It’s a wet midweek here, the computer has died a death on the work website and rather than trawl through other sites, I might as well write here.

Life’s been tricky the last few weeks, but I’m tired of looking on the dark side. There will be dark times ahead, which I’m not ready to share yet, but today I feel the need for speedy thanksgivings.

A Day by a Lake: Here, Rudyard Lake in Staffordshire, which is a reservoir created in the 18th Century and known as the Blackpool of the Potteries. It was a dark, dank, dismal day and rained all the way home, unsurprisingly. I was lucky it held off while I was there.

My Duolingo experience is still going well. I’m still in the Diamond League, but rarely as high as this one! I’m studying German, Dutch, Spanish and Latin and, this week, I have added Hungarian because we’ve booked another City Break for September. Don’t expect me to top the Hungarian League. It is difficult!

A tidier kitchen than I’ve had in a while. Our dishwasher exploded, and it has sort of acted like a catalyst speeding me into spring cleaning. We needed a new one (arriving tomorrow) and it made me want to clear, clean and organise the place. With elbow grease and a few baskets, I’m beginning to remember why I love my home. We may also be getting new doors and worksurface in the kitchen (it’s 20 years old this year and looking it!)

Proof of that elbow grease! This is, I am ashamed to say, the filter for the cookerhood. I’d begun to think it was really bronze, but apparently it was just filthy. The top one shows the proper colour. I’ve worked for a couple of hours after work each evening this week so far, and it has made a vast difference to the room. I’m grateful I’ve had time and energy to do that.

Ralph Fiennes liked my comment on an Instagram post!

I’m seeing my parents this afternoon, once I’ve finished this post. I love them both, and there may be difficult times ahead, but I can still be grateful that I have them and that they did so much for me throughout my life.

Finally…. Thank God spring is on the way! The blossom trees near us are blooming well, although the cherry blossom tree in our garden hasn’t yet. There are buds in the ends of all the branches I pass by, and the Instagram and Twitter shepherds I follow are beginning the lambing season. I can feel my energy rising and my happiness as well. Life is good, life is a cycle and life goes on whatever.

How to Hygge the British Way is my gift to the world. I don’t get paid for writing it, I’m not in it for the kudos, financial rewards, to become an influencer, work with brands or otherwise make any money from the blog. That’s why there are no ads, and any products I mention and recommend have either been gifted to me or bought by me with my everyday wages or donations from supporters. Every book I review has been bought and read by me, unless stated otherwise.

I do get a couple of pennies each time someone buys from the Amazon links on my page, as an Amazon Affiliate, but otherwise if you’d like to support me, I like to give something back in return. That’s why I write books. It always feels good if you get a book back in return for some money. You can find a full list of my books at my Author’s Page on Amazon, but especially recommended for this time of year are:

Cosy Happy Hygge: Setting up a rhythm to life and rituals to enjoy it to make for a more balanced life that handles waves and storms better. Lent is a season of rituals and resets. The book has small and easy ways to make your life flow with grace and happiness, which lead to more hygge.

Happier: Probably my most personal book, it’s the story of how I used hygge and the little things in life to help boost my happiness. I still go back and reread to remind myself what I need to do to be a happy human. And it’s always the little things.

Is it too early to think ahead? My Christmas books are always available: Have Yourself a Happy Hygge Christmas is a good place to start, on how to make the season cosier, happier. Celebrating a Contagious Christmas was written during covid year, but has useful advice on celebrating when times are hard anyway and Enjoying a Self-Care Christmas is a short e-book on keeping Christmas simpler, easier and better for you, your waistline and your budget. It even includes 25+ suggestions for self-care activities over Christmas, as simple as sipping tea, keeping a list journal or lighting a candle. Bigger is not always better for Christmas.

I’m currently working on two book projects: I have a hankering to rewrite 50 Ways to Hygge the British Way, so it’s not available at the moment, but even dearer to my heart and my next stated aim is to finish and publish my next book, Simple Plus Cosy = Hygge. It will be about homemaking and how the home we create shapes the hygge we have. Hopefully it will be finished by the end of summer/autumn/winter 2024 or 2025.

If you’d like to support me, but don’t want to buy a book, I have a Paypal.Me account as Hygge Jem. Every little helps, so even a few pence goes towards the books, goods and courses I use and recommend on the site. I’m grateful for every little bit that brings me closer to my dream of full-time writing, and I know I couldn’t still be writing if it weren’t for the support of many readers and friends out there. Thank you all for every little bit of support, emotional, physical and financial, you give me.

If you’ve enjoyed this article, don’t forget to share it or save it so others can enjoy reading, thinking about and living hygge as well.

The photo between post and promotions is by Debby Hudson on Unsplash. Red tulips, ready to add a dash of Spring to my life. What better?