Cinnamon Girl

I love my job but there are 2 separate times of the week that make me feel like a kid again at the start of the holidays: Friday night and Sunday morning. Friday night because the whole weekend stretches before me and its full of possibilities and Sunday morning with its lazy reading of the papers and the endless cups of tea in bed. Mr P makes the tea and porridge and I lounge in my jammies like some female pasha.

I am rejoicing in the fact that here in the frozen North, each day it is becoming lighter in the morning. Today I have opened the blind and from my bed, I can see the trees outside, the lilac bushes still bare but starting to sprout little buds and the first sign of spring in the form of 3 red-breasted robins bustling about as if they have heard some silent call to get up and get moving. Of course, I am ignoring this call as the only place I want to be is propped up on my continental square pillows, drinking tea and reflecting on my world within my bedroom.

The rest of my house may be cluttered with books and CDs and the general detritus of modern living but my bedroom is my sanctuary against the world, my temple of calm and my safe place. I am not really a girly-girl but here the bedding is all-white bar the blue and white patchwork quilt, the walls and floor are neutral yet warm and the all-pervading scent is cinnamon Home Sweet Home courtesy of Yankee Candle. Of course, the nightstands are piled high with books but on my side also lies the glucose testing meter, phone, filofax and always an empty old-fashioned blue and white floral teacup.

I could stay here forever and be cocooned in cozy warmth underneath the duvet but alas, Sunday morning leads to the afternoon and at this time of year, weather permitting, the garden calls. I may have ignored the robins earlier but the sun is shining, weeds are growing and the Great Springtime Tidy-up has commenced. All the leaves not collected in the autumn are still hanging about, flowerbeds need preparation for the coming summer and the greenhouse needs cleaning and repaired after winter. Mind you, this all takes place over the next month or so but a little at a time when the weather is fair is a lot easier to handle than in one big go. We have had very little snow or frost so far this year so the snowdrops, daffies, crocus, bluebells and primulas are all well advanced. They are all pretty hardy little souls so if we do get an icy blast (and lets face it, it is only early Feb), they will cope regardless. They may get knocked back a bit but they will recover. Kinda like me.