The first half of Advent

In the midst of the manic pre-Christmas build up, I thought I would try to find something small each day to feel thankful for, something little to cherish and celebrate, whether that is a tradition, or some baking, or crafting. Something to encourage me to pause and savour this season.

1. On the first of December, it is the ceremonial hanging of the advent calendar, which I've had since the children were quite little. Twenty-four pockets filled with chocolates by the elves each night. I've tried other advent traditions over the years but this remains the most eagerly anticipated and the easiest to manage. 

2. A stack of Christmas books by the bed. Some are old and I intend to re-read them, some I bought a few years ago but haven't gotten around to reading yet, but immersing myself in some festive literature is a big part of Christmas for me.

3. The delight of being out and about in towns and cities at this time of year, looking at the Christmas lights and trees. This photo was taken in Oxford on Saturday 3rd December, when I met up with my book group friends for lunch and shopping. 

4. Lighting the advent candle.

5. The tree. Everything about the tree. Choosing it, wrestling it into its stand, the lights, the decorations, all of it. I love it.

6. The baubles of Christmas past. Handmade, inherited, gathered from travels, made by the kids - they don't all make it onto the tree but I cherish them all.

7. The scent of a Christmas candle, full of oranges and cloves, clean and warm all at once. 

8. Christmas cookery books. Every year I love to browse them, making lists of what I might bake.

9. Switching on the tree lights first thing in the morning, watching the warm light fill a cold, dark room. Always magical.

10. The joy of waking up to a bitterly cold, frosty morning, with pink skies and everything covered in white. It's the closest we get to a snow day round here.

11. Baking mince pies. I made these with Angus on Saturday, recipe from here. 

12. Making a wreath with my sister, with willow foraged from a tree near the school, fir foraged from the local forest and eucalyptus from the greengrocers. 

I hope you are finding brief moments to pause in this wonderfully hectic time of year. 

November: crochet, fireworks and the last of the pumpkins

November.

There was a lot of rain, and a lot of mud.

But also brief moments when the sun came out and shone brightly into gloomy corners of the house.

And sent long, long shadows across the fields. 

And had me running for the camera to try to get a good photo of the patchwork quilt.

It's been a busy month for crochet. I started and finished a scarf in about a week, a lovely chunky, thick one. Pattern from here. 

I made these adorable orange slices from this brilliant book, which I've hung on the mantle.

I finally finished these socks, which I started months ago but abandoned over the summer. Angus kindly modelled them for me. They are the best crochet socks I have found because the ribbing on the front means they stretch when you pull them on.

They are also extremely warm, ideal when the weather is as cold as it is at the moment. 

The pattern is from here and the beautiful yarn from here. 

Other lovely things include a morning out at a Christmas craft fair, full of the most beautiful vintage and handmade inspiration. 

I bought some Christmas presents and this stool made its way home with me.

There has also been a three-week long cold, busy weeks at work, mock exams for Bella, little treats like haircuts and manicures, books, baking (pumpkin loaf was a winner), walks in the countryside and a lot more. Life feels unsustainably busy at the moment, with the coming weeks getting busier by the day. I am counting down the days until the Christmas holidays for a little breather. 

Dorset

Over half term, we spent a very relaxing few days in Dorset with all the family to celebrate my Dad's recent big birthday. The kind that ends in a zero. It was absolutely wonderful and I had been looking forward to it during all the long, busy weeks at work in September and October. 

There were fourteen of us altogether and we rented a big barn conversion which came with a pool and games room - it was perfect. The grandchildren (six of them, aged between twelve and fifteen) had so much space to spread out and even managed to separate themselves from their phones for a short time.

Many of the adults also enjoyed the games room, although some found that they were not quite as good at pool or snooker than they remembered they were. Apparently the table was wonky.

The house was on a working farm (you had to be careful of the chickens when reversing) and the view from our bedroom window was utterly charming, with a shepherd's hut, alpacas and a donkey. 

The local village was picture perfect, with old rectories and thick, wooden doors tucked away into old stone walls. 

Despite it being one of our neighbouring counties here in Hampshire, I don't know Dorset very well. We mostly drive through it to get to Devon or Cornwall. Well, silly me, because it is beautiful with such a perfect mix of ruggedly dramatic coastline, rolling hills, tiny Miss Marple-style villages and towns with a tempting array of shops.

Some of the best parts of the trip (apart from all the big meals together in the house and family time) were:

Walking along the coastal path between Durdle door and Lulworth Cove.

 

Durdle Door is magnificent. I could have watched the sea crash away at the arch for hours, it really is beautiful.

Shaftesbury was lovely. I had really wanted to visit as it is home to The Botanical Candle Co. , who I have been following on Instagram and buying from for many years, so it was nice to visit their actual shop. It is also home to famous Gold Hill, or "Hovis Hill" as it is nicknamed, due to it featuring in a Hovis bread advert many years ago.

We spent such a happy few hours in Shaftesbury. As well as the shopping and exploring, we ate pasties for lunch and I found a bakery that sold Lardy Cake (a local sweet bread that is delicious and impossible to find anywhere now) so of course I had to buy some of that. Then, in a lovely waffles and gelato place I spotted this ice cream flavour, which I had never heard of before. Sea buckthorn - sometimes called seaberry - is a wild berry which grows along the coastline. It tastes like orange starburst, the lady in the shop told me, and she was right. 

Naturally I had to try some of that, too. It was like a creamy sorbet, orangey and sweet but with a slightly sour tang too, which was completely delicious.

There was also a very good Oxfam book shop in which I bought a few treasures.

Finally, one of the unexpected highlights of the trip was Bovington Tank Museum. Now, I was not remotely interested in visiting but John and Angus were, so we went and it was absolutely brilliant. Not so much the rows of tanks, they all look the same to me, but the excellent WW1 and WW2 exhibits, especially the parts about local people from the area and the stories they could tell. 

Angus was in his element, reading every single piece of information and availing himself of all dressing up opportunities. I love that he is still game to have his photo taken while looking ridiculous. 

It was one of those breaks when, despite only being a couple of days, you do feel yourself start to relax. While there I finished a pair of crochet socks, sewed more of my patchwork quilt and mended my jeans for the thousandth time. I read a magazine and finished a book. Things I never get time to do at home.

We are all now very much hoping that my Mum wants to do something similar when she celebrates her own big birthday next year......