Our nice, large comfortable bed comes with a wardrobe of bedding choices in reflection of the seasons. At this time of year still stuck in the depths of winter blasts our bed is dressed in fleecy sheet sets; fitted and flat sheets and matching pillowcases all made of the very same 'fleece' that those zippered warm hoodies are made of.

That began for us about five or six years ago when we first saw them available at bed-and-bath linen shops and we've been devoted to their winter use ever since. We can sink into bed exhausted at night without having to 'warm' the bed coverings with our body heat. The fleecy material is itself soft and warm and welcoming. As the days and nights begin to warm, there will be a matching transition in sheet sets. I'll put away all the fleece sets until next winter and begin using flannel sheet sets.

They're nowhere near as warm on contact as the fleecy ones but they provide a level of comfort that cotton sheets can't at this time of year. Eventually when the atmosphere warms up sufficiently - say May - the flannel sheet sets too will be put away and the cotton ones brought out. We've found good-quality cotton sheets to breathe well and offer us the opposite 'cool' comfort we need in summer.

There are signs of winter's grip weakening. The sun is lower in the sky and warmer and when it's out even if the temperature is slightly below freezing, the snow succumbs to the sun's warming rays and begins to melt. There's been a noticeable difference in the snowpack around the house and a corresponding difference in the accumulated snow in the forest. It will take time, however, for it all to melt, allowing spring to release the soil from its frost-depth and the vegetation in gardens and the forest floor to free themselves to sprout.

The high temperature yesterday was -2C, relatively mild, but very windy and the air seemed very icily nippy on our faces as we sauntered through the forest trails with Jackie and Jillie in the early afternoon. There'll be little difference today; just a mite colder but less wind, with the windchill factor giving us a feeling of -12C.

The trails were variously icy or ice-crumbling as we went along, depending on exposure here and there to the sun. It's gratifying that the little rubber boots on Jackie and Jillie's tiny feet don't cause them to slip inordinately though there are times when they do visibly slide on the icy surfaces, ascending or descending hills. Our cleated boots work well to keep us pretty stable. It is tiring, though, walking on the uneven surface that the trails have become, resulting from alternating mild and icy days and snowfalls competing with rain events, chopping up the ice and snow on the trails into footed potholes.

The creek was fairly full yesterday, but unlike the day before it no longer reeked of sulphur. All the signs are there, spring is timorously entering, despite winter's defiant refusal to exit with grace.