Happy New Year!

Wishing my dear friends around the world a

very Happy and Blessed New Year.

Going towards a new year.

What a good thing that we can't look forward to see what the next year will bring. 2016 has had ups and downs for us, and for many others. We hope and pray that 2017 will be a peaceful one.

Decorations are still waiting to be taken down, but one of my plans for this coming year is to find some more reading time. 

Ebooks are fine, but I was given a selection of 'real' books as a gift and love the feel of holding a book in my hands rather than an e-reader.

One of the books was

'The dog who dared to dream' by a Korean author named Sun-Mi Hwang.

I found this an unusual book, centred round the short hard life of a dog called Scraggy. She lives with her owner, and assorted hens, cats etc. It isn't a comfortable tale. Her little life is full of sadness, her puppies are taken from her, her dreams are unfulfilled. I wanted so much more for her, but it wasn't to be.

I wonder if anyone else has read this?

I have a choice of different genres to work through now with my gift books, so I'm enjoying the thought of a few quiet days after the bustle of Christmas.

I'm going to be a hedgehog, wrapped in a quilt and hibernating with my pile of books. And coffee.

Christmas.

'The time came for the baby to be born, and Mary gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the Inn.'

Luke 2, vv 6/7

 

Amidst the rush, the bustle, the fun of Christmas, may there be moments when we have time to pause and reflect on this wonderful

event.

Nativity

Live Nativity scene performed at a village in Surrey.

Wintershall hosts this annually with up to ten performances, starring fifty local people, sheep, and other animals.

What a honour to be part of this amazing story.

Wishing you all a truly blessed and happy Christmas time.

Wreath making.

Continuing with a little decorating, a friend and I made wreaths this week.

I found some very solid moss covered bases on Ebay. We gathered lots of greenery, ivy, fir, holly and whatever we could find from our gardens. Then armed with wires and glue guns, ribbons and fircones we created very pretty wreaths.

Somehow more satisfying than buying a ready made one.

I wound mine round with little lights. They come on in the evening and switch themselves off later.

And a little tree now sits in a corner of the sitting room.

We're done.

Just in time to welcome my daughter and grandson, coming from Canada to be with us for Christmas.

Memories. Again.

Christmas childhood memories.

I know I have written about my childhood Christmases previously, but I still love to go over the memories.

A little decorating has begun, with my Austrian angel busily announcing the news.

The rushing home when term ended, knowing it would be time to put the tree up. The excitement of finding the box of decorations, pawing gently through the shiny baubles, remembering them from years of use. The favourites, the Angel, the star for the top of the tree. The discussions/arguments about just how much silver tinsel to use. (For me less was more. For my cousins...throw it all on!) Being allowed to clip the real candles on the tree, but not to light them.

And then mornings of making, what we would now term Craftwork. Making paper chains, laboriously licking the ends of each paper (no pre glued papers then). Painting walnut shells silver and making tiny boats to hang up on branches. Artificial 'snow' from a can being placed on the ends of branches...how we loved putting it on everything else too! Wrapping up our home made presents and hiding them. All our family Christmas cards were home made, messy, struggled with, but real.

The scents, oh, those Christmassy smells of spices, currants, citrus wafting from the kitchen as Grandma made the puddings. Then the savoury, sage and onion, used to stuff the turkey. The one and only time my Grandpa had a glass of sherry, an annual treat, the rich scent of that as he poured a glass.

No prepacked, no frozen, no supermarket last minute buys.
No media telling us what we most 'wanted' for a present.
But the fun of writing a letter to Father Christmas and sending it up the chimney.

And the best bit, saved till last, the arranging of the little carved wooden Crib scene on the side table, painstakingly placed amongst tufts of straw and with the baby in just the right position.

Decorating, a beginning.

I have recently woken up to the fact that everyone but me is doing amazing things with decorating for Christmas. I guess it's because decorating was always something that was never done before mid-December when I was growing up.

I have started with my blog background. Does that count as decorating?

Last weekend, the first of Advent, I did get out my Advent candle ring. We bought this in Liberty's many many years ago, and although it's a bit battered, it comes out every year with new candles.

Christmas cards have started arriving, three so far, but there will be many more.

And although it isn't strictly speaking, decorating, I made a dozen mince pies this morning.
Oddly, there seem to be only eleven?

I am hosting a wreath making morning for a couple of friends next week. So decorating is slowly getting under way.
I so admire the lovely decorated rooms on many beautiful blogs.

Last colours in the garden.

The last bits of colour in my garden.

An old granite trough full of baby Cyclamen.

A very early Camellia.

and a bowl full of Winter pansies.

Happily, the bulbs that I planted are beginning to show green shoots, so soon there will be colour again.

Happy Thanksgiving.

To all my dear American friends....

I think we should have Thanksgiving in the UK also.

Thank you letters.

Do you remember those days when a thank you letter was considered obligatory? I was reading Ciel's post on 'Surrounded by the Spirit'yesterday, saying that when she was a child no presents were played with until the letter was written.

My mother sat with a notebook and made a list as we opened Christmas presents from Aunts, cousins, friends. I did the same when my children were young. Yes, it was a chore to get those letters written, but we tried to do it within the week.

Out of interest I Googled 'thank you letters' and found that there were at least ten sites showing you how to write a thank you letter. I thought that was a bit sad. You can get ready printed cards, cards with half the sentence on , as in Thank you for the....., singing cards, photo cards, and so on.

A simple letter from a child, even if mis-spelt, saying thank you for the lovely present means more than any pre-prepared card. I still treasure little missives from grandchildren.

Sadly it seems that e mail has taken over and the joy of receiving a handwritten envelope through the mail is dying out.

What do you feel about thank you letters?

Weathery Ramblings.

Our weather is so temperamental.

No sooner than I had put washing out on a sunny , breezy morning....the hail came clattering down.

For a while the garden was white. The washing went in the Dryer,

and now, the sun is out again.

What does one do!

Looking up at the roof of the Sunroom.
Patterns on the glass!

Yesterday our Oil fired Boiler decided it had had enough and needed a day off. This isn't good news as my husband needs a warm house, so off he went to the sitting room, rug over knees and an electric fire on.

We have a wonderful service from our Oil supplier and their maintenance man came out by midday and put a new water pump in the boiler.

At a cost of over £200. Ouch.

Today the house is warm and comfortable.

We laughed when we remembered what we did to keep warm as children. With no Central heating in those days, the maxim was 'Put another sweater on'.

I have memories of grabbing my vest and school shirt and warming them under the blankets before I got up!

On a very cold day my Mum would hang our school clothes in front of the fire to be warm.

And then we walked the mile and a half to school.

I do wonder if my generation was hardier than today's.

Wintry things.

My friend tells me that her cat is putting on his Winter weight and extra furry coat.

He is a pretty big cat so must be preparing for a hard Winter.

The birds in our garden seem to be stocking up, eating their fill to give themselves a layer of fat to combat the cold.

I think I'm doing much the same, wrapping up, layering, Winter coat, woolly scarves and gloves are all coming out of the cupboard. 

 A fire burns in the evening bringing memories of childhood...the times we sat around the hearth and saw pictures in the flames, told stories, toasted bread on a long fork, and later even roasted chestnuts.

Warming drinks, hot chocolate.....

....warming meals.

There is nothing quite as good as the smell of a beef stew slowly cooking in the oven.

And of course, the ultimate warmer, a soft lap rug.

So whilst we aren't exactly adding any furry pounds on, we seem to be moving towards all the things that say 'Winter is nearly here'.

Are you preparing for Winter? Unless of course you live in Australia!

Stephanie's mug exchange...and a big thank you.

Firstly I want to thank you for the very kind and thoughtful messages wishing me a swift recovery from pleurisy.

I had no idea that one's strength and energy levels could simply disappear into a black hole.

However, I'm climbing back up again. Slowly and carefully.

The pictures below show a delightful package of gifts sent to me through Stephanie's annual Mug and Cup exchange. My partner was Jaana from Sweden.

Besides the mug she added some 'real' tea, ie not teabags, in my favourite flavour of Lapsang. There were delicious biscuits, a notebook, more tea, a pretty table mat.....

See how pretty the mug is, and made in Sweden too.

Blue, my favourite colour!

The round tin (are those Moomins?)contained the mug, and I shall use it for storing biscuits.

A calendar,  all in Swedish.  A useful little mat with a picture of Stockholm. 

 Such a sweet notebook with a matching pen. That will stay in my handbag for shopping notes.

This has become my daily Coffee mug.

Somehow the cookies are no longer with me. Wonder who ate them?
Thank you Jaana for such a thoughtful exchange parcel.!
And many thanks to Stephanie who arranges and organises this swap. It takes a lot of time as there are over a hundred participants.

Valery Anne, to whom I sent my gifts, replied with this beautifully handmade card. Each teacup is separately cut.
She makes the most professional cards.

Now, into a new month. Winter creeps nearer, but thankfully we are still enjoying sunny days.

off line for a bit.

Off line for a while due to the fact that I have gone from having a bronchial infection to having pleurisy.

My husband is in a nursing home for me to have the time to recover as there is no way I could look after him in this state.

Ups and downs.

It's been a mixed week here.

My poor husband succumbed to a very nasty bronchial infection after we returned home, and has twice had to see a doctor. I'm so thankful that we have the out of hours service here, where a Dr will come out at a weekend.

So it's antibiotics, nourishing soups and rice pudding, real nursery food!

I was due to have a flu jab this weekend but couldn't leave home, so will have to reschedule. I would have preferred to get it over!

During the week I was reversing the car very slowly, and suddenly heard a bang. I had come up against a protruding stone in the wall, which broke my rear light, which will of course cost rather too much to repair

That's enough of the doleful.

Gazing out of my bedroom window at 3am (as one does), I was thrilled to see a hedgehog trundling around our lawn. It's the first time I've seen one here.

I'm sure it was Fuzzypeg.

And still flowering, a lovely rose called Dr Jo.

One can find joy in spite of all the irritations.

Psalm 94:19 ESV / When the cares of my heart are many, your consolations cheer my soul.

Time in Devon.

I'm not sure why it is that Devon seems a much 'softer' county than Cornwall. Maybe due to the history of Cornish mining, which left the county with treeless areas and mine shafts on the skylines.

 Our much needed change of scene week in Devon was as always, lovely.

We went once again to a small privately owned complex of six lodges built around a lake, each one designed for handicapped guests. Level access, wet room bathrooms, wide doorways...all help to make life a little easier when a wheelchair is involved.

This is the view from our deck.

Ashwater is a 'proper' English village with pretty houses set round a village green. There is a church at one end of the green, and the Village Inn stands overlooking all around.

You need to have a very good appetite to eat there, portions are enormous.

On the edge of the village is the shop.

This is a 'community shop', which is manned by volunteers.

There is a Post office with a manager, but otherwise no paid staff.

Set in a portakabin, it isn't huge, but it certainly had all the essentials, and some of the best granary bread I've had for a while.

We were blessed to have good weather generally, and did all the things you do on a holiday break....got up late, sat around reading, ate out, didn't cook etc..

We visited Lifton Farm shop and Cafe, Roadford reservoir lake walk (and cafe)...

You can see that I researched ahead!

It's good to be back and sleeping in our own more comfortable beds.

Exodus 33:14 “My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.”

Short break

I'm taking a little break.

We are off for a few days to enjoy Autumn in Devon.

A change of scene.....

Enjoy the loveliness of Autumn.

The Victoria plum.

-

This is what we hoped for when we planted a Patio Victoria plum tree last year.

Nurtured, watered, fed, talked to.

Dreams of plum tarts, crumbles, puddings.....

This is the sum total of our efforts.

One solitary plum.

Needless to say it has been cossetted within an inch of its life.

Now it is ready to eat.

Micro-Mini plum crumble?

The following poem waas suggested by Angela, of Tracing Rainbows.

Thanks Ang, I couldn't resist adding it!

BY WILLIAM CARLOS WILLIAMS

I have eaten

the plums

that were in

the icebox

and which

you were probably

saving

for breakfast

Forgive me

they were delicious

so sweet

and so cold

Stormy night.

We've had a night of thunder and lightning, a real storm.

Everywhere is wet, a huge ocean of water lay across the surgery car park this morning, and yet, there is pale sunshine!

My little garden shed/place where all my husband's tools etc. live, has had a makeover.

From being a rather nasty ginger colour it is now a gentle blue.

Much more attractive to view from the kitchen window, especially as there is little colour left in the garden now.

I'm very happy with it in its new clothes.

My original plan was to paint the fence also, but it is now so covered with roses and clematis that it has to stay...and maybe the ginger will fade over the years.

Autumn

I know it is supposed to be the 'season of mists and mellow fruitfulness' 
now, but here it is more
 'season of suddenly dropping nasty wet leaves, 
flowers dying off without any warning, runner beans deciding they've done 
enough, and a generally depressing garden'.

It's all happened so quickly.
One day there was warmth of Summer, and seemingly the next
day had moved into another season.

This is how I fondly imagine Autumn...pale sunlight sending
its rays through trees laden with exquisitely coloured leaves.


I found this little quote from Rainer Maria Rilke.
I like the thought of 'two more southerly days'.


"Lord, it is time. 
The summer was very big. 
Lay thy shadow on the sundials, and on the meadows let the winds go loose. 
Command the last fruits that they shall be full; give them another two

 more southerly days, 
press them on to fulfillment and drive the last sweetness into 

the heavenly wine." 

-  Rainer Maria Rilke

Parasols.

Parasols.

Not the big beachy ones, but the beautiful lacy, frilly ones that were 

co ordinated with a lady's outfit, becoming such a fashion accessory.

This is one of the most well known parasol paintings, by Monet.

And this one, by Albert Edelfelt, a Finnish painter.

Isn't it just the perfect colour to go with her shawl?

Look at the way the tree blossoms are silhouetted on the fabric.

There is a purpose to these Parasol paintings, and that is to show you my very own Victorian style parasol.

Bought for me by my daughter around fifteen years ago, it has rather languished in a box since we returned from France.

But yesterday the sun spent the day with us, hotter than any other day, I think, and Parasol made its reappearance in my English garden.

 I lay in my lounger chair , gazed at  the blue blue sky, and relaxed...just for a wee while.

The parasol was a perfect sunblock.

Then again.... a little quilty Sunbonnet Sue parasol!

Maybe I should be sewing.

The weekend here is known as August Bank Holiday, and is a favourite time for tourists to take their last holiday in Cornwall.

Roads are gridlocked, beaches are full.

But the weather is amazing.

End of Summer roses.

Just wanted to share two of my roses, all of which are having a wonderful second flush of flowers.

This is the Alnwick rose, with soft perfume.

Mixed with a couple of sprays of Ammi Majus, it graces my kitchen table.

This is Graham Thomas,whom I thought had put himself to bed for the Autumn.

All of a sudden there is new growth combined with beautiful flowers.

Very little perfume though.

A little of my favourite Alchemilla Mollis added.

So thankful for my garden.

'The wilderness and the dry land will be glad; the desert will rejoice and blossom like a rose.'

Isaiah 35, v 1