Preparing for Winter

I'm preparing for winter by knitting a lovely squared blanket to put over my tootsies this winter. Don't like winter that much since we realised we can't afford to whack the CH on all the time but this blanket is making me feel all cosy thinking about the wintery months ahead.
Oh and buying LOTS of candles. That's one thing about winter I love, candlelit evenings. :T

Winter's already here isn't it? It's definitely looked like it for a few days where I am. I'm sitting here snuggled up in my woolly jumper, and so far we haven't taken the warm duvet off the bed this year.

1. Had both chimneys swept
2. Bought new grate for one of them
3. Ongoing - nagging OH to put last thermal blind up in kitchen
4. Am freezing garden produce/making jam
5. Found toasting fork by accident the other day
6. Went round sales for summer clothes - bought jumpers instead
7. Waiting to see what everyone else is doing to jog my memory (please)

Oh - and on countdown to chestnutting in October.

I love this time of year with harvesting and snuggling and preparing. I think I should have been a squirrel.

J

Have already....

Stocked up on medicines (syrups, lemsips, painkillers etc)
Free Low watt bulbs from council
Candles-mum gave them to me
Bought a few bags of broth mix and lentils (for stews/soups)
Bought a radiator cover which OH still has to make up
Bought a few jumpers reduced to £1 in TKMaxx
Bought Thermal underwear to 50p
Bought loads of designer socks from TKMaxx for 30p a pack
Bought scarf and gloves sets reduced

Must do....

Get the chimney swept
Few more tinned items

PP
xx

at the moment i'm thinking more in terms of preserving food than anything else. Partly for us, partly for christmas presents. I've got parents and grandmothers to cater for, which isn't a great deal, i know, and all love preserves of one kind or another, so that's what i'm doing this year - hampers/baskets with different kinds of preserves/pickles. Jams for mum, cos she has a sweet tooth, pickled onions, port, some good cheeses, maybe some potted meat for dad. that kind of thing.

along with that, i'm also making some preserves/pickles for us. not only jams (made Damson yesterday, making golden plum this afternoon, and dark red plum with cinnamon tomorrow) but pickles of various kinds - from pickled onions/beetroot to piccalilly (or however its spelled) and various other mixed veg pickles - atjar tjampoer, for example.

then there's the christmas food - cake, pud, mincemeat. My parents live a fair bit south of us, so don't tend to visit often, and mom still works, and as i don't, and am time rich, i tend to make all that kind of stuff for them (which they love). I want to get theirs done in the next month or so because they'll be visiting towards the end of september and won't be visiting again till after christmas, probably. oh well. at least they'll be well matured!

Other than that: its mostly a case of getting the duvet out to put underneath the sheets to make the bed warmer, i want to make some lining for the bedroom curtains, some better lining curtains for the living room, i've got draught excluders from last year, and i'll be participating in the whole "keep the heating off as long as possible" thing again this year! (funny though, no one seems to have a competition for turning the heating OFF again asap..!)

the only other thing is trying to think in advance for what to do over the winter for prepping the garden next year. what seeds to get, where to make new beds, that kind of thing. (and i'm still undecided as to whether to risk leaving the greenhouse out in the open all winter - its one of those large wilkos flimsy walk in jobbies).

Like others on this thread, i love this time of year. I'm all squirrelly!

keth
xx