A Bit Of A Gap

To my horror, I have just noticed that it is well over a month since I last posted on this blog. Where does the time go?

On the whole, the winter is a quieter time for us, as we have almost no holiday bookings, so no turn-rounds and associated laundry to deal with. On the other hand, bookings and enquiries for the forthcoming season come in almost every day, and they can sometimes take a while to respond-to. Winter is also a good time to catch-up with a few cottage maintenance tasks, and also to ensure the websites and cottage information folders are up to date.

We are offering our little holiday home in Strathpeffer for occasional self-catering stays this year. This entails getting a few extra things in place and making sure that everything works the way it should. I am also gradually altering the steeply sloping back garden area, by installing steps up to a paved seating area, which I am hoping will become a nice place to sit for a summer-evening barbecue.

The Old Bakery garden steps - paved area still to come
- pictured on a frosty January morning!

I have also had another of my regular trips south to visit friends and family. This time, the weather forecasts were suggesting snow and ice, so I chose to drive down in my 4-wheel-drive BMW X3, which handled the wintry conditions without any drama at all - though the drive is no comparison to Puss-the-Jaguar when it comes to motorway-cruising.

The Highlands become a Winter Wonderland in the snow...

Who's speeding...?!!

Now, some signs suggest that spring might be just around the corner. We have snowdrops in flower, and daffs in bud. And the garden birds, which have largely been absent through the winter, are returning in greater numbers to feed-up on our fat balls and peanuts in preparation for their breeding season. This means it is almost time for me to rummage in the shed for the garden fork and get the allotment beds turned over. It won't be long before I will have to try to start the lawnmower...