October Sunshine

 

It wasn't the best start to the week. Storm Ashley arrived, and we were battered by strong winds and heavy rain. Roads were flooded and branches were strewn across pavements. Having transferred my pots into more sheltered corners of the garden, thankfully, the only damage here appeared to be my poor second sunflower, which snapped at its base, even though it had been securely tied. Never mind, it had been lovely while it lasted. 

Besides the storm, it's been a quiet week, all told, mainly taken up with work and other uneventful happenings.  I've managed to settle into a new routine, clawed back a little time for myself, and as a result, I've felt much less stressed. On Tuesday, after a three week break, I went swimming again, which felt wonderful. I'm not a very strong swimmer, and I'm certainly not fast, but I managed to swim a mile, which is a great achievement for me. I'm going to try and keep it up as a regular activity now. I've already put in a request for some swimming goggles as a Christmas present. Next on the list will be a swimsuit that I actually feel comfortable wearing :)

Another activity, which I've been enjoying this week, is crochet. Yes, I've finally picked up my hook again, after what has felt like a very long time. Probably because it has been. With the help of an online tutorial, I've got my head around waffle stitch (thank you, Joy) and I've made a start on a baby blanket for a friend's grandson, who is due in January. It feels good to be doing something gently creative again, especially as it doesn't require too much thought or concentration on my part. I've no photographs to show you yet, but I'll be sure to take some for a future post. 

The clocks went back in the early hours of this morning, which is why I'm awake ridiculously early, and I'm trying hard not to think too much about dark, gloomy evenings. Instead, I'm focusing on bright cold days, filled with autumn sunshine. Since the start of the week, we've seen a great improvement in the weather, here, but it has felt unseasonably warm.

Later this week, it will be Hallowe'en. In a few days I will decorate the porch with cobwebs, spiders and bats, and our cauldron will be filled with sweets to welcome any scary visitors we may receive. To be honest, the cobwebs and spiders are often to be found there, but I'll add some fake ones for visual effect. 

There are still the pumpkins to carve, and although I often have thoughts of doing something a little bit different, I usually keep with tradition and stick to a regular, scary face. 🎃 And another thing I definitely shall be doing, is toasting the pumpkin seeds. Delicious!

At the weekend, we will be wrapping up warmly, and meeting with friends at a local bonfire and firework display. Still making the most of those moments, before my thoughts turn to those end of year festivities. 

Back soon. 

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

Pumpkins 🎃

 

Earlier this week, we pulled on our wellies and headed off to the farm in search of some Hallowe'en pumpkins. Previously, we have always just bought them from our local farm shop, but this year I thought it would be a special treat to visit an actual pumpkin farm and choose one straight from the field instead. 

I love activities such as this, as they are usually done under the guise of being solely for Lily's benefit, when in fact I get just as much, if not more, enjoyment from them :) 

We were taken by tractor into one of the top fields, where there was row upon row containing different varieties of pumpkins. There were orange ones, white ones, blue ones, yellow ones. They had small ones, tiny ones, regular sized and some huge ones. They even had some warty ones.

We took one of the wheelbarrows provided and went off in search of our 'perfect' pumpkin. We were spoiled for choice. I was almost certain I would choose an orange one this time, but I saw the cutest little yellow pumpkin and instantly knew I just had to take it home with me. 

Then it was back onto the tractor again to visit the stand where we would get our pumpkins sized. Afterwards, we were able to wander around the fields, where there were some great photograph opportunities and some scary scenes to help get us in the Hallowe'en mood.

Now we just need to carve them. 🎃

J. X

Autumn 🍂

The autumn season is fully upon us. Shorter hours of daylight mean that I am usually travelling to work in the dark, and at the very least the light is fading fast when I return home in an evening.  The days have mainly been cloudy and damp, although it still remains quite mild for the time of year which, thankfully, means there has been little need for the central heating to be switched on. A small but necessary victory in the current climate.

The surrounding countryside is displaying some beautiful autumn colour, but the paths are becoming treacherous, covered with soggy leaves, sycamore seeds and beechnuts. On the fells, the once vibrant green bracken has taken on a warm russet hue. My coffee table is, once again, covered in conkers :)

I've been spending more and more time at home lately. Partly, this has been because of the downturn in the weather but also, I've felt more of a need to anchor myself in these continuing uncertain times. I realise that comfort food, a cosy sofa and warm woollen blankets are what I require at the moment, and I am more than happy to indulge myself. Mog frequently positions herself on a cushion right beside me. Perhaps she feels the same. 

Yesterday, the weather turned out a little brighter than expected, and so we took ourselves off on a short walk up to Lanty's Tarn, near the village of Glenridding. The paths and lanes quite empty now, a sharp contrast to the height of summer. Fortunately, the weather remained fine for the most part, just enough of a light shower to produce a few rainbows. On this occasion, the low level of the walk meant I could leave my full waterproof kit behind, and made for more of a relaxing stroll.

Today, I've achieved very little, besides doing some baking and a few rows of crochet. Tomorrow morning, we're heading out in search of a pumpkin. 🎃 Then later in the week, things are going to get a lot more fun ;)

J. X