February 2018

Hi everyone, welcome to our February blog posting.

It is often assumed that we only swim in Loch Ewe 
when the weather is fine
but because we are just a little strange we swim 
every Sunday morning throughout the year
 regardless of the weather.


 How could we possible disappoint our dogs ?






Thank you Gill Burn for the next two photos

watching the hail storm approaching !

The only thing that stops us from swimming is
if the roads are too icy to drive to our beach !





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At the beginning of the month
 it was Malcolm's Mum's 93rd birthday
and she had a lovely day 
surrounded by many people who made her day very special

and with a delicious birthday cake

Thank you to everyone at Isle View for your kindness.






Now that Mum is settled in her new home
it was time to clear her house.

So February has been a time to redistribute
her household belongings throughout the neighbourhood and finally have a garage sale.







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It was great to meet new friends Laura, Bradley and Amy
and hear about their exciting plans  
over coffee and lunch in Strathpeffer.

It also meant that we were able to see parts of Strathpeffer,
like the once vibrant Victorian station

and large wood carvings that you never get to see
and appreciate when you are just driving through.

Thank you Amy.




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February sky over Loch Ewe
 

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Quote of the Month

"Our life is frittered away by detail,

simplify, simplify"

Henry David Thoreau

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A bit of fun !

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Around the croft...

the cold weather didn't deter our cockerel from singing

and Zara didn't seem to mind at first

but she was rather glad of her rug
a bit later in the day

 as she stood and watched the blizzard coming in

and as the snow came down Isle Ewe was lost from view.

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Fortunately inside all is warm and snug
 and Wilma and Tilly are getting on well together,

so until the end of March , keep warm and happy

from June and Malccolm 
xxxxxxxxxxx

January 2018

January bringing beautiful skies and new horizons

We have a new addition to the croft,
very tiny and very cute.



Meet little Tilly !

Tilly just fits into my hat and like all our other animals

loves sleeping !

If you are not a cat person 

you are advised to skip through the next kitty photos...

On the way home from picking up Tilly

we stopped off to see Malc's Mum

so that she could have a cuddle,

we almost lost her as she did the rounds

to meet the staff and the other residents too.

Being a social creature the excitement 

can sometimes be a bit too much to handle

and you have to take a nap when you can.

Now where's that chocolate box ?

Has she won your heart yet ?

Wilma has been a fantastic terrier !

After the first two days when she thought that Tilly 

was just a skinny rabbit to be eaten

she made friends and they have been playmates ever since.

The morning play-fight, no teeth or claws !

Playing hide and seek under the washing 

is always a good game

and hiding in the log pile

and Tilly is still small enough at the moment
to torment Wilma from under the sofa

and when Wilma is fed up with being struck in the eye..

she tries to stuff Tilly down between the sofa cushions.

What more could I wish for, a new kitty curled up
 with our ferocious, rabbit-eating terrier ?

Aww !

the kitty and Wilma and the rug all look much the same
but you can just make them out.

Tilly is very much a "shoulder" cat and likes
 to be involved in the every day activities 
of making tea and washing up.

As you can see, nothing and no one other than Tilly
has had my full attention this month.





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Around the croft...


Zara sharing her Sunday lunch with her two best mates

Zara will always follow if there is food at the end,
especially on a snowy day

Morning photos looking out from the croft...

 the beginning of 2018,

 the calm, morning waters of Loch Ewe on 1st January

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Our underground root cellar for storing potatoes,
 ie an old broken freezer sunk into the ground
incorporating a simple thermal syphon.

This  system keeps the potatoes at around 3 degrees,
with a continual airflow and humidity
and so enables us to keep the potatoes much longer 
without them going soft and starting to sprout.

The bucket of stones on the top is just to stop the lid
flying open in the winds !



For all other technicalities contact Malcolm






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I had a lovely day in the barn with two friends
transforming a fleece into a snuggly rug,

from laying out ..

wet felting with soap and warm water..

wrapping it up and rolling it 400 times
in four directions..

rinsing it ..

and washing it, drying it and fluffing it up 
into a rug that Tilly seems to have claimed as hers.

Thank you for the lesson girls and great company !






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January visitors to the croft

Keith and Elke were travelling around the Highlands
with no fixed agenda
and we were lucky enough to be able to spend time
 with them and learning about their fascinating lives.

Keith thought that using two pairs of binoculars 
would help to see the view across the loch !

Perhaps it's due to living in a tent in Norway !




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Book of the Month



a lovely book lent to us from a friend,
 a real delightful read,
thank you Fee.

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 Quote of the Month



I thought that this would be a wonderful start to 2018,

 

www.susannamichaelis.co.uk 

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 Yes, I know, we're all just getting over this last Christmas

but I came across this on Pinterest

and thought what a lovely idea !

 Perhaps we should give some thought during the year

to find the perfect book and favorite chocolates

for our family and friends 

and spend next Christmas Eve cosied-up Icelandic style.

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 After a month of snow, rain and wild winds

perhaps it's time to take a leaf out of Tilly's new book...

just keep cosy and warm for February 

and wait for spring to arrive

from June and Malcolm

on a windswept Highland croft

xxxxxxx