Today has been like spring again - sunny and temps in the 30s.  Even tonight it's only 31 degrees.  We're in for some rain tomorrow, and perhaps some mixed precipitation, but overall it looks pretty good until the weekend, and then snow and cold again.  

The Ice-Out block and flag are out.  Larry took care of it early this morning and Diane sent this photo.  Click on it to make it larger.  Larry said he modified it a little by making the wooden support a little bigger for the blocks to sit on - and the flag is new.  Pretty snazzy.  Now if things just don't get all warm and sloppy so the clock stops before the April 1 deadline . . . but the way our weather has been all winter, it's impossible to know what will happen.  If the weather pattern holds and we continue to get these very cold periods, I'm thinking it could be a normal spring.  There's no way to tell.

Granddaughter, Jo-Ann ("Jo-Jo") is in Domican Republic with a group from her school, doing volunteer work during spring break.  Her dad gave me a link to the Batey Foundation Facebook page 
I also grabbed some photos from the page.  The top photo is Jo-Jo on the right and her friend from school, Chantal,  I think they were still in Vermont - on the bus before their flight Saturday.

 The group apparently got right to work - there were nine students in the group.  That's Jo-Jo in the light blue tee, and below, Jo-Jo working with some little ones.  She likes working with children and is very good with them.

It looks like they'll have plenty to keep them busy while they're there.  The Bateyes are communities where migrant sugar cane workers live and conditions there are very bad.  The Batey Foundation, based in Bethlehem, N. H., has focused on helping the people who live in these communities, many from Haiti.  Until I did a little research, I had no idea this was where these young people from White Mountain School would be working.  Conditions in these communities, or bateyes, are terrible and it will be wonderful if the group can help them in even small ways during their time there.