Hi JXBeeman:
We all know what you mean - it's easy to get caught up in a bad slump, where no matter how well you prepare, your bees just don't survive the Winters.
I hope the forums help better that streak.
The decades of combined experience is well worth tapping and just think, there are many members with Winters exponentially more brutal than ours - so you should have plenty of help in next seasons preparation.
Please post as often as you feel like - sharing images, sound files, etc., are a great way to interact and this forum software allows for some creative communication :)
Also, on March 20th we have Howland Blackiston (author of Beekeeping for dummies) live in our chatroom - try to make that gathering and post about any issues that come to mind.
I think we all need to do EARLY SPRING REASSESSMENT - as we enter the following months of pollen and nectar flow, we have to make the conditions THE BEST for the workers to prepare for NEXT Winter.
We can all put our thinking caps on, but strong queens, early morning flights, sunny locations, good venting, sugar syrup feeding and schedule inspections, proper medication treatment and agreeable weather all make for a more successful season in our beeyards.
Welcome to the forums - great to have you here with us :)