Working

The very last of the evening sun on our lounge walls

Let's hear it for the sun!!  Yesterday and today have been beautiful sunny - and warm - Spring days, bringing everyone out into their gardens.  We spent this morning lending daughter and SIL a hand, digging out a big rockery in their front garden.  The grandchildren helped out too, and we were treated to a welcome cup of tea made by Grandson No 1.  We enjoyed ourselves very much; I think simply working outside was good for the soul.

Yesterday we were at the donation centre for our weekly volunteering session.  We had such a productive morning, and our little team actually managed to clear all the bric-a-brac bags and boxes.  We actually saw the floor, just for a couple of minutes until the next load of donations came in, but for that very short while, we had such a sense of achievement!  We came away feeling pleased with our efforts - some days we don't seem to make any impression at all on the pile of bags - but yesterday was a good day at the office :-)

We're hoping to try our hand at making more of our own relishes this season, and as a starter, N had a go at pickling red cabbage.

Boiling up the pickling liquid

Shredded red cabbage ready for salting

And here's the resulting three jars of home-pickled red cabbage.  And the latest 'treasure' from work - a vintage enamelled flour bin.  The paintwork around the rim and lid was chipped and was not suitable for sale in the shops so we made a donation and rescued it from the scrap metal bin.  N had some green enamel paint, not too far off the original colour, and he has managed to touch up the damage.  I now have a retro flour bin to go with the very fetching retro wall tiles!

Whenever I go into town, I invariably have a little browse around the charity shops, as you never know what might be lurking on the shelves and racks.  It's also quite funny to see items we've sorted at the centre finding their way into the hospice shops - we feel quite protective towards them!  I always have a look through the linens and sheeting, just in case, and this week I hit the jackpot with this fabric:

. .  . cotton curtaining fabric, 4m in length, and as the shop had everything marked at half-price that day, I paid £1.50 for it.  Yes, it's a bit bright, but goodness, I wasn't going to be picky about that!  I've got it ear-marked for curtains, bags, aprons and table-mats just for starters.  I have a feeling this bit of spring colour is going to be brightening things up around here in all sorts of ways.

The lighter mornings and evenings are filling me with energy again.  I want to be up and about, making the most of each day.  There is always plenty to do, in the house, in the garden, sewing, baking and cooking.  All part of a simpler lifestyle that gives us so much pleasure.