Happy New Year!

Happy New Year!

I have a feeling that for many of us 2009 must be a turning point.

2008 has brought many hard moments, through which we have come, safely

and blessedly.

May this new year be a new beginning for those who need it, a safe harbour for 

all of us, and may God keep His hand on us through the months

to come.

I am closing down for a while.

Time to be still.

Time to spend time with family.

Time to reflect.

Time to appreciate the wonder of Christmas.

I wish you all a blessed and restful Christmas.

More and more cards, and a swap.

We have had some beautiful Christmas cards this year. I feel very privileged to count them! The chief design prominent seems to be the Robin. So many of our cards have a Robin or two on them, and he is indeed a Christmas bird, with his cheery red breast. You can see my cards that are on our mantelshelf...usually from family or very close friends. You may be able to see one to 'Grandma and Grandpa'!



The second photo is of the Card swap organised by Jan, who chose 'partners' for us.
Thank you Jan for your card and the pretty angel.

Claudie from Canada sent me the card on the right, with pretty hanging tags and a delicious tea to try.

Then from Germany came the middle card, thank you Stefanie for the sweet hangers enclosed, and a pretty Christmas napkin. (Click to take a closer look)

It was a good idea to exchange cards with someone different this year, and learn a little about other traditions.

Christmas sewing---finished!

A while ago I didnt think I would finish this Christmas patchwork...but here it is. I set myself a target date, when we had friends coming over for supper, and finished it the night before! I know in my heart that it is not technically perfect by any means, but it has been wonderful therapy for me over the last couple of months.

It could equally well be a wall hanging, but it seemed to look good on our dining table. Though it was removed for the meal itself.

Now it's back to some cross stitch that has been waiting in the wings.

(Click to enlarge, but not to look at wobbly stitching.)

Christmas goodies!

Something we cannot find in France is the delicious Mince pie. Maybe this is a traditionally English thing. I know that one year when we were in Australia, I tried everywhere to find a jar of what we call 'mincemeat', and met incomprehension.

I finally discovered with the aid of a bright young salesman that I should have asked for 'fruit mince', and managed to buy the one jar that they had in stock.

Mince pies were eaten in medieval times, but then contained chopped liver, boiled eggs and ginger. Sweet fruit might also be added. What a mixture!

Later in the 16th century they became a speciality at Christmas, though the meat was replaced by suet. The pastry should be deliciously flaky and light, and the mincemeat needs to ooze out at the first bite. They are best eaten warm.

Our children always left a mince pie under the tree for Father Christmas to eat on his visit, and were always so excited in the morning when they found it had been eaten!

...and now, the Calendars.

Not the best of photos, but wherever I tried I still got the light reflection.

Now is the time for calendars in France. The first one comes from the Pompiers, or Firemen, brought to the house in person. Always so nice to open the door to six foot of uniformed fireman! There is a tasteful photo of all the men, plus their medical band of doctors.

These men are all volunteers, and have not only to go to fires, but also to deal with medical emergencies such as suicides, transporting victims of accidents etc. They do a great job.

The next calendar will be from the Facteur, or Postman. Normally he whistles round the village, never getting out of his car, but leaning out to pop post into the letter box...which is obliged to be set at the right height for this. On calendar day he comes to the door, and graciously proffers a calendar, accepting a small sum of money at the same time. I think it's what we would call in England, the 'Christmas box'. The calendar is one of the most useful with so much local inforamtion on it.

We've also had a rather pretty but useless one from the pharmacie, lovely photos, but very tiny lines on which one might be able to write one word engagements.

I think it's a lovely tradition, that these people give to us, rather than simply coming to the door with hand outheld.

Christmas cards

Christmas cards have started to arrive. Every day one or two are popped into the letter box by our postman, and every day we have the pleasure of seeing different views of Christmas, and reading the messages.

Did you know that the first commercial card was printed in 1843, designed by John Horsely for his friend Sir Henry Cole? Sir Henry, a wealthy businessman, wanted a card to send to his friends and acquaintances. The card depicted a happy family giving to charitable causes, and sold 1000 copies. Each one cost one shilling!

For me, when I buy cards, I like them to portray the Christian message of Christmas. But there are so many attractive designs out there that I can understand why people choose them.

I find it sad now that many cards have either no message, or 'Seasons greetings' in, so as apparently not to upset anyone. After all, we are celebrating the birth of our Lord, and why should we not send cards depicting that?

I used to arrange my cards on the banister of our stairs, but in this house we have no stairs. So they go into a basket, , to be taken out every now and then to enjoy. Special family cards go on the mantel shelf in our sitting room.

The French dont normally send Christmas cards, though I notice that they are beginning to creep into the shops. Their choice of cards usually wishes 'Bonne Annee!' or Happy New Year, which is when their real festivities are held.

Different ways for different people.

Cold, frosty rose.

I took this photo last week. It was a bitterly cold morning, the car`was frozen up, the grass was white. This last rose was edged with what looked like icing sugar.

Poor little thing. The moment it thawed, it died. Now, the plant has been cut back and will be dormant till next Spring. Then, hopefully, we will see those deep red petals, smell the gorgeous perfume again.

(Click on the photo to feel the chill of the frost!)

A bit of Christmas sewing

I've jsut started some sewing for Christmas, only a few bits to decorate and to put with little presents.

These trees are so easy to make, using 2 or more fabrics. I can show you how if you e mail me.

I dont use a lot of glittery things nowadays, but prefer to have homemade or natural decorations. When the frost has gone I'm going to go and find some birch branches , put them in a vase and hang them with red felt stars.

We are fortunate to have willow trees in the garden so I will use the branches to make a wreath for the door, with pine cones and red check ribbon. It wont be a 'grandchildren' Christmas this year so I can keep everything very simple!

Advent

Today marks the beginning of the season of Advent. In our church this morning we introduced our Advent wreath and the first candle was lit by our oldest member, who is in her 90s.

The word Advent comes from the Latin 'adventus' meaning arrival, and this is a time when Christians remember that Jesus came into the world. It's the beginning of the Anglican Church's year.

The wreath possibly dates back to pre Christian times when in the dark days of Winter the German and Scandinavian people used it as a sign of hope that spring and sunny days would be coming.

In the Middle Ages the wreath was adopted by The Christian church, as Christ is 'the light that came into the world'.

Even the greenery is a symbol of life. the Laurel symbolises victory over persecution, the yew immortality and the cedar, strength . Pine cones recall life and resurrection.

The four candles symbolise the four weeks of Advent, and in some churches are purple and pink, the pink, or rose, used on the 3rd Sunday, the midpoint of Advent.

How lovely to have this living symbol of the Christian season of Advent.

Tagged by Miriam

Sorry Miriam, I was reminded of this by 'Allthings bright and beautiful', who I'm pleased to say is a bit late also, so I'm not alone!

6 random things about me....I know I've done this before but cant remember any of it.

I was born in the War years (2nd WW, please), and remember sirens.

I live in France, in a village in Brittany. I speak French fairly well.

I spent most of my career as a Special needs teacher, but also worked for 2 years in a home for Autistic young adults.

I am a Churchwarden in the Anglican church here in France.

I love to sew, cross stitch and patchwork mainly.

I still have countries that I want to visit, though I have seen a great deal of the world....Canada, Australia, Hawaii, Malaysia, Dubai, Europe....., but never USA.
There you are, not frightfully interesting or different!

Happy Thanksgiving

HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO ALL MY AMERICAN FRIENDS!

Rose Wednesday again!

This is a view, perhaps one of my favourites, of the arch from our terrace.

The roses are , on the left, Domaine de Courson and on the right Pierre de Ronsard.

When the photo was taken they had been planted for only a year, just after our house was built. I find it difficult to believe how much they have grown. They are obviously very happy in this position, sheltered and receiving sun through most of the Summer days.

Pink roses will always be my favourite, though I do have many other colours in the garden!

Lists.........

This painting is called 'Women make lists', by American feminist painter, Joan Snyder. Joan is an Abstract Expressionist, as you might imagine, and lives and works in Brooklyn and Woodstock, NY.

It does seem to encapsulate my state of mind at the minute. I have little pink post it notes stuck everywhere, on the printer, in my handbag, on the phone.....

Mostly they are of the 'to do' variety, you know, 'phone re magazine subscription', or 'send birthday card to friend'. But of course the main lists now are to do with Christmas. Although we have deliberately cut back and minimised our sending, there are still grandchildren whom one cannot disappoint. A cheque just doesnt do it for me, though that's probably what they would prefer. So I make endless lists.

It's not just gifts. It's 'finish the felt stars' type message, that only I can understand. My local friends will all be getting big glass jars of home made biscuits, the top wrapped in pretty red and white check fabric, with a red felt star strung on each lid, just to make it look Christmassy. (Copied, I freely admit, from glossy magazine, stars priced at £3 each!) I am never happier than when I'm creative, but it does mean organising all the bits that I need to help me in my efforts.

So that's why I make lists.

How I wish my Christmas parcels looked even a bit like this...

or like these.

I've been busy today finishing parcels to go off to grandchildren in Australia, in Canada.

My parcels start with good intentions. They finish with too much sellotape, wobbly bows and non matching labels.

Ah well, it's the thought that counts?

A little Christmas patchwork.

This is finally on its way to being finished. For no reason at all it has taken me ages, in fact I cut it out last Christmas, then put it away.....as one does.

All it needs is the border, and then I can stitch in the wadding and the backing, and maybe, just maybe, it will be done for Christmas 2008....or 9?

Thank you, and..

Thank you to all of you who sent me good wishes whilst I was 'off'. I picked up a very nasty virus which sent my Blood pressure soaring to danger levels. Our lovely Dr visited twice (yes we are in the French health system!), and put me on medication and rest, rest, rest. Maybe it is a reaction also to the stress of the last few months, as I feel completely washed out.

However, just before I succumbed, I went to a local quilt exhibition, and thought I'd show you a photo or two. There are two groups of ladies who meet once a month to sew, and they produce some interesting things. Some of the colours were a bit bold for my taste, but obviously we are not all the same. So much work had gone into these quilts, and there were certainly all shapes and sizes.

It makes me realize how slow I am being with my stitching, but little by little I shall get there.

A winner!

A brief post to announce the winner of my giveaway. I'm pleased to say that the winner is........

MARIE

who has a lovely blog called Proverbs 31.

Congratulations Marie. Just send me an e mail with your address, and the parcel will be on its way to you.

There were forty names on the list, so they got put in a big basket and drawn by my husband with his eyes tight shut!

All activity is suspended for 24 hours while I recover from illness. I'm lying low for a couple of days, but the giveaway will be drawn as soon as possible.

200 posts, and a giveaway!

So, at last, I've reached the 200th post. All written since April 2007. Writing blogs was something I never expected to do, but once tried, one is hooked, not so much the writing of, but the visiting of!

For there are so many interesting people out there! Once you have found a blog that appeals, you also find that the readers and commenters of that blog are people that you like to visit too. They may have similar interests, in my case, sewing, patchwork, quilting. They may be of the same Faith. As a committed Christian, I have been so inspired by many of the Christian blogs that are written. Gardeners are out there, plants to discuss, seeds to swap. There will always be people who , for no particular reason, are 'talkable' to, readable, and whom you know you would get on with if you met. I have learned so much about America in my browsing, and wish I could be whisked away to meet some of the lovely bloggers there. I've 'met' ladies from Canada, friends in Holland, Norway, Ireland, and yes, even England!

All of a sudden, one finds that one has built up a list of like minded people. People who rejoice with one, sympathise, contact. And yet many of them will never be seen, met or even spoken to.

So in honour of all you 'unseen' people out there, I'm having a giveaway on my 200th post.

There are lovely Roger et Gallet guest soaps for your bathroom, a truly French company. There is a pretty embroidered nightdress case to enhance your bedroom, and there is a little scented 'thingy' , as my husband would call it. There will also be one tiny surprise gift popped in too.

Just add a comment andI will draw names in one week's time on Nov.14th.

Hope you win!

Cold.

Post number 199.


It's very cold here tonight.
We woke up this morning to a chilly house with a Central heating boiler that didn't work. The thing is only two years old, how dare it?
By 8 am I had called the maintenance man, the one who installed the boiler, explained the problem, explained that my husband is only recently out of hospital and feels the cold, and got a promise that he would come this afternoon.
It's now 8pm. No maintenance man.
His wife tells me there are many boilers needing fixing. That seems very odd. Why are we the last on the list?
Fortunately we have a back up electric fire, but only in one room.
Friends arrive tomorrow to stay for a few days!
Siberia.
And this morning...he arrived! All is fixed and we are once again warm.

Pretty plates

I thought I would wander round the house and take a few photos of the plates that hang on my

walls. Somehow over the years I have built up a collection of porcelain, some very old, some not

so old, but all of it giving me pleasure.

This one with its pretty apricot edging is over a hundred years old, and was actually made as the top of a cake stand. Somewhere along the way the lower part became detached , but it is perfect on the wall as a plate.

I found the turquoise edged one, with roses of course, in an antique shop many years ago, and bought it because of the colours. Duck egg blue is a favourite of mine.

The pretty little ribbon plate is Victorian, and would have originally had a ribbon threaded through the holes around the edge. It was given to me by a friend who knew I collected.

Rose Bouquet is a modern plate, and was given to me by a daughter in law, who knows all about my love for roses!




The square plate is hand painted, and was part of a set, but I use this one on its own. I love its delicate little bird and flowers. That again came from a Cornish antique shop.



I'm not sure if you can see the last one. It's a tiny plate edged with roses, and it is hung on a wall of strawberries.........just because I liked it there.

All Hallows Eve.

This is, once again, almost the season of All Hallows Eve. All Saints Day, known as Toussaint in France, is a day when French families visit the graves of their loved ones. It is their tradition, and is greatly respected.

It is at this season that the Chrysanthemums make their appearance. Never used in France except in association with death, they are placed reverently on every possible grave. The village centres are decorated now with splendid arrangements of top heavy plants in slightly lurid colours, bright yellow being a favourite.

Over the last few months I have watched as our local grower first planted out tiny Chrysanths in baby pots, moving them as they grew on, hardening them off outside as they got to be the big cushion size so prized by the French. The nursery must have housed hundreds of plants, as do the big commercial garden centres. The cost is quite high, maybe 40 euros per plant, and how sad to think of all those plants simply withering and dying. But it is tradition.

Another little tradition which has only come about in recent years, is that of children dressing up and knocking on doors to ask for treats. It is done in a very low key way, slightly apologetically, with no trace of the vicious 'trick or treat'. We all keep a few packs of bon bons or sweets ready for the local youngsters, and they enjoy the fun of visiting their local neighbours. Although they refer to it as 'Halloween' I dont think they have any idea of what they are 'celebrating', and for that I am glad. They are only conforming to what is expected of children now. It is simply something that has arrived in our ever growing commercialism here, whereas fifteen years ago it was totally unknown.

Homecoming

This is a 'Homecoming' balloon to welcome my husband back after eight weeks of hospitalization.

He comes home on Friday, tomorrow. Appointments are made for physio three times weekly, visits to Neurologist, visits to Cardiologist, eye specialist......

But in between all those I think we will have some fun just enjoying home together,

195, and counting..........

This is, according to my blog counter, the

195th post!

Unbelievable.

I promised myself that when I got to 200 I would arrange a giveaway. I'd better get on with that, quickly.

And a Rose for Rose Wednesday.....

This is a photo for Rose Wednesday, hosted by Jan of Jan and Tom's place. Every week she encourages people to join her in showing pictures of roses in one form or another.


These were picked from my garden in June.
They are a mixture of roses called Graham Thomas, Freesia and Poetry in motion.

I love the names given to roses. All mine come from a grower called David Austin in England, and they are strong and full of energy. In fact Graham Thomas is still in flower today.

Poetry in Motion is one of the most lovely roses ever. It is a rich creamy yellow, has a very strong stem and a beautiful perfume.
I just cant imagine my garden without roses, and I feel quite hurt when people say 'Roses, oh no, they get greenfly'.
As if it matters!

Autumn in Brittany.

Autumn is really here in Brittany.
The trees have , over the last month, changed colour, have dropped their leaves, and are heading towards, dare one say, Winter.
The painting is by Emily Carr titled 'Autumn in France', painted 1911, and is now in the National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa.

During the last six weeks I have driven the same road every day to visit my husband in the Rehabilitation centre. The park that surrounds the Centre was once the surrounding grounds of a Chateau, and is beautifully planted with trees that may be hundreds of years old.
There are Weeping Ash trees, with branches swooping down to the ground, Red Oaks, lines of Poplars with a mist of bronzed leaves getting fainter every day. There is a huge Copper Beech, and another Beech nearby with branches full of golden leaves. It is a wonderful place in which to recuperate, with so much beauty visible from the windows. On a fine day we take a walk in the park, admiring the trees, in company with some of the other residents, many of whom are still in wheelchairs. The good news is that my husband is considered fit enough now, eight weeks after a stroke, to return home next week. We regard that as nothing less than miraculous.
Soon the Chrysanthemums will be in the shops for Toussaint (Halloween weekend). These enormously overgrown plants are bought to be placed on the graves of family members.
Soon the children will be arriving, masked and dressed as odd beings, hopefully waving their carrier bags. I must have some bon bons ready!

Debbie's English treasures

This week I had a parcel from Debbie's English Treasures. It arrived beautifully packed, with tissue and bubble wrap keeping everything safe.

Sadly my computer won't download the photo I took of the exciting contents. Debbie is one of those people who gives far more than is expected, and not only did my parcel contain the pretty china that I had ordered, but also....gifts!

Very kindly she had added a sweet little china pin box, and other pretty little items. I shall be back to look at all the lovely things on her website.

My computer has been down for a couple of days, thanks to external interference, but it now mended, and without virus!
I will catch up with reading and posting as soon as possible.

Rose Wednesday

I am a bit late putting this Rose Wednesday post on...apologies Jan, but I've had real problems with my computer.

However, let me show you a very beautiful rose called 'Gertrude Jekyll' . I have two bushes and wish I had more! the perfume is amazing and one bloom will scent a room.

Gertrude Jekyll was one of the most famous of the garden designers in England. She was born in 1843 and died in 1932. Her name is synonymous with beautiful colourful planting . She worked in partnership with Sir Edwin Lutyens, one of the foremost architects of the Arts and Crafts movement. Together they designed her home, Munstead, and the garden.

She is indeed worthy to be commemmorated in this lovely deep pink rose.

Such a little thing...

Such a little thing, but for us a huge step.

On Sunday morning we drove to collect the newspapers, and then instead of me driving home on my own, we parked.

We walked, slowly, and with a stick for my husband, across the road to the Cafe. and together we sat and had morning Coffee outside in the sun.

That was our first outing, our first return to 'normality' for nearly eight weeks. We are so very thankful for the medical care, for the physiotherapy and for the encouragement.

And, maybe, just maybe, if all goes well, he will be home quite soon!

(The photo is a stock one, not us)

Autumn garden

The leaves of our Pistachio tree are just beginning to turn colour. They become almost blood red, very gradually.



This little tree was a bit of an experiment, bought at a Garden weekend sale, but we were warned that it might not do well in Brittany. So far , it seems to be very happy, has grown and flourished.

I found a lone Hibiscus flowering, the last one now for another season. This came as a seedling from a friend, and has been covered with flowers.

Maple colours epitomise Autumn, reds, gold, greens all mingled together. My little tree has suddenly leapt ahead, having been rather a sad, twiggy litle thing.




This is a little Cornus, losing its leaves now, to show the bright red stems through the Winter.

Soon I will have to hunt for colour and life in the garden as Winter approaches. Leaves will have fallen, stems will be twiggy, plants will sleep till Spring.

Garden vines

Arent these vine leaves lovely?
As they start to change colour they become more and more attractive. I often use them to lay cheese on to serve with dinner, or just to decorate a table.

I was having a wander round the garden this morning and stopped to admire the leaves, when I saw that on the vine itself there were several bunches of ripening grapes. Only a couple of weeks ago they were tiny little things, and now they look almost ready to eat.

This is a Black Hamburg grape, but sadly , when I tasted them I found them not to be at all sweet. I dont think they will ripen much more now.
This isnt really a vine growing area of France, we just dont get enough hours of hot sun during the day. A little further South, near Nantes, there are the Muscadet vineyards, where a dryish white wine is produced. It's very popular here, but I'm not very keen on it.

We lived for two years in one of the greatest wine making areas in France, the Bordeaux region. Vineyards are everywhere, and one of the most popular villages is St Emilion, a pretty hillside village, surrounded by some of the most prestigious chateaux, with names that appear on the best wine lists!
We loved visiting some of the small privately owned vineyards nearby, being invited to the tastings of the new vintage, comparing year with year. We knew that whatever we bought from them had been raised lovingly by a family, rather than coming from a
large Cooperative, where grapes from many vineyards are mixed together.


I dont think we will be eating our grapes (or making wine), but it is lovely to see them growing in my garden, twinign along the fence, with beautiful Autumn coloured leaves reflecting any sun that there is.

Happy birthday Jan

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JAN!!

It's Jan's birthday today, and she has asked that we participate in her tea party.

My birthday memories as a child always include tea parties. We didn't do the things today's children do, with outings and entertainers. We had tea parties! My grandmother, who was a wonderful Lancashire lady, was a superb cook, and loved preparing party teas. One of the favourite things was .....green jelly. That's not Jello as people in Canada know it, but a sweet green whipped up jelly always served in a beautiful cut glass.

There were tiny sandwiches, scones with jam, fairy cakes, home made shortbreads, and of course...the Birthday cake. My request was always for an Orange flavoured sponge cake, with icing, and of course, candles!

So for Jan I have got out my mother's favourite tea set, a beautiful English Aynsley called Grotto Rose. There is my grandmother's silver teapot just waiting to be filled with wonderful aromatic China tea. and there, Jan, is a plate of very English scones, with home made Apricot jam.

And, being very European today, a cake as only the French can make them, a charlotte Russe filled with Pear mousse and with pears on the top. Can you see the tiny parcel?

I'm using Grandma's handpainted plates for this as it is rather special! (Click on the photo for a closer view.)

Happy Birthday Jan!

Here are some of my roses for you.

Weeds and other Autumn things

At this end of the season the terrace looks awful. Weeds have come up through the paving slabs, herb pots are overgrown, furniture is in need of a cover until it's time to spring clean.

Out with the wheelbarrow, the gloves, the trowel and on with the weeding. There is so much to cut back, to weed out, to dig out even. It's only now that I realise how enormous my Osteospernum has grown, how pushy my Oregano has become. Out with both of them!

My husband is home again for the weekend, and is very impressed by my labours. If ever the sun shines again I'll take a photo of the clean, ready for Winter, terrace.

But, how lovely to find this rose, Domaine de Courson, still in flower, having been cut hard back recently.