Category: winter

countryside · general stuff · wildlife · winter

frosty morning

Julie (little Cotton Rabbits)61 Comments

There are a hundred things that I really should be getting on with today, I’ve really not got into the swing of things yet this year and am behind with all of my plans and aims. But this morning was a perfect winter morning and much too beautiful to stay inside. So I bundled up in my hat, gloves, scarf, thickest coat, cosy socks and trusty walking boots and set off for a walk.

The countryside is so beautiful after a full frost but it really was cold, the temperature was showing as -4 as I set off (which is pretty cold for these parts). I just walked a few miles, wandering down lanes, across fields, along bridleways and footpaths, past beautiful houses and around the churchyard, but there was much to see. Lots of frosty leaves and berries and a surprising amount of wildlife – robins, jays and blackbirds; a fallow deer (which was too quick for my camera); rabbits and squirrels and a couple of ponies. Here’s what a I recorded from my walk, a little snapshot of a frosty winter day in a Hertfordshire village, when the ‘earth stood hard as iron, water like a stone’*.

* From ‘In the Bleak Midwinter’ Christina Rossetti

Now I’m home again and warming up with a cup of tea and a toasted cheese scone and although I’ll not be able to tick many things off my to do list today I do feel much restored by my quiet walk with it’s small delights. Tomorrow I will begin to get organised, see you soon x

 

countryside · general stuff · winter

calmer

Julie (little Cotton Rabbits)59 Comments

Thanks so much for all of the kind and lovely comments on the previous post. This week has been a lot less dramatic and Toby has been happily at school without incident. For me there has been a lot of knitting, for in knitting my heart knows calm; some tea, cake and laughter with friends and a lovely peaceful woodland walk amongst the snowdrops which are just beginning to break bud.

I took 133 pictures on my wood walk (and got very muddy knees in the process) and there were just too many of them that I wanted to show you, so I made a little film.

Note: To see the snowdrops at their best it’s worth cranking it up to HD which you can do by clicking the little thing shaped like a cog and moving the slider to 1080p HD at the top, after a moment you should get a little HD in red by the cog and then you can re-start the film with better quality.

 

Have a good weekend. It’s St Valentines day tomorrow so I hope you’re spending it with someone you love, kisses from me too xxx

crafts & knitting · general stuff · winter

first days of winter

Julie (little Cotton Rabbits)25 Comments

Some random things from the last week…

working on the edging of my big misty blanket, having finished the main section. Hope to make this a wide border but it will be dependent on how much wool is left.

enjoying frothy coffee in the early afternoons

discovering a new yarn brand – Yarn Stories. Not only beautiful quality yarns in gorgeous colours but also the nicest packaging I’ve ever seen. I expect to be knitting lots with their newest yarn, Fine Merino and Baby Alpaca Aran – a couple of colours are going to be so perfect for my next pattern.

preparing over-winter residences for the local bugs

Liking, the first frost of the year…

…the emerging structure of trees…

…and a regular visitor these last few afternoons – one of our neighbours has a pond so they are probably not liking this handsome chap as much as I am!

Thanks so much for all of the thoughtful kind and wise comments on the previous post about Toby’s recent struggles. It’s always lovely to receive such warm-hearted, sweet encouragement and it’s so helpful to know others have gone through similar times. The only variables for us now are duration and intensity but since we’ve been through rough patches before and they’ve not lasted indefinitely, it’s easier to feel hopeful now, knowing that it’s a passing phase.