Wrapping up and packing up!

It's cold and very snowy

and icy

The temperature gauge on the car read  -13c on a journey recently into Inverness

The snow first fell on December 18th and has continued on and off ever since.

Inside it's warm and cosy. It's twelfth night and the Christmas decorations must come down. Some people take the decorations down on Boxing Day but that's because they put them up in September!  

Not us. We were still hurtling bits and bobs and baubles at the tree on Christmas Eve and hoping we would be in time for Christmas

a strange mixture of homemade things

  Nissemaend

little pixies that come and help or maybe hinder. In Denmark you give them porridge on Christmas eve - with or without porridge they were plonked on the tree along with our more 'grown up' decorations

                             

danish flags

and candles which are so magical when lit, normally on Christmas day, with a bucket of water placed nearby - just in case!

And the effect of all that Christmas Eve hurtling. A sort of mish mash of many happy memories, of little bits and pieces some looking tired but nevertheless on the tree they must go.

Now they are taken down and packed away until next year

                                 

A white Christmas?

At first light the birds were at the feeders.

This morning the snow was just about as perfect as perfect could be - deep and crisp and even. But it's since turned to sleety rain. I'm torn between wanting the snow to get deeper and thicker and being able to get in to Inverness later this afternoon to pick up the first of the family arriving for Christmas.

And talking of Christmas. Do you remember the wood burner this time last year? It's come a long way since then. Robin came last weekend and helped his Dad install it

and Niels was then able to finish laying the floor.  And although the house isn't finished yet

I love it!

Becoming orderly

The view from my kitchen window. I think you'll agree it's not bad! And it makes peeling potatoes more bearable! I took this at around 5pm yesterday. The sun is climbing higher in the sky each day and as it goes down it just highlights the mountain tops.

We managed last week to make the journey down to Edinburgh - Ikea beckoned! The following day they closed part of the A9, not because we'd shed a load of bookcases, but because the snow arrived in force. We have spent this last week building orderly bookcases. This is a sort of book case/unit in the dinning room. I've managed to unpack more boxes of 'stuff' and immediately fill it. we had a massive turn out of unwanted things before we moved up here, but we still seem to have those want/not want, items we don't know what to do with.
Today I'm starting to decorate what will be Niel's office. I'm the chief decorator, Niels is the chief bookcase builder.

We haven't yet been snowed in, although we did have to dig the car out of snow at the weekend. We drove back from Elphin on Saturday evening on a very snowy, icy road. Elphin is about 15 miles north of Ullapool. We'd been invited for a meal and when it was time to go home a fresh fall of snow made driving slightly hazardous. There is only one road, and even if it's gritted, without traffic, it soon snows over.
We haven't had torrential rain and floods. No train cancellations in Ullapool, (there aren't any)
I think, so far, we've been lucky. The house stays surprisingly warm even without the woodburner. With the freezing temperatures we've had, we've kept a small electric fan heater on downstairs to boost the heat. The next major job will be laying wooden floors and installing the fire.

Spring!

This was the view from the bathroom window yesterday morning as I was brushing my teeth. Somebody left the door open! I wonder if we should brush the snow off the house? The builders arrive back today from their Easter break. Today is the last day apparently for snow, tomorrow returns to rain, clouds, showers, sleet and sunshine - so that will be fine then!

Before the snow started to settle I went to inspect the 'garden!' In amongst the devastation and felled trees I spotted what I think are bluebells

There would be carpets of them if it weren't for us clomping over them, trees falling on top of them, sheep nibbling them and tons of earth and rubble being tipped over them. They seem quite hardy though, and hopefully, next year when they realise we're not waging war against them they will pop up to be greeted by less hostile conditions

At the bottom of the garden I found this. It's growing up and over old and decaying wood. What is it? Will it have a beautiful flower and fill the garden with scent?

Competing with the sheep's poo, mud, and general disarray, there are all sorts of mosses and lichens and ferns growing over and out of old walls and tree stumps