I am a summer girl and so find winter the most difficult of the seasons, early winter brings the excitement and sparkle of Christmas but January and February can be cold, dark, long months.  The quietness of the season means our little town feels like a ghost town, many independent shops shut up for a couple of months and road closures mean that we have been even more isolated than normal this year.  I never quite feel myself in these months and this has been noticeable in the sunny, warmer days we’ve had this week which have made me feel so more alive, purposeful and productive.  This is not to say that I’ve spent the last few months in a dark place, just a different place! We have been lucky this year, no Beast of the East (however I’m mindful that the bad snow last year was in March) and we have had some bright, crisp days.  We have managed some lovely days out at the weekends, cycling in the forest, visiting a local animal sanctuary and long walks.  I’ve had fun in the kitchen cooking some lovely family meals and perfecting the art of meringues often with a little helper or two.  There’s also been time for life admin and to make a start on some projects.  Yes we’ve been pottering on but the zest and energy of the spring months have been missing.

This week has been half term and a bright and warm week.  Last weekend we spent a long weekend with my parents in Somerset, the highlight was the Splash World at a local holiday centre,  with disco and rainbow slides (I loved them), water play area and pool.  My children love the water and happily played whilst my parents watched.  We’ve also had a session at our local sports centre called Inflatable fun, which was the Sports hall filled with a variety of inflatables, a simple but really fun idea.  Wednesday was our only day together, just the 4 of us, so we went to the local forestry commission and hired bikes for a 2 hour ride in the forest, there is something so grounding and calming about being in nature.  Today has seen us split up, Mr S and Little Man have gone to Grandad’s whilst Little Miss and I are at home.  As I write this, I’m hosting 3 of her friends for a sleepover, they’ve ‘hung out’ at the park, we’ve made pizzas from scratch and created some lovely ice cream sundaes, there are now makeovers happening upstairs and then it will be film time with The Greatest Showman Singalong.  I’m hoping for some sleep tonight as once our visitors leave in the morning, Little Miss and I have a little road trip to see my aunt and an old school friend before a very lazy Sunday.  The PE kits, ironing and homework have all be done and we’re ready for the return to school on Monday, so there really is no reason not to simply rest and relax on Sunday.

As the lighter days develop and the warmth radiates us all, I’m looking forward to the coming months, we’ve been making plans during the winter and its nearly time for action!