I knew this holiday would be lovely, but there have been many moments of simple and unexpected happiness that have felt as good as a wrapped present under the tree. After a month of mud the ground froze and we’ve had many days of snow, allowing for many days of snow play, snow bears, snow fights and…well…snow. The chance to sit quietly and listen to the boys laughing as they play outside with their Daddy, to watch them in…
In case you are wondering “What’s with the weird title Emmalina?” allow me to explain. My lovely french friend Emmanuelle has an overwhelming phobia about any feathery creatures and so, being the good pal I am, I promised to fully announce any chicken related blog posts so that she can avoid them and run away from her computer very quickly. So now you know. Anyhoo, for the last couple of days my thoughts have been very occupied by our chicken…
Anyone that knows me might be surprised to learn that I’m somewhat of a sceptic when it comes to alternative medical therapies. Like a French politician extorting the value of selflessness and the importance of embracing non-gallic behaviour, something just doesn’t add up in my logical brain and I’m left with an unpleasant feeling of indigestion. In fairness, as Emma discovers more about vaccinations, I’m also becoming a huge disbeliever of mainstream medicines as well which will leave me in an…
As well as simply relaxing, enjoying the company of my family and eating my own body weight in chocolate, there was something significant that happened to me this holiday. I realised that I am home. That may seem obvious. You may be thinking “Emmalina, has it really taken you two months to notice that you are now living in the house that you built yourselves? Have you been at the liqueur choccies again?” And yes, that is a fair point. But the…
This morning the house was cold, really cold, it made me want to stay in bed and pull the duvet up over my head until at least an hour after dawn, but the boys had other ideas. I made them breakfast and then, rather grumpily, bundled up to go outside and collect wood from the far garage as we’d run through our inside supply last night. The crisp air, the crunching snow and the tingle on my skin soon…
Christmas is a weird time. Let’s face it, unless you have the social graces of a Scottish drunk with a habit for eating all the purple hazelnut Roses and an inappropriate love of telling fart jokes to children, you’ll be in demand to visit all your family. That even includes those you’ve been avoiding since last Christmas when their over-indulged, chocolate-crazed progeny drove you to the edge of reason and a desperate, ill-fated dive into the cheap whisky. You will…
As the saying goes The King is dead, long live the King. This line resonates with me particularly at the moment as we are thinking and talking about, as we ll as celebrating, the winter solstice. I’ve been reading this story with Huwyl about the death and rebirth of the Sun King, it is a really special rendering and ties in well with the story I’ve been telling him since he was being carried around on my back. This was…
It would seem that I’ve finally got my sewing mojo back, phew, that was a worry! My beautiful machine was waiting oh so very patiently for me, she never criticised or even complained but I knew she was there, waiting. On Saturday afternoon, a beautiful sunny day with sunlight literally streaming into the house, I thought I’d make a start organising my sewing stuff. I’ve appointed myself a ‘studio’ (aka the spare bedroom) and am using my Dad’s desk as…
Yesterday I was a poorly person, I could barely stand up out of bed and after a brief sojourn downstairs and a few sips of tea, back to bed is where I went. My knight in shining armour (aka Stephen) spent the morning at home, went into the office for a couple of hours then came home again all hero of the hour and sent my pathetic self back to my bed for more rest. Of course that meant working…
The fog closed in last night, the view from the window was suddenly foreshortened and we found ourselves suspended inside a cloud. The cloud seemed to settle firmly in my brain today, after a night of Neirin tossing and turning, the strangely dispersed light making it impossible to know what time it was. I woke feeling disorientated and couldn’t really shake off that feeling. Everything felt undefined, trying to apply order taking effort and energy. It felt like a day to drift…