Our Christmas yurt photos will be up soon. We had a cozy Wilia at the yurt, with an abundance of stove-top foods: pierogi, fish, soup, olives, and amazing fresh-baked cookies brought by friends. The yurt is aesthetically ideal for Wilia, it's roundness and warmth emphasising the welcoming and familial tone of the dinner. Our tree stood proudly in the center, ten feet tall, and surrounded by presents. The wood-stove radiated warmth, and even Luba helped out, by ripping apart the ornaments we don't like - hung to tempt her on the bottom branches of the tree.

Sunday night we had the first storm of the season, dropping about 12-15" on our land, and blowing the snow in big blustery gusts against the walls of the yurt. The storm continued through Monday, and we spent most of the day inside, though my husband did venture out to enjoy his Christmas Chainsaw and add to our wood-pile. We drank a lot of tea and hot buttered rum (though I tried to keep my rum consumption to a minimum), watched movies on the computer and read our Christmas books. The snow stopped falling after dark, but the wind continued.

This morning, when I tried to get out of the driveway, I realized that my little Saturn could not push through 15 inches of snow in our unplowed, and very long driveway, my husband had to push me out with his very intrepid Subaru. Those of you who have seen our driveway can imagine how very long and difficult that trip was. We'll be parking the Saturn at the end of the driveway for now, so that it doesn't end up trapped until spring.

I never really expected to see myself, driving through deep snow, pushed by another car and trying desperately to avoid getting caught in deep drifts. Of course, I also didn't expect myself to be living without electricity or plumbing, in the winter, and enjoying it. There is a lot to laugh over out here, a lot to enjoy, and so much beauty all around. I'm looking forward to 2011, and all the blessings that belong to that year.