Tuesday 15 January 2013

Excitement there is none.......

 

Well, not a great deal of exciting stuff happening in this neck of the woods this last week, but plenty of good everyday things never the less.

Plenty of walks, sometimes wet, sometimes snowy


 

 

 

 

 

plenty of hanging around indoors with a good book or two

 
sitting and dreaming of warmer days.........

 

of being outside in the fresh air...............


relaxing in the garden..........................


in a favourite place.........


sigh...........

Where were we?  

Oh yes,hanging out in the warm kitchen, cooking and thinking about cooking

 

and the odd glass of wine - and oh look, the paint tins are out to remind me to finish painting the kitchen cupboards that I started a year ago.....(note to self - must get back on with the many half-finished painting jobs soon before spring....)

 
there have been lots of warm fires

 
and a trip to the sales - bought a few new bathroom towels, a lovely soft warm throw for the sofa and a letter rack for the hall

 

 

..........and outside, I've had a few cold afternoons pottering around the garden tidying and clearing.

A little bit of colour in the garden sends a hopeful message on these cold grey days, and there are signs of good things to come .......some colourful primulas, which have been flowering since autumn, are right by the front door to cheer me on my way

 

 

 
and I found some lovely bright cyclamens and some sweet blue violas at the garden centre (see above and below)

 

 

as well as some half-price herbs, which I have bought in the hope that they will survive the wait in the unheated greenhouse until it is a little less cold and I can put them in

 
thyme, rosemary, sage and parsley, marjoram and oregano - all of these waiting to be planted, and just typing the names make me dream of warm summers, and the scent of fragrant flowers and herbs in the garden.............




Despite the cold snap we had here a few weeks before Christmas, and the snow we've woken to the last two mornings (generally thawed by lunch time), a few summer plants have hung in there much to my surprise.

A lone, brave marigold in the border, looking a bit ragged but still blooming....



And the trailing lobelia and petunias, planted in hanging baskets in the early summer months



and then left,  in-situ, forlorn and forgotten throughout frosts and snow, are amazingly still green and alive - I wonder whether they will manage to flower again?



Marmalade making with a friend this week too - so lots of good everyday stuff happening.


Roll on Spring I say - that will be excitement enough for me!

 

Are you doing anything exciting????


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18 comments:

  1. Well I just spent the last hour shovelling snow and gritting our drive - which isn't exactly exciting, but it added some diversity to my afternoon!
    Lovely pics all - and the bottle of wine next to the paint tins gave me a giggle ;-)
    Stay warm & have a happy week,
    xx

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  2. Dear Gill,
    Happy New Year to you! Not much has been happening here either - the weather has put paid to many plans!
    June

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  3. Spring is my kind of excitement too Gill!
    Lovely to see all those pretty little flowers. :)
    And I just had to laugh at Bessie, what is it with cats and strange places!! :)
    V xxx

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  4. wow a little spring in gardenland and a lot to do in the kitchen ! hope it turns very nice and pretty luckly its warm inside the house and a lot of books to read very cosy and warm
    a Iam also bussy at my home the walls get new paint next week its ready and done and clear greetings good luck with painting the kichen greethings leon10

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  5. Nothing exciting on this front! Just plenty of snow, which I love, staying indioors and keeping cosy and warm.

    I love your cat and the wood burner looks beautiful!

    Spring is still a dream...

    ANNA

    xxx

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  6. Lots of snow here still. There's plenty of colour in your garden, it was quite refreshing to see :) x

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  7. Lovely flower pics. Hints of Spring? Can't be far off surely?!

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  8. There's a lot happening in your garden, despite the weather. How cute is your cat in the container? I can see spring bulbs coming through too, goodnes, that means autumn is not too far away from us! I am enjoying summer so I hope that hangs around for a while here - I have many jobs to do outside before the wweather turns crappy :)
    x

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  9. Thank you for beautiful photographs

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  10. What delightful photos...so spring-like!

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  11. lots of snow here too , but your beautiful photos are making me dream of spring

    Bev xx

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  12. Hello Gill

    I love the images of where you walked. No doubt you wore your wellies.
    Your home looks so welcoming and warm and how exciting to see flowers surviving and blooming in your garden. The aroma from the herbs must be marvelous

    Helen xx

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  13. Lovely splashes of colour in your garden.
    And the photos of the cat in the pot are brilliant!
    With all the snow forecast for the next day or two indoor activities like cake baking sound like the way to go.
    Keep warm and safe.
    Lisa x

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  14. Love the photos of Bessie in the barrel, cats certainly find the most unusual places comfortable. I've been doing a bit of baking, trying to keep myself warm in this freezing weather, and also to try out my new oven. I'm not really doing anything exciting, but there's excitement when the postman arrives, we're waiting for replies form uni applications, as you know, and they've started arriving.

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  15. It looks so lovely and cosy at your house, Gill! The kitty pictures made me smile, and I loved all the sweet spring flowers.
    Wishing you a wonderful weekend.
    Helen x

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  16. So much to love here. Primulas actually growing outdoors, misty lanes, kitty in bucket, warm looking kitchen, bottle o' wine. So cozy! I'll be over in a minute...

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  17. Plenty of good everyday things sounds perfect go me Gill! Lovely photo's from your garden.

    Happy weekend!

    Madelief x

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  18. We've been very snowy since Dec. 29th, & a couple of storms since, with more on the way! I'm fantasizing about being in your garden! Pretty kitty too! Have a great weekend, we're rooting for our Patriots to beat the Ravens on Sunday in Foxborough @ Gillette stadium! Seven layer dip, pulled pork, coleslaw, & blueberry pie is on the menu!

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Thanks for visiting and for taking the time to leave a comment - I love to read them!
Gill x