Autumn Cleaning

Thank you so much for your comments and compliments on my poncho. So kind of you! I am really glad you like it and I was so looking forward to sharing it with you as I knew you'd all get just why I enjoyed making it so much. That's the beauty of the online community, the way you find kindred spirits or people who understand why it's such fun to make things.

Ah, half term. You're here. I spent yesterday in a haze of housework and cleaning which sounds dull but was actually just what I needed. John was at work, the kids were engrossed in various activities, and I just methodically worked through room after room. I sorted through piles of clutter, cleaned out the fridge, steam cleaned the floors. My parents took the kids to the park in the afternoon and I went to the shops. I returned to that magical thing, a house just as I had left it. Still, quiet and clean. No shoes in the middle of the hall floor or dirty plates in the sink. I sat down with a cup of tea and just inhaled that peaceful, tidy house. Of course twenty four hours later, it's a different story, but that moment was amazing. I totally savoured it. 

This morning was spent at home baking and pottering, readying our home for the arrival of guests. I dragged two reluctant children to the woods after lunch, determined to sneak in a quick trip to the woods. Oh autumn, I just love it! It's such a relief to stop waiting for the good weather, as I do all summer long, and just accept whatever comes our way. In autumn, all weathers are welcome. Rain means glorious squelchy woodland walks in boots with the damp smell of fungi and rotting leaves, while sun brings those delicious crisp breath-in-the-air days when the trees seem to glow. And while we were in the woods, I asked Bella to take some photos of me wearing my poncho. (I had to pay her £1.) She is, like me, more comfortable behind the camera than in front of it, and in among about one hundred blurred shots, I found these. 

And the next two shots crack me up. Angus is doing the annoying smile he does when he's been told to look at the camera but doesn't feel like cooperating.

And here I am trying to persuade him to give me a kiss.

Happy half term to you all.