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Hey yew . . .

 

Ah. . . what lucious lanterns of Yuletide loveliness.  Yes the countdown has begun, mainly in my head but often it will spill out into the everyday world where it is greeted with groans of "don't get too excited, remember what happened last year!".  Ah yes, last year I woke at 5am with an excitement headache and in my early morning stupor took some Nurofen on an empty stomach which resulted in my having to have a lie down for an hour at about 11am.  The day itself was all a bit of a blur and the 5am start had been totally unecessary also, as after lighting the fire and doing a bit of 'tweaking' I more or less sat there for 3 hours until the children awoke. 

This year will be different.

We're going to be having a visitor for the whole of December and I'm really looking forward to him coming.  I've recently spent some time with my dearest friend who was lucky enough to receive a similar visit last December.  On hearing of her happiness which lasted the whole month long I have put in a request to the 'big man' and I can reveal that our visitor will be arriving on December 1st.  And that is all I can say about it for now.  In theory it should have the result of stringing out my excitement and being able to channel it into the whole of the season rather than having to restrain myself and end up with the inevitable messy explosion on the 25th.

 

 

Eight

Eight years ago at 7.14pm our lives were changed forever and for better by the birth of our daughter.  Every year I relive that day and never forget how when I first saw her my reaction was "it's a baby!".  Up until that point I think it was just a phrase that I would churn out - I'm having a baby, I'm having a baby, I'm buying a cot for my baby, I'm decorating the room for the baby... But then the baby arrives, and there she is and I thought ok now I get it, it is a baby.  A real life gorgeous beautiful baby that is all ours.

After the initial part of coming home and getting a routine and adapting every single thing in your life, I started to realise that I had also thought having the baby, the giving birth and looking after a baby part was all there was to it.  But then I discovered that this is only the beginning and that every day and month and year that follows, your life changes again and again all because of this new person, who isn't a baby for very long.  They grow and start to walk and talk and have their own opinions (!) and ideas about where they're going and what they want to do, and sometimes that's fine and other times it's not but it happens anyway and you just have to keep going.  And if you're very lucky you make more good decisions than bad and once a year on their birthday you take a good long look at them and think ...

... we've got a good one!

Snow good

I was not disappointed to wake up to this on Wednesday morning.  When the local radio station announced that our school was closed, we cheered and punched the air.  Then with our thermals and snowboots on we ventured out to make two snowmen (and a snow R2D2 from th'usband!) and went sledging.  What you always forget about the sledging thing is all the walking back up the hill afterwards and therefore the better the hill going down, the worse it is coming up.  That coupled with the fact that the dog in his excitement at this new activity kept trying to bite our feet off as we went down. 

So after a lot of screaming and when we were too cold and wet to continue, we sledged home and sat in our thermals watching Star Wars movies in front of an open fire.  It was a perfect day.

Fairy House

A Fairy house has appeared.  Inspired by this book which was bought as a birthday present and much looked at.  I noticed a blackbird taking an interest in it as we arrived home on this cold frosty evening.

We have had the promise of heavy snow tonight although nothing has arrived so far.  As yet we have escaped any at all.  I'm hoping it will come and we can wake up tomorrow morning to that magical light and muffled quiet that only the snow can bring.  I'm thinking snowmen and sledging, hot chocolate and open fires.  I'm not really there with the whole new year thing yet and going back to the normal routine yesterday was a huge shock to the system.  A snow day could be just what I need!

Elderflower cordial

I always wanted to make Elderflower cordial and last year came very close, but a heavy bout of rain finished off the Elderflowers before I got chance.

This year we were out and about, as soon as the first heads were fully out.

We picked around 30 heads in all and followed a recipe from Hugh (Fernley-Whittingstall for those of you who aren't on first name terms with him!)

In a 'Country Living' style we filled our baskets as we jollied our way along the country hedgerows.

 

 

Then back home again with our pickings.

 

 

A day later we had 2 litres of Elderflower cordial - for free!  (Well, apart from the sugar, and the oranges and lemons - mainly free!).  1 bottle in the fridge and the rest is freezing for later.

We gave the first glass to Sam to taste as it was his interest in it that spurred our cordial making enterprise.  However, he gave it a thumbs down - like he was the 'Man from Delmonte' or something.  He said it didn't taste like the one from the Supermarket.  The rest of us all thought it was delicious and indeed, over time, he has grown to love it to!

Topsy & Tim Go Fishing

I've always been a fan of Topsy & Tim and still have some of the books that were read to me as a child.  Now I read them to my children and they love them just as much.  For me it's Topsy & Tim's Bonfire Night that will always be my favorite, but recently we've had a couple of Topsy & Tim moments ourselves.  Earlier in the year, when we had our brief but exciting 'Snowy Day', Sam worked hard to clear the path to earn his Snowshifter's Medal!  More recently, the better weather has allowed another classic reenactment!

Remember the stockings on sticks that their mother makes?  And jam jars with string?  And then there's the naughty donkey that pushes Tim in the river and it all ends in tears, going home without a stickleback.  Still, this is Topsy and Tim, so after a nice warm bath Dad saves the day by going out and getting them a goldfish each.  I mean who wouldn't enjoy a day like that?

Magic

 

Sometimes, in what might be just another ordinary day, a little bit of magic happens!