Happy, Peaceful and Joyful Christmas...

Hi everyone. I just wanted to pop in to wish you and your families a very happy, peaceful and joyful Christmas. 

It can be quite a hectic time of the year, but I hope that we can all take a moment to remember the true meaning of Christmas, and to honour it in our hearts.  Also, to be grateful for the family and friends that bring love and joy into our lives, and to remember loved ones that are no longer with us. 

I shall be spending Christmas Day with my youngest daughter and her family. The two little ones are 9 and very nearly 8, so a lovely age to bring excitement to the day. I shall be thinking of my eldest daughter and her family who will be at their home in Ibiza. My eldest granddaughter was 20 a couple of weeks ago, so we will be missing them around our Christmas table, but with sunny skies and temperatures still in the high sixties, who can blame them for staying over there. Also, Christmas isn’t really a good time to be travelling, with the inevitable delays and perhaps the possibility of bad weather. 

I’d like to thank you for all your support of my Blog over this past year, and look forward to seeing you all again in 2018!  

“I will honour Christmas in my heart, and try to keep it all the year” ~ Charles Dickens.

One For The Birds....

Hi everyone. Do you realise that the week after next , it will be Christmas Eve?!  That really crept up on us, didn’t it?!  I’m pleased to say that here in deepest Devon, I am all ready for the big day, apart from the last minute food shop, which we all have to do. Anyway, I thought I would take a complete break from talking about Christmas, and post some  photos of wildlife in the garden, back in the Summer. 

It’s quite hard to take photos of birds, as the least little noise or movement, and they’re off, so I was quite pleased with this one. 

The woodpecker is a devil to capture, so this one isn’t as good as I would have liked. 

The butterflies seemed to be prolific this year, and I do tend to have plants that attract them. 

I have a Board on Pinterest entitled Bird Houses, And here are just a few. Aren’t they pretty? I have a vintage caravan from the 60’s in my garden, and I know that the last one would look very attractive hanging beside it!

I suppose I’d better post a couple of Christmas images for you, so here goes ....

I’ll say cheerio again for now - don’t forget ... don’t get your tinsel in a tangle 🎄🎄

On This Day Before Thanksgiving, My Thanks To All Who Read And Follow My Blog ❤️

Hello again.  I hope this finds you all well, wherever you are!  Last week, for the first time in ages, I actually looked at my Blog Statistics ~ it really is amazing to see the Countries that have visited my Blog recently ~. most readers are from the USA (thank you America!), but also featured were Brazil, France, China, Ukraine, Canada, Germany, Spain, Luxembourg, and Russia!  I certainly mustn’t forget my friends here in my own Country 😊.  How those other Countries find this Blog, I have no idea, but thank you everyone. 

Also, I’ve just realised that the number of page views has just passed the 200,000 mark, which I suppose is quite an achievement in itself. 

When I start to write a post, I have no idea what the title is going to be ~ I just hope it will come to me as I muddle along!  Anyway, tomorrow, in the USA, it will be Thanksgiving Day, and I’m sure that, even as we speak, households throughout the land will be in a great state of flux, making sure that everything is ready for the great feast ahead, and if you have visitors arriving, perhaps a cleaning frenzy will also be going on. Hopefully your turkey isn’t still running around!  I’ve seen photos of tables laden with food, courtesy of Pinterest.com. I must say, I shall be feeling very envious of you tomorrow when I sit down to my bread and dripping ~ I jest. 

Then, of course, after a day when thanks is given for all that you have, Black Friday rears it’s ugly head!  A couple of years ago, here in England, we had never heard of Black Friday, but it seems to be another tradition that has found its way across the pond 😊.  It’s a bit like the Boxing Day Sales over here, the day after Christmas Day.  Personally, I can think of nothing worse than being pushed, shoved and jostled by a crowd of bargain hunters.  For a start, being fairly short, I would probably be trampled on!  

This Autumn, we have had some wonderful, mild, sunny days, when all the colours have been at their best, but, today, we have gale force winds blowing around, so very soon the trees will be bare once again.  Here are a few photos taken by me earlier in the week, whilst visiting a pretty little fishing village near here. 

So I will say cheerio from here in deepest Devon.  Don’t be afraid to leave a comment if you feel like it.  I’d love to hear from you, and this next pic is for all my many good friends spread throughout the United States. I’ll be thinking of you all ❤️

We Will Remember Them ....

Just simple images of remembrance in my Blog Post today, to remind us of all those men and women who died that we may be free. 

This weekend, let us remember all those brave servicemen and women, who made the ultimate sacrifice. I will be thinking of a Grandad that I never knew, my dad’s dad, who died on foreign soil, aged 27 years. 

Here are a few photos of the Wave of Poppies here on Plymouth Hoe, my hometown. 

All images today which are not my own, are courtesy of Pinterest.com

Time To Remember All We Have To Be Thankful For ....

So here we are at the beginning of another month, the penultimate month of the year.  When I was young, I used to love Anne of Green Gables, and there is a lovely quote in that book ....”It was November, the month of crimson sunsets, parting birds, deep, sad hymns of the sea, passionate wind-song in the pines”.  To me, it is also the month to remind us to be thankful for the many positive things happening in our lives.  We do not have Thanksgiving here in England, but I really wish we did.  I suppose the nearest thing we have over here is the Harvest Festival, which is, of course, a celebration of the food grown on the land. We have given thanks for successful harvests since Pagan times.  

In fact, although we do not celebrate Thanksgiving over here, it was the early English settlers who first brought the idea of harvest thanksgiving to North America., when the first celebration took place in 1621. 

The November flower is, apparently, the chrysanthemum, which would explain why the Americans love their displays of colourful ‘mums’ at this time of the year.  This past week here in heavenly Devon, the weather has been just perfect for Autumn walks.  I have been out almost every day, savouring the wonderful sights and colours which surround the countryside at the moment. The golden and red leaves still hanging on the trees, and the smell of woodsmoke and bonfires in the air.  We also seem to get wonderful sunsets at this time of the year.  Here are a few photos taken this week ....

Oh!  Did I tell you that I now have four cute little chickens in the garden ?!  They are free range and having great fun exploring and pecking all round the garden!  I never realised that they were such friendly little birds, as they really do seem to enjoy having company and following me around. 

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So on that note, I will say cheerio again for now. Hope to see you again soon, and, as always, thank you so much for taking the time to read my ramblings. 

Time To Light The Lamps And Snuggle In ....

Here in England, on Saturday, the clocks will be falling back an hour, and it’s time, once again,  to make our homes as cosy as we can, so that we don’t start to feel ‘down’ with the onset of the shorter days.  Summer is now becoming a distant memory, with the exception of certain people!  Daughter number 1 who lives in Ibiza, keeps sending me photos of sandy beaches, hot sun, and stunning sunsets. I am starting to go off her! 😉. This is the latest photo she’s been teasing me with. No wonder she loves it so much over on that beautiful Island. 

But, meanwhile, I shall be lighting the lamps and the candles, and looking forward to when I can put all the twinkly fairy lights around at Christmastime!

Have you heard of the word ...Hygge?  It’s pronounced hue-gah, and comes from a Norwegian word meaning “well-being.”  In other words, enjoying life’s simple pleasures, often achieved with good food, drink, comfy surroundings, warm blankets and candlelight. So, as you will see, Autumn and Winter are just made for us all to practice some Hygge. Colourful throws on the armchairs, potpourri scented with smells of orange and cinnamon - anything to lift our spirits whilst these darker days are with us. Of course, I’m aware that in many parts  of the world, you are approaching Springtime. Forgive me, but I have to write as it is with the Seasons in my homeland! 

Most of the colours are fading in the garden at the moment, but I took this photo of a wilting rose earlier today. I think it still looks quite beautiful. 

So my friends, may your lives be filled with Hygge during the coming Season. See you again soon. 

Image courtesy of Pinterest.com

Wild And Windy Here In Deepest Devon, And Travels With An American Friend...

So then peeps, I hope you’re all going to have a lovely weekend.  It’s wild and stormy here in the South Hams of heavenly Devon as I write this, with the coastline being pounded by gales of up to 80 mph.  Thankfully the sun is shining at the moment, but I believe we will be having heavy rain showers later on in the day.  Can you believe that this one has been named Storm Brian.,  I mean, with apologies to all the Brians out there, it’s not a very good name for a storm is it?!   I think something a little more dramatic was called for. Storm Horatio, perhaps.  Well, you get my drift.  

To give you some idea of the changing weather, I took this photo in the very pretty resort of Salcombe last Monday, on a beautiful Autumn day ...

Here is a photo (borrowed from a friend) taken of the same location earlier today ...

We have a lot of holiday makers here in Devon throughout the year, and so many people have to be rescued from the sea, as they just don’t understand how dangerous it can be. Many get trapped on rocks by the incoming tide, and then have to be rescued by the Coastguards, putting other people’s lives at risk.  

Anyway, I mentioned in my last Blog Post, how my American friend had been staying here with me for a couple of weeks. This was her second visit to England, and she wanted to visit the sights of London this time around. I hadn’t been to London as a tourist for a very long time, so it was just as much fun for me. Diane (yes, another Diane 😊) just couldn’t get over the hustle and bustle of it all, although we did manage to find some tranquil spots in the lovely parks London has. Amazing really, to think that you’re only a couple of minutes away from the rush of the City....yet, all of a sudden, you’re in a completely different world.  Once again, my apologies to my Facebook friends, but here are a few snapshots of our time spent visiting the tourist spots.

 

As you can imagine, we took a whole bunch of photos, and it was difficult to choose a few to give you just a flavour of our Capital City. Also, I didn’t want to be one of those boring people showing off their holiday snaps!!  I think it was Mark Twain who said “travel makes one modest. It makes you see what a tiny place you occupy in this world.”  

As I finish off, the rain has arrived and is now lashing against the window panes. I hope you’re all having a good weekend and managing to find some relaxation in amongst the busy lives that we all seem to live these days. I’ll say Au Revoir for now, but I’ll pop back in again soon. 

There’s a new Featured Post up today - memories of childhood. Just click on the Featured Post link at the top of the right hand sidebar.