We made it.

It’s been a long winter. A winter that, for those of us in Central Pennsylvania, has been harsher than many of those in recent years. We experienced more days below zero or in the single digits than I can remember, and snow has been on the ground nearly continuously all season.

I’m usually not one to complain about winter. I don’t mind the cold that much, and I love the snow. But I can’t deny that I’ve recently come to be winter-weary, and I’ve been more than ready for spring for a while now.

This weekend, I think we’ve finally seen the light at the end of the tunnel of winter. It’s been sunny and warmer (in the 40s), and while our lane is still snowed in and we’ll still be hiking a half mile or so to get home for a little bit longer, I think the days of bitter cold are over. Today, we got to turn the clocks forward an hour to begin Daylight Savings Time. Never before have I been so excited for that extra hour of light in the evening as I was this year.

Evan, myself, and the dog took advantage of this first extra hour of light by taking a walk in the woods near the cabin, exploring unknown areas so close to home and enjoying the rays of sunlight that were still filtering through the trees at an hour that we were so used to being pitch black.

I think that now, we can officially say we made it through this winter, living together in a 120 square foot cabin with no running water and a woodstove for heat. It certainly hasn’t always been easy, but it’s definitely been an adventure, and this spring will be more appreciated than most.