Life Lately

 

The golden shades of autumn are gently disappearing, and the landscape is being transformed once again. Stark, bare trees and dull grey skies. Dark mornings and even darker evenings. This really isn't my favourite time of year.

I'm feeling weary. I've been kept busy at work all this week and my hours are still uncertain. Days are hurried, once again, and brief moments of calm are few and far between. It sometimes feel like I'm on a treadmill wishing, just occasionally, that I could press the pause button and step off for a while.

Last week I managed to do exactly that, and it was lovely. A much longed for trip over to the North East finally came to fruition. Our visit was originally planned several years ago now, but for one reason or another, it simply never happened. We were only away for two nights, but it felt as though it was much longer, and we enjoyed some beautiful sunny weather while we were there. 

We stayed in Berwick-Upon-Tweed, but managed to visit much of the surrounding area, including Bamburgh, Seahouses and Alnwick. The coastline there is just beautiful, and I hope we might get chance to return and explore some more. I'd especially love to visit The Farne Islands, which you can just about see, if you zoom in on the middle photograph above. Boat trips there can be booked from one of the many tour operators in Seahouses, which looked to be very popular on the day we visited, as there were some rather long queues. Another time, I would also quite like to cross the causeway over to Lindisfarne. During our stay, the tide times would have only allowed for an incredibly short visit, so we decided it wouldn't have been worthwhile.

We enjoyed some lovely walks along the sand. The beaches appeared to go on for miles, and I lost count of the amount of times I warned Lily not to get wet feet. She could have easily taken her boots off, but instead she insisted on chancing her luck with the waves. I shouldn't be surprised, just like me, she feels  happy by the water. The sea air and sunshine felt wonderful and restorative, and for just a short time I could feel at ease. 

All the castles were magnificent. We sat and ate our lunch here, enjoying the view.

We never did make it to the pumpkin patch this year, so back at home, we carved our very own home grown pumpkins ready for Hallowe'en. I love how they all vary in shape and size. Of course, I toasted the seeds for a delicious snack, and the flesh was roasted, along with some leftover squash, and quickly turned into curried pumpkin soup.

This year, as well as the usual cobwebs and spiders, we also had a cauldron of bats in our porch. Thankfully, our spookily dressed trick-or-treaters didn't appear to mind them. 

At the weekend, we wrapped up nice and warm, and met up with some friends at our local bonfire.

To stick with tradition, I also took along some of my home made treacle toffee.

Looking ahead, I feel more optimistic. Plans are being put in place, which should hopefully help to make things a little less stressful for me. I'm continuing to keep my main focus on home and family, and I'm really starting to get excited for Christmas now. Chatting with Lily earlier in the week, we have decided to spend our December weekends much closer to home this year, and I am very much looking forward to it. 

J. X

Autumnal

Autumn is gathering pace, here, and I usually find that once the bracken begins to die back, the landscape takes on a completely different hue. Vibrant greens change to rich russet browns, hidden tracks reveal themselves once more and the trails, which are well trodden during the summer months, become much, much quieter. You might be able to tell, I've decided that I'm throwing myself into all things autumn this month, and it's proving to be an excellent distraction for me. 

My working week continues to be busy, with the possibility of extra hours for me moving forwards. And so, alongside all of my other responsibilities, it becomes even more important for me to take care of myself. This is not always easy, but I realise it is essential if I wish to maintain my wellbeing. I've begun cycling to work again, most days, which I'm really enjoying (the boss is also very impressed by this), and I'm also starting to take better care over my diet. The slow cooker has come into its own, again, and this week I cooked a tasty stew in it, which I'll be eating for dinner, a second time, this evening. Meals are kept simple, unfussy, and served up with lots of vegetables, including my home grown and pickled beetroot, which is absolutely delicious. However, in a bit of a blow, I've recently discovered that, along with mushrooms, bread is also not my friend. That said, since cutting it out of my diet, I have noticed a huge improvement in my joint stiffness, so I'll just have to save it for an occasional treat, from now on.

Speaking of food, I only realised, this week, that the none of the links on my recipe page have been working. So if you've been trying to access any of them, I can only apologise. You might be pleased to know that they're all fixed now, and whilst I was going through them all, it was also quite lovely to look back at some of my older blog posts. How time flies. In my reply to a comment on my previous post, I mentioned how fast life has become, and how I miss the slower pace to my days when my children were small. This made me realise just how much creating memories and traditions is important to me. Just this week, Lily has 'insisted' that we hang up our string of pumpkin fairy lights, and the reason that I noticed the issue with my recipe page, was because I had been searching for my bonfire toffee recipe. I'll be making some very soon, as I always do, this time, each year,

Another tradition that I enjoy, is going for an autumn walk. Not the kind of walk that needs a lot of preparation, but the low-level, gentle paced kind of walk. where I can kick through the leaves and enjoy the beautiful ever-changing scenery. Shortly after setting off from Ambleside, Lily spotted two deer in the field beside the track. They are always magical to see, but especially on a misty autumn morning.

Thankfully, Lily doesn't yet feel that she's too grown up to eat oak leaf shaped ginger biscuits, which makes me incredibly happy. So, last week, when she requested that I bake some, of course I was more than happy to oblige. I did enjoy making them, however, and they are very delicious. Even better, was that we found the perfect spot beside High Sweden Bridge, where we could sit and enjoy them. 

It was a lovely walk from Ambleside towards Rydal, taking in the stunning grounds of Rydal Hall. It was here that we paused again, to enjoy a pumpkin spice scone and a hot chocolate at the tea room, overlooking Rydal Beck.

They warmed it especially for me. 😁

From Rydal Hall, we walked down through Dora's Field, then across the bridge towards the lake shore.

Then, of course we had to cross these stepping stones as we passed by - it is tradition, after all.

As autumn walks go, this one was pretty perfect. I even got to wear my woolly hat.

This week, I will be preparing for Hallowe'en. We don't go all out, here, but I always like to decorate the porch, and I make sure we have plenty of treats in for any callers we may get. The home grown pumpkins are looking good at the moment, but we might still take a trip to the pumpkin patch if there's time.

Back soon. 

J. X

Moments

It's been an incredibly busy and stressful two weeks, although I'm hopeful things might be a little more settled moving forwards, for a short while, at least. The chance of life slowing down any time soon has all but gone.  I feel wrung out. I don't sleep well at the best of times, and it has been even more of a challenge given the recent turn of events, not to mention I haven't been eating well, which has been through lack of opportunity, not choice. I've had little time to take stock, but I'm very aware things needs to change. I need to pare back, prioritise and seek out some moments of calm. 

I will intentionally give swimming a miss today. As much as I will miss it, as I've come to really enjoy my weekly sessions, I just need a moment in my day where I am not rushing about in order to achieve something. I imagine that anyone who is a carer for a friend or relative can resonate with this. Constantly putting the other person's needs before our own, comes naturally, but not without cost. Please don't think I am complaining. I realise that I am in a privileged position where I am able to be around to help, but balancing all my responsibilities is proving rather difficult. 

You can imagine my relief when last weekend arrived and I had half a day when I didn't need to be anywhere. Even better, the sun was shining, it was a beautiful early autumn morning. A moment to slow down, take a breath, and (try to) relax, so a walk through the deer park seemed like a delightful idea. Unlike the previous day, there was very little breeze and it was warm. It was so lovely. Of course, I had dressed for cooler weather, so it wasn't long before I needed to remove a layer or two. I was slightly miffed that it wasn't the weather for hat wearing, as my hair might have been much better hidden beneath one. It is looking quite 'neglected' at the moment. In fact, I probably won't be needing to dress up this Hallowe'en, I just need a broomstick :)  

Our walk took us through an avenue of trees, then along by the river. Leaves were gently falling all around us, but it will still be several weeks before autumn displays it's true colours. The deer are dark in colour, and as they were alongside the wall, well away from the path, I didn't even try to take a photograph of them. It is always so lovely to see them though. They make in impressive sight when they are running through the park.

Something else impressive were the cakes we treated ourselves to, from the bakery at Levens Hall. Carrot cake, and Beetroot and Chocolate cake. So yummy! The hot chocolates we had were delicious as well. 

We sat in the courtyard for a while, enjoying watching the bees busying themselves among the flowers.

Then we walked back along the opposite side of the river. The trees beautifully reflected in the water. I managed to take this photograph just a moment before one of those stones landed with a huge splash, right in the middle, there. Lily just couldn't help herself. Don't worry, there weren't any ducks close by. 

Almost as soon as I'd returned to the car, it was as though a bubble burst. The moment was gone and I was back to worrying about things, once again. It is uncertain as to how the situation will be navigated, moving forwards, but for the time being I will continue to do everything I can, while relishing those in between moments, in order to re-fill my cup. 

The first thing on my list, will be sorting my hair out. 

J. X

Catch Up

I would just like to say thank you for your all kind words and messages, they are very much appreciated. It's been a little over a month since I was last in this space. At first, October seemed to drag on and on, and yet, as the days became darker, all of  sudden we were into November, and it felt as if it was over in the blink of an eye. It's been a challenging month for me, as I have been grappling with my health. It's nothing serious. At least I don't think it is. Just some sort of a virus that I can't seem to shake. I'm also not ignoring the fact that had I not been so run down in the first place, I would have been back to my old self long before now. As it is, I'm still far from feeling in good health, but this week I feel like I may have turned the corner. Here's hoping.

It was for that reason that I took a step back from posting here. Looking after Lily and keeping things ticking over have been about all I could manage. 

Anyway, a brief catch up. These autumnal pictures seem at odds with the weather we're currently experiencing - almost wintry- but I'm going to post them anyway :)

In the middle of October, before my health took a downward spiral, we took a trip to our nearest pumpkin patch. It was a glorious blue sky morning for our visit, and there was even a ground frost, which for a short while at least made the whole field sparkle. We chose five pumpkins in all. One of which was so very small, it was far too cute to leave behind. 

We combined our trip out with a visit to Acorn Bank. The trees were just beginning to shed their leaves and as it hadn't been that long since we visited the flour mill, instead we took the woodland walk towards the wildlife hide. It was lovely and quiet there with just the two of us, but we still didn't manage to spot any wildlife. 

The following week we went to The Peak District, staying in the lovely village of Winster. Now, if someone had said to me the evening before that I could have cancelled with a full refund, I would have snapped their hand off. Unusually for me, I really wasn't feeling in the mood for going anywhere, and looking back, that should have been an indicator that something wasn't quite right.

I am glad we went though. We went to Bakewell, Matlock Bath and the village of Eyam. One morning it rained, and so we stayed dry by enjoying a visit to the nearby National Trust property of Keddleston Hall. Then in the afternoon, by the time we went for a walk up on the moor, it had all but cleared.

We stopped in an old miner's cottage, so evenings were spent cosying up in front of the wood burner. You can just about see our pumpkin which we decided to take along with us. I told you it was small!

Our last day was spent in Matlock Bath at The Heights of Abraham. Admission to the Heights is by cable car, which was an experience in itself, given the glorious weather. We could see for miles. Here we took guided tours of two underground caverns and also enjoyed panoramic views. Thankfully, I was able to keep going fuelled by a combination of sunshine and coffee.

Although it was genuinely lovely to get away, and I don't wish to appear ungrateful, but I was quite relieved to come home again. When you're under the weather, the comforting familiarity of home cannot be underestimated, and I was also missing my cats. 🐈

Hallowe'en was the busiest I remember in while. I'm sure we received at least eight groups of callers, all of whom were wearing the most amazing costumes, and were all very sweet and polite. I almost gave up on my dinner that evening, as every time I sat down to eat, would hear the door knocker again.  

Last weekend we enjoyed a gentle walk around Grasmere. I don't think I could manage to get up on the fells right now but I was desperate to get out, even if it was just for a short while. The Lake District is displaying it's autumn colour and there is nowhere I would rather be to try and recharge my batteries.

Bonfire night was spent toasting marshmallows and lighting sparklers in our garden.

So far, the remainder of this month is looking fairly quiet, so I'm hoping I can use this time to recuperate and regain my strength before December begins. I'm also going to attempt to slow down and pace myself more, which is never more important for me than during the cold winter months. 

J. X