Tag: Wellbeing

AND NOW FOR SOMETHING WOOLLY…

Another winter walk

A very muddy walk yesterday but frosty and crisp today. Sadly the sheep wouldn’t come closer to the fence for a close up🤔

The sheep are the only woolly things I am showing as I am still plodding on with the Christmas knitting and the recipients read this from time to time. But hopefully I will have something to show next weekend😆

Anyway back to my walk. Lovely crisp morning. As well as the usual swans, geese and ducks I saw a heron on the river bank. Sadly he flew away before I had taken my gloves off and got my phone out to take a photo. There was a bird of prey, a kestrel I think, near the sheep but he was camera shy🙄

And then there were the cows and calves having breakfast. Very cute calves.

I think this one’s mum was checking he had been cleaning behind his ears 😉

Home now. Time for a nice cup of tea and do a bit of housework. Hope you all have a nice relaxing Sunday.

Woolly wishes,

Jane ♡♡♡

A SURPRISE ROUND THE CORNER

The rest of my walk…

I was at work all day yesterday so no chance of a walk or any fresh air unless you count taking the bins out 😉

So thoughts went back to my mooch around Jubilee Gardens on Wednesday and look at the other chainsaw sculpture I found.

What a handsome hare!

And that makes the pair!

Many thanks to Julia at Words and Stitches for taking the trouble to Google the wood sculptures in Jubilee Gardens, thanks to her I know a bit more about my little town. It just goes to show you don’t know what you have on your doorstep.

I have the weekend off now so my plans are to get on with the knitting and a few more walks to find more Bewdley treasures.

Woolly wishes,

Jane ♡♡♡

THE NEW NORMAL AGAIN

Another winter walk…

We had hail this morning which was a worry as I had to drive later in the day but it didn’t amount to much happily🌊

I just had a stroll into Bewdley today and a mooch around Jubilee Gardens.

The apple Orchard is having its winter rest.

How’s that for a giant apple core? Someone has had fun with a chain saw😉

I have never really spent much time in Jubilee Gardens, after all I have a garden why would I want to spend time in a public garden!!! But like many I am sure it is nice to have some different views. I will share my favourite spot in the Gardens for tomorrow.

So it was off home afterwards to make a pot of soup with whatever I could find in the fridge and some cheesy slaw, made with red cabbage. Looks a bit of an eye sore but really tasty.

No time for knitting today as off to work.

Woolly wishes,

Jane ♡♡♡

SELF-HELP #38

Casting on for Christmas 🎄🎄🎄

Christmas is going to be very different this year. Even before the government’s big announcement we had decided to postpone the festivities until Easter when, hopefully, it will be safer to get together with family. N’s granddaughter will be one, so loads of fun getting into everything😉

I will, of course, be knitting for Christmas. Any gifting will be done via the post. Deliveries will probably be both sides of the big day, depending on how I get my act together.

The makings of a Christmas stocking!

N and I are planning a nice dinner which will be dropped off at his parents’ kitchen door. Hopefully it will be a dry day so that we don’t get soaked chatting in the garden. Our priority is keeping our oldies safe.

Being mindful and filling my head with stitching patterns.

Woolly wishes,

Jane ♡♡♡

A RANDOM BAKE

Or an icing sugar storm 🌬

It is B’s birthday today🎂 Can’t believe my little cherub is now old enough to drive! I thought I would try to be one of those yummy mummy types and make him a cake 🤔

Now in my defence I haven’t done any proper baking since B was small when we used to bake together. In recent years I have made brownies and the like with my good friend Betty Crocker. And I have had a very temperamental oven and baking on my own was never much fun😯

But I have a new oven so thought I would have a go. I measured the ingredients from memory, probably not one of my better ideas😋 I made an 8oz sponge mixture but new baking tins so think I probably should do a 10oz mixture. And new oven so need to experiment with that. My cake looks a bit flat and is a bit crisp around the edge but it did have a nice spring to the touch. I have sandwiched it together with raspberry jam and vanilla butter cream.

Note to self:

Soften the butter before attempting to cream it

Make sure the mixer is on its lowest setting when using icing sugar – everything ended up with a fine dusting of the stuff😉

I don’t think I will be doing the Great British Bake Off any time soon….

I am going to stick to my knitting. Anyone for a cuppa and cake?

Woolly wishes,

Jane ♡♡♡

SELF-HELP #37

Fresh air and a bit (of knitting) on the side….

The blog has been somewhat neglected over the past couple of weeks. Autumn is in full swing – cold and damp with the occasional frosty morning. Work is frantic. Exercise and knitting are struggling for space in my itinerary! !!

Autumn is here

I was walking by the canal a few days ago in Kidderminster. This photo is taken just round the bend from Caldwell Bridge. I love the rust colours of the leaves but not the shorter days. Less likely to walk in the dark 🌜

On the knitting front I have started working through my Christmas gift list – no details available at the moment 🤔

But I have been picking up the knotty cowl from time to time for a bit of stress relief. I have another 15cm to go…

The knots aren’t as evenly spaced as they should be 😄

But look at all the ends to weave in! That is when the stress will start 😉

Getting back on track!

Woolly wishes,

Jane ♡♡♡

OCTOBER ROUND UP 🎃

Stormy more than spooky…

The month has been windswept and interesting. Quite productive on the home made front.

N has been busy preserving and he has presented me with the little mug this morning, claiming that my friends from the coven left it – cheeky so and so!!!

But look what it does when you make a cup of tea in it

I am easily entertained…

I am planning making pumpkin and chilli soup this afternoon. My lovely dad has been keeping busy growing veg so it would be rude not to use them🎃

On the knitting front I have completed all of the parts of the chunky cardi so looks like I will start November putting it together. The knotty cowl is coming along, about another 12 inches to go and then all of those delightful ends to work in 😥 And I have just got 5 squares to complete the KAL well behind everyone else but I am getting there!

Planning my Christmas knitting list, it will be a thrifty homemade festival this year but need to get a crack on as most will need to posted as no big get together this year 😷

Woolly wishes,

Jane ♡♡♡

SELF-HELP #36

Being mindful in a muddle…

I believe those of us who knit have such an advantage in these uncertain times. An hour or so knitting before bedtime certainly clears the fog in my brain that has built up during the day. The night before last, for one reason or another, I ran out of time and didn’t manage a single stitch before bedtime and what a rotten night’s sleep or lack of sleep I had. I tossed and turned with all the trials and tribulations of the day running through my head. I went to work on auto-pilot yesterday. I had a good night last night – down to the hour and a half knitting beforehand but still feel a bit drained from the night before 😴

I am working on the chunky cardi. The back and left side are complete and I have just placed the pocket on the right front. Love this stitch sequence worked over ten rows, not too complicated but just enough to keep rhe mind occupied. And the chunky yarn knits up so quickly 😉

But like so many of you I like to have a few projects on the go – the pink Guernsey is ready to be sewn up so that has been put to one side for the moment and the KAL tends to be done at work as small and slips in my bag – so I have been looking around for something else to do.

The pattern is for a cowl but the sequence worked involves knotting pieces of work together. Lots of holding stitches on needles or holders and cable needle so I could get in a right pickle but nothing ventured nothing gained🤔

And added bonus you need to have a couple of extra small balls of wool to join in on your work so I have spent an hour this morning on a tangle from my stash and not or knot to worry if I couldn’t undo the mess I could use the scissors 🤗 although I will not enjoy sewing in all the ends if I complete it. But yarn from the stash bag so no extra expense!!!

Woolly wishes,

Jane ♡♡♡

THE MINDFUL GARDENER

Or keeping him busy….

The garden is looking a bit like a building site at the moment. We have had new guttering as the old stuff was woefully leaky! This entailed moving lots of stuff around to get ladders and things in place to access the guttering.

Him indoors has also taken an interest in the garden since lockdown and has decided to build some raised beds. So we have planks of wood everywhere!

It is interesting trying to mow the lawn around this lot….

Hopefully in a week or 2 the boxes can be put in place ready to fill up with earth and then a few winter veggies. I am hoping that he doesn’t lose interest as gardening keeps him moving and occupied. Still if he does lose interest those boxes will look great filled with flowers! It is so important to keep busy during these uncertain times.

I have my knitting to keep me busy and, of course, I have worked through so other than I have saved a lot of money by not going out for coffee all the time my routine has not changed that much.

Hope you are all keeping safe and well.

Woolly wishes,

Jane ♡♡♡