Here’s this month’s Happiness Calendar. We’ve had a happy day as the lovely young men have been installing the solar panels and appreciating the cookies. I’ve had a steroid injection in my hip which hopefully will have the desired effect.
It’s Blueberry cake for the volunteers tomorrow.
Blueberry Cake
It’s been raining so hard we have a carpet of orange pettals under the California Poppies. Happily, there are many more buds.
Loving the rough pattern of the bark and the lichen.
Photo taken from moving car
I’ve baked a batch of Choc Chip Cookies today for the workmen who will be fitting the solar panels tomorrow. 
Last night’s sunset was beautiful.
It was so hot (28C) today, too hot to work at Community Roots but I had baked a cake for the volunteers so I went along to deliver it to the few hardy (or foolhardy) folks who were there doing their thing. They were glad to have some ginger cake to look forward to!
Mary Berry’s Gingerbread Traybake
It’s only three days since I planted the seed bombs and two of them are sprouting already.
We froze Seville oranges in January so that we could make the marmalade when we had time. Today we have made several month’s worth! 
I also made the coffee cake for tomorrow’s market, the first this year.
My lovely Mr S just managed to catch the woodpecker as it was leaving the feeders. I love this photo of the wings in flight.
We’ve had sunshine today and at Roots I sowed seeds and more seeds, 14 trays of between 100 and 250 seeds per tray, kale, red cabbage, cauliflower, Romanescue and more. There’ll be plenty of potting on to do over the next few weeks.
I do love a good pie – tonight, Chicken and Sweetcorn Pie
Happy St Patrick’s Day to all my Irish readers and a nod to my Irish heritage on my Father’s side.
I made some Fork Cookies this morning, so called because you flatten the ball of dough with the tines of a fork.I then dipped them in dark chocolate. They are scrummy!
Our tub of tulips is flowering already, seems quite early. I’m loving the delicacy of the green and pink bits.
Both the flowers below were presents, the pretty pale pink one from my dear friend and colleague Sharon, lost in 2024 and the deep pink primulas bought for us by LiveWires 5 and 6 who planted them for us in the allotment. We dug them up to bring them home once we gave up our tenancy.
I only had two eggs so couldn’t make a cake for the volunteers at Roots so I made Choc Chip Cookies instead.
We followed a car with a bumper sticker that made us smile.
Our garden has bloomed in today’s very welcome sunshine.
Just home from the best birthday ever. Here are a couple of photos.
Our 3 generation birthday Brownie Mountain
Flowers left on the doorstep
Purple , white and green flowers from my wonderful daughters, son and their families
Cards
More tomorrow……
A snowflake arrived in today’s post, beautifully crocheted and a gift from a follower. It has gone straight onto our tree.
Thank you very much Judith
Another gift came today, one we were instructed not to keep until Christmas but to consume soon. So this evening we have each had a delicious Raspberry and White Choc Chip Cookie for dessert.
Thank you S and E, absolutely gorgeous!
‘
It’s Our Christmas Too’ by Mary FletcherChristmas comes just at the darkest time of year
flashing lights
a twinkling treesome time for lovely foodfor friends and familyfor children to be given too much stufffor those of us with no childrento realise what we lack.We look forward to the New Year
warm sunshine and green shoots will come back.
Those of us that do not believe in godand worship no onebut put our faith in hope,In folk to do their best,we do not go to church.we do not believe we’ll live after we die,But we can light a candle,share in singing,pass some treats around.Its our Christmas too,Our Solstice,Our Midwinter,Our humanist joy,That celebrates and treasuresEvery baby girl and boy.
We bought a delightful Advent calendar for one of our LiveWires, the Wild Advent Colouring Book – British Wildlife Edition, and she has been sending us the pictures as she colours them in. We love her precision and care.
Tomorrow’s cake for the volunteers is a lemon sponge in the shape of a Christmas tree.
I’m loving the effect of my trying to take Christmas lights from a moving car, being driven by my lovely Mr S.
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