Wales - 8 Months In

Back in May I wrote this post. We had been in the valley a month and it was my intention to write another update after we had been here for six months. That was two months ago and I'm only just getting around to it. So here it is, Wales. Eight months in.

1. The biggest change to me is the valley itself. Back in May the valley was a palette of greens, often set against the brightest blue skies. The wildlife was everywhere (including the house) and I was knee deep in brambles. Fast forward to December and the valley hills are now a palette of earthy browns and yellows set against grey skies. It's darker, wetter and colder, but still beautiful.
2. We no longer have wildlife living in the house with us and thanks to a new wood burner there will be no jackdaws filling the chimney up with twigs next spring. 
3. The brambles have also been tamed. It took a lot of work that one and I lost count of the amount of hours I spent in the orchard pulling up bramble and nettle roots. In case you were wondering, nettles are easy and quite satisfying to pull up. Brambles are the actual devil. The orchard now homes Alessi's slide, trampoline and mud kitchen. We don't spend nearly enough time out there at the moment due to the rain and cold which feels like a huge waste somehow.
4. Which links nicely to the mud. It's everywhere. Every time there's a storm or a spell of hard rain/wind, the windows get covered and I have to wash them again. Not because I'm precious about windows, but because they genuinely get that bad!
5. The roads in the valley become interesting to drive after these periods of heavy rain. Water and debris from the trees cover the roads frequently now. My car hates it and develops an annoying squeak in wet weather. Speaking of my little Starlet, she's now almost permanently covered in a layer of mud. Poor girl.
6. The bathroom has become Baltic once again. 
7. During the summer the grapevines in the orchard's greenhouse went mental. I was too busy battling brambles to tackle them then, but last month I finally got around to pruning them. It was like Day of the Triffids in there, but less orange. They are now pruned and the chickens are safely tucked away in there, protected from the worst the winter weather can bring. 

All in all, it feels like the time of discovery has past. I don't even feel like this is our 'new' life anymore, it's simply our life now. And that feels good. It also feels like the right time to move on from the valley. The great Welsh experiment was a success and we now know that we made the right decision to move here and want to put down roots of our own. While I love this house and the valley, I need a home to call my own and earth to dig up and plant as I wish. Hopefully we can find something next year, but if not, I can certainly think of worse places to rent while we wait.

Chicken update

We're on lock down here at Casa Bliss as are all chicken owners across the country at the moment.

In case you hadn't seen it in the news, cases of bird flu have been confirmed in the UK and as a precaution, all poultry owners have had to make sure their birds are kept indoors where possible.
And if that isn't, then to take precautions to keep them away from wild birds. I'm not able to keep my three indoors, but they have an enclosed run so they've just been kept in that. I hate it though. This run is big enough for them, but I preferred to just keep them in it when we weren't around and let them roam freely when we were. Not being able to give them this extra freedom hasn't been too bad over the winter as they prefer to stay in their coop during bad weather, but now that spring is just around the corner they've started to become restless.

This lock down is in place until the end of February, but this date has been pushed back twice already since the they first announced it back in December and I suspect it will again.
If this is the case I'm going to make them a larger enclosed run so that I can add more things to keep them entertained. At the moment I'm relying on straw for them to scratch about in and various treats.

It's doing the job, but it's a pain having to remove the food scraps each night. And to be honest, I think they just miss the company. Keeping them under the apple tree is great to shelter them from the worst of the wind and rain, but it's at the bottom of the garden and they like company. It's why bantams make great pets and are so tame, anyone remember Snowball jumping on my shoulder last summer for a snooze?
Fingers crossed it doesn't last much longer, I miss having my girls bumbling around the garden. And Titch is extremely pissed off about the situation. Chickens have personalities and while the other two are fairly laid back, she is not happy and likes to make sure I know it. Mainly by shouting at me. Look. I even caught her in the act. After three months of being cooped up, she wants more than straw and turnips and I can't say I blame her.

On a brighter note (and a sign that spring really is just around the corner), Tufty Sue and Snowball have started laying, no more shop bought eggs for us! Alessi loves going to the coop each day to see if there are any waiting in the nesting box.
She asked me to take a photo of her with the chickens the other day and was all ready to give me the thumbs up, but when I took the picture what I'd actually captured was all eyes on  her snack! Even Titch was momentarily quiet.

So all in all the chickens are getting on great, considering they're cooped up. Their first winter was a lot milder than I had thought it would be and the coop has stood up to the elements well. Fingers crossed we'll be able to let them out again soon though.

2016 Resolutions - Results

Work, keep it simple

Check!

To do lists were kept short and focused. I made a plan for the year and stuck to it. I even recognised the need to stop making kimonos in the summer so that I could work on new stock ready for the autumn. Resisting the urge to keep up with demand is something I've usually struggled with. I would keep on saying yes ultimately biting off more than I could chew.

Time with Alessi, make it count

Meh. Sort of.

By the time summer rolled up. She was over it. Over nursery, the games she used to love playing, her toys. The lot. Those last few months were a struggle. I do think we made the most of it, but in the end it looked closer to making the most of a bad situation than the rose tinted images I had in my head! 

Accept myself

NAILED this one. 

From my post pregnancy body, slowly aging face, constant need for solitude and finally accepting that I just don't like wine, I'm more at ease with it all than I ever have been. 

Read 

Big. Fat. Fail.

I don't think I've read a single book. Well not for myself. I've read hundreds of children's books over the year though. It doesn't quite count, but seeing as the whole point was to keep Alessi interested in books (and she is), I'm not losing too much sleep over this one.

Celebrate my accomplishments

Hit and miss.

Ok I'm a little annoyed about this one as I did (and still do) believe that it's important for people to do. I achieved a lot this year and in some cases, surpassed my own targets, but often failed to celebrate them. Reasons included not having enough money (to treat myself), not making the time and just generally not organising myself properly. 

I still feel the same as I did this time last year in that I believe this is an important habit to get in to so I'm going to carry this resolution over to 2017 and hopefully with practice, it will become something that comes a little more naturally.

What about you? Did you make any resolutions at the start of the year and if so, how did you do?

Taking comfort in the season that endures

Maybe it's because I was a winter baby or maybe because I'm a bit of a home bod at heart, but I'm one of the few people that genuinely loves the winter season, specifically, this latter part. The part that comes after the Christmas chaos and sees most of us feeling a little glum and well, over it. 

Perhaps it's the unsocial part of my personality that loves it. It's an unsociable season, or at least this part is. After Christmas there's little money to throw around, the weather is gloomy and we return to our day to day routines. 

So I shouldn't love it as much as I do, but there is something deep in my psyche that simply loves winter. As long as the weather doesn't take a turn for the dangerous, I'm happy. Let the rain pour down and the howling wind blow. I'll pull my scarf tighter around my neck and pour another coffee. 

As I write this, the wind is blowing hard around the house and the rooms are dim without lights. I'm sat next to a window so I'm getting all the light I need. When Dan returns from getting the food shop, I'll head down and will have to turn on lights to see what we're doing. 

Am I mad?

Perhaps it's because I know it won't last. It's just another season doing exactly what it's supposed to. Perhaps I've simply managed to do what I struggled with last year and I've finally connected with the seasons to the point of truly feeling part of them? 

Yes, I know that last sentence sounded self indulgent, but it would be lovely if it were true.

I know there's not much going on outside. Nature can look barren and depressing at this time of year. The weather can be harsh and the days dark, but it's important to recognise the good that's around us too. And there is good.

The days are getting slowly longer, the sun a little higher in the sky. We'll be in for some worse weather before the warmth of spring returns, but it is coming. 

In the meantime, pick up a book, a blanket and a cup of something hot and hunker down. Winter is for hibernating and taking stock whenever you can. And when you can't, wrap up in warm, comforting clothes, put on an extra pair of socks and throw yourself into it.

Summer will be here soon enough and no doubt people will then complain that it's too hot and start yearning for the colder months again. Like the fickle humans we are. 

2015 Goals

I only set myself three simple goals for 2014; to try and find more time to sew (check), live a little more healthily (*ahem*) and treat myself occasionally (nailed it).

The lesson here is that I don't respond well to health related resolutions. Well consider it a lesson learned. I hereby give myself permission to eat what I want, drink what I want and only run if I lose my mind. Or take it up again at some point if I feel the urge. Whatever. It's cool. 

Anyway, here are my resolutions for 2015;

-1-

Talk less, make more.

-2-

Continue to take time out to relax. Switch off from work occasionally!

-3-

 Try and be in the present more. Put. The. Phone. Down...she says tapping away on her laptop.

-4-

 Find a storage solution for all the bloody dress patterns lying around in the sewing room. Note to self: rolling them up with elastic bands and tossing them up on the top shelf is NOT working out Kim.

-5-

Fashion something for the dresses while I'm at it. There is no more room in the closet. I repeat, NO. MORE. ROOM.

However you're spending the first day of this shiny new year, I hope it treats you well my friends. 

Here's to a great year - and remember, imperfect is just fine. ;)

X

2014, you've been alright

January

Despite the gloomy month, I was determined to hold on to December's bright and optimistic outlook. I focused my energies on sorting through clutter (something I'm doing again one year on), getting plenty of fresh air injecting some colour and beauty into the house to combat the winter gloom.

February

This month I wrote about maintaining a healthy working/parenting balance, not comparing yourself to others and grumbled about the stormy weather blowing down our garden fence. The money we had put aside for fixing an external wall of the house now had to go to replacing this. Me and mother nature were not on speaking terms that month.

March

I finally moved back into the sewing room and revelled in the signs of spring that were appearing in the garden. Alessi turned two and I felt so proud of the little girl she was becoming.

April

This month I got involved in some guerrilla gardening with some seed bombs, unfortunately they didn't take. I also got a whole weekend to myself when Dan took Alessi to Kent. For once I chose to use the time relaxing and pampering myself instead of working. I experimented with kimono jackets which kept me busy and it was this month that I started to feel my sewing mojo properly return. Oh and we got the garden fence fixed. No more chasing the little one out of our neighbour's garden. 

May

My old nemesis returned to the conservatory. Spider mite, the struggle is real people. I managed to keep it under control using some chemical free concoctions, but it as a chore and I don't feel that I've found a real solution. This will make growing veggies in the conservatory difficult in 2015. Not to mention my poor vines. It was also very busy month for making, not made easier by my sewing machine conking out every so often. I spent as much time fixing the old thing as I did using it.

June

Not surprisingly, my sewing machine died. The timing was terrible as things continued to be crazy and I was feeling pretty overwhelmed. We spent some time in Wales and I started craving nature and a slower pace like the one I had growing up. That trip was quite a wake up call as I started to feel calm again and dreaded returning home.

July

After the trip to Wales a little time away from the internet, I reached the conclusion that I'd lost myself in this big old online world and needed to take a step back, or at the very least, find a more healthy balance. Tricky when my business is an online one! I also bought my new sewing machine and called her Mabel. Fell instantly in love and threw myself back into sewing again.

August

I gave myself a bit of a break in August so didn't write much. I missed it though, but it was good to spend more time out in the garden or sewing with the window thrown open. I had wanted to go camping this month with Dan and Alessi, but it just didn't happen. 

September

I as still being good with the online/real life balance. We got outside more and it was lovely to see Alessi share my love of wandering around collecting nature's treasures to bring home. I also started some new projects which four months on, I'm still struggling with. I do know how to make life harder for myself! I also had a surprise visit from my friend and we all went camping together. It turns out this was the real reason we didn't get around to it in August. 

Sitting around a campfire toasting marshmallows and watching satellites glide through the night sky will be a memory I treasure forever.

October

I felt an overwhelming urge to throw myself in to the annual autumn garden tidy up, but as I hadn't done anything with it this year, there was little to do. I felt disappointed by this and so threw myself into everything else autumnal in an attempt to connect with the season. I really missed my garden this year so I might do something with it again in 2015. 

November

This month it became apparent that I've somehow lost the balance between online and real life. Again. I reviewed what I'd done over the past year and soon realised that I've been doing some things all wrong. So there will be some changes in 2015 which I hope won't have a detrimental effect on the business. For example, I won't be releasing capsule collections for spring/summer and autumn/winter. in 2015. Rather I'll be drip feeding items in to the shop as I make them. Little changes like that will hopefully mean that I can avoid periods where I am so busy that I have no time for anyone or anything else!

December

Which brings us to now and I've come full circle. Once more I'm at a point where I feel the need to pare down and simplify, but unlike a year ago, the paring down is more specific. I have a better idea of what needs to go and what I need to focus more of my energy on. That's a good start. 

Looking back, this year has been a good one. It's been a busy one, but one full of wonderful moments and I'm grateful for that. It means I didn't zone out completely to the point of missing what was going on around me.  I've made a lot of mistakes this year, but I've learnt a bucket load as a result so I have no regrets there. 

In fact, although it's been a tough year at times, it's been a good one. I love the new year and the feeling of being able to start a fresh, but if I'm honest, I won't be changing an awful lot in 2015. There will be some tune ups here and there, but otherwise I'll be carrying on much as I am now. 

I think this is the first time ever in my life that I have felt this way. 

Is this what contentment feels like?

Christmas

Christmas this year was a low key affair and had some really lovely moments, including our Christmas walk to test out Alessi's new (to her) scooter. It's blurry, but the look on her face makes this photo priceless and I'm chuffed to bits that Dan managed to capture that moment. I remember looking at her and thinking "I need to remember this". I even managed to squeeze in most of the things from my Christmas Manifesto list too.

Alessi left the mince pie, milk and carrot out for Santa and also added a drawing of a dog that she wanted him to take back to the North Pole with him. He obliged of course.

She got the white pony that she asked for (a little soft toy to cuddle), which she has become pretty attached to. Her name apparently is Pony and woe betide anyone (me), who dares call it a horse.

In the run up to Christmas I managed to spread some Christmas cheer (I hope so anyway) by depositing some little notes around Bath, each wrapped with a little candy cane. We left them on benches, cafe tables, Christmas trees...anywhere we thought they'd stand out and get picked up. It was a manic shopping day though and we stupidly left the buggy at home, so with Alessi in tow, we couldn't really hang about to see if any where taken. Annoyingly, we didn't think to take any photos during 'the drop' either. It was too much of an "over there looks good, *drop* GO! GO! GO!" affair to get any pictures really. Still it was good fun and hopefully brought a smile to some people's faces.

What else, what else? Ah yes, we visited my family, baked Christmas cookies (they were edible too), made Christmas cards, went on walks and sang Christmas songs.

We didn't however, get to watch Alessi in her nativity after all as she was ill *sniff*.

Yes it would more than likely have been organised chaos with the nursery staff more or less shuffling the kids to their spots, and yes, Alessi HATED her King outfit (can't think why). But still, I was a little gutted to have missed it. Hey ho, hopefully there will be another opportunity next year.

Otherwise, it's been a bloody good Christmas time. The best part by far has been watching Alessi take it all in and starting Christmas traditions as a family which I hope we can continue for years to come.

All that said, there have been some sobering moments too. Not wishing to bring anyone down, dotted in amongst all the festivities were some wake up calls that we can take none of this for granted.
The problem is that we all think we have enough time and I keep getting slapped in the face with reminders screaming the opposite to be true.
So it doesn't matter if your Christmas meal was late and everyone was hangry by the time it was served or if your decorations weren't handmade or if your house was and still is a bomb site. We've all got things to be thankful for. All of us.

My dinner was late and was missing parsnips which I love.
I had dinner.
Grateful.

My Christmas decorations weren't handmade and my tree is fake.
I had decorations and a tree.
Grateful.

My house looks like a bombsite so much that I wouldn't recognise it if it was clean, tidy and organised.
I have a house.
Grateful.

I have a family who sometimes drive me crazy.
I have a family. They are safe and healthy and happy.
VERY. Grateful.

I hope everyone reading this also feels that they have something to be thankful for. Remember, imperfect is just fine.

 XXX

A Christmas Manifesto

Oh how I've been looking forward to writing this post!

'Tis the season to be jolly fah la la la la, la la la laaaaaa!' This line pretty much sums up my attitude to Christmas. It's not just about the day, but the build up to it. 

Maybe it's because this time last year we missed out on so much as we were all ill and exhausted, but this year I'm giddy with excitement about the things we can do and the little moments we will share. So much so that I've gone and put together a list so I don't forget to do anything. There's little worse than a wasted opportunity.

Watch Pip in her first nativity

Bring some evergreen into the house

Drink mulled wine

Teach Pip some Christmas songs

Visit my family

Go on some family winter walks

Watch 'Muppet Christmas Carol' with Pip

Bake Christmas cookies

Spread some Christmas joy

Make Christmas cards

Donate some Christmassy bits to the local food bank box as well as the usual bits 

Put together Pip's first Christmas stocking (complete with satsuma)

Leave a mince pie, glass of milk and a carrot out for Santa and his reindeer

Listen to a butt load of Christmas music - For Folk's Sake It's Christmas

Here's to a bloody great December everyone.