Yesterday, I stomped down our driveway, lined by snow-covered Cedar and Hemlock trees, bending their boughs with the weight of snow.
I walked by the goat pasture, where we keep this year's babies - not babies any more, but friendly, fat goats, fur fluffed up to keep them warm, greeting me with loud maaahs to entice me to throw them a flake of hay.
My destination was my neighbor's house, where we gathered for singing practice with another friend. The three of us have been singing a capella for seven years.
Walking up the hill to meet them, looking at all the beauty around me, anticipating joining voices with my friends, I felt a little weepy with gratitude for my life. (Steve recorded us singing by the river last year, if you want to hear us sing.)
Of course, our (human) kids LOVE the snow. In fact, they are building a snow fort as I write this, because it snowed some more since yesterday. Little Eva just brought our dog Raka inside, since Raka apparently is intent on destroying their fort.
So she's curling up by the woodstove now, keeping me company. I'm writing this by the twinkling lights on the tree, listening to Christmas music. We put up the tree two nights ago.
Yes, it's Christmassy around here.
Before all the snow hit, we prepared for it by harvesting kale from the garden and moving the greenhouse over the rest of the kale and collard bed to protect it, so we'll hopefully have greens all winter long.
Before the North-Easter blew in, two days of cold weather with sunshine made for beautiful walks in the neighborhood. Let me show off some of the eye candy around here.
I hope you are able to find peace right now as well. I know things are crazy out there, with lots of anxiety and polarity everywhere.
Let me leave you with images of what keeps me sane.
My oldest son making waffles for the whole family:
My younger son homeschooling at the kitchen table, framed with all the paper snowflakes he has been cutting:
Visiting dear friends with a new puppy:
Watching my kids play in the snow. I keep telling them: "You could be sitting in school right now", and they roll their eyes at me.
My beloved family:
