My Advent Calendar ♥ 23rd December

Hello Lovelies,

on Christmas eve we have family round which is great, if rather hectic. The family help, but tomorrow will be a day of housework and an evening of cooking. I love it but  I do find I envy those who snuggle up quietly in front of the telly, to watch a heartwarming story somewhat. 

This evening hubby was out and I saw a chance to watch a DVD of my choice. I lit candles.

And got out my crochet to work on, though I didn't actually do much hooking.

As the wind and rain of Storm Barbara raged outside (ok, raged maybe exaggerating thing a little, but it is wet and windy) I sat down to watch a movie which was filmed in the place I grew up. It was fun to location spot beautiful  Wycoller on a sunny spring day.

and the track to the Bronte falls (I think)

Haworth Churchyard.

and the  Keighley and worth Valley Railway

But of course that was not the main reason I wanted to re-watch The Railway Children.

It's just such a lovely movie.

With great acting, beautiful costumes, humour and sadness in just the right proportions...oh and great scenery :0)

 The Railway Children was filmed on location in Haworth and the surrounding villages in the summer my brother was born. Mum's memory is that the weather was fabulous and the fields were filled with buttercups.

She watched quiet a lot of the filming, and so as a four year old I guess I may have seen some of it too. Though my memory is not good enough to remember that far back, I do recognise many of the places. This bakers shop was a general store called Southams when I was a child ( It's a gift shop now)

and the butchers you can see here is Haworth Tourist information Centre 

 Shops on Haworth Main Street

 the lane up to the Church.

and Haworth Church it's self

I had such a lovely time quietly watching this touching story, which I haven't seen for a few years.

It has a great ending, which , I'm sure lots of you lovelies are familiar with.

And it was the perfect viewing for my early Christmas Eve :0)

Jacquie x

My advent Calendar ♥ 20th, 21st, 22nd

Hello Lovelies,
life has suddenly got a bit rushed and so I'm playing catch up with my advent posts. Here are a few simple things that have made me smile amongst the busyness.

 Most of the windows are now open on my calendar, and I love the nature images,

 My amaryllis is getting taller by the day.

 There's a brave Robin who lives in the hedge at the end of our street. He poses so sweetly for pictures.

We dug our old snowman decoration out of the loft and put him in the front garden. His light has been broken for years but we couldn't throw in out. He must be 20 years old.
 Tasteful, no. Fun, yes :0)

And finally, I got some baubles for my little living Christmas tree.

Just silver and white. I like it.

I used the ribbon off the box , and THIS you tube video to make bows with a fork.

Quick and easy crafting, perfect.

I hope you are not feeling too pressured Lovelies.

Jacquie x

This post is part of the link up hosted by Julie HERE

My Advent Calendar ♥ 19th December

Hello lovelies,

gosh, the 19th already. This month is certainly whizzing along.

Today I thought I would simply share a couple of pages from my Country Diary of an Edwardian Lady book.

I love this December page, Holly and Ivy so perfectly captured, and Edith's bird illustrations are so appealing.

A close up of Mr Robin and his two friends.

These two are labelled "Hedge Sparrows", apparently that's another name for the Dunnock ( though I must admit I did not recognise that from the picture)  

I love this simple bird feeder Edith has painted, In fact I might be tempted to construct something similar if I can find some suitable sticks :0)

Only six more sleeps Lovelies. Hope you are not feeling too much pressure.

Jacquie x

My Advent Calendar ♥ 18th December

Hello Lovelies,

Today I bought a real Christmas tree.  It's only a tiny one, but I'm trying to make it feel bigger by surrounding it with even smaller trees and tiny houses :0)

 

It's rather bare at the moment, but I popped  it in a brightly coloured plant pot and added a ribbon. I also hung a tiny knitted fairy on top.

I may add some more decorations, but then again I think it looks rather sweet as it is.

I plan to plant my little tree in the front garden after Christmas. I hope it thrives and one year is big enough to string with lights.
Jacquie x

This post is part of the link up hosted by Julie HERE

My Advent Calendar ♥17th December

Hello Lovelies,

these days it is my habit to set the alarm on Saturday morning and do my food shop early. 

Today my 8am journey saw the sunrise. It was so pretty I had to stop and take a few pictures.

The supermarket was relatively quiet, and I drove home in the misty sunrise.

Once again I may have stopped for a little wander.

We don't buy any T.V. magazines usually, but the Christmas edition of the Radio Times is such a tradition it slipped into my trolley.

Late morning saw me out again. Walking to the post office this time.



This Robin was singing beautifully, though my pictures are not great.

Focused on the twig, bother.

 The Parish church was looking pretty in the sunshine.

And as I walked home, past another local Church, I noticed a sign for their Christmas tree festival. Feeling brave I went in.

This simple twig tree was my favourite. It was by the local branch of the Wildlife Trust

 Another Robin. Yay.

A flying Hedgehog. You don't see those everyday :0)

I sat by this tree and listened to a local brass group playing traditional Christmas music. Then wandered around a bit, admired the inventive and original trees, and dropped some change in a few of the various collection buckets.

I will admit Christmas is not my favourite time of year. I struggle with the whole pressure, consumerism and hype of Christmas sometimes. But sweet simple, surprise activities like this really do make me happy.
Jacquie x

This post is part of the link up hosted by Julie HERE

My advent Calendar ♥ 15th December

Hello Lovelies,

I'm so happy to have completed the crochet decoration I make for my sister in law's tree already. It's usually a Christmas eve rush :0)

I made up my own pattern for an Angel and I think she turned out great. 

She is a very simple design, but I think they are often the most effective, don't you?
 I will share the pattern as soon as possible lovelies. And do a full tutorial in time.

She is a quick, fun project so I'm off to make a few more. There are so many possibilities with the details :0)
Jacquie x

This post is part of the link up hosted by Julie HERE

My Advent Calendar ♥ 13th and 14th December

Hello Lovelies,
sorry I missed yesterday's "window". That happens doesn't it :0)
Here's a double helping to catch up.

Firstly the moon. I looked out of the kitchen window this evening and noticed the full moon shining through the bare branched trees.

 

 Such a wintry sight, slightly spooky but still beautiful.

 My camera even managed to capture a few stars.

When the days are so short there's plenty of chance to see the moon isn't there. It was only last year that I discovered the earliest sunset does not always coincide with the shortest day. Checking out the sunset times I can see we are at the point of the earliest sunset right now. Infact, in London the sunset will be a minute tomorrow than it was today. I know it's still not the shortest day, but at least we have turned one corner :0)

In my second window today we have some indoor cheer.

I managed to find these cute Eskimo dolls made by my late maternal grandmother. They have always sat at the base of our Christmas tree and they are such a sentimental sight for me.

A bonus of having a smaller tree this year is they are easier to see.

I'm nowhere near ready for Christmas yet and feeling a bit stressed at the moment. Tomorrow is the big day to try and finish the gift shopping. I'll be so happy when that is done.

I hope your preparations are going well.

Jacquie x