Five on Friday: Hello February

February 3, 2017 ~ Sam ~ 19 Comments

Snowdrops are starting to unfurl. They’ll be peaking in a couple of weeks.

This is a very fine and hardy borage plant, sitting bolt upright in our veg patch. Frost? Pah.

One There’s a definite whisper of spring in the air, a tiny hint, a minuscule glimmer – it’s warmer than it has been; warm enough to go outside to take some photos without wearing a big winter coat, hat, scarf, mittens… There are bulb shoots and buds galore and the birds are starting to get busy. February 1st was St Brigid’s Day, or Imbolc, and marks the start of the pagan festival of spring. I only know this because I read it on Sultanabun’s blog last year and looked it up. Her blog regularly makes me laugh out loud and I learn stuff, properly interesting stuff.

Two February is punctuated by half term – a week off from the regular routine. There’s one more week of school and then the children will be at home all day ‘resting’. It doesn’t seem five minutes since they went back to school after the Christmas holidays. My middle son has made it through this week of school (early nights, no sports) and is hopefully fully on the mend but it’ll be good for him to have more time to recharge soon.

Three I went out last night for pizza, prosecco and pudding with friends. The friend who hosted the evening is an extremely Good Cook and produced a succession of delicious handmade pizzas while we all guzzled prosecco spiked with raspberry liqueur, chatted and laughed. The whole evening was a tonic and just what I needed.

Four ‘You’ve got to pick a pocket or two…’ – we’ve been treated to renditions from ‘Oliver’ for weeks and weeks now. They are such ~~ear-worms~~ catchy tunes. My daughter is an orphan and an urchin in her school’s production. There have been two performances so far, we’re all going to see it this evening, and there’s a matinee and evening performance tomorrow. She’s loving every minute of it but I suspect she’ll be much quieter come Sunday.

Five I took a few photos of stuff lined up on the kitchen windowsill because I thought it would make a good photo. It wasn’t until I uploaded the pictures that I noticed how filthy the windows are and I’m too embarrassed to show you! I’m sure I’m not the only one who has to clear clutter or wipe a surface before taking photos or artfully crop them afterwards. There’s an admirable Instagram hashtag called ‘reallifehome’ as an antidote to all the perfectly styled pics. I’m generally all for it but my mum reads my blog 🙂

I’m delighted to be joining in with Amy for her Five on Friday.

Have a lovely weekend x

In a Vase on Monday: January treasure

January 30, 2017 ~ Sam ~ 29 Comments

Dank. That is the perfect word to describe what it is like outdoors today (yes, in bold). According to the urban dictionary, dank can also mean ‘excellent’ or ‘a general insult’, or a few other things, but I’ll stick with its original meaning of ‘unpleasantly damp and cold’.

Undeterred by the grey, I ventured out into the garden to see if I could find any colour for a Monday vase. There is a lot of soggy, brown foliage out there and I had to avert my eyes from several areas, including a patch of hundreds of new crocosmia shoots where we’ve been trying to clear it. Grrr. I had a good rummage in the undergrowth and was delighted to find some fresh, perfect hellebore stems with fat pink buds underneath a veil of fallen leaves. I also snipped a couple of sprigs of white heather (no idea what type and I’m sure it was pale pink last year), a few beautiful cyclamen leaves with their delicate, silvery patterns and some tendrils from a mass of tangled ivy .

These treasures are plonked in a glass that I bought a few months ago for this very purpose. I spotted it sitting on a supermarket shelf, on sale for £2, and imagined it full of Monday vase flowers. I’ve taken several photos of it against different backgrounds with artificial and natural light. Despite the dankness I feel much better for getting in to the garden and having a good poke about. I feel even better now I’m indoors and I’ve spent some time absorbed in gazing at the leaves and buds, the patterns and colours. I know, I’ve said it before, but I do love faffing about with flowers and taking photos; I reckon it’s time well spent if it perks me up!.

I’m taking a new look at the ivy in our garden after reading an article in the latest RHS magazine. I knew it was good for wildlife but I didn’t realise how important it is to leave ivy plants to mature (about 10 years) so that they provide flowers and berries. And I didn’t realise how many species and cultivars there are of Hedera. I spotted quite a few different leaf shapes in my short expedition to the bottom of the garden, so I’m going to take more notice of this plant now and try to persuade David not to pull every last bit of it out of the hedges.

Thank you, as ever, to Cathy at Rambling in the Garden for hosting this weekly gathering of pickings from around the world. I’m off over there now to see what everyone else has found.

In other news (and quickly) – thank you for your get well wishes for my poorly boy. He roused himself over the weekend and has gone in to school this morning. Fingers crossed he’ll continue to improve.

Hope you have a good week x

Catching up and talking to the wall

January 28, 2017 ~ Sam ~ 28 Comments

I must start by thanking you for your kind and supportive comments about Agnes. It feels as though it/she(!) has taken over my life recently and there’s no sign of a let-up. I naively thought that once we published the website, I’d have time to get back to other aspects of my life but I had no idea how time-consuming it would be trying to get it noticed. It feels as though we are talking to a huge, impenetrable wall. I don’t think either of us realised how difficult it would be to get publicity and we are feeling a tad despondent. After all, what’s the point of creating a fabulous resource for teenage girls if they don’t get to hear about it or find it. I know; it’s only been a week… (Impatient and naive!) I’m not going to bore you with tales of us trying to decipher the dark art of search engine optimisation and Google indexing, or our Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and emailing exploits but let’s just say that it can lead to serious overload and slight mania. So, as soon as I’ve hit the button on this post, I’m shutting my laptop, stepping away from the stats and the mad world of social media and taking some much-needed time out for the rest of the weekend.

There are very few photos to show you due to a battery malfunction (I forgot to charge my phone and my camera battery…) and the fact that I haven’t stopped to properly look at much for a while. The photos of the gloriously frosty winter-wonderland that appeared here last Monday are from a friend’s phone. We don’t often get a hard frost here so close to the sea and it was a rare treat to see the land gilded with ice. The dogs loved it, sniffing furiously and running about. It was also slightly misty which added more ethereal atmosphere to our walk. I’m hoping that the deep cold has also worked its magic in the garden, killing off any nasties. There are so many plants that have survived past winters – including geraniums that have been going strong for three years – that I don’t mind some frost damage. I much prefer this proper winter weather, bone-cold and icy, to the mild, wet and windy winters of recent years.

There have been some other big things going on here recently. My middle son has been off school for the past three weeks with glandular fever. At one point I was seriously worried it was something dreadful but thankfully it’s not, although glandular fever can be pretty debilitating nonetheless. He’s spending most of his time in bed and I’m doing my best Florence Nightingale. You’d think that, and the fact that he hasn’t seen his girlfriend for weeks, would be enough to encourage him to get up, so he must be feeling rough, poor thing.

It was David’s birthday on Thursday and he was home a day early which was lovely. We had a special birthday dinner and cake (Nigella’s Birthday Cake – the favourite in our house). Again, I have no photos. We’re going to see La La Land this afternoon, then to a friend’s party this evening so it’s a weekend of good things.

I’m not going to say much about what’s going on in the wider world but my son has just told me that the new president has made his inauguration day a ‘National Day of Patriotic Devotion’. Seriously?! Have you seen the Bad Lip Reading version of the inauguration? It’s hilarious. Find it on the internet if you haven’t seen it and want a giggle.

Have a lovely weekend x

Introducing Agnes

January 20, 2017January 20, 2017 ~ Sam ~ 46 Comments

Some people believe in fate; I prefer to think that life is a massive tangle of random threads and we forge our own path by the decisions we make. All those swirling, whirling possibilities.

There were many and varied threads that led to the point where I am, right now, at this particular moment. I could go back to 2003 when we decided to try for another child. My desire to have a daughter surprised me; I adored my two little boys, mothering them was enough, why on earth would I want another baby? But I did. And, luckily, along she came, my beautiful, headstrong, kind, funny, loving girl.

I could go back to 2012 to the decision to move to this village, to this house.

I could go back to the September of that year and the decision to walk my children to their new school along a particular route where I met Helen. And I could go back to a few weeks later and the decision to accept Helen’s invitation to lunch where I met Charlotte.

Charlotte and I struck up a firm friendship straight away. She had an idea for a book for girls and when she discovered that I worked in publishing, she sent me the outline. As a mother of a pre-teen girl it struck a massive chord with me and so I put out a few feelers. No luck, but undaunted we continued talking about the idea over many months’ worth of dog walks and the idea grew and morphed into an idea for a website. Should we do it? Could we build it and write it ourselves? We decided we should and we could. And many, many months later we’ve done it.

We have worked on it as a labour of love, during any spare time we have; we’ve bored our spouses, our children, anyone who’ll listen to us; we’ve dreamed of chatting to Jane Garvey on Woman’s Hour; and we have encouraged and chivvied each other along.

We haven’t done it all on our own, though. We’ve worked with some wonderful people who have donated their time and expertise – a psychologist has written the pages on mental health, expert relatives and friends have checked the copy and advised us, several teenage girls (and mothers) have given us feedback, and we’ve even had material from a couple of blogging friends (thank you Lynda and Gillian).

And now, this morning, Agnes is ready for public viewing. We are smashing an imaginary bottle of champagne onto her hull and sending her out into the wild ocean of the world-wide web.

The whole point of our website is to help girls to navigate their teenage years. It’s full of relevant information, sound advice and inspiration. I wish I’d had something like it when I was growing up.

I won’t go into detail about it; I’ll let it speak for itself. Please click on this link and see what you think. If you have a teenage girl in your life or know someone who has, it would be fabulous if you could help us to spread the word. Thank you.

And now I’m going to lie down in a darkened room for a while and have a little rest. Who am I kidding?! I need to clean the house and catch up on all the stuff I’ve been ignoring. I need to get out into the garden! If you come here for the gardening, there will be more. Soon.

Have a splendid weekend. x

A January stock-take

January 6, 2017 ~ Sam ~ 15 Comments

One of the best things about blogging is connecting to others throughout this wonderful world of ours – peeping through blog windows into the lives of people I probably wouldn’t ever meet in ‘real life’. One of my favourite windows is The Shady Baker‘s, where Jane writes about and photographs her life in the Australian outback so beautifully and evocatively. This stock-take is borrowed from her latest post (thank you, Jane); she in turn got the idea from Pip (where you can also copy the list if you wish). Taking stock in this way helps to gather my slightly chaotic thoughts into a vague sense of order, which feels altogether the right thing to do in early January.

Making: marmalade this weekend. David is bringing two boxes of Seville oranges home this evening. Making marmalade (and eating it) is one of my favourite things to do.
Cooking: anything that is quick and easy without being too unhealthy (it’s toad-in-the-hole tonight).
Drinking: too much coffee.
Reading: the Persephone catalogue and deciding which books to buy with a Christmas gift voucher. Decisions, decisions.
Trawling: through cupboards and drawers for a lost camera charger. Does anyone else spend far too much time looking for ‘lost’ things?
Wanting: everything to be organised and in the right place.
Looking: for signs of spring.
Deciding: to be more disciplined in my daily routine (yeah, right).
Wishing: I had a magic wand.
Enjoying: bright, cold, early-morning dog walks with friends.
Waiting: for all the daffodils and tulips I planted to peep out of the soil.
Liking: these cold, sunny winter days.
Wondering: if we’ll have snow this year. It snowed the very first winter we were here, in the winter of 2012/13, but there’s been none since.
Loving: the light and the shadows that the winter sun throws.
Pondering: planting ideas for the front terraces of the garden. Fruit trees, grasses, roses…
Listening: to the birds. I heard a lapwing ‘pee-wit’ today – I haven’t heard that sound for years. Three of them flew up from a field and wheeled about in the sky. Pure joy.
Considering: what to do for David’s birthday in a few weeks’ time.
Buying: my daughter a new winter coat in the sales to wear over her school blazer. She currently goes off to school with a scarf…
Watching: the ever-changing clouds and sea.
Hoping: my daughter will actually wear her new winter coat.
Marvelling: at the excuses my children come up with.
Cringing: at the amount of card and paper recycling we put out this week from Christmas packaging and wrapping.
Needing: to spend more time away from the computer screen. My eyes would benefit, as would my brain.
Questioning: everything and making a conscious effort not to take things at face value.
Smelling: my dog. She needs a bath.
Wearing: layers and layers. I try not to put the heating on during the day, so I end up with jumpers upon jumpers.
Noticing: the lengthening of the days. I’m closing the curtains later than I was before Christmas.
Knowing: that I am fortunate and have a good life (and I am grateful).
Thinking: about the website I’m working on. All the time. I wake up thinking about it and I go to sleep thinking about it.
Admiring: my mother-in-law. She’s in her mid-70s and she has more get-up-and-go than most people I know.
Getting: to grips with mothering teenagers. It’s a constant learning curve.
Disliking: the lazy journalism that seems to abound these days and misuse of terms like ‘liberal elite’ and ‘establishment’.
Opening: a new packet of biscuits more often than is advisable.
Closing: the door to the cold utility room to try to keep the kitchen warm.
Feeling: hungry. I blame the festive over-eating.
Hearing: crying gulls outside and my spluttering coffee machine.
Celebrating: a few January birthdays. It’s hard to muster great enthusiasm after Christmas but it has to be done.
Pretending: to be a competent woman.
Embracing: 2017.

I hope you have a good weekend.

In a Vase on Monday: A New Hope

January 2, 2017 ~ Sam ~ 19 Comments

Today dawned bright, calm and clear. The sunshine has boosted me out of my holiday slump and rekindled my energy levels – I’m keen to get on with a fresh, new year, to sweep away the Christmas detritus, to restore some sort of order to this house. I’m up against serious opposition, though. I suggested taking down the tree this morning to howls of horror from my family. I think they’d probably wrestle me to the ground if I tried to remove even one decoration, so it’s had a temporary reprieve. The children go back to school tomorrow…

I haven’t had a proper look round the garden for weeks, so it was lovely to potter about in the winter light for a while earlier and see what’s occurring. There are definite signs of spring flowers on the way – snowdrop and grape hyacinth leaves popping up all over the place – and even some blooms hanging on from last year. I picked two remaining marigolds (marigolds! On 2nd January!) and a few white scabious for my Monday vase, plus a sprig of flowering berberis from the bottom hedge, a leafy stem from an old climbing rose and some ivy tendrils. I’ve missed joining in with Cathy’s Monday gathering these past few weeks, so it’s good to be taking part again.

My post title is a little homage to my childhood heroine, Princess Leia/Carrie Fisher (it’s the title of the first ever Star Wars film), and a nod to the turning of the year. Wikipedia says: “Hope is an optimistic attitude of mind that is based on an expectation of positive outcomes related to events and circumstances in one’s life or the world at large.” I’ll hang on to that.

Happy New Year – here’s wishing you a healthy, peaceful one full of positive outcomes x

Felicitations

December 23, 2016December 23, 2016 ~ Sam ~ 15 Comments

I woke up at 4.30am this morning, my brain fizzing and whirring. It’s that time of year when it all feels a little chaotic and I need the security blanket of a detailed list. You know the one – the long list, with ‘things to do’ written chronologically, possibly even colour-coordinated. (Just me?) Most of my things to do are enjoyable (wrap presents, make mince pies, cook the ham, ice the cake) but there are a lot of them to fit into a shrinking amount of time. I also pile pressure on myself by wanting to make sure the house is clean and tidy, laundry up-to-date. This isn’t all to do with having visitors; it’s because I want to buy myself some time so I can fully switch-off and relax for a few days. My daughter says I shouldn’t wear my reading glasses, then I won’t notice the dust. Maybe I should have a gin and tonic and not worry about it!

It’s not all been ticking jobs off the list, though. We’ve just returned from ice-skating at the magnificent Victorian cruise terminal in Dover. It’s all decked out in Christmas trees, sparkly lights, Christmas market stalls, with an ice-rink as the main attraction. This is not the Dover you may know – nose-to-tail lorries queueing to get on the ferry, depressing post-war architecture and a slight air of neglect. This is the new Dover – optimistic and confident, and it’s a joy to see. There was a Michael Buble-style crooner serenading us as we stumbled and skidded around the ice. It took me a while to find my ice-skating feet (the last time I went skating was 20 ago!) while David channelled his inner ice-dancer, much to our children’s mortification. It was hilarious. Afterwards we had mulled cider and giggled. We’re definitely starting to get into the spirit.

Before I get back to my list and sign off here for the year, I would like to thank you for visiting, for reading my blog and commenting. I wish you the most wonderful Christmas (or whatever you are celebrating). Here’s to you. See you in 2017.

Sam x

acoastalplot

gardening and family life by the sea