trotted farther down the field when I approached, but the-horse-still-called-Destiny wasn't camera shy at all. See that striking blue eye?

Against the barren trees and white snow, she looks like a black-and-white photograph, even though it's completely in color.

I love a lot of things about snow, and one is the way it gently blankets everything.

It sure makes me ready for Christmas!

Camera: Canon 40D, 1/125s, f/5.6 at ISO 200 at about 9:00 a.m.