A little (more) summer rain

So after Monday's downpour, Tuesday and Wednesday followed suit.  I really do feel for those holidaymakers looking for some sunshine.  However, things seemed to have brightened up towards the end of the week and all fingers crossed for the weekend as the town is welcoming the annual Scooter Rally, always a bit of a high spot on our incredibly hectic social calendar ;)

Ripening toms in the conservatory

Rain-bashed lettuce (and weeds!)

The garden has taken something of a battering in the rain and accompanying high winds; several sweet-corn, tomato and pepper plants needing re-staking after literally being knocked sideways, and the lettuce was in a very sorry state - I cropped what could be salvaged but I think we are coming to the end of those salad leaves for this season, they have done us proud.  The peppers are gradually turning red (loud cheering) and by upping our cucumber rations, and giving one or two to grateful family members, we have just about kept pace with their production.  We could really do with a few days of sunshine to ripen the masses of green tomatoes still growing; it's always a problem to deal with the 'green tomato glut' that is almost inevitable.  We'll see how things develop.

The dismal weather has meant we've needed to find indoor things to do, and thankful there are plenty of those to keep us busy.  A couple of really good ideas have emerged as a result of enforced indoor pottering which we are quite excited about, and I don't think there should be any reason to be bored at all this winter - I need to remind myself of these optimistic words when it's freezing, dark and dreary in a few months' time!  And there has been plenty of sewing and knitting and general craftiness going on, too, so we've kept ourselves busy and productive.  

We're waiting for some news, some very exciting and happy news.  Every time the phone rings, my heart jumps.  One day soon . . . 

Household maintenance

It has rained today, so much so that I did wonder if a monsoon season had sneaked in on the end of summer!  My goodness, did it rain.  Several roads locally have been flooded, bringing back memories of the floods of the winter before last.  We always feel for the holidaymakers who've come to the island to enjoy the sun, sea and sand - keeping a young family entertained when it's pouring with rain all day can get a little expensive :(

It was a day for working indoors, so some housework for me and a bit of household maintenance for N.  It makes sense to me to look after what we have - the things we choose to have in our home have some meaning for us and I don't have a problem spending a couple of hours a week dusting and vacuuming to keep things clean and tidy (ish).  Photos, pictures, ornaments (not that we have many!) all have an association with someone or somewhere, and it's nice to be reminded of those memories as I clean the house.   Today, however, with a little more time on my hands than usual (not being able to get out into the garden), I did make a concerted effort to tidy-up all those things which seemed to have strayed from their usual home - there did appear to be quite a lot of craft bits and pieces scattered around various rooms ;)   I have too many little projects on the go at the moment, and just about every room seemed to have an odd ball of wool, or sewing patterns, or scraps of fabric apparently abandoned.   By the end of the afternoon two of those projects had been finished off and the rest are back in the work-room waiting for my attention.   And there is a new list, of course.

N has continued with some indoor house maintenance, again looking after what we have.  A house isn't self-maintaining (at least, none of the ones we've had have been!) and we think it pays to ensure everything is in good working order and will keep us warm and dry during the winter.  If we spot a problem, we would rather do what we can there and then to deal with it, than leave it to become a far greater problem later.  Those sorts of problems often end up costing money!

We've submitted the gas and electricity meter readings for the quarter, and we were slightly bemused to be told that we have apparently used 50% less energy than similar energy-rated houses in our locality.   How is that worked out?  Which houses?   50% does seem to be a big difference.  We do try to be mindful of our energy consumption so perhaps it is not surprising that our usage is a bit lower than overage.  As we move towards autumn our meter readings will begin to go up again, but because we have tracked our consumption through the year we have a very good idea of what our bills will be and can budget accordingly.  It makes sense to us.

Keeping busy

A busy few days (this seems to be a recurring theme at the moment, being busy) but productive, too.  

• painting the side gate - very time-consuming but looking much smarter now
• some very enjoyable hand-sewing - patchwork over papers
• clematis cuttings - fingers crossed these take
• the cup and saucer vine (Cobaea scandens) grown from a cutting given to us finally in flower
• the greenhouse overflowing with wonderful things - dinner from the garden all week

I have had lists everywhere to remind me of everything I'm trying to fit in; it looked a little daunting at first but gradually things have been crossed off and lists amalgamated until I am now in the happy position of just having one piece of paper with a manageable number of items that still need my attention.  Yay!

I feel back in control, at least for the time being.

The evenings are beginning to close in, just a little each day; I find I need a light on by 9pm.  I suppose autumn is not so very far away really but hopefully August will continue deliver plenty of summer sunshine and warmth. 

A dramatic sunrise this week

Returning, with much to think about

Almost two weeks since my previous post, and I'm not really sure why the reluctance to blog.  It's not through lack of things going on, that's for sure; indeed perhaps there has just been a little too much on my mind recently.  To tidy things up, I'll attempt a quick round-up.

I have alluded to some paid work over the past few weeks.  It wasn't planned or sought out, but when it was offered to me, I decided to try it out.  Although I knew there would be some compromises to be made at home, I had not anticipated some of the other issues that cropped up and I have learned some  valuable lessons as a result.  I had many hours to give serious consideration to some quite 'big' issues - choice, agency, social/economic prejudices - and the realisation that not everyone gets the same breaks in life.  The discussions I had in my head were wide-ranging and thorough, and found I had to challenge some mis-conceptions I hadn't realised I held (or perhaps unwilling to admit to).  Temporary contracts, minimum wage, uncertainty, limited options . . . yes, plenty to think about.  

My foray into employment didn't last long (my choice - and I realised that I was fortunate to have that choice) and I am now busy working back at home.  I had missed it.  N and I make a good team but we both need to be here to make our simple life work properly.  Having said that, N has managed to get lots of odd jobs done - the second coat of paint in the kitchen and hallway for a start, no mean feat.  And so much work in the garden, too.  I found that I was so tired when I got home each evening that even though there were many things to be done, it was a real effort to do even a bit.  The cleaning slipped, bread was bought rather than made, no sewing done at all.  It's taken a few days to get back into a rhythm again while I try to catch up on bits that were left but I'm more or less there now.  And it feels good.  I've finally been able to dive into a pressing sewing project (why do I always leave these things till the very last minute?) which is going far better than I thought it would (and I should have learned that lesson, too!)

I must make mention of the water situation.  The water butts were empty and we were diligently saving every drop of reusable kitchen water to keep the vegetables watered.  No rain for days.  Until yesterday, when it rained, not a light drizzle but a torrential downpour for the entire day.  Apparently we had as much rain in one day as we normally get for the whole month.  The storm drains  overflowed, there was huge run-off from the parched ground unable to soak the deluge up, and roads were flooded.  But the water butts are now full - hooray!

Bountiful days

It's all busy, busy, busy round here at the moment.  The garden is fairly bursting with goodies, there are interesting things lined up, lots of WIPs on the go and several days of glorious sunshine to put smiles on faces.  Doors flung open from very early in the morning, and much pottering about outside.  I do believe summer has finally arrived.

The lack of posts is due primarily to the impending (and previously well-documented) demise of my laptop, an elderly model who is very near the end of its useful life.  Switch it on and it proceeds to spend many happy minutes in a never-ending loop, and is showing an increasing tendency to simply go blank without any warning (I can relate to that; obviously a middle-aged thing ;-o ).  I'm not sure I can put off the inevitable much longer *sigh*.

The garden is rewarding all N's hard work with goodies in abundance, and last Sunday we sat down to a roast dinner from the garden (with the obvious, for us, exception of the chicken) - new potatoes, carrots, beetroot, spinach and beet leaves.  So tasty.  The thrill of our own veggies never fails to delight us.  The sweetcorn have finally got going (or should that be growing?), pea-pods have formed, the cucumbers are taking over the greenhouse and the tomatoes are beginning to colour.  The sprouts for the winter have germinated; fingers crossed we will see the end results on our Christmas dinner plates.

Our 'social calendar', usually very quiet (ie non-existant) has suddenly filled up, and we're making notes of dates, times and places to go and people to see.  Makes quite a change for us.  Trips to the mainland, family visits for various occasions, entertaining here - lots of fun things going on.  And now, into the mix, something quite unexpected has turned up, and we are taking a bit of a step into the unknown, but sometimes when a door opens it's worth at least a little look.  I think it will be interesting on a number of fronts and we'll just see how life pans out over the next few weeks.

I'm still finding time for a bit of sewing here and there, and making the acquaintance of my latest gadget (ooh, an overlocker, much excitement!!)  And two more chairs have been recovered, and they now match the ironing board, all being revamped from the same £5 remnant of curtaining.  Fully coordinated on a budget  ;))

Today . . .

• bread baked
• house cleaned and tidied
• two more chairs recovered - a joint effort
• more seeds sowed (carrots and sprouts)
• vegetables cropped for dinner (carrots, beetroot and assorted leaves)
• four sweetcorn germinated
• parsley potted on
• weeding in the sun
• reading
• sewing
• washing all dried outside and put away
• blackbirds feasting on worms in the lawn
• 'love-in-a-mist' (Nigella) flowering

It's been a lovely, simple day.

Is it summer yet?

Hello, June!  Cold, wet and very windy - so not quite summer yet.  We still have the winter-weight duvet and a quilt on the bed, and last night someone was even heard muttering about a hot-water bottle!  It really has been a bit of a strange time, weather-wise.  

A quick reflection on May; it's interesting to look back over the previous month to see what progress has been made.  The garden was our priority and we have pretty much achieved what we set out to do (edging beds, a bit of planting and beginning work on the lawn).  The veg plot/greenhouse is the main focus, and we continue to learn as we go, dealing with the inevitable blips along the way. A start has been made on the snagging projects in the house, odd bits of finishing off that somehow got overlooked (deliberately left!) in the renovation last year.  And I met the challenge of walking the Wight - yay for me!  May has also been a month for mulling things over, discussing and deliberating over what may be in the months to come, talking over possibilities and probabilities.  

And so to June.  As usual, I have made myself a list to act as a guide, to keep me focussed when all I really want to do is knit and sew - making things is such a distraction ;)  I have found there is much more likelihood of tasks being completed if they are on my list, primarily, I confess, because I do like to be able to cross things off!  Anyway, I will state here that I will recover the dining-room chairs (using a remnant of curtaining, so that's a freebie), I will finish a knitting project, and I will give the hallway a second coat of emulsion (we were a bit slapdash with our original painting there).  There are several other jobs to do, and most of them will get done or at least started, but those are ones that I shall make a real effort to achieve.

We will potter along, keeping things as simple as we can, enjoying the very real pleasures that simplicity brings with it.  Life has a habit of throwing up complications along the way - that's the way of things - but there's no point, IMHO, in making life more complicated than it needs to be.  

Weekend round-up

Another year older (way past counting!); an excuse for some age-related cards:

We've had a good weekend pottering in the garden, and doing a spot of packing for our hols.  Oh, and an emergency repair to one of our bags - the zip had pulled away from the fabric, and yet again I was thankful that I had some strong thread (and needle and thimble) to effect a more than satisfactory repair.  Phew, emergency averted!  I've also finally managed to finish a project that got put on hold for a while, so the kitchen walls look a bit brighter at last.  It's surprising what a splash of colour does to life some plain walls.

Although we've had bright blue skies and sunshine where we are, the foghorns have been sounding out over the weekend and today, and on our walk into town this morning we understood why - the sea was completely blanketed with sea-mist/fog (I think it's due to an inversion of cold air over hot air - or is it the other way around?, I'm never quite sure!)  Either way, today it had cleared by the afternoon but as I'm typing this evening I can hear the foghorns blaring away again so I guess the visibility over the water is bad again.  It is a timely reminder that if you live on an island, weather conditions do have to be factored in to any travel arrangements getting on and off the island, especially if there are further connections to be made with trains etc.  A delayed sea crossing can mess travel plans up completely!

Everything in the garden, and indeed the hedgerows, suddenly seems to have taken off.  

Tomatoes and squashes

Trees that just a week ago had the merest suggestion of colour are now bursting with fresh green-ness; the fruit trees have blossom and the lawn is covered with bright yellow dandelions - I must try to pick the flower heads off before they set seed and go everywhere.  Every day there are new seeds emerging in the greenhouse and propagator, it's such an exciting time.  The promise of all that wonderful homegrown goodness to come . . . mmmm!

With the heating now firmly off for the summer, our gas consumption has dropped right down (always so satisfying!).  We continue to record the weekly figures and whilst the gas is down, the electric usage is only slightly down.  Cooking, laundry etc still have to be done.  Perhaps it will reduce a little in the summer.

The list of projects I began at the start of the year now has lots of very satisfying ticks alongside the items and I think the time has come to begin a new one for the next two or three months.  Having this checklist to work to has kept me focussed over the winter and some projects that have been outstanding for several months have at last been finished.  I am now mentally compiling my new list and already it's getting quite long ;-)  

Back after our hols . . .

March round-up

March is certainly bidding us a very windy farewell; it has been howling a veritable hoolie for the past few days.  Near gale-force winds (but thankfully no more rain) have made gardening a little tiresome, to say the least.  But we have battled away, determined to make progress each day.  At the moment there are half-full/empty bags of gravel, soil, compost and slate chippings (not to mention dug-up plants - oops!) all over the place, as we try to plan the removal and transplanting of various shrubs from one location in the garden to another.  I had a feeling the logistics of this scheme were going to be challenging and it is proving to be just that.  The wind doing it's best to blow us over - and actually nearly succeeding with me this morning - was not something we had factored in and it is almost getting the better of us; it is pretty tiring to work in these conditions.  Possibly we should wait for calmer weather but we are both keen to get this project sorted, and with it, hopefully, the builders-yard mess around the place.  

However, the plans for March were to get outside and begin on the garden, and we have certainly been able to do that.  Seeds have been sown, most have successfully germinated and are being planted on.  We are experimenting with a small heated propagator to nurture some seeds that have proved difficult in the past and making full use of every available window sill in the house.  We dug out and replanted the long side border and that has certainly tidied the back garden up.  

This small congested bed is providing plants for the new border and bed - inevitably some roots get left behind in the process, no matter how carefully I try to dig them out!

We haven't, as yet, had to buy any new plants, making do instead with what was here, what we brought with us and gratefully accepting a friend's gift of spare perennials.  I'm hoping to grow a few more annuals and perennials from seed to add to the planting.  We're trying to keep costs down (as always) whilst improving the overall look of the garden.  I think we're on target so far.

Apart from progress in the garden, March has brought both exciting news and some sad news.  We've managed a lovely family get-together at the top of The Shard, and also enjoyed spending time with N's dad for a week.  Looking back, March seems to have flown by rather too quickly =:o

As for April, there is a birthday (I have stopped counting!) and a holiday to look forward to.  We will finish the new borders this week, wind permitting, and get some order back into the garden.  Perhaps April should be a month to take stock of what we have done so far, and plan the next phase of (mainly outside) jobs that need to be done in the warmer months.  I am sure there will be some sewing, quilting or knitting - or perhaps a little of all three.  And we will continue to potter along, quietly and simply, just as we like it.

Lighter evenings

Welcome BST (British Summer Time) - the clocks went forward an hour in the early hours of this morning and we are now enjoying lighter evenings for longer.  The days of pulling the curtains at 4 o'clock to shut out the dark are just a fading memory!

Friday was warm and sunny and N spent the day working in the garden in shirt-sleeves.  Since then, however, we've been almost marooned indoors over the weekend, looking out at wet, wild and windy weather.  This morning the wind was really whipping the trees into a frenzy and whistling round the house in a way we've not experienced since moving here.  Hopefully things will calm down a little by tomorrow.

So, what's been happening?  We continue to make progress in the garden, stripping turf for another bed and trips to the tip to make contributions to the municipal compost heap.  More transplanting of seedlings, and we now have chilli seeds germinating in the airing cupboard (the central heating pipes there provide just sufficient heat to assist in germination). 

A spare moment?  I'll just alter some curtains, shall I?!

More sewing for me, and more curtains but this time I am actually being paid for the alterations - yay!  And I have to say they have been a joy to alter; it makes all the difference working with quality fabric (a linen/cotton blend).  I have had to commandeer the lounge floor on several occasions, to spread the curtains out flat, and I found myself yearning for a large table to avoid all the kneeling - there were a few creaking joints to be heard (that would be my knees, not the floorboards;-).  However, they are finished now and awaiting collection.  

I've got a couple of mending jobs out of the way today - a velcro fastening stitched back on, and a pocket in a pair of N's jeans.

I wonder how many pennies fell through this hole?

The pocket lining wasn't just thin, it was worn completely away (I'm always nagging him for carrying too much in his pockets!) so I cut the worn bit off and fashioned a new one using a bit of second-hand sheeting.  No-one will see it's a different colour and the jeans are now perfectly servicable for a long time to come.  The ability to 'make do and mend' has saved us so much over the years.

Almost at the end of March - another month that seems to have whizzed by.  But there's the promise of lighter days and, dare we hope, warmer weather.  It's just as well as there is a lot to do outside - gardening and outdoor maintenance.  It keeps us busy, fit and saves us money.  Sounds good to me.

Patiently

It's been a bit of an odd sort of a week, one that seems to have flown by without seeming to have very much to show for it.  I can't recall sitting around doing nothing and no doubt if I put my mind to it I would realise that a lot has, as usual, been accomplished over the last few days.  Maybe it is because the week has been a bit 'bitty', routines chopped and changed, no 'to do' list to keep me focussed.  

We are enjoying and making the most of a welcome visitor for a few days, and reminding ourselves of the important of patience, a 'virtue' that perhaps we don't display as often as we should.  We are taking life slowly at present (and acknowledging that we need to be a little more patient in the process!) and it will do me no harm at all if I don't have projects lined up and lists to tick off.  This is a time to sit and talk, to potter and appreciate a helping hand, to listen and observe what is around us.  Life does not have to be taken at a rush; there is a danger of missing something quiet and good along the way.  So slow and patient is the way forward.

Under the mesh in the raised bed the spinach is sprouting

And all around us, life is moving on.  Seeds are germinating, plants are growing, plans are being made.  There's no need to rush, everything in it's own time.

Farewell February; looking forward to March

A new shopping bag - fully co-ordinated this time!  Another 'tick'.

A damp and grey end to the month but I am optimistic we have hopefully had the worst of the winter weather now.  Actually, this far south, we've really not had a harsh winter at all; no snow (boo hoo!) and rarely have the temperatures dipped below freezing, although it's certainly hovered around 0 degrees for a while.  There are plenty of floral signs of Spring - crocus, daffodils, snowdrops - and we have so much more daylight, so lots to be grateful for.

My main goal for February was to begin a sort out of my wardrobe, and I have tackled it with enthusiasm, although there have been moments when I have been quite disheartened by the process.  It's actually been quite an eye-opening project, and I have found myself pondering over more than just my clothes.  I have come to realise that there are some underlying factors involved that I perhaps hadn't wanted to acknowledge and deal with, but hiding them away isn't the most helpful approach; the problems need to be tackled.  And that is what I intend to do, gradually, one step at a time.  The inter-connectedness of these issues is, on some levels, quite interesting to someone who has studied sociology - the expectations society puts on us, and indeed we put on ourselves, the media imagery that has become part of everyday life, the way we see ourselves and the way others see us - it's a fascinating subject.  However, I think I need to spend a little time thinking about me, perhaps not something I tend to do very often, and sorting through my clothes has been a thought-provoking place to start.  

This is obviously going to be a long-term, on-going project, but I am becoming quite excited about it because I have now discovered the world of sewing blogs.  Why have I not come across these gems before?  I am in heaven.  Falling nicely in line with a simple life, what better way to create clothes that fit me than to make them myself, stepping away as much as possible from consumerism and clothes shopping.  I love sewing, and I am suddenly filled with eagerness for dressmaking all over again.  It seems like an unexpected but very welcome gift and I can't wait to get started.

And March?  Well, out in the garden at every opportunity, planting seeds, tending crops and looking forward to our own veggies in a few months' time -  there is nothing to compare to the taste of home-grown produce.  So much goodness all around, so much to be thankful for.

So many blogs, so little time

Days seems to be skipping past rather too quickly just at the moment.  It's noticeably lighter in the mornings, so we're wide awake much earlier, and this evening we didn't close the curtains till 17.45, much to our surprise and delight - Spring really is coming!  But somehow I don't seem to be getting as much done in these longer days, which is a bit contrary to my thinking.  Pondering this over a cuppa this afternoon, N said he felt the same - no projects started or on the go (although, goodness do we have a few in the pipeline!) - it feels as though we are just waiting to start the next phase of work, and for that we need, or certainly would prefer (!) more settled weather.  I think we just need to get February over and done with; it's always such an unpredictable month.

I have a feeling that one of my problems is I'm spending far too much time on the iPad - really not good at all.  It is just so easy to drop in on favourite blogs, and follow links, and click on to other posts and suddenly a couple of hours has disappeared =:o.  It started with just a handful of 'simple living/frugal' blogs, then I dropped in on a few quilting/sewing/recycling ones and just recently I've been browsing through some helpful clothing sites with the intention of updating my wardrobe (previously documented).  Who knew there were so many blogs out there?  And all so interesting?  And it seems I need to read them all . . . .
I think a little more self-restraint is required on my part, perhaps a time limit per day wouldn't be a bad place to start.  

The final winter spinach crop

Thrifted and deconstructed fabric

Even though I feel as though I haven't achieved very much over the weekend, I've actually done far more that I thought - it's so often the way.  I finished going through the filing drawers (more shredding) and re-labelled them; I've sorted through another cupboard (a few more items to the charity shop pile); I cropped the last of the spinach and cleared the bed; made bread and rolls; spent the morning dusting and hoovering; clothes washing; changed the bed; updated online details for a couple of storecards; turned some old T-shirts into rags; unpicked another thrifted shirt and a dress to add to my fabric stash; started upcycling a shirt into a skirt; met up with a friend for a drink and had a lovely chat on the phone with my little girl.  That's quite a bit really, now I come to think about it! 

The rest of the week has a little more structure about it - places to go, people to see, shopping to do - and hopefully more planning for the garden.  Roll on Spring, we have lots to do outside!

A quiet day of this and that

A quiet day of slowly pottering, just what was needed.  Seeds sorted and a few more ordered, outdoor planting planned, herbs sown - we are looking forward to our growing season.  There'll be quite a bit of digging new borders and preparing the ground in this new garden but that's good and exciting work to be done.  The pleasure of growing at least some of our own vegetables never fails.  The spare bedroom is now doubling up as an overflow greenhouse . . .

I baked this morning - chocolate chips cookies, what's not to love :-) - and sorted out the bathroom cabinet again, taking stock of all those half-used bottles that get pushed to the back of the shelves.  I was pleasantly surprised to find that the collection of 'potions and lotions' was considerably smaller than it was, and that's taking into account various bits I have been gifted along the way.  This was another area I was looking to declutter and streamline - I really don't need a thousand and one skincare products, just the handful of items I regularly use - and it was pleasing to find that my diligence in using up the odds bits has paid off.  

The rain that has been promised for the last 24 hours finally arrived at lunchtime, and it has steadily poured ever since.  A really good reason to curl up in a chair with some fabric.  I have a small collection of thrifted cotton clothes and they need unpicking, so this afternoon I sat and carefully deconstructed a man's shirt; it always amazes me just how much fabric can be salvaged by doing this and it's a great way of adding to the fabric stash.  I find it quite therapeutic.  

And it's something else off the list.  Tick.

And the Sewing Bee this evening rounded off a really slow, easy sort of day.  I need days this this, once in a while.  A nice, simple day.

It snowed!

Not quite the blizzards and snow drifts of the US, or even north England and Scotland, but it snowed here overnight:

A few more flurries before breakfast but by 10am it had all but disappeared.  Never mind, it has snowed.

So what's been happening here, snow aside?  Yesterday we had a radiator installed in the bedroom/conversion and all connected up to the existing heating system.  It makes sense, short-term and long-term - it really has been like a fridge in that room since Christmas.  All the radiators are fitted with thermostatic valves so we can turn the temperatures down in individual rooms and only heat the rooms we use.  This morning, however, we did have the luxury of the heating on most of the morning (well, it was snowing ;)  ) and it was lovely to have the warmth.  N made an interesting observation a couple of days ago; he commented on the fact that in the winter, many people go on holiday to sunny destinations to get away from the cold, but instead of spending maybe £1/2000 going abroad, for perhaps £100 on the fuel bill they could simply have the heating on more at home.  It's certainly a thought.

The work in the spare bedroom was an opportunity for us to have another sort-out of odds and ends in the garage store, and we have recycled a load of bottles, and found new homes for electric cables.  Another two storage boxes have been emptied and I may be able to use them to tidy up the chaos in the sewing room.  We had a box of spare light bulbs and in the process of sorting through them we discovered that three of them didn't even work so they have now been disposed of.  It may be slow progress, and only a little at a time, but it all helps.

In between all of this, I did manage to do the Monday cleaning chores.  

This was the state of the vacuum head - threads all twisted round the roller, dust in every nook and cranny, and on the black cogs (top centre in the picture above) you can just about make out a tack that had managed to embed itself in the plastic.   It must have been hoovered up during all the renovations last year - I had wondered what the odd noise was!  Now it's all been thoroughly cleaned out, it all works a treat.

We've been feeling the benefits of the new quilt on our bed; goodness, it makes such a difference on these cold nights.  I had planned to start machine quilting it this week but I think that's unlikely now, plans seem to be 'fluid' just at the moment and I am adopting a flexible approach to each day.  Yes, I like to have some organisation to my days, but nothing so rigid that it can't adapt and change as needed.  Things still get done, just not necessarily when I thought they would.  

We're still working our way through the freezer, although there isn't too much left now, and N came up with a 'leftovers' meal this evening, using up some bits in the fridge.  Very tasty it was, too.  Nothing goes to waste here and N's talents in the kitchen save us pounds.  A lot of it is having the confidence of knowing what ingredients go together and of creating something out of whatever is available in the cupboard, fridge and freezer and not relying on convenience foods.  Our meals may not have gourmet names created by celebrity chefs, but they are tasty, nutritious, filling and made from scratch using fresh food wherever possible.  I am thankful every day that my lovely other half not only enjoys cooking, but keeps us so well fed.    

Full tilt into February

Hmm, interesting.  This post went to Drafts rather than Publish last night.  Let's try again.  This was from yesterday . . . 


Today has been a full and productive day of pottering in the house.  Both of us have cheerfully got on with things that needed to be done, a few things that we wanted to do and a couple of things that cropped up as we went along, but what was so good was that we were both perfectly happy and content to get on and do them.  The day has passed with each of us busy, creative in various ways, enjoying a bit of quiet as and when, and satisfied with jobs achieved.  One thing we haven't been is bored!

N has plaster-boarded two walls in the garage store, partly to use up some oddments of board left over from the conversion, and also to make good a wall we feel could be put to good use with some shelving/storage; it's all about making the most of the space we have.  In order to do this, however, he has had to move everything out of the storeroom and into the house (again) and it is now piled up waiting, I suspect, for a bit of a declutter again.  It's a never-ending process, this decluttering business, but after several months in the new house we are finding things which are no longer required or not going to be used, so they're on their way out.  We are also vigilant about what 'extras' come into the house (ie acquisitions of one sort or another) and between the two processes, we can keep 'stuff' to an acceptable level.  As we have recently begun to discuss the option of moving and down-sizing at some point in the future (and maybe the not-so-distant future) we don't want to have to pack up any more stuff than is necessary.  The decluttering continues.

My lovely DIY-ing other half has also fitted some storage clips in the airing cupboard so we now have somewhere to store the vacuum tools.  Just one more little job off the list.

Another apron day for me - I think I may need to make myself a few more aprons just to ring the changes - washing (another breezy day to make the most of), ironing, and cleaning/sorting out the cupboard under the sink.  One or two bits thrown out (dried-up shoe polish no longer fit for purpose), cleaning rags organised, and bottles rearranged.  Always satisfying.

I boiled up the chicken bones that were in the freezer, and stripped the little bits of meat off, it all adds up.  Tomorrow we'll make a chicken soup for lunch for a couple of days.

I made a paper pattern from a well-loved fleece polo-neck jumper - I find it so comfy and warm in this cold weather - and I have seen some suitable fleece fabric locally.  I think I shall make this one of my sewing projects for February.  I've continued unpicking hexagons for a future quilting project, done a quick repair on a pair of jeans, and caught up with some paperwork.  As usual, as I'm pottering around, other things spring to mind and I've taken to jotting them down on a notepad so I don't forget them.  Then, when I have a spare moment or two, a quick look at that list will remind me and I can make the time to get deal with them.

This cold weather is really playing havoc with my hands - they are so rough and dry - so I am going to watch 'Last Tango' and give them a soaking in moisturising mitts to see if that will help at all.  I'm going through hand cream like it's going out of fashion!

A simple life for me

It's howling a hoolie here at the moment, rain lashing against the windows, and it's forecast to get a little wilder during the night.  Compared to many parts of the country, currently experiencing snow, gales and other wintery weather, we get off relatively lightly this far south.  It's no fun being without power in freezing temperatures and I feel for those folks who have been hit hard by the weather.

Today I started in on another task on The List, sorting out the kitchen cupboards.  As I previously mentioned, I've taken the plunge and joined in with the 'Pantry Challenge' on the Down to Earth blog, so I thought I'd better make a start.  It'll be done over two or three days to fit around other things that are happening, and today I did the wall cupboards.  Everything out, shelves wiped down, bottles, jars and packets checked and sorted before putting back.  Two glass jars emptied and recycled, several packets emptied into storage jars and recycled, jasmine rice used up for dinner, a container with nothing in it (!) recycled.  Out of date stock?  About a quarter of a packet of curry paste, BBE May 2012!  All in all, not too bad.  We keep a fairly close eye on the food cupboards, and are much better now at only buying what we know we will use.   Once I got going I really enjoyed the task and the end result was very satisfying.  It's tidy, we can see what we have, and everything is accessible for use.  I'll carry on tomorrow.

This afternoon was a bit of a treat for me.  I took a workshop at our local quilting shop; three hours of machine quilting - wonderful!  The shop owner and tutor, Vendulka, is a very inspiring teacher, and under her guidance I produced some creditable feathers.  Lots of practice, learning to relax and letting the fabric and stitches flow.  It's quite a different technique to the precision of hand quilting, which I do enjoy, but I find I don't have the patience to undertake weeks of hand sewing that I used to have.  I want my quilts finished and to be used, not remain as pieced tops never to be quilted and completed.  So, machine quilting it is, and I'm really enjoying the challenge.

This post is my 350th, and marks two years of blogging.  The blog is nothing fancy, just an online diary of our days 'pottering along', enjoying what our chosen lifestyle brings us.  Living within our means, free of debt, being self-reliant, and not being caught up in consumerism.   Thrifty, frugal, simple - whatever the label, we're loving our simple life.

Routine days

For many years, I used to smile when I heard retired people remark that they never knew how they ever found time to go to work because their lives were so busy now.  (rolling of eyes!!)  How could that be possible, I used to think?  They must have all the time in the world, not working.  Hmm, that was then.  Now, I find myself thinking the exact same thing - how did I find time to go to work?

My days are busy and productive, and oh so much happier.  Even something as mundane as having washing blowing on the line makes me smile to myself.  

Being someone who likes things organised (I will admit I don't always manage it though I continue to strive for order), I find some routine in my daily potterings is helpful in providing a rough structure to the week - N and I quite often have to ask each other what day it is.  With that in mind, I set Monday morning aside to clean the house - dust, vacuum, tidy up and put away etc.  And it seems to be working well.  It certainly helps that the house is not overly cluttered to start with, and we are mindful of what extras (if any) come into the house - I do not want to spend hours carefully dusting countless ornaments and trinkets.  As I go round the rooms, I am making a mental note of the 'snagging' that still needs to be done, after the renovation last year.  There's a bit of remedial work we want to look at in the spring, and one or two small projects that will make the house work better for us.  And of course there will be a more thorough 'Spring Clean', but I'm hoping to have had a bit of a declutter beforehand, meaning less to clean ;-)

I don't have a set day for washing; I'm guided by the weather, so if it's dry and breezy, I'll get a load in the machine.  

We're now really into menu planning - not sure why we didn't do it sooner.  N is the main cook here, and he has found it much easier knowing what's for dinner for the week in advance, rather than having to think of something each day.  The plan is flexible but it certainly gives us something to work with.  At the moment we are eating our way through the contents of the freezer and what we already have in the cupboard and hopefully we won't have to restock until February.  

I bake bread once a week (and try to ensure there is something else being cooked in the oven at the same time), and have set days for changing the bed.  Library books need to be returned and changed.  I volunteer Friday mornings, and twice-monthly we give a lift for an out-patients appointment.  All these are put on the calendar, and suddenly there is a structure and routine to our weeks.  The times in between are filled with DIY, craft, gardening, mending, reading, talking . . . and taking time for a cuppa.  We walk and get out and about.  I don't think I can ever say I have been bored; there is just so much to fill my days with!

So, today - one of those hospital trips, a dash into Lidl for specific items (loo rolls on offer so stocked up there!), then pop into Tesco, again for specific items.  We have decided that we can get most of shopping at Lidl and Aldi now, and will just go to Tesco to bi-monthly - there's only a few bits that we haven't been able to find elsewhere.  We prefer the shopping experience at Lidl and Aldi; there isn't so much to choose from, the prices are consistently cheaper, the quality is more than acceptable, there aren't the gimmicks (BOGOFs; buy one, get one half price etc), and they don't hand out free plastic bags!  

I pinned out the bowtie quilt, hoping to get it sandwiched, only to find that the inside border isn't lying flat.  Deep breath, it'll have to be unpicked.  *sigh*  By now this quilt should have been in one piece and started on the quilting.  Instead, all I seem to have done is unpick the pesky thing.  

Really, it's just as well I'm not at work.  I wouldn't have the time to do anything!

Being grateful

A morning at the donation centre yesterday, and a chance to catch up on everyone's Christmas and New Year news.  Things are getting a little more organised there, and I managed to get a fair amount of work done.  I always find myself pondering over the problem of 'stuff' while I'm sorting through the donations.  A lot of the goods that are donated (in good faith and for a very worthy cause) are good quality and suitable for resale through the charity shops on the local high streets, but every so often I open a bag or box that is just full of, well, rubbish.  We salvage what we can for scrap value, but sadly rubbish is rubbish, even if it has been donated in a charity bag.  When did the accumulation of all this 'stuff' become so important to us?  

Back at home, we were delighted to be given two big bags of shredding which we are mixing in to the compost bin.  We're novices at composting, and the grass cuttings and veg peelings were getting a bit sludgy, for want of a better description, so a bit of shredded paper will hopefully help the mix.  We'll wait to see in a few months time.

Lots of crafting going on here.  N has another model kit on the go, and can be found most mornings at the kitchen table, glasses perched on the end of his nose, meticulously painting some tiny piece of kit.  It's all about having the time, taking the time, and enjoying the time spent creating.  

Absolutely loving these colours!

I've been knitting (this wasn't even on the list but it was a quick and easy 'tick').  And I'm now tackling one of the projects that has been bugging me for a very long time.  It's a quilt top I began piecing many, many years (that sounds familiar, doesn't it?), and over time it has been put away, forgotten about, rediscovered, had a bit more added to it, stuffed in a bag . . . 

I have promised myself it will be the next project to be completed, and I would really like to have it done by the end of the month.  I think that may be a little optimistic but I am determined to get it finished.  Once I had spread it out on the lounge floor, I saw straightaway that I was going to have to begin by unpicking the borders, which were just too wavy for me to ignore (did I really measure those sides first?)  That was today's task, sort the borders out.  They were clearly too long, which made the edges wavy, so I've shortened and resewn each side and it all looks a lot better.  I dug around in the bag of sheets from the charity shop and have found one that will do for the backing, and I have enough offcuts, if I do a bit of joining, for the wadding.  Making do with what I have.  It's fun.  

We have had two phone calls in the past 24 hours which have served as a timely reminder to us of just how fortunate we are.  We both enjoy good health, something that is so often taken for granted but which I find I am becoming increasingly thankful for, and secondly, we are in the wonderful position of being debt-free.  We are not beholden financially to anyone, and it is the best feeling and one we made a conscious decision to achieve.  We have never regretted that decision.  It has allowed us to leave work early knowing that everything was paid for and it has given us choice and freedom.  We are happy to live within our means but we don't feel that makes us poor in any way; we are far more self-reliant than many.  Our life may be simple in comparison to some, but we consider ourselves rich in so many ways.  We have much to be grateful for. 

Tick

It poured with rain this morning then turned into a lovely bright afternoon but it left the ground very wet

I think the most apt word for this, the first week of 2015, must be 'busy' for that is what we seem to have been.  But in a really nice, happy sort of way.  It is such a pleasure to be doing things that we chose to do rather than have to do (there's even a sort of satisfaction with the housework, probably to do with wearing an apron!!)  For the moment, anyway, I am going to make the most of this sense of purpose and fulfillment; I dare say there will be days that don't have the same productivity or enjoyment and on those days I will remember that it isn't always like that.

A visit to the physio has confirmed that N has torn the cartilage in his knee which does explain the on-going problems.  He now has daily exercises to do and hopefully it can be resolved without recourse to surgery.  And the BP issue appears to have been a blip; yesterday's readings were more than acceptable.

The project list for this year has the first 'tick' - I have finished lining the curtains.  However, no time to sit around congratulating myself, the next project is already on the go!  Actually, I need to be honest here and say I seem to have 3 projects on the go at the moment.  I don't think that was really the plan but one is definitely on-going (and long-term; a bit at a time sort of project) and another is a quick knitting project (a few lines here and there) so they will all probably muddle along together fairly well.  I am mindful of not taking on too much at any one time - that just becomes a massive juggling act and any pleasure rapidly goes - so I think this is my limit for the time being.

January seems to be a month for making do with what we have, running the freezer down (it's always surprising what you find lurking in the depths!) and not buying unless we need to.  I am gradually working my way through various cleaning products, finishing up odds and ends and not replacing them.  Two more bottles were emptied today.  It seems slow progress but I'll get there eventually.  A bit more room in the cupboard under the sink.

We finally took the Christmas tree down today; it had started to shed it's needles so it's time was up.  We so enjoyed having a real tree this year and it is definitely something we will do again.