One of my favorite things about living at Dancing Rabbit is the snow we get in the winter. Liz here, to catch you up on the latest in our village.

Four days ago, I opened my door in the morning and found that overnight the landscape had transformed with a blanket of about six inches of snow. That’s a lot for Northeast Missouri in one go. And then yesterday another day and night of snow left what looks like another six inches of snow. If we were still having coffee group, I could get an exact measurement of snowfall from Bob, but alas, coffee group has been suspended because of the number of Rabbits who have COVID right now.

I wasn’t surprised by the snow; I was delighted. Having moved to the Midwest from California seven years ago, I’ve learned to keep a close eye on the weather forecast. And if I forget, someone in the community will inevitably mention it. Talk of weather and the state of the roads is sometimes just chit chat, sometimes an offering of lifesaving information.

Before storms of any kind, I bring in extra firewood so it can dry out and make sure nothing outside of my cottage can blow away. I start stocking up on extra food beginning in November. So when the snow arrives, there’s nothing to do but follow my usual indoor routine, enjoy being warm inside and look out on a winter wonderland.

Last week I trudged through almost knee-deep snow to work at The Hub, a strawbale natural building project I’m creating. My son, Graham, who is staying in one of the lofts at The Hub, keeps the large masonry heater chugging away, so the building is comfortable to work in. This winter I have been working with new crew member, Xela, in the morning and with their life partner, Ciaran, in the afternoon. This schedule, and their enthusiasm for working, has made this a more productive winter than usual, and I’m riding the wave, grateful for how much is getting done.

The weekend arrives and with it yet another snow storm and colder temperatures (as I write this, it is four degrees Fahrenheit, with minus 12 wind chill and a low expected tonight of minus 16). I look out the window and my neighbors feel far away. I look for signs of life and I see rabbit tracks that lead to my front door and then away. I see wood smoke rising from Daniel and Tail’s house up the hill. The wind stirs branches of trees that are bending over with the weight of snow. Groups of sparrows, cardinals and buntings gather on branches, fluffing their feathers periodically before they all fly away at someone approaching on the road. Giant icicles are hanging from the eaves of all houses here and later when the sun comes out, they will randomly come crashing down, causing me to look up from what I’m doing for a second before I remember what that loud sound must be. Alis rides by in the tractor, clearing the gravel road of snow.

I go through my morning routine of starting a wood fire, brewing a mug of orange zinger tea, and looking at Facebook for 15 minutes while I sit exposed to a broad spectrum light. I meditate and then stretch and do deep squats. The winter cold is so contracting to the body, I make sure I do some qigong as well, trying to expand back out. Then it’s time for strong coffee and a filling breakfast of diced onions, yams and potato fried up with a scrambled egg. I add a protein shake to that to help build and maintain muscle.

My natural inclination when there is heavy snow, or storms, or tornados, or lightning, or high winds, or ice or any other threatening weather, is to be in the company of others. Knowing my neighbors gives me comfort. I don’t usually follow my inclination; this part of my life has been about cultivating inner qualities and learning to leverage my natural independence in a place that has its physical challenges and to see what I’m made of, to dig deeper into who I am. Still, I’m having frequent thoughts of who might be at the Common House right now (it doesn’t help that Kelly just posted a photo from there, holding new baby Willow).

We haven’t had a regular newsletter over the holidays and a lot has happened at Dancing Rabbit. Of course, where there are Rabbits, there is that. Graham, Xela, Ciaran, Mae, K* and various kids got together and built a snow fort at the front of the village. The second day after the first big snowfall, Rabbits headed for a nearby hill we call Vista De La Moo to go sledding because apparently the second day after a snow, with a bit of crust forming on the top, makes for top sledding speeds.

Asher, one of our new residents, celebrated his fourth birthday, in between the two snow storms. Alline baked him a chocolate cake with a surprise rainbow sprinkle-filled center and her homemade jam in between cake layers. Asher had his first piece of cake for breakfast, along with a playdate with me right after breakfast. Ya know, I’m getting kinda fond of this little guy…

With 13 or so Rabbits testing positive for COVID in recent weeks, DR’s Care Committee has been busy fielding requests for water and other supplies delivered to the sick. I am grateful not to be sick, and grateful that if I should become ill and need assistance, that this committee is there to help. Thanks to Dorothy and other members of the Care Committee, who do so much to take care of the village.

I mentioned new crew members and a productive building season, so here are the specifics. After procrastinating on starting the bathroom for the last year, I was finally ready to manifest it. Ciaran helped with that, with his inventive mind and willingness to talk in circles with me about requirements and solutions for each part of this systems-heavy room. And then there is the somewhat ambitious requirement of my own for a tadelakt plaster shower wall, stone bench seat with osage legs, and an upgraded humey system, complete with urine diverter into drainage and a tiny fan for odor control. I had done the research, made most of the decisions, and purchased most of the supplies for my ideas within the last year, and now it was time to manifest it!

We started with pallet boards on the ceiling, concealing wiring for an overhead light. After living with that ceiling for a while, and not liking it much, I redid it, offsetting the boards. Working with irregular pallet boards requires a new level of patience, which I’m not sure I achieved, but it’s almost done. We will caulk between the boards to keep moisture out, and then paint the whole thing a neutral, light, maize color to reflect as much light as possible into the space.

One of the walls of the bathroom is a bottle wall (glass bottles of various sizes and colors, cut and inserted into the cob wall to let light in) which Prairie and I built up to the rough cob stage several years ago. I recently cut out diamond shapes to insert two eight-by-eight-inch glass blocks so that even more light from the hall can shine through them. I then added finish plaster on the hall side of this light clay straw interior wall. Ciaran used bags of free sheep waste wool as insulation in the bathroom wall and put up plastic sheeting as a water barrier. I reviewed the tangle of romex electrical wires sticking out of the walls and was finally (finally!) ready to close up the walls.

We layed out hot and cold pex tubes for supplying water to the shower, bathroom sink and kitchen sink, threading them behind the wall and past some wood posts, with the requirement that we be able to access them in the future for repair. We made finish plaster (in the middle of winter, no less!) and leveled the bathroom cob floor with it, getting ready for the next layers needed for a tile floor and shower pan on top of the cob plaster subfloor. The masonry heater allowed the plaster to dry in a reasonable amount of time.

Xela has rolled up their sleeves to move the kitchen closer to completion. We have a women’s natural building and retreat workshop scheduled for this coming September, hopefully hosted entirely from The Hub, and although that might seem far off, I feel a bit of pressure to get both the kitchen and the bathroom ready by then. I am so appreciative to Xela for helping the project with this crucial part of the build!

And of course, no project update would be complete without mentioning K* and her super power for keeping the work site organized and clean, so that we can all have a pleasant and productive work space. K* put together shelves for the storage area in the attic and organized boxes and bags so that we can find supplies quickly and effortlessly. Thanks K*! K* will move into upgrading the Sunrise loft, building bookshelves and creating a low profile armchair for a reading nook.

As I remove holiday decorations and cedar boughs from the window sills at The Hub, leaving the vibrant red poinsettias in pots as a spot of bright color, I mentally move into the new year, and put 2023 in my rear view mirror, so to speak. I wish everyone a happy new year and fair winds.

Liz Hackney is the editor of this newsletter. As the owner/builder of The Hub, she frequently feels the joy and the burdens of the project. As each aspect of the build is completed, her burdens lift. You can find her this week happily spending time in her warm, cozy cottage.