Another Year Over, a New One Just Begun.

Well here we are right at the beginning of a brand spanking shiny new year.

Do you do New Years resolutions Blog Chics?

I never have.

When I had little children I was just plain too busy for such frivolities, and one day just ran into the next and you turned around and it was Christmas again.

I've also learned a thing or two about motivation over the years.

And it doesn't come upon you just because it's the beginning of another year!

It has to come from somewhere very deep within you;

almost a primeval instinct rather than a rational process.

So when it comes upon you, that is the time to resolve things.

And that can happen at any time of the year, and certainly not every year.

I have only experienced that kind of motivation a few times in my life.

Probably just as well, because it requires a lot of focus.

So instead I come up with a little mental list of things I would like to achieve.

Just for my own gratification you understand.

None of them are life and death, and in fact they probably seem a little facile.

It's the stuff I want to do because it makes me happy.

I have decided to make a collection of duck/pheasant/any kind of flying poultry on plates.

It was inspired by a naive duck painting of the Granny's that I've had for years.

It's one of my precious things.

It gets moved about the house often.

I have it in the kitchen now.

And I suddenly twigged that I have a Meakin duck plate on the wall, and wouldn't it just be so serendipitous to come upon another.

And there an idea was born.

So far I've found this lovely old and battered pheasant one to go with the Meakin one on my "duck wall".

The Granny suggested I might like three flying china ducks like Hilda Ogden's "murial."

But I don't know Granny - that might be killing the golden goose don't you think?

So I've moved the duck painting and put the small couch into the kitchen

and the chairs into the lounge instead.

And swapped the quilts and cushions around to achieve the desirable level of "squishy".

Soon we will start on the "Granny studio apartment".

Just waiting for the builder.

We are so planned up!

We know every detail of every detail in our heads.

Just need a few men out from town to make them into real

(like the velveteen rabbit - or the Christmas Goat for that matter!)

And I've re-arranged the bears on the window sill.
And enjoyed the Mister being home and watching "the world cup of pool" for a few minutes in between cricket matches.

And watched the garden grow and grow with the constant rain we've had.

And loved the pink hydrangeas that we have here.

And yearned for a sky blue one like in my old garden.
They say you should never go back.

The new people have ripped out the lovely cottage plants and planted yukkas inside the buxus.

What's that about?

I try not to think about it,

I have the lovely photos of how it was.

And I'm going to start making things again.

When the Granny has moved into the new headquarters I'm going to put a sewing table back into the spare room and have my sewing things all ready to go again.

I want to make pretty little dresses from vintage fabrics again.

Just because it makes me happy.

Which hopefully makes it a happy New year all round!