A happy bunny once more

today, for the second time in as many weeks my eldest daughter and son in law have sold their flat. I so hope this one does not drop out. It is a first time buyer with a mortgage in place so it should go through quickly. She has just agreed to a temporary nanny job for 10 weeks so that will make time pass quickly. We should be able to finish the cave for them in that time. Downstairs is now almost framed out and should be finished by the end of the weekend. Then next week the plasterboard will go up.
On the home front...I have done some research into real dog food. At the moment they have a quality kibble but I am thinking of doing home made meals for them. I will certainly give it a go but accept they may not like the change.
My fabric has arrived that I will make myself some dresses with. Over the weekend I will dig out my tailors dummy as I find it easier to make a dress on this.
Just had to negotiate a French website. My mobile is from Le Clerc and I have an automatic monthly top up in place. The card I use expires on Sunday and I have had several texts reminding me. It took a lot of brain power but I have done it. I also coped with the lady reading the electric meters this morning. We had our electricity supply changed from triphase to single and they have put a thing on the outside wall that allows the meter to be read without coming into the house. It was hidden by the shutter and I did not know it was there! A lot goes over my head!
Tomorrow our guests leave and we have a week free. They have loved being here which makes me happy.

And the home made continues

first batch of washing up liquid is in the bottle. I have yet to try it. I am now used to the laundry soap and cleaning stuff. I am also happy with my moisturizer and foundation powder. I am doing well with cooking from scratch too.
Today I made a honey and lemon drink that is in a big jug in the fridge. I have never liked coke and only ever drank lemonade if I had a fizzy drink. I usually only have my elder flower cordial or rosehip syrup if I want a flavoured drink. I am addicted to coffee which I would like to give up but it is the only hot drink I like. I drink it sugarless and black. I do now have instant rather than filtered which has to be better.
Tomorrow my fabric should arrive but I want to finish my blanket before starting on my dresses.
Took the dogs forba good walk this afternoon and big guy was so good. We always keep them on leads away from our land. He did not bother about any of the people we passed. He is now 3 1/2 and has calmed down so much.
Life plods on but I feel I am going in the right direction.

Look what I made

This is my first attempt at making soap. I used a base melting soap, added colour and scent and poured into moulds. For fun I bought some farm yard moulds but will invest in different ones as I get better at this. I plan to wrap one and put it in a small basket in the Gite bathroom as a small extra. I need to find the basket and the wrapping. Something organic for the wrapping. I will also make bath bombs and put a couple in the basket with the soap. P is going to do me some 'made at Le Tertre' labels to put on things. I have never been very confident about making things for other people, always doubting the quality. I have though started making things as gifts for friends. So far I have made two friends a crochet throw. It has amazed me how much I love making stuff for myself.
I have today noted recipes for lemonade and pina colada ice lollies thanks to 'live simply' a brilliant blog I follow. Tomorrow is shopping day so I will be sure to include what I need.
Today I also made my every day fruit cake, a favourite with us both.
I have ordered some fabric and a pattern to make myself a dress. I now have two patterns I like and will in future make these in different fabrics.
Today is a bank holiday here too, unusual for it to be a Monday. It is pentecost and we had a village do called fete de pentecost. It was basically a big vide grenier ( empty attic) which is like an English boot fair. As always there was a lot of rubbish and anything I liked was over priced. They rarely price anything which makes me suspicious as it feels like it is priced according to who you are. I found a wooden hand butter churn I would have liked but it was too expensive. There were the usual chickens and rabbits in cages that I wished I could buy just to give them a good life.
Started today feeling very glum but have kept busy and feel a bit better now. This often happens but I do feel tired at the moment which always makes me feel low.
There are veggies roasting in the oven which I will do with some fried eggs and we will have crepes with my bottled peaches and creme fraiche for pud. I have a box of crepes wrapped individually in the freezer. Which reminds me I must make some more veggie burgers.
Then an evening getting on with my crochet bed cover which is getting very big now.

Daffy ducks

so the ducks have discovered the field beyond our garden. They have spent most of today going between the two. The field has a herd of heifers but the ducks paid no attention to them. The cows ignored the ducks so all was ok. I think the geese were bullying again which made the ducks flap. I have no doubt they accidentally flew into the field and once there discovered lots of yummy stuff. I think this will now be a daily thing but as long as they come back at bedtime I am happy to let them have the freedom. They stay close to home which is good.
Had a tractor bucket of wood delivered today (2 steres) so now have loads for my oven. We have gone back to getting from our nearest neighbour as it is so much better quality. Benoit is a dairy farmer and as with all farmers around here he manages woodland. It is all properly seasoned and good chunks! It costs a bit more that what we had been buying but is so much better. We will have some delivered every couple of months to build up our store for winter. It is much easier to stack this amount each time too.
Today was another first.....I cut my hair! It was easier than expected and I am happy with the result. I had it cut short in a salon and layered. I am just cutting a bit off each layer. P checked it was even. So, €50 each 5 weeks saved. Well €40 really as it costs me €10 for the home colour!
With regard to the rat situation, things have calmed down. The two houses are raised off the floor and we put poison in the gaps in the walls. I feel very uncomfortable about this but understand we cannot have a rat infestation. I plan to cement the inside walls to stop any more getting in.
I cut the grass in the orchard too, at last. My new victoria plum has some fruit. Also my bramley apple that is just a stick has some little apples. I am very excited about this. In the veg patch two of my butternut squash seeds have germinated. I so hope I get some squash.
P has got on well framing out the downstairs of the barn that will be daughters house.
So, all is well here just now. I am off to get on with my blanket now.

Rats

Literally! Sorry no pictures but I expect many of you are thankful for that!
It has been a strange day really. Daughter and sil left after lunch and I was very sad to see them go. They have helped so much the last 10 days. They were unhappy too knowing their buyer has pulled out but I am trying to focus on the positives. It gives us more time to finish their house. P has got on really well today starting to frame out downstairs. It will not be long before the plasterboard goes up.
Early evening some friends came round with their Jack Russell who is a good ratter. They are having my old chicken house. We went into the barn and lifted the chicken house and a family of rats scattered into the walls. Stig went mad chasing them but sadly did not catch them this time. We are going to build a platform and lift the nest boxes and feed bin up on it. This will remove a safe place for the rats to nest. We will also refill the gaps in the pointing of the walls to stop them using the walls to hide in. I do not particularly like the rats but my main complaint is they take the eggs. I have long felt the chicken barn needed sorting out so am pleased it has come to the top of the list. Once the stones have been replaced I plan to paint the inside white. With everything up off the floor I will be able to manage the deep litter better.
The chickens have been upset by all the excitement and one of them flew over the fence into the field. We hunted for her but failed to find her. Later she appeared the wrong side of the fence but I was able to catch her. As dusk fell I went to lock the barn and a hen was missing! Not the same one! I found her in the field too. Managed to chase her in so all tucked up safe now. The rats will probably rebuild the nest under the remaining house. We will build the platform tomorrow and start filling the holes but not lift the house and nest boxes up until friends can come back with Stig. I would rather the rats moved out but either way they have to go.
There are times when I cannot believe how I have changed. I was a complete townie.
I have started using the deoderant I made and it seems to working ok. I am also using the foundation powder every day and am entirely happy with it. I am nearly at the end of my current bottle of wash up liquid and am poised to make my own.
One of my ducks has built a nest and placed their eggs in it. I am hopeful! Yesterday I cleaned out goose hall and removed the eggs that had been there over two months. The geese went mad! Once I had put the new bedding in they both went in and looked for their eggs! They were not happy! I put a couple of the eggs back along with some fresh duck eggs. Mrs Goose is still not sitting so I took today's egg. If she builds a proper nest and seems broody I will leave her to it.
My first courgette has shown itself and the peas are growing well. Tomorrow I must earth up the potatoes. The elder flowers have begun too so it will not be long before I make the cordial.
Oh by the way I have ordered the wool/cotton to make dish cloths and found something called dishcloth cotton! Brilliant. Two balls ordered.
So tomorrow our guests arrive and as always I hope they love being here as much as I do.

And it just keeps coming....

The ideas that is. I have ordered some dish cloth cotton ( yes it is actually called that) to make some dishcloths. Tomorrow I am going to make deoderant and I think that officially makes me a hippy! P is referring to me as 'the witch'! In a nice way of course. He is rather amused at what I am doing but supports my efforts. In a way we are on the same mission. He does the renovations and is learning on the job. I guess I am renovating us, removing the rubbish. We are both working at being self sufficient and I feel we are winning. There is still lots more we can do and I am looking forward to all the changes to come.
Today we have gravelled in front of the three Gites, and removed the weeds. The virginia creeper is growing well and has softened the front of the big barn. We need to get the front door on the far right Gite then the barn will look better. I have pointed the front of the finished Gite but need to get the rest of the barn done. It is a job I hate as I have to work from a ladder most of the time.
On Friday our season fully starts. We have had two lots of people stay so far this year but on Friday, barring a week at the end of August/early September we are booked right through to 10th October.
Another project I want to get going with is sorting out the pond. It has a leak caused by the ducks scrambling up the side. I have to drain it and clear all the muck out, repair the damage and refill it. Ducks are very messy and really I should clean out the pond annually. I had an idea of putting plastic coated wire all around the sides for them to grip and to protect the liner. I will also put more stones in at the other end to give them another place to get out. I need to invest in a decent pump to get the flow going again.
So life plods on, in a happy way and slowly we are our home a good place.

More chemicals ditched

for two days now I have used the foundation powder I made. I used a little concealer underneath to give better coverage of my ageing skin. The powder works really well. It does go all over the place and I have to shake excess off the brush. It is just a case of getting used to it. The  recipe I found says to use arrowroot which I cannot find so I have substituted maize flour. It is a wonderful new world to me and I am really enjoying the journey. It is a challenge finding ingredients but if others can work it out so can I.
I cannot get cotton dishcloths here as they use sponges for washing up. There are lots of microfibre cloths around but they are synthetic. So.....I am going to knit or crochet my own. I will find some chunky cotton and make them. Then I can keep a stock and wash them when necessary.
Slowly I am looking at different things and realising I can make things.
In the food department I want to make biscuits. We both like them but homemade ones are best eaten on the day they are made and I do not have time to make a daily batch, I think! I make them from time to time but that is not enough. I need to give more thought to this one and do some googling! I always make cake but that keeps better. I make bread too but that also keeps well.
In the autumn I want to bottle a lot more fruit for puddings as a lot of tinned fruit has a plastic lining.
The elder flowers are beginning to show so it won't be long until I can make elder flower cordial again. I need to make more this year so that it lasts until next year. Along with rosehip syrup this gives me 'squash'. I now never buy commercial syrups or squashes. It is all good stuff!

View from my bedroom

This morning I was stood at my bedroom window drying my hair looking at this. I thought I should share it. I can watch birds flying around and squirrels in the trees too. The cute red variety not the grey ones! Sometimes there are cows in the bottom field too. I never tire of seeing this. A few years ago when in England I looked over other gardens and houses and thought nothing of it. Now I cannot see another building. I know how fortunate I am.
Yesterday we received a blow, our daughter's buyer pulled out. The solicitor was concerned the lease was only 73 years even though the paperwork is being processed to extend the lease. The plan was to pay for this very expensive piece of paper from the equity. Now the money has to be raised by us all. Daughter and sil go back next Thursday and will try to raise the money. They will take the flat off the market until the lease is sorted then re market it. I am trying to view it as a blip, not a major thing. It gives us more time to get their house ready too.
On that note P has done the first fix plumbing, always scary due to the issue of leaks. In France water is at a high pressure so is difficult to work with. We are getting closer to boarding out downstairs which will make a huge difference to the look of the place. We have a large fireplace in the kitchen with an equally large chimney. My wood burning oven sits our side and their woodburner is their side sharing the chimney. The chimney is so big it can take two flues! Last winter there was a hole in the wall waiting for a pipe to be fitted and it made my kitchen so cold. The hole is now closed so the coming winter will be easier. The biggest difference will come when we have our roof re done. Old French houses have no underfelt so a lot of cold air gets in under the eaves. Along with mice! Our roof is sagging badly and tiles keep slipping. It is becoming ever more urgent but as fast as we save money a big bill comes in! At the moment we have three tax bills to pay this year! Fortunetly our Gite is fully booked this year. We keep having mad ideas about being able to build up our capital! One day!
Somehow nothing can ever be so bad when you live in a place like this!

Of things home made..

As usual things look better in real life. This is the bed cover I am making for our room. It is navy and white, the chosen colour scheme. I started out a few years ago knitting loads of small squares but became bored with it so into a box it went. Now I have rediscovered crochet I decided the time had come to finish it. I am the queen of unfinished projects! One day I will compile a list and work through getting it all done. I will crochet these big squares together then crochet a lacy edging around the whole thing. Our bed has a plain white valance which I plan to trim with strips of navy fabric and white lace. I have a vision in my head and very hope the reality is as good!My home made cleaning product is working well as is my laundry soap.
Today I have made the foundation powder. I brushed it on my arm to check the colour and adjusted it a bit. It seems to work but have yet to use it in place of my usual foundation. I have been using my moisturiser for a couple of weeks now and am very happy with it. It will be a permanent feature.
So life ticks over with good days and some bad ones but generally going in the right direction. I am in a much better place mentally now than this time year when I was desperate to go back to the UK. I have come to realise I have to force positive thoughts into my head to drive out the negative ones.
I now accept I will always be viewed as a foreigner so just have to get on with it. A few people have told me I would feel like a foreigner in the UK now too!

Ducks in the sun

The chickens, ducks and geese are enjoying the sunshine as am I. Sil has cut lots of the grass with only one section left to do.
Had a letter from the tax office this morning saying we had to pay a fine for a late payment. We gathered up our folder and girded our loins for a visit to madame at our local office. We will be able to refer to her as tu soon as she is nearly family. The dusty box did not come out and she was impressed to find out we had filed our return online already.
So, opening again the folder for 2012 and the letter. Turned out she had forgotten to send the letter so cancelled the fine if we paid today. We wrote out a cheque straight away. That put 2012 to bed, finis, complete, superbe! So to 2013....... Yes we owed money, due in June. She cannot promise we will get a letter but must pay it by June 15th. So now we know to go to the office if no letter arrives and pay. Then 2013 will be finis, complete, superbe!
Ah but what about 2014? She found our forms online, had a look and found an error. We had declared our private pensions twice. Good for France, bad for us. She adjusted the figures and we signed the correction. When do we pay this we asked? September she said.... We may get a letter but may not.....at last we understand......if no letter arrives go to the tax office and ask if we can please pay our tax! By October of this year we should be up to date with a system we finally understand! Awesome!
On the green front...today I made the laundry soap mix and a general cleaner. I washed a floor with hot water, white vinegar and a few drops of lemon essential oil. I have ordered a pack of vanilla beans to make vanilla extract. Another money saver. I am slowly getting there.

Where does the time go?

something about warmer weather and lighter evenings, I always seem to run out of time. Sorry I have not been around.
On Friday I had my three year old grandson for the day so he took all my attention. By the time he had gone home and I had sorted dinner I was shattered.
Then yesterday was the preparation for my eldest daughter and sil arriving. Lots to talk about so again didn't get on here. Have just cleared up the roast dinner I did for us all and settled to watch the taped highlights of the grand prix. So thought I would catch up on here.
I had intended sorting out more photos but that will have to wait.
This morning whilst younger daughter and co were out we went to their house and put up a big trampoline eldest had bought her nephew. It took four of us two hours to do! A great hit though and a lovely surprise.
Sil is going to cut the grass at the back that is very long tomorrow. It will be such a help. It is going to make a big difference to us to have so much help.
I feel very fortunate to be having my family with me.
So once again life is changing. By the end of July all should be sorted.
Once daughter goes we start the season proper with back to back bookings until the middle of October. It is amazing. I enjoy meeting new people and having the place come alive. It also gives us money to further improve our property. We have always had a vision of how this place will be and are well on track to achieve that.

Happy bunny

that is me.....daughter has today had two offers on the flat. Negotiations have begun. Should mean they move here by September. They arrive on Saturday for 10 days to get on with The Cave as their house is known. It gives us impetus too to get on and finish it. There is still a fair bit to do....fit the bathroom, board downstairs, 2nd fix electrics and plumbing, flooring, fit the kitchen, and decorate throughout. They have a big caravan here to use as a base but they are staying in the Gite this trip. We then have paying guests coming in the day after daughter leaves and it is eyes down for a busy season.
I have waited so long for my eldest and her hubby to come here. It took quite a while for them to decide to come. Then five months on the market and loads of viewings but no offers until now. My younger daughter is happy too as she is very close with her sister. We will all benefit from being together. My two son in laws get on well too.
It is amazing how life can suddenly change.
P has carried on today trying to get the flue sorted out for daughters wood burner. The pipe work is now done, just the cementing to do. Then the wall between our homes will be done. At the moment I have two large holes behind the cooker.
I found a wonderful app today, google translate that allows you to speak into the iPad in English and it gives you the French. And vice versa. You can also photograph a road sign and it translates. All off line! It Will certainly make life easier.

....and Wisteria round the windows

I planted the Wisteria as a stick three years ago and it has done amazingly well. To the right of the picture is the top of the fence that surrounds our front garden. The big window and small one are what will be our eldest daughter's and sil home! The front door is around the side. The window to the left is my kitchen. The orange bit you can see is a pottery gheko. I rather like them!
There is still a great deal of work to do, inside and out.
Today we had an outing with the expat club, lunch and a tour of a brewery. It turned out to be a fabulous day. I had a lovely vegetarian meal, starter, main, cheese, pud and wine €12.75 . The brewery is run by an enterprising French farmer, not something you find often. He runs an organic dairy farm and set up the brewery as an extra. He has formed a co operative with three other local organic farmers and they grow their own hops. He spoke pretty good English, was very comfortable with us and made us all laugh. We finished with a beer tasting session. It was so refreshing to meet someone like him. One of my better days here.
We had to leave the dogs at home and in the end it was 7 hours! No mess or damage anywhere! They are amazing. Took them for a walk and now they are crashed.
We are still contemplating trying to access the French health system without running a business. As we have been here and paid tax for more than five years we are resident and entitled to access the system. It is a daunting prospect! Doing this would enable our daughter and sil to run the Gite business giving them access to health care. We will discuss it with them when they are here next week. On the subject of our Gite, we now have 19 weeks booked! I am so pleased our business is viable.
I went in search of a container for my laundry soap I plan to make. It will be liquid and I hoped to find a glass container. Sadly I have come home with a plastic one which is not good for my mission to reduce plastic usage. At least I will keep it a long time. Hoping my castille soap arrives soon. It will be held up by the fact it is a bank holiday here Friday!
So now I will do some more of my blanket before having an early night as I feel very tired.

Roses round the door

Amazed myself and managed to put up another picture. This is my front door, you can see the date stone above..1832.. The plants either side are white climbing roses. So I really do have roses round the door.
When we bought the house there was an old front door that had a gap underneath where the doorstone had worn. At this time we were coming over for a weekend each month arriving very late on the Friday night. I would always have to hunt the toad who used to come in under the door. It became a game and it was always in the house. Maybe that is where my love of toads came from.
The door was fitted by P and the window bit opens which I rather like.
Today has been very windy and I had fun staking the peas. All canes are in and the first level of string is in place. The peas are going mad. The red onions are doing well too. This year I tried putting butternut squash seeds direct in the soil as my greenhouse is still not ready. One seed so far has sprouted. I will be so pleased if the plants produce the squash. The courgettes are looking good too.
The soft fruit bushes are full of leaves and even my new plum trees have blossom. The cherry trees are laden with little green fruits so I am hoping for a bumper crop.
On a personal front, this morning I coloured my hair and feel happier. I have ordered a vat of castille liquid soap and will make my own shampoo. I also have beeswax coming to make lipstick. The long term plan is to have a couple of hives so we can have honey and wax of our own. I am very keen to do this.
I have stocked up on white vinegat and bicarb ready to make cleaning products. This is my next area to deal with. I have added another element to my going green and am going to reduce the plastic. Again I have done a lot of reading about this..I had no idea there was plastic in my toothpaste! The more you look at the green subject the more you discover that is wrong with the way we live today.

Grrr

I have been trying for the last hour to sort out a piccie. Head now hurts so have given up.
It has rained nearly all day, the grass is growing at a silly rate. It will be hard work getting the mower round it. Perhaps I should keep the chickens in the run tomorrow and let the geese into the orchard. Will give it some thought.
Took the dogs on a three mile walk this morning and they are still crashed.
My pond has a leak that is on the list to fix. Due to all the rain it is full just now, it cannot drain quicker than the rain falls! It is on my radar to drain and clean the pond as it is full of duck and goose poo! When I lifted up the ramp that forms the duck house there was a darling medium sized toad underneath. I rather like toads, weird I know!
We have had a problem with the blue rav. After lots of research we knew it was either the fuel pump filter (£20) or the fuel pump itself (£700 +). We thought it best to start with the cheapest option and amazingly it was the cause of the problem. That rarely happens so P is feeling very pleased he was able to fix it.
I am feeling increasingly more desperate to have something done in my house. Last year P put in the cloakroom which was lovely but I need a bit more. Will have to be gentle in suggesting it. P is amazing with all he does, electricity , plumbing, framing and boarding. He has built staircases and windows and doors. All self taught. We could not afford to have a builder do it all so just had to get on with it.
So life plods on, some days good some not so. But the sun comes up every day ( not always obvious) and we keep going. One day the work will be finished.

Oui non oui non err peut etre..zoot alors choisi

Three apologies
1. My french
2. For not wtiting yesterday
3. No picture. I took a good one of my front door with the date stone above but internet is too slow to load it.
So what do I have to choose? I am over three weeks into no shampoo as part of my ditching chemicals. I have been trying to cover my grey roots with black walnut hull powder. It hasn't worked very well so I started thinking about going grey. I did lots of googling but all said the same...no easy answer. The thing is I do not like myself with messy grey hair. Being neatly coiffed has always been important to me. I have given up my contact lenses and my size 10 body and cannot say I am too unhappy about being a spectacle wearing size 14. As my better half often reminds me I am 58, had three chidren and an abdominal hysterectomy, bless him! But grey hair I cannot do. So tomorrow I will go to my usual hairdresser and have my hair cut and coloured. I have no hope of explaining the idea of no shampoo so will have to go with it. I do feel fairly bad but this is going to have to be the one batch of chemicals I cannot ditch. Maybe when I am 65 it may be more palatable.
Didn't get on here yesterday as we had a spontaneous idea to go out to dinner. We went to a local place and had pizza with a jug of house red followed by creme brulee. Much enjoyed and needed from time to time. The owner is a lovely young lady who speaks good English and is not atfraid to use it. They have a sign outside the restaurant ' ice cream to take away' in English! This always amuses us as it is nigh on impossible to buy an ice cream when out. Once the warm weather is here we will stop and get one.
We have two bakers in our village and the little one on the corner I favour has a sign on the door.          ' English products'. Inside the shop is a glass cabinet, kept locked, with a union jack on it. Within are such things as custard creams, a jar of mincemeat, Birds custard powder and I think I saw a box of Paxo stuffing. Sometime soon I will have to buy something to show I appreciate her efforts. There is also a shop for sale with two signs ....a vendre and a phone number.....and To let and a phone number. Not sure why French can buy but English can only rent but it is good to know we are thought of.
There are little pockets of Englishness becoming evident which makes me happy
So tomorrow I go to the little salon and reunite myself with colour and shampoo whilst practising my French on the lovely young ladies who are not scared to try a little English.

A good day

it is a bank holiday here today. The butcher and baker were open this morning but shut at lunch time. Nothing else is open today! Takes a bit of getting used to when you have lived in a 24 hour society. Traditionally this is the day when workers go on marches around France to protest at whatever is the current grievance. Apparently the number marching is down this year. Not sure what there would be to protest about when the code de travail covers all you would want.
This morning we finished our French tax forms on line so now we wait to see what arrives in the post. We also finished our English tax forms and they are ready to post. All the paperwork for registering our enduring power of attorney for my dear demented dad is also done and ready to post. Then P did an online application to renew his passport. So, all paperwork is up to date today. Itbfeels good.
This afternoon we went out for tea. We have expat friends who moved to the centre of our village. We met some other expats who have bought a B&B in the village and are moving over next month. It was a very enjoyable afternoon.
Home in time to walk the dogs and put chickens, ducks and geese to bed.
I did want to include a picture of our place but it has rained all day so that will have to wait.
P managed to do the concrete to go under the flagstones for the front doorstep of the end Gite. A step closer to getting the front door on.
We have lost momentum a bit recently, mainly because we were expecting family to arrive yesterday and they cancelled last minute. We will probably have the weekend as down time then get going again next week. Our eldest daughter and her husband arrive next Saturday and we will all be getting on with their house.
In the veg patch the peas are coming up fast as are the red onions. The elder has the beginnings of flowers so will not be long before I make the elder flower cordial. I also have a good stock of fruit in the freezer waiting to be made into jam.
The wood burner is going well as the house is cold. I always like it when the curtains are closed and the fire is blazing. Planning to get on with the bed cover I am making. It is a combination of knitting and crochet. Will post a picture once it is done.