For me, 2022 has been a fairly gentle year, a much needed rest after the chaos of 2021 and the strangeness of 2020. Let's have a little look back at how the year unfolded. I started with a review of 2021, declaring that I wanted 2022 to be more restful, and to keep the house slightly less chaotic - which I'm pleased to say have both been achieved. My post about December on the homestead showed the state the house had become, and I'm delighted it's never got to that level since. January on the homestead was a busy one - we didn't do any DIY, but we looked after a family member's dog while they were in hospital, and sadly lost Bunty chicken. On the homestead in February, we had lots of weather, noticed signs of spring, and started painting the kitchen (which I'm ashamed to say I still haven't finished!) March on the homestead was productive. The chickens were still in flockdown under the Avian Flu housing order, and we had two rather expensive home visits for Bessie, our oldest chicken. I did some batch cooking, painted the bedroom, cleaned out the greenhouse, turned the compost, cleared the veg garden, and finally took the Christmas tree down. In April, I pondered how to make this place feel more like home and less like a building site. My April on the homestead post shows that I spent a lot of time outside. We hired a power scythe to tackle the remainder of the hay field (which we won't be repeating), strimmed the garden, and ate our first meal of the year outdoors. In May, I talked about some local adventures I'd had, did some more wandering, and vowed to do even more in the future (which I never quite got round to). May on the homestead was pretty cheerful. The avian flu housing order was lifted, so the chickens could roam free again. I retreated from the internet and found a whole load more time. I finally got round to planting some seeds, and tidied up quite a bit in the house and garden. June on the homestead felt busy, although I wasn't sure there was much to show for it at the time. I harvested some fruit, wheelbarrowed a lot of woodchip, did some spring cleaning, and we had our dog friend to stay again for a few days. In July, I found myself getting back to making things - in this case a blanket for a friend's baby, a new hot water bottle cover, and some washing liquid (which I'm still not even half way through). In July on the homestead, we did a lot of lazing around with the chickens, tidied odd corners of the house, and pondered the general state of the garden (which was rather out of hand). Then I caught covid for the first time, and spent yet more time sitting around sewing. In August we sadly lost Bonny chicken. August on the homestead was all about scything, and it looked like we might just get a decent apple crop (spoiler - we didn't). September on the homestead involved yet more scything, and considerable progress was made. Moles took over the garden, I made Peter a new hat, we made a hay box, and I took part in the local well dressing. September was a nicely sociable month, so not much else done, but we spent a lot of time hanging around with other people, which was lovely. In October, we had a little trip to the seaside. On the homestead, my thoughts turned to the cold weather ahead, and I had a little foray into carpet fitting, and started making thermal blinds. In November, we unexpectedly lost Poppy chicken. We took a trip to Edinburgh for a wedding, and had a few local days out. In November on the homestead, I made more progress on my thermal blinds, and sewed some present bags. Sadly, the bird flu housing order came even earlier this year, so they went into flockdown quite early in November, having only been out for just over six months. I hope this doesn't become an annual occurrence, but it's looking increasingly likely that it will. December on the homestead saw yet more thermal blinds (for the kitchen this time), more present bags, and the start of some rather chilly weather.
So overall, 2022 was indeed more restful than 2021, and the house did stay the right side of chaos for most of the year, although I have despaired occasionally at how long it's taking us to get everything finished. And what about 2023? I'd like to write on here more - for most of 2022 I only managed one post a month, and while I'm glad I did that, I do miss more regular ramblings. I'm hesitant to make any predictions, but I'd like 2023 to be a year of progress, where I feel like a few jobs get ticked off the DIY list. I'd like the kitchen and dining room to be finished, to have properly moved into the new bedroom (the mattress is still just on the floor at the minute), and to have set up my craft room. I'd like the stairs to be finished, and maybe even to have made a start on the bathroom. Outside, I want the chickens to finally get their new extension, the whole hay field to be scythed (I got so close in 2022!), the garden to be productive, all fruit and veg to be harvested, processed, and stored away in a beautiful pantry. Not too much to ask, is it?
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Hello!Sit down and make yourself comfortable. I'm Jenni, and I write here about our new foray into country living, which includes growing food, knitting, baking, wandering around the fields, and seeing which local cafe serves the best cake. Categories
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