Review of the Year in Photos

 This has become a regular thing - picking photos that sum up the year. 

My year seems to be made up of library books, art exhibitions, rural bygones sales, church visits, the garden and growing food and car boot visits.

JANUARY - The first Library book photo of 2023. Every month the books reserved and collected get a mention. I'll continue with this as I know sharing book ideas is always popular.

FEBRUARY - The Keep Moving group was going well and the original organisations had stepped back from helping so we had to run it ourselves. Sadly since this photo a few people have stopped through illness and we'll need to rustle up more folk for 2024.

MARCH - Was the month of my fun challenge of eating mainly from the value supermarket ranges much to the disgust of some people! 

I would be so depressed if I had to eat like this. Buying, preparing and eating food should be a pleasure. I spend around £100 a week on food for three hungry adults and we eat well with never a supermarket shop in sight. Mind you we do eat a lot of proper tiny green Puy lentils (delicious to bulk out a homegrown spicy tomato and sweet pepper sauce served on the best quality brown basmati rice), home grown borlotti beans (essential in ribollita soup) and homemade houmus (going to try growing chick peas in the veg plot this year - I hear they like a hot dry summer). Last night we had roast leg of pork (£10), homemade stuffing (leftover crusts of bread, one red onion, splash of rapeseed oil, one egg, herbs from garden), roast potatoes from a £5/10kg sack from the farm, kale from garden, local apple sauce and roast local parsnips from our village shop. Husband and I worked together in the kitchen to produce this dinner and it was much enjoyed and appreciated by all three of us and the highlight of a very cold March day. 

I too would be depressed if I had to eat so much processed rubbish. Life’s too short.

It was an interesting experiment - cooking from scratch rather than processed which is probably what that commenter thought I was going to do. Spending was cut considerably - not a lot of variety is the main problem. My round up at the end of the month with the meals I made is HERE

APRIL - Some of my regular outings are to local Art Exhibitions to admire what other people can do

MAY - I had my first short holiday alone - not far away on the North Norfolk coast - the weather was good except for the Very cold NE wind.

JUNE  - A few of the many car boot finds from the year. Recycling at it's best.

JULY - Celebrating the first raspberries from the garden my favourite home grown fruit.

AUGUST - and more produce from my garden - The first Figs from the fig tree brought here as an 18 inch tall 'stick' in 2021

SEPTEMBER - The month of the new sofa and armchair.

and the month when I got the long stitch tapestry finished ready to display for Autumn.

OCTOBER and clearing up in the vegetable garden. Almost the last produce of 2023 were the mini plum tomatoes

and compost jelly. Which I'll probably make again next year.

NOVEMBER was A-Z posts and Christmas/Xmas Fairs/Fayres. I went to as many as possible  but didn't spend much money - I was no help for all the crafters who'd spent hours making things to sell! 

DECEMBER was the month of illnesses - colds/ear infection/ tonsillitis/sickness - you name it and someone in the family  had it. Home made remedies didn't cure but did make me feel better.

I wonder what 2024 will be like.

Thanks to everyone for reading, following  and commenting through yet another year.

I'll be back Monday

Sue