Flowers and candlewick.

We've had photographers here again and what better excuse to buy myself some favourite spring flowers?! I do so love these flopsy tulips....
and these miniature daffodils by my bedside are so cheery in the morning now that the sun is up early again!
I wish you could smell their spring filled scent; such a lovely wake-up call they are!
More tulips in the hall... they were in the sitting room but it's so warm when the stove is roaring away that they have wouldn't lasted a day!
and of course there's always the odd bud that gets knocked off....
or even a few too heavy for their stems!
Oh and look! I've told you how hopeless I am with houseplants but now I'm on a roll! For the second year running my very own hyacinth! So exciting!
And more excitement here! A parcel surprise from lovely Julie over at KC'scourt. This is a PIY - a 'Pay it Forward'! I get a lovely gift in the post from Julie and then I find someone who wants a gift from me and they find someone to receive a gift from them and on it goes - paying forward! What a lovely idea! If anyone wants to play do drop me an email!
Oh and what a lovely parcel it was! I have no idea where those chocolates vanished off to - whoosh - they just went! And do you want to see what's in that little package? Once again I wish you could smell the lovely scent of the lavender heart! A blast of summer on a grey winter's day!
Oh and look at that lovely pink brooch! You can see the colour better here....Perfect pink for me and if you want one too, Julie makes lots of different colours so pop on over and say hello!
I could almost eat it! YUM!! And speaking of yum I've been playing with candlewick... all those lovely ice-cream colours....
I love candlewick, I love the patterns, the texture and did I mention the ice-cream colours? I have a few vintage cot spreads in my collection....this funny little chap
Why is he wearing those wonderfully clunky boots?
And then this seasonal little bunny....
and speaking of bunnys....snip snip snip....
it's that time of year again and I need to get these little lovelies made up into a parade of my own barmy bunnies to deliver to the seaside at the end of the week....
So I'll be back SOON for an update and a giveaway... oh I'm excited. I have a little plan for you already... (and lovely kittikins, if you're popping by, your brooch is boxed up and ready to go - I just haven't had a moment to get to the post office! Soooooon I promise!) Hope you're all enjoying a productive week now the holiday is over. t.xx
(Why the photos? Ah. Now. There's a tale to tell another day!)
Thank-you everyone! Penny and Helen were the first to get in touch so I'll be sending a little P.I.F. to each of them sometime in the next month or so! t.xx

Busy with my boy!

I know. There hasn't been much creativity around here of late has there? So I'm cheating by sharing with you these beauties made for me by my lovely friend Mrs Bobobun. You can see her post about them over here.They are perfectly cosy and warm and the perfect colour for a girl who loves to wear green!
and I can't help thinking there's a missed opportunity here Mrs Bobobun! Burlesque knitwear?!
The boy has been keeping me busy.... and freezing! Another wonderful day out sharing his love of birding and wildlife....
He is getting quite the little expert ....do you see what we saw here? Can you see? It's there if you look hard enough.....
Yep! Another Bittern sighting! The beautiful boy and I were treated to a close fly past and then 15 minutes of sun basking on open mud flats! A rare and special sighting indeed! Even as we watched closely the clever rarity was playing 'now you see me, now you don't' through those reeds! So much so that the boy is now convinced that the Bittern is not rare at all....
...just very good at playing hide and seek! You think?!
And there's been a lot of this too!
19 Jars of yummy Aga Marmalade to keep us going for another year!
And another lovely gift out of the blue from Viv over at Hens Teeth. The most beautiful map of the East of England including our home patch up in Norfolk. We love to ponder over old maps. I love the feel of them, the colour, the smell.... mmmm. Hours of fun here! Thank-you lovely Viv! Such a treat to receive gifts just because.
Another freezing day was spent here...
The day arrived with a coating of snow and ice cold sunshine. But we wouldn't have missed a tour of Chris Skinner's outstanding haven just because our beds were cosy and warm! The sights we saw are rare and it was a privillege to enjoy 600 Goldfinch, 300 YellowHammer and a breath-taking 2000 Linnet! For me, more than seeing these numbers of birds, the real experience was the sound of them. It made us realise just how quiet our countryside has become; how little birdsong we hear on a day to day basis compared to what would have been commonplace just a generation ago.
Every aspect of this farmer's approach to wildlife and nature conservation is inspirational. We also saw a male Sparrowhawk, deer, foxes.... it was a magical day well worth the freezing early start! The boy came home with renewed determination to make his bird feeding station world class - although I'm hoping he does not aspire to Mr Skinner's £15,000 per annum seed bill!!
Another lovely surprise arrived in the form of an ENORMOUS parcel for the boy from his new friend Steve. It has been a source of great creativity and lots of banging together of pieces of wood and metal - a protege is born!
and tucked away amongst the fascinating selection of wooden offcuts, metal treasures and old tools were these two cheery lovelies for my barmy shelf! Thank-you Steve! x
And now it is half term so more time for.... you guessed it .....
...as the geese came in to roost we made our way back along the boardwalk for hot chocolate at the visitor centre before whizzing around the coast for dutch pancakes on board the Albatross.....and a hot chocolate with Bailey's for mummy!
I'm sure when I thaw out there will be more stitching and making. But for now I'm enjoying quiet contemplation under Norfolk's big skies whilst the beautiful boy nurtures his love of the world around him.
I haven't forgotten the February giveaway! I'll get to it next week! I hope those of you with little ones are enjoying special times too. It is such a short holiday! t.xx