{pretty, happy, funny, real}

-capturing the context of contentment in everyday life-

I’m joining in, at long last, with Like Mother, Like Daughter’s {phfr} Thursdays!

-pretty-

All our wedding cards arrayed to full effect on the windowledge.  I have no intention of taking them down any time soon, although I know I have to, or they’ll fade.

 

-happy-

The sewing machine we received as a present from my new mother-in-law.  Still in the box!  I can’t wait to play…

 

-funny-

My growing collection of housekeeping volumes.  The Mrs. Beeton was a gift from my new husband for my birthday about four years ago.  You see, he cunningly began to train up his wife long before we were engaged.  And my attempts to run the home smoothly are, at the moment, pretty funny.  Bread that doesn’t rise (and I’m used to making bread.  Why now???), cookies overbaked (distractions, distractions), last-minute shopping lists…  I’m blaming it on work pressures [she says, nodding sagely].  But practice makes perfect!

 

-real-

There are so many people to thank.  It is not a chore, it is a privilege to write these notes, because it reminds us just how many wonderful friends and relations we have.  Thank you to everyone who gave their time, energy and talents to make it such a beautiful day!

Have a good weekend everyone!

 

 

Update

I’m sorry for the long silence, but there’s been so much going on, that even now I still don’t feel like I’ve quite got my feet on the ground.

Well, I’m married!  It was a big event, made bigger because we did everything – or nearly everything – ourselves.  We had a week to put everything together, with everyone pitching in, and there were still things left undone on the morning of The Day.  But it was wonderful, and we had a wonderful two weeks away on the Isle of Skye, with a night in Cumbria at each end to break up the 13-hour drive.

And we’re moved in now – pretty much – into our new home.  It is temporary, only till the autumn, and after that dependent on jobs and so on.  We’re still working some things out, and still unpacking boxes, and – aren’t you proud of me?! – the new, very fancy, wedding gift sewing machine has yet to come out of its box.  There have just been so many other things to do!  Although there is some mending piling up, so it will have to be unpacked soon.

On account of our busy-ness and our photographer’s busy-ness there aren’t any official photos ready yet, but I will post some sent by other guests soon.

And maybe I’ll get back to blogging more regularly!

See you soon!

 

Spring, spring, spring

Spring is really here.  The apple trees were heavy with their dainty, pink blossoms, until a few days ago, when they began to sprinkle the petals, like confetti, all over the lawn.  The honesty is in a purple riot, the four huge oriental poppies are welcoming visitors through the garden gate with their nodding heads.  Every time the dog walks into the flower beds he comes out speckled with forget-me-not seeds.  Even the peony is showing eight tiny buds (there would be more, I suspect, if the apple tree hadn’t got so out of hand and shaded the entire garden, but we are encouraging the shrubs with plenty of rich mulch!).

In the woods there are more and more signs of increasing badger activity amongst the fabulous background of bluebells, now sadly fading.  And there may be birds nesting in a bush in the garden of my new flat…

I won’t say how many more weeks I have left at home, before I move to the new, though only temporary flat (very much dependent on my soon-to-be-husband’s contract becoming a more-permanent job), because it makes me quite sad.  Sad to be leaving my girlhood, though the next phase of life will be so exciting.  These changes in life are so difficult to navigate, and require so much adjustment.  Everyone’s nerves are rather fragile right now.  Thank goodness for the constant effervescence of the puppy to keep us smiling!

Working late

Welcome to my desk, at half-past nine at night.  I’ve been working since eight this morning.

On the desk…

A list: with only a few items ticked off.  Many more yet to go.

A pad with scribbled notes on.

Two cups: one with some cold fruit tea in the bottom, the other a recent (now empty) cup of lemongrass and ginger cordial.  For a pep up.

A pile of orange peel.  My brain needs much energy when it’s working this hard.  I have to remember to move snacking debris at the end of the day, as it is very depressing to arrive at work in the morning to find compost next to the keyboard.

My screen: I do love having a wide screen.  Plenty of room to put windows next to each other – word-processing document on one side, photo on the other.

DVDs: Jane Austen to play in the background when I’m doing something mindless, like compiling a photo register.  I’ve seen these shows so often they’re like audiobooks now. (For the record I don’t really like the new P&P, but it’s got a great soundtrack!)

My tips for working long hours: make sure you eat plenty of protein.  The brain is a hungry part of the body.  And drink lots of water.  Take plenty of exercise.  Stand up frequently and stretch.  Rotate tasks so you’re not doing the same thing for hours – keep fresh.  And have an understanding family!

A moment of patriotism

 

Because Britain is great…

…most of the time.

(I’m thinking folk culture, organic food, rugby and countryside, not politicians, industry, roads and non-renewable energy.  We can’t have everything, so let’s be grateful for what we do have.)

**********************

P.S. Come on, England!!! Make it a Grand Slam!  (For the uninitiated – it’s the last weekend of Six Nations Rugby and England are so far unbeaten.  But the best game was the Italy v. France match.  ITALIA!!!!)

I love Gardeners’ World

But for the last two years it has not been the same – as many people have agreed.  I don’t mind the presenters – they’re all very knowledgeable.  Alys Fowler, indeed, is one of my gardening heroes.  I can’t wait until (if!) she has another series – ‘The Edible Garden’ was so good I watched each episode about three times.  But it was the format and content of the ‘new-style’ Gardeners’ World I (and others) objected to.  We don’t want garden design and brand new plots, we want to know what to do at the weekend in our established gardens. 

But now they’ve got Monty Don back at the helm of Gardeners’ World.  I think that Monty Don is a fantastic writer and an awesome gardener, and – joy of joys – they’re filming him in his own garden.  What a beautiful place!  We can watch him carrying out the tasks he would normally do in his own space, rather than a studio garden.  These tasks are not thought up for the camera: they’re the jobs that are necessary to keep the garden flourishing.

Now I can snuggle up on Friday night and again be inspired to really get my hands dirty in my own garden come Saturday morning.  I don’t watch tv on a regular basis, but I will make an exception for a show that will hopefully be as comforting as I remember it from my childhood, and as useful as I wish it to be now.

Moving Day

Many people express wonder at my job.  “Oh that’s so cool!” I hear often.  But it’s not a patch on some jobs…

We’ve been surveying a hospital prior to its demolition: half of the new hospital is built and looks wondrously shiny and clean and spacious.  It doesn’t have the character that the Victorian buildings have, but I’m sure that it far surpasses them in terms of hygiene and efficiency.

But I hadn’t really considered how difficult it must be to transfer patients from one hospital to another.  Paperwork – fine.  Equipment – fine.  Expectant mothers – not too difficult.  Premature babies…. That’s another thing entirely.  And that tremendous responsibility – the transferral of tiny, delicate, ridiculously precious babies from one warm ward across the cold, dangerous site to their brand new ward – was all I could think about when I took notes on the Neonatal Unit.

As we left, we saw this message.  Which made me feel much better.

I have such respect for the nurses and doctors who had to oversee Moving Day.