Happy New Year

After the past few weeks of wedding preparations and Christmas, we decided to have a few days away visiting James' brother in the Scottish Highlands.  It's good to get away because it means we can totally relax with no opportunity for house building or related work!

This was our New Year's Day walk and the weather was amazing - snow had fallen higher up and it was a little bit chilly but it was bright and dry and there was spectacular lighting; the smell of fir trees was wonderful.  Whilst walking back home I noticed this old croft with a water wheel at the side, I don't think it was still working any more but it conjured up images of a self sufficiency which was the crofter's way of life in days gone by; remote lives and an extremely hard existence but somehow romantic and appealing when we look back - most people have it too easy nowadays, I think it's good to take some time to appreciate what we have and not to take everything for granted, and for me being creative and thrifty is part of that.