Winter's End...?

February is, in my opinion, the last month of Winter.  The days are lengthening ever so slightly, the birds sing a song of hopefulness and whatever the weather throws at us now, we at least know it can only get better.  Life stirs in the garden and countryside; the first lambs are in the fields, buds and tiny leaves warily emerge from dark branches and bare earth and when the sun makes a brief appearance it has a welcome warmth that speaks of the summer days to come.  We're almost there...the worst is over...it gets better from now on.

 I cannot believe the amount of rain we have had since before Christmas.  And it keeps coming.  I wonder how much more the land can take, but around here at least, it seems to be coping really well.  Pea and I went for a post tea time walk yesterday and for the first time in weeks, we could actually walk on the part of the lane that has been under water for ages.  Amazing!  That in itself was quite exciting and helped us to feel that things, weather wise are on the mend.  Today however, it has been hammering down for most of the morning and the winds have been quite strong too.  Oh, boredom how I loath thee!

In a feeble attempt to keep flagging spirits afloat, I had a poke about in my cupboards one afternoon for tea time inspiration and unearthed three almost-empty jars of stuff that needed using up.  I hate having jars hanging about like this as the children just shove them to the back of the cupboard and open new jars.  No one wants the dregs it seems and the lure of prising off a lid to hear that soft 'pop', is just too much for them to resist.  So I did a very make-do-and-mend thing, and made a tray of assorted tarts.

Jam, lemon curd and mincemeat topped with icing.  The children polished them off in no time and I made some space in my cupboard; everyone's happy.

For many years when the children were babies and toddlers, my only other passion in life was gardening.  I have kept gardening diaries for years with notes of what needs to be done when, what the weather was like and the results I achieved.  I still have those books and spent an evening flicking through some of them recently.  I was surprised at how much I knew back then!  It was nice to see I had written a note on H1's first birthday in February, that it had been snowing; still time then.  When I was going through my divorce I didn't feel much like gardening and as I was selling the house as well, I didn't have the heart for it.  While the children and I lived at the cottage, there wasn't a lot of opportunity for gardening as most of it was laid to lawn and the boarders were well stocked with shrubs, so we just enjoyed the views and spent time playing in the fields.  I did miss the act of gardening though; getting my hands in the soil, planting seeds, creating a boarder.  Our new home affords ample opportunity to do just that and it was one of the main reasons for moving here in the first place.  So after four years, I am finally able to start writing my gardening diary again.  I bought a new note pad, (always a joy!) and spent an hour at the kitchen table, surrounded by gardening books and packets of seeds.

The race with the weather is now on as we have to dig out a good sized plot, weed and prepare the soil for the first sowing of hardy salad leaves in mid March.  The potatoes and shallot sets will be ready to go in about then too, so I hope it dries up somewhat so we can get cracking with it.  Can't wait!  I have to admit that as much as I love being outside with nature and getting my hands dirty, I am a bit of a fair weather gardener.  I find no pleasure in digging out sodden earth with frozen hands and feet while the winds whip round my head and rain soaks me to the skin.  I would much rather be indoors with a cup of tea and a slab of cake.  I will wait until the sun warms the soil and my bones before I start doing serious stuff like that.  It is so much nicer to be sowing seeds with warm fingers in a warm poly tunnel, feeling the sun melt the tension and winter's chill from your back.

In reality I am getting a little ahead of myself; it is still Winter and there is still the possibility of snow before the Spring finally melts away that particular threat.  I am still bundled up in too many clothes and drinking too many cups of tea.  I still have to force myself to take the dogs out for their walks and we are still wanting to eat hearty meals and puddings.  But the seed has been sown in our minds of bird song, skirts and dresses blowing in a gentle breeze on the washing line, cucumber sandwiches and Victoria sponge for tea, daffodils in the garden and  lazy walks down lanes bursting with catkins and fresh leaves.

It's coming.  Hang in there!

Enjoy dreaming of Spring and sunshine and thank you for reading.xxx