Wednesday 4 December 2013

Progress


To link in with Lou's Nature in the Home... 'a centrepiece'. Yes, I know I've shown you my paperwhite bulbs before but they're a) growing nicely and b) going to be a centrepiece. Of sorts.

We're going to be eating Christmas dinner in Manchester this year with Jay's family. My lot are coming to us on Boxing Day for buffet-type shenanigans. So no table centrepiece for us. But the paperwhites, once in flower, will be moved to the mantelpiece for full effect. We'll get to appreciate their scent and the blooms will be reflected in the mirror so we'll get twice as much prettiness.


Progress of another kind, too. I mentioned the need to slow down and enjoy December. I love the pre-Christmas feeling and used to be extra careful with my annual leave all year so I could book my holidays from mid December.

I didn't take them on the other side of Christmas - my philosophy was I might as well get it over and done with, go straight back into work after the post-Christmas comedown and give up trying to delay the inevitable.


Of course, I'm no longer working full time or commuting. But I'm still loving savouring this time of year. And I'm taking time to enjoy the little things - walks with Joe, spotting things like sappy pine boughs and faded hydrangea in people's front gardens.


Yesterday he went down for a nap in the afternoon and I decided to do nothing. Not even knitting or reading. It was strange. I felt a bit unsettled, a bit fidgety. But I forced myself to sit and relax. Nigel Slater was on one of the food channels (a repeat of his Christmas Suppers programme). If Nigel's voice and the sight of all that lovely food doesn't work for you, nothing will.


So: progress. Enforced rest. Hopefully the whole 'switching off' thing will become a regular habit - I even nodded off for fifteen minutes. And slept well in the night. I suspect the mulled wine helped... one of the perks of going visiting in December :)

7 comments:

  1. Oh the colour of those hydrangeas! Wish my soil was more acidic (I think?!) to make them have that blueish tinge. Paperwhites are coming along nicely too!
    Doing nothing sounds heavenly (the nap sounds good too!) x

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Doing nothing is definitely an art - it requires practice;)
      I think it is acidic soil for blue hydrangeas. These were so perfect I just had to photograph them - and wonder why the owners hadn't taken them indoors to display. Still, that way I wouldn't have been able to enjoy them I suppose x

      Delete
  2. Oooh, I keep meaning to grow paperwhites and year after year I forget. They will be sooo pretty, I'm sure.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I love them but to say they're so popular it's pretty difficult to find them in shops and garden centres. We resorted to eBay this year...

      Delete
  3. That last hydrangea pic ... wow! I too am taking November slowly ... it feels good, doesn't it :D

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Gorgeous things hydrangeas, aren't they? We were walking in a very exclusive neighbourhood and I risked the twitching of many curtains to take that photo over someone's garden wall!
      If you're still living in November you clearly have the whole keeping calm thing sussed!

      Delete
  4. Ah, the art of doing nothing ~ it's a good one to master, even for five minutes...I always think it lets the brain unwind and find some good ideas come along. Beautiful shots x

    ReplyDelete

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...