This Spring why don’t you…

Spring is here my friends (in the southern hemisphere at least) and it feels SO good doesn’t it? We are being treated this week with a touch of warmer weather too and my GOODNESS does it feel SO good to be outside with the sunshine on your back, ankles exposed and the afternoon starting to stretch out a little. Spring certainly is a magical time of the year as everything starts to wake up from a long, cold winter and as everything starts to wriggle back towards the sun and unfurl I guess it makes us feel like we need to do the same. Time to start moving, get outside, get organised and get ready for the months of busyness that come towards the end of the year.

I was thinking of some of my favourite things to do in the spring so thought I might inspire you to do the same. Why don’t you…

Buy some potted colour

Next pay cheque that comes in I am heading STRAIGHT to the nursery as I cannot bear one minute longer at looking at my dead or empty window sill planters that are filled with soil. A quick trip to Bunnings or a nursery for some potted colour will do wonders at getting me back into the swing of the garden. Of watering again, getting some fertiliser into the pots. Fill your pots with different flowers together that will spill and flower in the months to come. It’s cheap and cheerful and EFFECTIVE.

Start to change your eating habits

Oh man do I need to do this too! Time to put down the bread and baked good Beth and start to focus on salads and LOTS of leafy greens. Maybe I will bring a smoothie into the mix for us all this summer to – I have been meaning to get on board that train for a few years now. Wouldn’t hurt the kids in the morning would it? What’s your best smoothie recipe? Do I have to put kale in it though?

Host a fancy pants (High) tea

Remember when I went to Tea at Claridges in Spring in LONDON? Yep, it wasn’t a dream , but real life and boy was it good. There is something SO delightful about a tea. Make an old school sponge with lashings of jam and cream, just like the one Mrs C made below. Use the good tea cups and saucers. Make some ribbon sandwiches and of course pop the bubbles. A daytime event is a nice change from the normal entertaining you might do as well. Create some fancy invitations as well and PRINT THEM OFF AND SEND THEM. How fun would it be to get a printed invitation in the mail to something? The answer to that is VERY.

Let’s go outside

As the days get longer it’s a chance to start to eat outside again. Get that BBQ cleaned and ready for the season ahead and host some lunches outside in the sunshine. Get that table out onto the lawn while you can actually in the sun without it being too hot. There’s nothing better to be out, in the elements, enjoying what you have around you.

Get some blossom on a vase

Get stalking the streets and picking the blossoms where you can and get them into a vase. It’s messy and they don’t last long, but you will be reminded of the season every time you look at it!

Get some spring lamb cooking

New season produce is GOOD and you should get your hands on some of it. Try and get your head around what is coming into season and when so you can buy it cheap, and in bulk and either preserve or freeze it. If you get your mitts on some new season spring lamb you should totally slow cook it with some salsa verde like I do in this recipe.

Fill bowls and vases with all that’s on offer

Like I said, whatever is in season will be abundant and will be cheap so get onto it! Right now there are daffs and lemons a go-go around here so you will see plenty in my house. You can bet that I will be making some lemon curd, some lemon meringue pie, some margaritas and taking LOTS of snaps of daffs too.

Make a fancy drink and make a few

Time to work on a summer cocktail. We can get into a rut with drinking wine or your stock standard G&T but sometimes it’s fun to mix it up (literally) and find a new drink. And the warmer months are the perfect time to get outside and have a cocktail. You can have margarita or a campari mojito, a normal mojito, a prosecco raspberry cocktail, a vodka & rosemary syrup cocktail, an Aperol Spritz with a twist, A Gin & Tonic with rhubarb syrup, a Hendricks G&T with cucumber, a Gin Mare cocktail, or maybe you would like to try a Prosecco for the first time. That should get you started!

Go sit in the sunshine

I don’t think that there’s anything much better than laying down in the sunshine and letting it warm right through your back. It’s the BEST. Vitamin D will literally give you life while it’s not stinking hot…I took inspiration from Maggie yesterday in the park when she did it.

Give someone an unexpected gift

Last week I was lucky enough to receive a gorgeous bunch of flowers from a reader Bed who randomly got in contact with my favourite florist down here in the Highlands and arranged for a bouquet to be sent to me. It was SO unexpected, SO random and SO lovely I buzzing for days. Maybe even just send someone a hand written note telling them how much they mean to you. Maybe give them your time, go help clean their house or do a working bee and get started on a project they want. Whatever you can – if it’s unexpected I swear it will be all the sweeter! And thank you again Bek for your thoughtfulness, it meant so much. Truly.

Hope this has given you some inspiration to embrace the new season and all it has to offer before it gets too hot and we start complaining about summer! Never takes long does it? Get moving, get eating well, start reading, start meditating, start some new habits that you would like to form this season or remember some of the things you love to do and be reminded of their beauty, fun or deliciousness!

What is your favourite thing to do in Spring?

Comments

  1. I love all these tips. And by god am I with you on the food front- I just ate 2 anzacs, 2 pieces of choc honeycomb & a handful of pretzels!! WTF!!!

    This is my favourite smoothie recipe. I’ve got all the ingredients in the freezer ready for when the mornings aren’t so damn cold-
    1 cup baby spinach
    1/2 cup water
    BLEND THEN ADD
    1 medium banana
    1/3cup frozen mango
    1/3 cup frozen pineapple
    1 tbs chia seeds
    1 tbs gentle fibre
    BLEND THEN ADD MORE WATER UNTIL YOU GET THE THICKNESS YOU LIKE. I like mine super thick so I can eat it with a spoon.

  2. Not sure about smoothies but I am now sitting at my desk at 9:30am dreaming of cocktails….mmmmmm

  3. Linda Jenkins says

    Lots of lovely ideas thanks Beth !

  4. Thank you ! What are the canapés featured – is there a recipe ?

    • No recipe on the blog for them but they are very simple: a piece of cooked haloumi, chorizo, leaf of mint and some lemon zest which packs a delicious punch of flavour!

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