Tag Archives: January

Bleak midwinter

So many people complain about January as being long and bleak but it is the darkening of November and the deep gloom of the days around the Winter Solstice which make me cower. By the time New Year is done, … Continue reading

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Spuds

Around this time of year my Instagram feed fills with pictures of chitting potatoes from like-minded grow-your-own-ers. I love it! So here’s mine, and my treasure trove, box of seeds. I had a go at collecting quite a few of … Continue reading

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Blessings

January often sees me turning reflective, seeking out essayists like Kathleen Jamie and Alistair McIntosh, to give me the words and images to navigate the dark winter days. Old folk songs sing of the ‘ghosts’ that visit us at this … Continue reading

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Patience

One of my new year’s resolutions was to start a walks journal. My idea was to make a sort of scrapbook of our family walks through the year by collecting maps and leaflets, and making notes of the weather, café … Continue reading

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A frosty morning

It is a beautiful frosty morning; the type that we’d get at the beginning of November in Scotland, but is a novelty here, even in January. In the still air, plumes of steam rise from the flues of hard-working household … Continue reading

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Seeds

That’s my annual seed order sent off. I spent hours pouring over my preferred seed catalogue, comparing the descriptions of differing varieties of this vegetable and that, and weighing up whether to stick with a trusted favourite or experiment with … Continue reading

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Wild Hares and Hummingbirds

The sparrows have found our feeders! Granted it took minus temperatures for them to venture into our exposed garden but it’s a start. The hills behind our house were thick with snow this weekend. The trees wore strips of snow … Continue reading

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New year, new life

The leaden skies and downpours have lifted this morning to reveal a bright and frosty landscape. It seems appropriate because yesterday evening I became an aunty for the first time! Well done to my wonderful sister who managed the whole … Continue reading

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