Hello friends,
How are you all faring? Last time I wrote we were in the depths of winter and since then, under the gentle benevolence of spring sunshine and lighter days, the world has slowly unfurled again bringing forth glorious splashes of yellow daffodils, swathes of deep indigo grape hyacinths and regal red tulips, standing to attention in their regimented rows. In the woods, the wild garlic has not only carpeted the floor with its white, starry flowers but provided us with flavourful pesto, omelettes and salad leaves. Where it hasn’t taken over, the hazy blue of native, slender bluebells offer a restful vista over which to pause and gaze. Delicate, fluffy cherry blossom, flouncy, blowsy magnolia and the magnificent displays of wisteria have all passed by as the days have got longer and warmer.
Life has been full, for which I’m grateful, although I miss having time to write here. I’m doing more copy editing as well as my small copy writing job and am learning to proof read (just about got he hang of the IT now!). We had a wonder filled trip up to the Cairngorms in February to visit Younger Son. Having never been on a classic winter holiday this was perfect for me with no need for passports but all the excitement of snow (just a sprinkling where we were but lots on the mountains), lingering meals around the table and the cosy feeling of being snug and warm while the wind howled around outside. We even managed the very long journey up there without too many complaints (I’d prayed plentifully as I wasn’t looking forward to it!).
The garden has repaid my neglect with a proliferation of weeds, a mouse has taken up home somewhere near the polytunnel and nibbled all my bean seedlings, my saved squash seeds haven’t germinated and my bees either swarmed off or, I think more likely, gradually died off. This later is what I’m most sad about. We’ve had 70% hive losses in this part of the world over the winter. I’m hoping I may still get a swarm even now. Despite all this, I have got some veg underway, we’ve hatched five adorable, yellow, fluffy chicks in the incubator and are growing ten big pigs with our pig group.
Life has changed substantially since I started this blog and home educating one teenager is very different from home educating four children all at different stages. In the mornings, the oldest three are all out of the house by 7:20am for work or college. I will miss the early morning snippets of conversation with the boys when they move on again soon.
Highlights of the spring have been a family Easter weekend, a trip to Tyntesfield and a day at the Bath and West Show. It’s also, what is becoming, conference time of year and I’ve had the joy of attending Christian Concern’s Awake Arise conference in Bristol (Elder Son did all the PA) and then their Education Revolution conference in London. The latter was a big adventure for this country mum and one which I hugely enjoyed. I travelled up on the bus with a friend and relished walking through central London to the venue, even with a heavy bundle of books! I was blessed to have the opportunity to take part in the home education seminar with lovely people who feel like friends now, and to exhibit for CHESS and sell books (Another Way to Learn?and Issachar Eyes.
And then, last weekend, the Rooted to Flourish team hosted our very first conference, ‘Shaping the Next Generation’. A full report from that next time!
In the meantime, thank you as always for putting aside some of your precious time to read my missives from our small nook of rural England.
Blessings on you and yours,
Molly x 🌷☕️🌿
Mothering through the seasons 