I hadn't even been over here to check comments for months --- sorry to leave so many of you dangling in moderation, especially when you were all so thoughtful and kind. Rather than answering you individually, here's a holiday-letter type of rundown from the last three months.

Most relevantly, we sold our Virginia farm. It was a bittersweet moment, but we're glad of the time and money freed up as we move on to new Adventures.

Mark won a $100 voucher for our local 3-D printing workshop, but he hasn't used it yet. He also finished up an ultra-short documentary about our new stomping grounds and was pleased to have it chosen for our local community film festival. He continues to take one class per semester at the local university and to help other students with their films while he scratches his own creative itch.

In December, we celebrated our 30-40-50 birthday parties with my cousin-in-law, in from Europe for the occasion.

Then we repainted the living room wall and turned it into a Star Wars zone in honor of Mark's new decade.

It Snowed and snowed and snowed and snowed, and the neighbor kids helped turn the white stuff into sculptures.

They also helped sweeten the fact that someone kicked in our trailer Door two days before Thanksgiving and stole our new chainsaw and two heirloom shotguns. So we replaced the door and installed a fancy security system...not that we have anything else worth stealing. (We haven't replaced the chainsaw or guns...so please leave our poor door alone!)

I broke Mark's truck...

...and he now cooks all the lunches. Our relationship is really very even...I promise.

(Yes, the truck is now fixed, just in time for hauling manure for the garden.)

We got to see a real, live fox at the library...

...and visited a Native American petroglyph, both of which fed into my fiction writing.

I started broccoli and parsley inside then gambled and direct-seeded early peas and lettuce. Many more crops are on the agenda for the months ahead, of course.

And I went on hikes here,

there,

and everywhere.

Until the next time I'm randomly called to upload photos...happy adventures!