Midsummer notes

As we head towards the end of the school year, there's a lot going on. More birthday parties, summer fairs, village fetes, book fairs, school trips... 

Not to mention that last weekend I lost a large part of a (Joe-free) Sunday. Completely my own fault: the hangover from hell. Cue the whole 'Never again' self-talk alongside the accompanying nausea, pounding headache and light-headedness. It was a good party though.

We've been trying to complete a job I wish we'd never started: painting the gable end of the house and the kitchen extension. Said gable end and extension are coated in pebbledash. Pebbledash is a nightmare to paint. You have to stipple. And bits of pebble come off so you then have to go back and redo those bits too. It takes a very long time to cover a very small area.

It was all my idea. I take full responsibility for it.

We visited our friend's plant nursery over in Cheshire again, which meant Joe got to collect eggs from the nesting boxes and to play on the old tractor. And we came home with a car boot full of lovely things to put in the garden.

Speaking of which, now my mum's house is sold I picked up a few of her plants: some big, fleshy geraniums in terracotta pots for the kitchen window and a lavender for the outside steps. I like the idea of continuation - she's gone but the living things she tended are now mine to take care of and enjoy.

I've been busy printmaking, writing and drawing. Then photographing things for the online shop. I'm planning to go and collect more flowers for pressing, especially now the nearby fields are full of tall grasses and wildflowers. I'm so inspired by them that I wrote a piece for Creative Countryside (here, if you'd like to take a look).

I've managed the odd little walk alone and am hoping to get out after lunch today. The skies are looking a bit ominous and it's damp out, which is just how I like it - always better for taking photographs when your preference is for the darker side of things.

After the stifling heat of the past few days it's a relief to feel a breeze. We had the gazebo out in the garden so Joe could play without getting burnt (despite his factor 50, super-sticky suncream). He loves getting dirty and the suncream acts as both a magnet and a fixative.

This week's obsession: making 'stock', 'soup' and ice lollies with water, bark chippings and herbs picked from the borders. Tasty.

Recently I wrote about being diagnosed with chronic fatigue syndrome. Well, I'll be honest: that diagnosis just didn't feel right to me. After many years of symptoms, from gruelling fatigue to feeling cold all the time, gastritis to brain fog (and so very many things in between: gluten intolerance, suspected coeliac disease, B12 malabsorption to name just a few) I decided to do my own research.

I looked at some blood results I'd received earlier this year, I read some (reputable) books and articles and I went to see the doctor. I even took Jay with me for a bit of support. And it turns out that I have autoimmune thyroiditis. The condition I've been convinced has been behind all these issues all along.

Someone finally listened.

So I had yet more blood tests, and I get the results this afternoon. The doctor wants to start me on medication. It's a relief.

But I'm also a great believer in functional medicine, and despite being pleased that I'm going to get treatment at last, I also want to address the cause. So I'm currently doing the AIP (Autoimmune Protocol) which aims to calm inflammation and stop the immune system going haywire through eating simple, non-processed foods and taking supplements to heal the gut. It's very restrictive but I'm almost three weeks in and other than the gin-related episode on Saturday night, I'm feeling pretty good. Not to mention I've lost 8 pounds. 

A few things: firstly - if you know something isn't right with your health, be persistent. Find out about things. Make notes. Ask for second opinions if necessary. And going private isn't necessarily going to solve everything (when I spent £250 on a private consultation with an endocrinologist I was sent away having been told to take some vitamins). Spending rather a lot with a herbal practitioner didn't get me very far either. I do prefer this natural approach, but in the end it was a young doctor in my NHS practice who came good.

Secondly: please don't write any scary comments about thyroid issues! I'm feeling a bit panicky at the moment. That solitary walk after lunch is definitely needed...

Enjoy these long midsummer days.

Easter

It's been a while.

It's been Easter. Two and a bit weeks off school and (for the most part) away from the digital world.

School actually finished very early for Easter. Most of the others in the locality are still off this week. But Joe went back on Tuesday (wearing shorts). The warm weather didn't last though. We're back to grey skies and chilly winds.

It was gloriously warm and sunny at the beginning of the holidays; Joe went to stay with his grandparents for a few nights so we took a walk, ate lunch outdoors and got on with some DIY. It had to be done.

Still, those two days of painting and repairs were quite relaxed. It always helps when the sun's shining and the windows are open and the washing's out on the line. Even sanding and undercoating doesn't seem too bad.

Joe came home having ridden on trains and zip wires. He was very excited.

Meanwhile, the Easter eggs continued to accumulate.

It was good fun, actually. Jay rattled the letterbox and Joe ran out to find a letter from the 'Easter Bunny' (me), telling him to go on a hunt for the eggs. So he did. It broke my heart a little bit, I'll be honest, to witness just how gullible he is. But the intentions were honourable.

We went to a birthday party a few days later with another egg hunt. So there's a lot of chocolate around at the moment.

The garden's starting to fill out now. Fruit is - well, fruiting. The Honesty plant I put in last year has shot up and is smothered in white flowers. The Dicentras are dripping with inverted pink hearts.

 The forget-me-nots, not so much. I thought they were supposed to spread everywhere...

Joe and I have been out hunting for bluebells, picking nettles and wild garlic, paddling in the river and playing in the park with friends. We've made things with clay, built with empty boxes and baked Garibaldi biscuits. We've drawn and coloured, visited the cafe and walked, cycled and taken little excursions in the car.

But we like the woods best.

I actually prefer being there when it's a bit damp and overcast. 

It's getting very green under the trees. I need to head out next week to collect plants for pressing, ready to make prints, and maybe I'll do some sketches too.

It's a lovely time of year. Next we'll have hawthorn blossom and cow parsley, so maybe we'll head back over to Cheshire to visit family and walk among the hedgerows.

The first cuckoo flowers (or Lady's Smock) are out. They always remind me of being little, and of picking them for my mum from the field across the road.

The blossoms are in full swing. 

But I think the herbs in the garden might need replacing. They've gone a bit woody and bedraggled-looking. Joe enjoys picking them to make 'spells' with. We stirred them up with some empty snail shells and pebbles, and made little brooms too with the prunings from our birch tree.

In the spirit of spring I'm trying to like the fact that, again, the sparrows have built a nest right outside our bedroom window. Let's face it though, they're noisy little buggers. Especially first thing in the morning.

Still, it's a good feeling to finally emerge from the dark winter days and see everything coming to life. I've even painted my toenails (silver). 

And now Joe's back at school I'm trying my best to catch up with work, blogging and all those things that get shelved when term ends. I'm glad that I've accepted 'doing it all' isn't the way to go. While he's little, my work is strictly term time only. That way I can just accept that our days are spent doing things together and I can relax and enjoy that. The to-do list can wait.

I hope you had a great Easter.

The Week that Was

It's strange - I usually dislike January and almost dread it: New Year (I much prefer Christmas), the feeling of having overindulged and overspent, the dark, grey days... but if you actually embrace it... well, it can actually be a comforting and (whisper it) enjoyable month. Who knew?

I've been allowing things to unfold in accordance with the weather. Walks on bright, take-your-breath-away freezing cold days. Staying home and warm on wet, dark afternoons. Today (Saturday) we headed into town. Not something I usually relish at all but it was necessary - my mobile phone needed looking at - and we stopped in at Waterstones on the way back to the car. 

Of course, with Joe in tow any dreams of whiling away a couple of hours amongst the books was just that. A dream. But I still got to look at all that lovely stationery, the volumes of poetry, those piles of books with beautiful covers.

Needless to say that Joe came away the winner. A set of Gruffalo matching game cards and an Usborne Rainy Day activity book. I love Usborne books for little ones.

The matching game went well until he lost. You'd have thought the world had ended. He also insisted on trying a game of Monopoly last night. I hastily made up a very simplified version. And when he landed in jail... The tears, the tantrum! 'Chance' cards angrily scattered all over the floor (needless to say, he was made to pick them all up again, despite my struggling to keep a straight face). I suspect Monopoly will be remaining in its usual spot, gathering dust on top of the dresser, for a long time to come.

Or at least until Joe learns about being a gracious loser.

The Rainy Day book didn't provoke a meltdown. You can always rely on books. Especially books with stickers.

There have been the usual domestic pursuits this month. And organising. I sorted through a lot of old paperwork this afternoon. My calendar and diary are up to date. Other indoor activities: watching Lucan, reading an old favourite (Thornyhold by Mary Stewart), making endless bird feeders with Joe from bird seed and lard. He's going through yogurts like nobody's business so we can save the pots. The garden's a-flap with jackdaws, robins and a now quite hefty-looking blackbird.

Those of you who follow me on Instagram will know I've been printmaking too. I added a few new designs (Bluebell and Fritillary) to my Frond & Feather shop. One good thing about the printmaking process is that there are always those which are initially printed onto scrap paper, and some which aren't quite right for one reason or another. So I get to stick them up on the walls. And my spring designs are quite cheering.

Today's been horrible and wet and dark but we have seen some sunshine during the past week. I met up with my stepdad for a walk around the local reservoir and then lunch at the nearby antiques place. It was incredibly cold, particularly on the high spots. But when the sun came out it was lovely.

Closer to home, I've been nipping out with the camera after dropping Joe off at school in the mornings. I run across the road to the churchyard, or up the little lane next to the school to capture the frost before the sun gets to it.

Everything's still bare and quite dead-looking, but there are a few signs of spring approaching. The magnolia trees in the churchyard are covered in fat, fuzzy buds. And there are lots of green shoots poking through the earth.

The antiques place I mentioned earlier is near a cemetery. I do like cemeteries and graveyards. Nothing morbid about it: I just like walking through, reading inscriptions and enjoying the quiet. You find some wonderful old names too. There were primroses growing all over the place when I went on Wednesday and the afternoon sun was really uplifting. You can feel optimistic in the most unlikely of places sometimes.

We're trying to get the chores done today in readiness for a slow Sunday. That's how the week often pans out: Monday to Friday I do artwork, admin and anything business-related. Evenings are spent cooking, eating, doing things with Joe then once he's bathed, read to and put to bed, we tend to just collapse in front of the T.V.

Saturdays we shop, clean, do the laundry etc. (around Joe). We try and get outside too. And by the time Sunday rolls around we can take it *easy: a late breakfast, a walk, afternoon baths, a roast dinner. Sundays are for home and family. 

*As easy as it gets with a four-year-old early-riser.

So, that's my little update of my week. I hope you're enjoying your weekend. And that the rain stops tomorrow, even if it's just for a while.

The Quiet Winter

I saw that as a hashtag and liked the idea of it. January here so far has been fairly quiet; a few flurries on the work front and the whole back to school whirlwind but other than that... 

Actually, no. They're resurfacing the road outside. Yesterday there were four hi-visibility clad men standing outside for over an hour. When I say outside, I mean two of them were actually sitting on my living room windowsill, backsides pressed firmly up against the glass, smoking endless fags and shouting expletives at their colleagues. Some piece of machinery was on the blink. So was I.

I'm no prude (and enjoy a bit of colourful language myself, I'll be honest). But Joe was due to be collected from school and I didn't want him to hear it. So in between getting annoyed, and the house literally shaking as they finally got back to work with their steamrollers or whatever they were using, yesterday afternoon was about as far from quiet as you can get.

Still. They've since moved further down the road and I'm calm once more. It's almost peaceful. I'd love a deep snowfall to deaden everything - there's nothing like that feeling of feeling warm indoors, looking out at a layer of white snow.

Christmas still remains in some ways. I forgot to take my string of bells down and can't be bothered dragging a chair across to climb onto and get them. And I had a mild allergic reaction to the tree again. Silly me. I just hate the thought of not having a real one, and conveniently forgetting each year about the problems they cause me.

There are still some fairy lights up. I don't see them as necessarily Christmassy. A bit of twinkle during the darker months never hurt anybody. And it's often gloomy in here in winter - which is why I've taken some 'interesting' indoor photos instead, reflected in the glass doors. Above: note the dead daffodils on the mantel shelf.

But there's a matching bunch on the opposite end at least.

I haven't seen any more to buy yet. Maybe I'll empty the dead ones out this afternoon...

The holly in the jug on the landing window has decided to flower, which is quite sweet.

Yes - this is one of those 'miscellany' posts again. I just felt like writing one, so please bear with me as I jump from one subject to the next. So: my amber necklace. I sent it down to Cornwall to be re-strung and it's now safely back. I've worn it already. I'm very happy with it.

And another change of direction: my hair. I really hope this doesn't come across as vain or in any way self-indulgent. You know I hate having my picture taken. But in the interests of Mitenska, I thought you might be interested to see how my going grey is progressing. Cue more badly-taken selfies.

I actually took the dressmaking scissors to it just before Christmas. This is something I do occasionally in a fit of - what? Boredom? I don't know. The ends were getting a bit ratty, and I thought if I could get rid of a bit more of they dyed stuff I might as well. So I did.

I told you the house was gloomy. I have to take these incredibly unglamorous shots in the bathroom because it's just about the brightest spot in the house with a mirror.

Selfies using my phone aren't an option. I'm not 15.

Anyway, hopefully you can see the grey coming through more. I clipped the sides back as it's more obvious at my temples and hairline. I quite like it too.

Even though there's a lack of light at the moment, Joe's suddenly into creating big, splashy paintings. They brighten up the kitchen no end and he does love me exhibiting his work. 

Speaking of the kitchen, I've been eating a really healthy diet and am feeling pretty good. I tried this recipe last week and it was delicious. I omitted the orange juice and yogurt, but it was so good I'll definitely be making it again. The coconut and sweet potato soup would be great with chicken added, and the lentils weren't really a necessity.

Elsewhere, my house plants seem to be waking up. I love rose and lemon-scented geraniums and they're doing very nicely so perhaps it'll be time for cuttings soon.

I'm trying to keep the next few months as slow and simple as possible: home-based pursuits, local walks, no spending. The blouse was a purchase made before Christmas but I'm really pleased with it, especially for the price (£11.99). Yes, really. H&M.

I've been working through my Maker's Toolkit, reviewing 2016 and planning 2017 for Frond & Feather. It's been really useful so far.

Sometimes you need to have a bit of a treat, don't you? I know, I know - no spending. I'm trying. I just can't resist sometimes. I've been reading a lot lately (mainly in bed) and enjoying short stories, but the lure of the magazine gets me every time.

Finally: This. Lego. Still everywhere. I'm surprised I haven't killed the hoover with it yet. I have knelt on the odd piece (and suddenly my language matches that of the road workers). I sit down in the evenings and spot little half-built vehicles positioned on shelves, under the fire or behind the TV. The best approach is to shove it out of sight or to join in and make something.

They've forecast heavy snow for tomorrow. I'm crossing my fingers. Who needs Lego when you can build a snowman?