Autumn

 

Autumn has been a mixed bag so far. The weather has been unseasonably warm, then very wet, before finally cooling down. We've had all sorts going on at home, in amongst the usual treadmill of work/school/college. We uncovered a slow leak in the bathroom which resulted in lots of the wall needing to be knocked out to expose the pipe work. It is three quarters fixed and I am distracting myself by choosing paint colours since we're going to have to redecorate. There's an issue with the roof which is causing small leaks in the dining room and living room. And the front door is also leaking. So it's been fun. Add to that a poorly dog, although he is better now, and it's been a rollercoaster.

This sourdough is a good metaphor. One bake rising unfeasibly high, the next flat as a pancake (like my pumpkin one above). And then the starter got flies in it, because I didn't put the lid on properly, just to top it all off. Sometimes a sourdough starter is a bit like having another thing to keep alive and I have my hands full with children and pets. 

But there have been many seasonal comforts and moments of joy in amongst the vets and plumbers and mess. Like autumnal food, such as this resplendent toad in the hole, as well as many pies and stews and crumbles.

I have been tidying up the garden ready for winter. I am proud of myself for remembering to put my geraniums in the cold frame, so that the frost does not get them. I love a geranium. Large plants which had outgrown their pots have been moved into the borders and I have planted bulbs. The outdoor sofa cushions have been brought inside ready to be washed and packed away.

There have been lots of walks. I took this photo about a month ago and it was so warm that afternoon that we were all in t-shirts.

Other small pleasures include getting my nails done...

...watching Great British Bake Off....

....and a lie in with a good book. 

On the crafting front, I did finally finish my Iceland holiday diary and took it to the framer. I am still working on the same patchwork quilt and crochet blanket that I have been for years. The socks I started on the plane back from Iceland have not been looked at since. 

We did have a very lovely jaunt to London with our friends during half term. We ate, drank, played miniature gold and shuffleboard, rode in a cable car and a boat and saw an excellent exhibition at The Imperial War Museum about espionage. It was all very much needed.

Now my thoughts are turning towards Christmas a little. It doesn't start for me until December 1st, at the earliest, but the calendar is filling up and I have started to do a bit of shopping. I am trying to get ahead of myself, but still very much enjoying autumn. I always think it's a shame when people want to jump straight to Christmas the minute Halloween is over, because autumn is still happening and it is the best season. But then if putting your tree up on 1st November makes you happy, crack on - we all need to find the joy wherever and whenever we can. 

August Postcards

I don't feel that these photos represent the truly awful weather we had in August, the days of unrelenting cloud and humidity, the times it rained all day. So it is nice to look back at the last weeks of the school holidays and see that yes, there was sunshine, and blue skies, and we did so many lovely things!

There have been many walks in the ever-changing countryside. I always think the transition of the seasons is more noticeable in late summer than at any other time. You can feel autumn slowly creeping up on us in the cobwebs and evening chill. Our walks have been accompanied by the hum of tractors harvesting the crops and the sight of rows of sunflowers. 

We have enjoyed some days out with family. Mottisfont is a favourite of ours and we have been coming with the whole family for years. 

Picnics, nature, history, ice cream, walled gardens - all good, and something for everyone.

We went to London for the day and got the boat up to Greenwich. It was a bit of a flying visit as, between trains to and from London and boat timings, we only had a few hours in Greenwich, but long enough to buy some delicious lunch in the market and explore the Maritime Museum.

There has been lots of meeting up with friends which has been so nice. We've had people to stay, or for lunch, or for coffee. Trying to cram all my socialising in before I go back to work tomorrow and there just isn't time or energy much social life.

The garden is looking unusually green for the time of year, the one good thing about a wet summer. 

I've spent very little time working on it this year, it's had to look after itself. Over the holidays I had a really big weed and tidy up, pulled up some dead plants, but I don't anticipate doing much more until I plant bulbs in October/November.

This patch of cosmos and Japanese anemones has been a delight. 

I have picked so many bunches of them, and the Montbretia above, and put them in a little jar I bought in Paris.

We've been busy decorating this holiday, with lots of help from my parents. We painted the spare room (which has in the past been Angus's bedroom, then Bella's before that) and gave it a good tidy up and reorganisation.

The black out blind had a water mark on the bottom so, rather than buy a new one, I drew a scallop shape along the edge and filled it in with emulsion paint leftover from the bathroom.

It came out pretty well. We also got rid of the very old, cheap, wobbly IKEA children's wardrobe as it did not give very useful storage, and replaced it with an IKEA Kallax unit, which is much more helpful.

It's a bit of a squash when the double sofa bed is extended, but it is enough space for a spare room. 

I have mostly been crocheting this throw over the summer, and am making very slow but steady progress. More and more with my crochet and sewing, I am realising that there is no rush. It takes as long as it takes. If I get bored, I put it to one side and pick something else up, then maybe come back to it in a few months. It's about the process. 

Which is my justification for why my patchwork quilt has taken five years (on and off) so far, with no sign of being finished.

It is getting really hard to photograph now.

And now we move on to postcards from the kitchen.

The blackberries were really good this year, shiny and juicy (again, the rain). I have picked a few, enough for a couple of crumbles, but not enough for jelly. But that's ok, the world will not stop spinning if I do not make bramble jelly.

My sourdough has been a rollercoaster.

I made one a few weeks ago which rose more than any other sourdough I have made, honestly it was a triumph. As round as a ball!

My last two have been awful, flat and sad looking. I don't think I fed my starter enough before baking, it was more sleepy than lively.

I made pesto.

Basil pesto. Gloriously green.

It was nice on pasta - of course - but best on top of this summer chicken traybake.

They day after we got back from France, it rained all day and I felt unwell. I was sad that it was raining, that we were not in Paris, and that we had never gotten around to eating a croque monsieur sandwich in Paris. So I made some.

I ate a lot of cherry compote in August. On granola, on porridge, on pancakes, on yogurt. 

My sister gave me some courgettes from her garden so I made fritters.

We had pulled pork with rolls, coleslaw, salad and corn on the cob,

Today I made a chocolate banana bread, ready for lunchboxes and after school snacks. I have my salad ready to go for lunch tomorrow. Bella starts college on Wednesday. We have sorted enrollment and a bus pass so that she can make her way to college every day (she is doing A Levels in English Lit, History and Law - I'm so excited for her!). Angus starts Year 10 on Tuesday, and I meet my new Year 6 class tomorrow. I can't promise that I will eat breakfast, but I will take a banana to eat at morning breaktime. I've had my nails done. I can't wear my shiny new loafers because it's going to be very warm this week, so I will be in my sandals a little longer. Autumn is not quite here yet, even if summer is over.