@cee-dee 

I know this is an older thread but it caught my eye and YES we celebrated the Winter Solstice here ... we're on the east coast of the US and where we are in the time zone it is dark at 5 PM local time ... a real bummer.  BUT, as soon as the W.S. happens daylight hours slowly start to increase and now (early Feb) it is light until almost 6 PM.  

As to our flower bulbs, well, they won't see the light of day for months.  We've had a colder than normal winter here and presently have 7 inches of snow on the ground with a thick crust on top from 1 - 2 inches of sleet that fell at the end of the last snowstorm.  Frigid temps have kept the crust solid so much so that young children and pets can walk or slide on top of the snow LOL!