Reflection Through The Seasons

A VERY HAPPY NEW YEAR.....

....is my wish for you.

I hope you all enjoyed the Peace and Joy of the Christmas Season and as we turn the pages of 2013 may your right hand always be stretched out in friendship and never in want.

Yes, I know it's been a while... 2012 was not my best year for blogging, in fact it was not the best year for us in a number of ways.   I had my fair share of health issues, a spell in hospital in March, then in July I broke my foot and was out of action for 10 weeks but, the most traumatic of all... at the end of October... John and I were involved in a motorway pile up.  Our car was a total wreck but we were thankful to walk away with nothing more serious than whiplash injuries for which we are still receiving physio treatment.  Part of my treatment has involved acupuncture on my shoulders and neck.  I was somewhat sceptical about this at first, but I have to say how amazed I am at the wonderful and great relief it has brought.   Due to all of these set backs, my lovely garden has suffered too...  sad to say its usual autumn tidy up did not take place and putting it to bed for the winter was not completed.

Before it gets too unseasonal for them, I'll share a few of my Christmas pictures...

What a success our 2012 Church Christmas Fair was.  Here am I with friend Olwen setting our craft stall out the evening before the event.   Our church has a very enthusiastic craft club... we meet every month and like minded ladies busy themselves making items to sell at the various Fairs we hold throughout the year... 

I made a selection of Christmas stocking....

....and some tree decorations, although folk were buying them to use as pin cushions too

...see the embroidered hearts in the rear of the basket...  I have been so inspired by lovely blogger Jenny http://the custards.blogspot.co.uk  
Jenny makes the most amazing items from old embroidered items.  The clasp purses she makes are exquisite.  Do search her blog and admire them for yourself.

Olwen was responsible for decorating these candles so beautifully, using patterns cut from paper serviettes.  They were very popular.

Like most places in the UK, Wales has suffered day after day of relentless rain, rivers have broken their banks and fields have turned into lakes... everywhere the ground is saturated.  The waterfalls look fearsome and sound thunderous but are quite spectacular.   Nevertheless, despite such adverse conditions it has been unusually mild and already there are signs that spring is in the air.  Each day is gradually lengthening minute by minute and on a recent walk around my neglected garden I was amazed at what I found.  Clumps of daffodils are showing quite a few inches of leaf growth so too are the snowdrops and bluebells and the new shoots of crocosmia are well through the earth.  I am delighted with the number of flowers on the hellebores, they must have been in flower for a while... how could I have missed them!  Several clumps of polyanthus have been flowering for a while too.

What a change this morning though! It is very frosty and dawn has broken into a crystal clear blue sky.  How blessed we are to have a rain free day and experience some precious sunshine... everywhere looks quite different.    I've just surveyed the morning from my window, the village looks quiet, I can see that some of the cottages already have fires burning from the tell tale smoke that rises from a number of chimneys.  I saw a flock of cormorants fly overhead, no doubt returning from the sea with a breakfast  of fish filling their tummies... they are on their way back to their nesting places on Bird Rock.  Now I must fly and start my day.

Blessings - Marion