My top 10 posts of 2019

Today, as is becoming tradition, I’m taking a look at the most viewed posts here last year. Once again I’m sharing two lists, the first is the top ten posts created in 2019 and the second the top ten posts created at any time.

It’s been quieter on my blog in 2019, which doesn’t surprise me and I’m sure it doesn’t surprise regular readers either. That reflects the amount of time I’ve had available to devote to my blog, which correlates busyness of my full-time job. Since the middle of the year I’ve been covering the junior role as well as my own, and at a time when things have got even busier, and with only so much time available it was inevitable. I’m hopeful that can be rectified soon, as I’ve missed spending quality time here.

There’s some favourites on both lists, and some regulars on the second list too, but let’s get on shall we, and start with posts created in 2019.

1 Telling Phyllis to Move On

This post was one of many from bloggers and the start of a bit of a ‘love bomb’ to support Emma from Island Living 365 who was sharing her cancer journey online. Having recently been diagnosed with Bowel cancer, she promptly named her cancer Phyllis and told her to ‘do one’ in no uncertain terms.

Emma has done so much to raise awareness of Bowel cancer, and just before Christmas had some great news to share, which you can read more about on her blog, but (spoiler alert) Phyllis got the message.

2 'Get creative with colour' this April

I’m pleased to see a couple of my new linky posts feature in this year’s top ten, not least because of the underlying message that Gardening is Good For You, because it really is. Even when it’s cold, which I also need to remember. This post from April is packed full of colour and advice for your own garden.

3 'Get Set Grow' this May

It’s not surprising that this post from May also appears here, as I think April and May are often the busiest at the start of the gardening year. The weather’s starting to warm the soil, and there’s much growing to be done, and who can resist the magic of planting seeds and seeing plants emerge. Even better if they are edible!

4 Celebrating colour and craft books I've read lately

Ah, a reminder for me that I should make more of these books and make time to craft a little bit more - something that went by the wayside especially in the second half of the year. Reminder noted. Look out for more on this in the next few weeks or so.

5 Some triangular planting

We’re back in the garden again for this post, and it’s one that I’m sure MOH will file under “hare-brained schemes” - but it’s resourceful, and seems to be working. The area doesn’t get too much sunlight, but the camomile was thriving last time I checked on it, and I’m hopeful we’ll get to enjoy its scent much more in 2020.

6 Lavatory Project: Spots and stripes

Of all the loos I wouldn’t perhaps have guessed this one would make the top ten list, though it’s definitely one that catches the eye. It’s part of a series of ‘Lavatory Project’ entries at Grand Designs Live, which could have been made for me to come along and photograph!

7 Let's talk rentals

This is the only collaborative post that’s made this list and one that was prompted by our new neighbour in the rental flat next door, who was a little over enthusiastic about trimming our plants. As it turned out her enthusiasm wasn’t dampened following this initial conversation, as when we returned from Portugal in June, we returned to some (quite a few) dead plants, which almost prompted The Conversation. That never happened, though I was itching to have it, but knew that I’d need MOH closeby to be the voice of reason, and he wasn’t keen. This neighbour has since moved out - nothing to do with our plants, honest - but it was interesting to write this post from a different perspective.

Let’s hope any new neighbour that moves in isn’t so enthusiastic with their clippers - though, there’s not much left for them to snip!

8 Interiors gems in Burnham Market

We had a short break in Norfolk much earlier in the year and were treated to spectacular weather, sun rather than grey skies in February. One of those afternoons we drove over to Burnham Market and had a mooch about their many boutiques, snapping as I went and this post is the result of that. Enjoy.

9 At the Assembly House in Norwich

During that February break we spent a couple of nights in Norwich at the Assembly House as a bit of a treat. It’s a gorgeous place, and the breakfasts are filling to say the least. When you book online you choose which room you’ll stay in, and we weren’t disappointed with ours.

10 Floral thrones, of course

The final post in this top ten is a throwback to the Chelsea Flower Show in 2018. Inside the Pavilion there’s always something a little wacky and unexpected, which probably sums up these floral thrones quite nicely. The work in them is amazing, but I suspect not many of us will have had our own floral throne to enjoy - sadly!

So quite an eclectic mix of posts, and there’s probably a message in there for me, but then again it’s probably a fair reflection of how we live our lives. And that’s all I can ever hope for from my blog.

Now onto the second list

This list is posts created at any time but viewed in 2019, the year in brackets is the year the post was originally posted - just one from 2019 made this list, which I’m kind of sad about, but that’s also given me incentive to try harder this year! Though the 2019 post which does appear is probably on the most important subject, so for that alone I’m glad it’s claimed its spot.

Last year I said it’d have to be a pretty special post to knock the IKEA hack from top spot, well that’s happened. And it’s been well and truly shoved and I couldn’t be happier about the post that replaces it and has so far had three times as many views.

1. Filling our gabion baskets (2017)

2. My IKEA hack: HOL storage table to laundry basket (2015)

3. Sean Murray's Great Chelsea Garden Challenge (2017)

4. Let's talk Edwardian house decoration (2017)

5. Softening our gabion seating area with plants (2017)

6. Blinds and shutters with Thomas Sanderson (2018)

7. The Jane Austen garden in Lyme Regis (2015)

8. Circles, spray paint and another plan for my garden (2016)

9. Telling Phyllis to Move On (2019)

10. Making cute pom-pom Easter bunnies and chicks (2016)

Actually looking at that list again, apart from the 2019 post, three others are also new entries which is interesting (in a Statto kind of way). I am pleased that the gabion baskets posts are doing well, and it’s also good to see the circles and spray paint post making an appearance too. It just goes to show, you never really do know what the year will bring.

In the next few weeks I’ll be sharing my favourite posts from the year in a couple of posts, I just need to work out what they are - choice is a terrible thing!

Reflecting on my week #110

We’re home, and just about ready for Christmas. Which is just as well as today’s Christmas Eve. There’s a couple of parcels at the Post Office to collect, and some wrapping to do, but that’s it. We arrived home yesterday afternoon with all the usual holiday detritus - cases, dirty washing, some clean clothes, holiday souvenirs, duty free etc., the results of a food shop, my MIL and her Christmas luggage. To say the car was full is an understatement, but success in the Tetris-like puzzle meant that there was also room for three humans in the car too, though in reality my seat was never in doubt!

The flight home from Barbados was long (eight and a half hours) and while It was the same length as the outward flight, a little bumpier too. There’s something about homeward flights that make them appear longer, perhaps it’s the prospect of tidying up after a holiday, and the washing, rather than the anticipation of what’s to come, who knows?

FLOWERS IN THE FESTIVE RECEPTION AT OUR HOTEL IN BARBADOS

It was a much emptier flight back, which makes sense as over the past few days the arrivals in our hotel noticeably increased with people arriving to spend their Christmas in the sun. We’d opted to pay for seats of our choice on the way back, choosing an aisle seat each, which was a real treat as I usually end up with the ‘middle’ seat and therefore spent the flight in that panic over who has the “rights” to the “shared” armrest and avoiding overspilling onto a stranger. Turns out we didn’t really need to, but after a good flight out and really friendly and polite seat neighbours on the way out, we didn’t want to take the risk, especially with an overnight flight.

And so, just like that our nine night trip came to an end, marked of course with a final rum or two, and a lighter than on the way out there case to be checked in, who’d have thought? I knew that with some cosmetic duty free outward purchases, and some bottles from the Mount Gay rum distillery and only half a kilo of our luggage allowance to spare I’d need to be canny. Turns out I was cannier than needed as our case weighed in at a comparatively feather-like 19.5kg, some three kilograms lighter. Our hand luggage though, was much heavier, and we did that whole non-verbal pretence of “it’s not heavy at all” which could actually be one of those Very British Problems.

FISH FRY AT OISTINS

Unlike our previous visit to the island, we got out and about beyond the rum distillery and local Fish Fry, though we did those as well.

We met up with my mum and dad when their ship was in port at Bridgetown, visited the Mount Gay rum distillery (again) though this time arrived in Bridgetown by local bus and spent time at the fantastic Hunte’s Gardens and botanical Andromeda Gardens, taking many pictures in the process.

I’m sharing a few of these below, but expect to be sharing much more in January, along with my ritual “best posts” and look back of the year.

But before that, let me wish you a Merry Christmas and a very happy New Year, and thank you for reading and supporting my blog this year, I very much appreciate your company in what, quite frankly, has at times been another bonkers year.

I suspect that (spoiler alert) 2020 will pretty much be the same!

‘BUMPING’ INTO MUM & DAD

CHRISTMAS TREES IN BRIDGETOWN

ON THE RUM TASTING AT MOUNT GAY

SUNSET ON THE BEACH

AT HUNTE’S GARDENS*

AT ANDROMEDA GARDENS*

* Many more photos to come!

Reflecting on my week #109

Travelling, and time differences, make for a long day. But it’s worth it, and despite knowing the temperatures we were heading for we weren’t really prepared for the moment we stepped off the plane.

It was like a lovely warm hug, as was the welcome at the hotel. Though it’s still strange to see Christmas decorations in the warm weather, and my brain is having quite a few “does not compute” moments.

The case obviously got packed, though not everything survived the final cull. I am claiming a packing win though as we were just half a kilo under the limit I was aiming for. There’s some debate as to the limit though, MOH randomly thinks 25kg, whereas I thought 23. We made both, whichever it was.

I messed up checking in (oops) leaving it too late to get seats together, or even in the same row. The seats allocated were also ‘middle’ seats and we boarded the plane full of trepidation of what awaited us. Turns out we had no cause for worry, as we sat with a lovely family who as we reached our seats asked if we’d mind terribly swapping to the aisle seats so each parent could sit with a child.

There were absolutely no complaints from us, on either the seat swap or row sharing and it made for a great start to our break. In fact it was one of the best flights we can remember in quite a while, even though I managed to spill chocolate from my ice cream, and later mango chutney from my coronation chicken sandwich down my top.

Just as well I had more than a capsule wardrobe in the case.

There will need to be some careful redistribution for our return journey though, as we know there’ll be more that needs to be in the case. I’d already thought about this and our hand luggage was relatively empty on the way out, which it won’t be for the journey home!

It’s been good to take some time to just chill and embrace the heat, which even for MOH who’s not a natural sun person, has meant views like the one below, and plenty of reading.

There’s been some rain, torrential downpours which disappear as quickly as they arrive. And let’s face it, the rain is warm and not comparable to rain at home.

There’s been a rum (or two), with a bottle of Mount Gay making it into our first shopping basket, along with other essentials for breakfasts. Just to be clear, the rum isn’t for breakfast! Or at least that’s not the plan.

We’re close to the Oistins Fish Fry and though tired on Friday we headed there for some flying fish, macaroni pie, plantains and rice and peas, which were just as good as we remembered them. We were back there again over the weekend for some fishcakes, which were as good as the bag says.

Yesterday we met up with my parents for lunch, as you do. Their trip overlapped with ours for the day, and we also had the chance to look around their ship, well obviously not theirs, but you know what I mean.

Then it was time for more rum punch, on the pool deck with carols from the local primary school - I’m starting to get the hang of this Christmas in the sunshine thing, though as MOH says I shouldn’t get too used to it.

Our evening ended with more cocktails in the bar, and then cheese on toast made in our kitchenette - because we’re classy like that!