Tag: intentions

Posted on

fEAsible ~ plans for October

October

October –  the beginning of the fourth and final quarter of the year.  So much colour and texture about this month and I had great fun foraging about in the hedgerows collecting foliage.

For me it is a bit of the lull before the storm, the storm being the ‘frenzy’ that sets in around November with the countdown to Christmas.  I want to make the most of this month to prepare for the ‘frenzy’ or at least try to keep the frenzy at bay by putting plans in place early.

Like most people now I am drawing the blinds and curtains early against the darker evenings and struggling with the darker mornings but at least I can look forward to some cosy evenings watching one or two of the new Autumn dramas on TV and a black and white film or two on the Talking Pictures channel.

As the garden will be demanding less and less of my attention once the tidying up is done I am going to use my time indoors to carry on with the major decluttering and creating a better run, more spacious household.

I will be pulling out a few new seasonal recipes to try, and hopefully finding lots of inspiration and ideas to fill both my sketchbook and Christmas notebook, and planning, planning, planning.

It is only 31 days so I will have to work fast on my intentions for this month as there is so much I would like to do. This is the list:-

appEArance

I have been so busy during the summer I feel I have neglected myself . So I have booked a reflexology session and back massage with a voucher I have been given,  a hair appointment and I will treat myself to a DIY home facial, pedicure and manicure

Put the finishing touches to my new streamlined winter wardrobe.

crEAting

Now I am no longer working I want to use some of my new-found time filling my sketchbook with ideas and drawings and creating a lino cut for my Christmas card as well as making my Christmas gifts

mEAandering

The Artists book fair in Manchester is back at a new venue – a brilliant event.

I also intend getting out and about locally exploring nearby places closer to home

fEAsting

Meal planning using seasonal vegetables and trying some new supper recipes.  Baking with the last of our home grown apples and buying the ingredients for my Christmas cake in readiness for next month

homestEAd

completing the house exterior, putting new shed in place and planting bulbs

rEAarranging and nEAtening

decluttering the kitchen – the final touches

recycle, reuse, reduce, recover, repair

trEAsury

Dealing with the limited cash flow, maintaining plenty of no spend days and finding free events and outings

managEAble

Starting a new notebook specifically for my Xmas plans and ideas

(thanks to Slamseys Journal for the idea of using the foliage I had collected for my October picture).

 

 

 

 

 

Posted on

fEAsible ~ plans for September

September is upon us already and I think like most people who have made comments on this and other blogs I am not ready to give summer up just yet and so my autumn will not start until 23rd September in line with the astronomical calendar!

The weather is still warm and sunny here – not the stifling heat we had earlier but quite a pleasant warmth.  Still pleasant enough for picnics and eating outdoors; still pleasant enough to take an evening stroll, and just right for foraging in the hedgerows.

The evenings are certainly cooler though – I keep reaching for a cosy throw whilst I am sitting watching TV rather than turning the fire on to take off the chill.  In my notebook I have been planning September – all our commitments have come to an end; school starts on Tuesday and my mum has returned home…September is all mine.

Like at the beginning of the year I am turning my intentions once again to the home  – some of my good intentions and routines have been abandoned during the carefree summer months and the house is looking a bit neglected.  Cooking, cleaning and neatening always feels deeply satisfying to me and September is the perfect month to begin again –  preparing the home and garden for the coming winter months and getting back into a routine – albeit for me it will be a new routine now I no longer working.

Recently I have been having a serious clear out in my kitchen and dining room.  I began with the food and then moved on to the crockery, pans and all the oddments that are held in the drawers and at the back of the cupboards.  It is not an easy task.  Decisions have to be made. But space is created.

I find that once I have been over everything it is good to go back again and I will often find more items to discard.

So for as long as the weather holds I have many plans for September…

mEAndering

Stillingfleet, Hartington and Glazebury all have gardens or well dressing events.  There is also Heritage Open Days on 13th to 16th September.  So much to choose from.  We will certainly be having a few days out.

A trip to Scotland to our cottage

homestEAd

 buy a new shed and erect

reinstate the compost bins

source a new front door

source a new garage door

hire a contractor to renew the driveway

revamp the front garden

nEAtening

the kitchen cupboards – continuing the decluttering and simplifying

crEAting

outdoor sketching and card making

fEAsting

meal planning for late summer early autumn meals

baking with my homegrown apples

rEAding

I have an extensive library of books by my bed and I intend to read more on the subject of simplifying and living with less.

trEAsury

looking at our new reduced budget to make ends meet

So that seems plenty to be going on with – I will be back with pictures of my declutter- it is very much an ongoing project at the moment.

 

 

Posted on

dEAr diary ~ just pottering along

After my marathon on Friday  I seem to have been on a go slow over the weekend – not intentionally, but I think I just feel so much in limbo at the moment that I cannot focus on either the house or myself.

As it was raining today work on the gravel patch at my daughter’s house was not going to happen so I stayed home and sorted the washing then began on the ironing mountain.

After about 2 hours I eventually saw the bottom of the basket and by this time the rain had stopped and the sheets and pillowcases I had washed were blowing on the line and almost dry – just nice for ironing as there is minimum creasing.

After a bit of putting away and tidying I sorted out the four vases of birthday flowers that had really past their sell by date and were in a rather sorry state.  I rescued what I could (as I always like to make them last as long as I can) and as usual it is the chrysanthemums that seem to last the longest.  I transferred anything that still had any signs of life into a smaller vase.

I  am no flower arranger as you can see but I  decided they looked so much better in this jug that was a present for my birthday.

A while ago at the beginning of the year I began a notebook where each month I paste in or note down bits and pieces of information and inspiration that I want to keep for a while as well as writing out my month’s intentions.

The monthly list of intentions (for the benefit of new readers) was just a combined list of must do’s and want to do’s for the coming month.  At the end of each month I would review my progress.

Anyone interested can go back to my previous blog and read them if you click the links below.

February and March Intentions and review

The list kept me focused but came to an abrupt halt after the March one mainly because we went on our trip to Italy during April and May.  Life just got so busy on our return to England together with the blog problems I had and handing in my notice at work I found I did not have the time to plan my month instead I resorted to dealing with whatever presented itself as most urgent day by day.

Not a good way to live.

Today I picked up the notebook again to add a few clippings and articles from old magazines that consisted of products I am interested in looking at, a few gardening notes and one or two book reviews as well as some summer ideas.

With all this hot weather I have thought of nothing else but shade – I am perhaps not alone in this and so I when I came across the article on gazebos in a magazine I tore the page out to keep. They range in price from the pop up at Tesco only £20 to a large sail gazebos from Wyevale Garden centres at £299 (but it is a semi permanent structure that is weather and rust resistant).

I also stuck in this clipping of a beautiful vibrant rose from David Austen that caught my eye called Lady of Shalott, a lovely summery apricot.

At this point I am not sure what my intentions are for August once I leave work. Tomorrow is my penultimate day –  surprisingly I don’t feel anything at the moment, not happy, not sad – more tired and I am not even thinking about what reception I might be in for!

We have spent the evening with the friends who moved house recently – they are now at the other end of our village about 1 mile away and at last we found some time to stroll down to see them and deliver the card.

On Wednesday it is Little L’s 4th birthday and we are visiting the fairy and pixie place near Pateley Bridge whose name escapes me – so that should be fun.

So that was my day I hope you all had a good one.

Back soon x