Simply Seasonal.... 7th of January

Hello Lovelies,

right now I'm entering my eighth year of blogging. Eight years...wow. Times change but I think there is still something special about our corner of blogland.

It's true I do enjoy joining in with that quick and easy Instagram interface on my mobile phone these days But I really  don't want to loose touch with my little blog. 

So this seems to be the ideal time to show this rather neglected, but much beloved, space of mine a bit more attention. Last year I only published 38 blog posts. My lowest yearly total ever. So I'm determined to do better this year. It's just how best to get my blog habit back?

This desire has led me to come up with "Simply Seasonal". I'm hoping to publish these posts every Sunday and focus on the simple things that have been making me smile that week. The changing seasons have been a source of inspiration to me for many years now. Hence the title.

It is a comfort in even the most testing times to notice those "small joys" and feel gratitude for the good in your life, so this year I'm using my blog to do just that again. I suppose that I may have a very occasional moan. I do hope you will forgive me :0)

So without any more waffle, here is my first weekly  roundup of happy things....simple, seasonal or both :- 

1 ♥ Sunshine on Wednesday. I love this day when mum and I get to catch up. We still drive to a local market town and do a bit of essential shopping. We travel the back roads and sometimes stop to admire the view.

 

2♥ Thrifty finds. Mum found these books in the charity shop and treated me. I'm so looking forward to discovering some new places this year. Thank you Mum x

I bought some glasses to replace a couple of breakages. I'm always happy to avoid buying new where possible.

Look, no Packaging either:0)

 3 ♥ Great gifts The Christmas decorations are now safely packed away for another year, but I have kept this   new snow scene that mum painted for me on the mantle. It's such a great seasonal picture. Another thing on my mantle that's making me smile is this scented candle. I thoughtful gift from a friend, I just love the scent...sugared apple

4 ♥ A warming breakfast. It's so comforting making porridge on a chilly morning. For one person you just need half a cup of oats,

which you combine with one cup of milk...any milk you like.
Then you stand a stir till it comes to the boil. It doesn't take long and the heat from the ring is very welcome.

Once it's creamy and bubbling you are good to go.

Add whatever you like, fruit, sugar, honey. Or golden syrup like me.

I then add a little cold milk so it's not quiet as thick and it doesn't burn my mouth when I dive in :0)

Then it warms you from the inside too. Perfect.

5 ♥ A walk with surprises. Even when it's chilly and grey I love to get outdoors for a walk. The bare trees look beautiful.

And the churchyard is peaceful.

I wanted to leave some food for the Robin I saw here the other week, so I placed some on top of this post and started to leave.

But almost immediately he appeared.

Tentatively he hoped towards the food.

Picked up a seed and studied it.

Then ate it.

Bless him.

That really made me smile, and so did the green shoots emerging  at my feet.

6 ♥ Buying local I do feel lucky to live where I do. As well as plenty of walks in the countryside I can also walk to local shops straight from my door. One is even a lovely yarn shop. I know!
I do think it's great that we have this shop, but I haven't used it much. This week I was in search of some soft red yarn for a project, so I popped in here.

It was more expensive than my usual Stylecraft, but it felt good to support local independents. I will be going back. And they have a "Knit and Natter" group. I think I may be brave and try that too :0)

7♥ The Kitchen When it's chilly I like to be in a warn kitchen cooking for the family. Everybody likes carbonara.

And as I had an extra day off work this week there was time to do some soup making.  It's great to turn a few vegetable into a tasty lunch.

Leek and potato with warm crusty rolls. Yummy and healthy. I used THIS recipe.

There was even time for some baking that took a little planning ahead. Time to soak the fruit overnight.

then enjoy the baking smells in the morning. I just adore Cinnamon.

Warm tea loaf with melting butter. So comforting on a cold January day.

8 ♥ Winter Sunshine, oh I think I've had this one already....but this is indoor sunshine. I love the low angle of the sun at this time of year. It shines right into the house.

And when it hits my rainbow maker the room just glitters.

9 ♥ A New Project This is what I wanted that red yarn for...baby hats. No, they are not for me.

On our local TV news I leaned about THIS great idea. Basically all newborns are given a colour coded hat to wear straight after birth. It's to avoid them getting chilled and the colours are an easy reference for the staff to see which babies are more at risk. I think it's such a clever idea. The simple ideas are often the best aren't they.

When my twins were born  prematurely the hats I had bought were way too big and I was very thankful that the hospital had donated hats in smaller sizes that they could wear.

I don't think I have found the perfect pattern yet. Those I found online have needed adapting to get the right sizes and I am not totally happy with their shape. I will keep trying. Does anybody know a pattern they use for premature and newborn sized baby hats?

It's at times like this I wish I could knit....ummm. Now there's an idea :0)

Have a great week Lovelies
Jacquie x

The Final Walk of 2017

Hello Lovelies,

Thank you for all your kind comments on my previous post...and for all your visits and comments throughout 2017. They are such a huge encouragement to me and I'm touched that some of you find the time to write a thoughtful message.

As promised here are some views from my final walk of 2017.  As I had been busy last year it had looked like I may not make 1000 miles of outdoor "boots on" walking this time. But a concerted effort to catch up left my total at 998 miles by the 30th of December. Happily the weather forecast was good for the next day and hubby was amenable  to drive us somewhere interesting to finish off my third year of walking 1000 miles.

I chose somewhere I had not walked before, because I like a little adventure. The sun shone brightly and the sky was stunningly blue when we arrived at The Longshaw Estate

As soon as we set out there was a tantalising peek at the moorland I wanted to explore.

At first the route was through a pretty wooded glade.

With tumbling streams

Our group was myself, hubby, eldest and my friend M. We chatted happily as we walked along.

The landscape was just as I had hoped, rugged and covered in the burnt orange and gold shades of winter moorland.

There were rocks to clamber on

and if you are daft like my other half, you can try and kid everyone you are about to fall down a deep well... however we were not fooled, we know him too well :0)

I was so happy we were treated to some sunshine on this walk. It really brings those wonderful colours alive.

Though the cloud did begin to gather as we walked further.

Looking back to where we had started the light was hazy and quite magical.

There were lots of climbers on the rocky outcrops here.

And here's a wider angle shot of the view back down the valley we walked up.

At the head of the valley you could walk across the streams, or over the bridge. Maybe you can guess which one of the group dared getting wet in the fast flowing water.

yup, Hubby.

Now we were around half way through our 4.5 mile walk so I guess this was possibly the spot where I clocked 1000 miles. Sigh. It was wild and beautiful and perfect.

Just look at that skyline. We were heading towards those hills.

It was a real moorland clamber here, picking your way across  the boulders to avoid the peaty puddles and mud.

Then it was a short steep climb to the top of Higger Tor

At the top we were rewarded with far reaching views.

Gosh it was windy up here.

But I loved the fresh air and the "top of the world" feeling.

This was zoomed in on our next destination...the rocky outcrop and ancient fortifications of Carl Wark

As you can see here we were not the only people enjoying the views :0)

And after sheltering behind a rock for a drink and a snack we began the scramble down from the tor. This was the bit eldest liked best.

I loved seeing the birds of prey hovering, practically motionless on the strong wind

and the evidence of human activity from past millennia on the fort.

Here the end of our walk was in sight and we just made a bee line for the road. That was a mistake.

I got distracted by the sight of Sphagnum moss

Heather.

and Grouse hiding in the dead bracken

We ended up in a bog. Ooops.

Having escaped that with only one wet foot between us we had to find a narrow spot to cross the stream. M was not happy about this, but she survived :0)

Back at the lodge I loved the sound of the guided walks...which are free

And as this was a special walk we splurged on hot drink and cake from the cafe. Not on my thrifty timetable but as it said in the cafe...31 scones purchased pays for one meter of dry-stone wall to be repaired.
And it was scrummy...with ALL the butter :0)

Not the best photo but I was hungry.

I do hope we can visit this area again in the not too distant future. It's only a little over an hour's travel time from home.  I'd love to explore further and see it in different seasons.

 THIS is the route we walked ♥

Happy New Year Everybody

Jacquie x

P.S. Anybody attempting to walk 1000 miles in 2018? I know I am fortunate to be able to do this so I am starting all over again :0)

Remember it's less that 3 miles a day and you can count all your steps if you prefer. There's some great inspiration HERE