End of the Holidays

It’s been a whirlwind winter break, filled with city trips, family visits, baking and overeating, and relaxed times at home. It’s back to work tomorrow, but not without a little moment to pause and appreciate how much fun Tom and I had this holiday.

Thanks to Alec’s hospitality, we were city-folk for a few days, with gigs, art, and lectures in London. Robin Ince hosted a fabulous night of comedy, music, science and maths, thrilling my inner-geek. We did lots of wandering and were surprised by how quiet London was, once away from the shops.

Tom and I spent Christmas home alone- our first in eleven years and much appreciated. We revelled in Christmas Eve preparations and the relaxed pace of a Christmas Day For Two. With stuffed stockings, and stuffed tummies after an enormous brunch, we had a winter wander before heading back home for presents and an incredibly delicious Christmas Dinner, with all the trimmings (thank you Chef Tom!) Considering that we bought a turkey for 6-8 people, I’m surprised by the lack of leftovers we had..

With so much delicious food, fun times, and good company, this has certainly been a Christmas to remember. Now the new year is upon us, I’m looking forward to new projects, more exploring, and plenty of good food with good friends.

Happy New Year!

Wovember

I know I can be fickle, but I think November must be my favourite month. It’s finally got cold enough to start layering up the wool, and a little fibre appreciation is inevitable.

Wool, oh stuff of wonder! What a pleasure it is to choose from any myriad of colour and texture, slubby or lacey, bright or heathered. Howies do fantastic merino wool for tramping off into the cold, and Etsy offer enticing wooly goodies for any number of uses. Nothing is as warm, wearable, and pleasing as a big woolly jumper, and if you fancy knitting one yourself, Ravelry is a good place to start. With the winter holidays fast approaching, I’m getting my knitting speed on amidst gifting plans. Now that it’s colder I might have to admit to getting a little excited about Christmas.

This is the month for wool, in all its wonders. No wonder some call it Wovember.)

Goodbye sunshine

The clocks have fallen back. Undoubtedly, the extra hour has been greatly appreciated; the day has seemed elongated and full (baking and reading to accompany homework.) This weekend always seems to herald the beginning of life without sunshine however. Dark in the morning on the way to work. Dark coming home as well. Fluorescent gear will come out of the cupboard. Will hope not to get run down on quiet and gloomy country roads…

Thankfully, it’s been half term with some pretty fantastic autumnal weather (bright, blustery and beautiful) with the chance to get out on the bike and on foot. Although weekends will provide some respite, and outdoor activities will be planned into the school week, there won’t be so much sunshine for me for the next few months.

Goodbye sunshine, you’re great.

Paris à l’automne

I’ve just returned from a girl’s trip to Paris, filled with so many good things. I loved the myriad of little shops, with their inviting displays.

Books, bikes, and yarn; a few of my favourites! There were plenty of unexpected moments for craft appreciation, like the crowd knitting hats outside of Saint-German l’Auxerrois, the enormous display of old sewing machines in the window of a fashion house, or the art at the Petit Palais.

The weather was perfect for wandering and we appreciated every autumnal, golden moment.

Forever Spinach

We were woken up by the fog horn this morning, with bright sunshine shining through it all. We haven’t been to the allotment in months, but a morning like this (and weeks of procrastinating) finally lured us down. In August, we left the allotment bare, and cleared of years of endless spinach. I suppose we expected the odd repeat weed, but we didn’t plan on a full spinach harvest.

We’re trying to clear a space to plant potatoes and onions before it’s too late. But, with this amount of spinach, I think it’ll be a while before we diversify.