The theme of the week - cold. Last weekend's storm brought some 7" of snow, measured after the precipitation changed from snow to graupel to rain, waterlogging and likely compressing the snow. Temps dropped well below freezing shortly after the storm passed and froze everything solid. I had cleaned up as well as I could before the freeze but getting around outside took effort. 
Ice was so thick on top of the snow that I could walk around the whole yard (small area) without breaking through, measuring the snowpack took an extra effort to break through it without compressing it. I found the sharp point on the metal snow ruler worked well to break through and the slot it created was still accessible a few days later. Cleats on boots was another option that proved to be a success. The good news is that the sequence of snow, sleet (or graupel) and rain did not weigh down the trees much, so we avoided a lot of tree and power line damage. 
The trend this coming week is a warmup. We are all hopeful that much of the ice will melt away. TV meteorologists have pointed out that these conditions are spread throughout most of the interior parts of the state, and we will all likely see the ice start melting away. I'm happy for that.
The local ski hill was packed yesterday when we drove by, plenty of people are taking advantage of the conditions. The usual cast of critter characters are out and about - squirrels, sparrows and juncoes. Lastly, spring is right around the corner, at least the meteorological start of the season.