After such a mild and wet autumn it seems strange that December is here already. But I suspect many of us will be waking up to more frosty mornings very soon.

We celebrated the arrival of winter last night with a winter meal of haggis and stwnsh rwdins (aka bashed neeps).

A pleasure in winter to enjoy some hearty soups and stews.

A pleasure too to see the bare trees preferably on a crisp sunny day.

And a polytunnel full of winter and spring treats

Now, if only those hens and ducks could start laying a few more eggs...

Gosh Alan, you don't want much....

Are eggs and sunshine too much to ask?
The polytunnel's full already

For a man as nice as yourself, Alan, i suppose not.

Very few bare trees around here at the moment, Alan.

John

The fields around here look amazingly green still. One could almost expect some gambling lambs instead of "raddled" ewes, their coloured backsides showing that they have been visited by the tup!

Yesterday we picked a perfect bunch of pot marigolds on the allotment, short-stemmed but beautifully coloured. They look quite incongruous in their vase next to the advent calendar. And the flowering daffodils along Skipton Castle are growing daily in their numbers!

No doubt, we'll come down with a bump soon.

Icy feathers on the neighbour's car this morning. A good 6 or 7 weeks later than usual - but I reckon it's going to get colder over the weekend. All our trees have been bare for a while now.

Parked nose to the house my car had an ice glaze from last nights rain across the roof, rear, rear doors and the back foot of the front doors. Windscreen had one little patch on the right.
Funny thing is the roof was a rippled thick glaze of solid ice, so I reckon the temperature was on the way back up from a "wee hours" low.

Have a strawberry plant with two flowers on.

We had quite a keen frost last night, but it still hasn't killed the nasturtiums off which is unusual.

I had a wander round the garden this afternoon and found two ripe strawberries and a handfull of raspberries which were delicious.

I've found that if I get some point of lay pullets in October they keep laying all winter while the older ones are having a rest. Only bought four, but they have all layed today.

Just sat here in the cosy room, in front of the fire, (there's room next to me on the sofa if anyone is interested), and i was looking up at the K.G calendar page for December, they look awfully like Tesco carrots in the bed of straw...

Sleeting here at the moment - might wake up to the white stuff tomorrow!

Dear OH,

As you have drawn a blank with your offer...
I would like to share your sofa....in front of the fire
I'll bring the crumpets
You can share the pictures on your calendar

I'll puff the cushions up in anticipation, and i haven't had any crumpets for ages.

JEEPERS! it is cold. We have no central heating here and I was out at a craft fair at some distance all day yesterday so the solid fuel burner did not get lit. Snow is forecast too; hoping we get away without down here. Icy rain sideways just now; am off out early to stock up with basics and coal.. not investigated the garden recently with the work for the fair...

Will fill the slow cooker before I go... SOUP!

Stay warm....