Courage and a year in review ❤️

Thank you every one for joining in through out the year and in particular December's photo scavenger hunt - here is to our blogging community - may we share, support and uplift each other through 2021 xxxx

 

January - A new year, a new month and two finished crochet blankets. I choose my word for the year **'Journey'.

February - Damp, cold and slow. Lots of walking and watching the news about a new virus spreading from the east.

March - The world stops. We clap every Thursday for the NHS, we hide, we avoid, we are uncertain and ill at ease.

April - Our personal world reduces to a very tight-knit and protective bubble. A small furry lad brings laughter and a much needed distraction. He, after all our care and love, returned to the trees and grows up to be a rather handsome fellow. I still see him occasionally.

May - Walking and keeping a safe distance, wearing masks, washing hands and using sanitiser, queuing to enter essential shops. Sharing and caring is top of the community wish list. Gardening is a safe way to care for others.

June - The weather is glorious, we walk miles and miles and miles over hills and moors. Restrictions are lifted enough for us to get out in the van - we choose to keep as far away from others.

July - Our lockdown summer is one of rolling sunny weather and walking. We keep our heads down and our boots on. Walking and gardening is pure escapism from the worry and the uncertainty.

August - Walking, hiding, gardening, thinking - retreating inwardly. Reviving lost skills, learning new ones. Creating as a form of escape.

September - Walking still - using the miles to breathe and to think, gardening for myself and for those who can't.

October -  The long lingering summer warmth fades, walking keeps us sane, gardening still keeps me busy.  Numbers are not reducing, death toll increasing and we can feel our world becoming on edge again.

November - Once again we are looking inward. Crafting and in particular sewing becomes another way to escape. The weather is now definitely autumnal and certainly more wet, walking is less pleasure but still a necessity - it keeps my head from imploding. Never have I appreciated home and garden, family and the internet connectivity more.

December - The numbers are rocketing, new variants of the virus are emerging and despite the promised vaccine relief there is no way this will help at the speed that it is required. The NHS is at the point of breaking yet there are still those who do not believe or take care or responsibility or even think. We are placed in tier 4......

**And my word for 2020? Journey?

It was the right one for me - not only in the physical sense of me walking hundreds of miles over the year but I have moved on from 'all that was not right for me' in 2019 and journeyed into myself and back out - and 2020 despite being a 'year of all years' has been part of that journey. I have come out the other side more whole than I have felt for years.

I now need a new word, 

a new guide for the new year and it will be 

'Courage'.

I hope that I have inspired you to choose a word for your new year - it helped me - may it help you too xx

I can only hope and wish and think positively for 2021, she will need all the help she can get.  Stay safe, think positively and be kind, above all be kind xxxxx

What to do when it rains ...

Some things I can do - easily, with minimal instructions or a simple diagram - I am lucky that I can 'see round corners' and with a bit of trial and error - come up with 'the goods'.

Not so with sewing. That is something, for me, that remains a bit of 'those who can and those who botch' type skill and I fall in the latter camp. Recently I have dabbled in cushion making with the almost beyond-my-pay-grade skill of adding a zip and some trouser repair mercy missions.

Buoyed on by my moderate success, I tried something a little more adventurous. 

With the present .... You WILL wear a mask (but not if you can't) type instructions ... being the order of the day, I have gone on line and with thanks to those who can sew and have the ability to make videos - I have learn't how to make double sided face hugging masks. The type you can insert a third additional layer if and when it is required.

I have had help - of the furry kind and I have also had positive feed back by the recipients. So, after the initial tentative makings, I set off again today - ultimately I would like every one to have a minimum of two so that they can 'wash and wear' but with time I will make sure they all have more (I am just very slow at making them!)

So far I have made nine - I just  need to complete today's by stitching the elastic and inserting the pipe cleaners in the 'nose band' to help keep the mask fitting comfortably over the nose and under glasses.  With more good luck that good sewing, I managed to pattern match both the Moomins and the sailing boat fabric - cue happy singing in my head and silly grin on my face :D

If you are a competent 'sewing genius' or a 'have-a-go-henry' like me - the link for this pattern is HERE, I have, as always, modified my versions in my usual fashion!

I was supposed to be working today but the rain soon put paid to that .. in answer to some questions about what I am doing, I am an RHS Level 2, FD garden designer and work alongside folk who have mature gardens and need help with the heavy work. Last week I was cutting hedges (about three metres high and certainly in places nearly two metres wide) and today I was meant to finish off the final section however the torrential rain cancelled those plans!

Herbs #30dayswild 18

What the lockdown restrictions gifted me was time.

Time to think, 

time to walk (as per the government guidelines),

and gave me more time to garden and to create. 

As a whole, my garden is rather shade heavy - we are surrounded by mature trees, 

not all our own so we have very little control as to their shade cover 

but we do what we can and I grow about 90% of my vegetables and salad in my greenhouse.

However, I have always wanted a 'pallet' garden near the kitchen door 

so I can just pop out for herbs and salad when I am cooking. 

I chatted with Himself and lo and behold a few days later 

he found me two lovely pallets.  

With a bit of a discussion we worked out what needed removing 

and how to make a base for each layer and within the hour 

I had two little multi-story-herb-gardens up on our kitchen wall!

Now, you might wonder what this has to do with #30dayswild and #staywild, 

well, as I started to fill each little bed with soil 

I thought that it would be a good idea to alternate the salad and herb crops with bee friendly plants.  

Now that everything is growing so happily, 

I suspect that the salad and herbs are in the minority 

as the wild flowers and pollinator friendly flowers take over! 

But I don't mind, they make me smile each time I walk past them.

 And these little beds bask in sunlight for most of the day 

just calling out to bees and hoverflies to come and play!

 As you can see, one is black and the other - not quite fully !

They were made at the time when our local DIY store was closed 

and we just used what we had,

however, when they did open, 

they did not have the same black wood stain.

We are now just waiting for...

1. the correct stuff to come back on the shelves

2. the rain to stop!

But at the rate the plants are growing - it might be a job for autumn

When walking ...

Rules of Engagement

*Shoes, lightweight converse style with shorty socks ✅

*Camera - always a camera ✅

 *Dog - who, at this point may have noticed and begun to get excited🐾 ✅

*Lead  ✅

* Dog poo bags   ✅lo plenty ✅ ✅

Step counter set and ready  ✅

Action Plan

*Step out, turn left, left again then right....

*Follow the dog's nose🐾, she leads the way,

pulling us towards the walk.

*Up the cobbles to Claire's field or the bowling green or 

down the main road and up Rock Lane 'S' bends,

via 'fridge farm' or 'Ol' Joe's Lane'

At the whim of the nose of a dog 🐾

Capturing moments 

Small spots of hopeful talismans 

 Gifts of positivity and love❤️💛💚💙💜

All over the village.

❤️💛💚💙💜

They come and go.

❤️💛💚💙💜

Sharing a colourful message of hope and encouragement 

❤️💛💚💙💜' 

Somewhere over the .....

Morning !

Here in the uk a small way we can celebrate and congratulate the NHS and other keyworkers is to display a poster in a window - either with rainbows or thank yous, with the hastags of #thankyounhs and #staysafe

 Last night a post came up on FB sharing a free pattern to make a crochet rainbow

I just knew what I was going to do - 

A quick dive into the stash pile, 

 gave me enough colours to make this!

The heart is NOT part of the pattern, 

it is one my fav sis in law made some years ago,

I just added the stitched NHS.

The original design has a row of rainbow coloured pompoms, 

I decided to add two 'cloud' pompoms instead.

So, if you fancy showing your support for the incredible work they do,

put a rainbow in your window - share that love xxx

Pattern HERE

Time it took - a very pleasant evening's crochet :)

#Rainbowofunity #kerryjaynedesigns #windowrainbows #frommywindow ##chasetherainbow #covid_19 #socialdistancing #crochetersunite #supportthenhs #makingrainbowstogether #rainbows  #stayathome #staysafe #supportingthenhs #coronavirus