Slow Living in the English Countryside: November Diary from the Cotswolds & Somerset

Autumn deepens in the Somerset countryside and it’s getting more wintry with each passing week. There is no hard line between the seasons and the blood-red rose hips and bare branches stretched out to the sky remind me that the wheel of the year never stands still. In November, the English countryside shows the first signs of the seasons turning, with Autumn and Winter intertwining so that you cannot tell when one ends and the other begins.

November is my favourite month. Perhaps I’m biased because it’s both my husband’s and my birth month, but I truly think it’s one of the most atmospheric times of the year. Mornings come late and are often wrapped in fog, the trees are bare or half-bare, and in a matter of weeks the woods will look like skeletons, with the forest floor buried under a thick layer of dead leaves.

It’s easy to see beauty in flowers and sunshine, but can you also see the magic of the silent Winter forest and in the flocks of migrating birds dancing above the brown fields somewhere deep in the English countryside?

Today I’m writing to you from my usual favourite spot at the dining table, by the door to the garden. Rosa’s bike and Jacob’s muddy shoes are in view - not very Pinterest-worthy, but this is my diary and I want to keep it real. The mess at home, the dishes waiting to be washed, the abandoned bike after a couple of rounds and Jacob’s shoes that he said he would clean - but I’ll do it later today - it’s all proof that life actually happens.

I talk a lot about slow living and slowing down, but I think it’s really good to have things to do, people counting on us and chores to tick off. Frantic rushing is bad, but an aimless life with no direction or feeling of being needed must be even worse.

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Ok, enough of my philosophical ramblings :D I have lots to share with you today - let’s begin with a little Halloween recap.

Rosa had a very busy Halloween - she baked a cake, carved a pumpkin, oversaw Dad as he portioned the cake...

…and once it got dark, she went trick-or-treating!

I wasn’t sure how good trick-or-treating would be in our new village in the Somerset countryside we’ve just moved into. After all, it’s a pretty small community and I didn’t expect many homes to take part. But oh dear, I was wrong! It was our best trick-or-treating night to date.

On another note, it was the first year that Jacob, our older son, didn’t go trick-or-treating. He’s over six feet tall now and even has a little beard starting to show, so he decided it was time to stop. I felt a bit nostalgic that this stage is over in his life, but then he went out with his friends and had a great time.

It’s funny how children grow up, yet I don’t feel like I’m getting any older :D

At home, I’ve been using up the pumpkins I grew this year and finishing off the last of my Autumn candles. Just a little reminder to trim your wicks before every burn for a clean, soot-free jar.

In the Quantock Hills, especially in the higher parts, many trees have their tops already bare, with the remaining leaves glowing in the most beautiful shades of yellow, orange and brown.

I was surprised to see that the Cotswolds seem to be even further ahead on its way to Winter than Somerset, with more leaves on the ground than on the trees.

Below is a photo I took this week and it might be one of my favourite photos I’ve ever taken. It encapsulates the atmosphere of the English countyside I love so much: the murky weather, the church, the bare trees with the last of November’s leaves still clinging to them and the road that have been walked for centuries...

Adriana: “Andrei, take a picture of me - I’ll hold onto the gate so it looks natural, like I’m not posing”
Narrator: She was, in fact, absolutely looking like she was posing.

I had a good reason to visit the Cotswolds - Andrei invited me out for my birthday! He knows that coffee and high-calorie food in a cosy Cotswold pub with a roaring fireplace is all this girl really wants:) 

We visited The Potting Shed and had a lovely experience - the pub is just as cosy as the social media photos suggest and the food was great. I had a burger and Andrei went for the pheasant schnitzel.

Here’s my birthday mug shot. If I go missing, do not use this photo, please:D

It's now November, which means we’ve officially opened mince pie season - Andrei and I usually have one each at lunch with our coffee from the beginning of this month until Christmas. We started doing this a few years back and somehow it’s become our little tradition.

Find our Christmas candles here

I tried a vintage recipe for condensed milk afternoon tea cakes from an old cookbook, "Farmhouse Fare", first published in 1935 and made up of country recipes selected from those sent in by readers of "Farmer’s Weekly" - shared by the lovely Karen on her blog "Lavender and Lovage". The recipe calls for only four ingredients and is supposed to make 20–24 dainty cakes, but I just used my 12-muffin tray and they turned out perfectly. You can really taste the condensed milk which I love! Both children enjoyed them very much too.

Condensed milk afternoon tea cakes recipe

Another recipe I wanted to share that’s perfect for the coming Christmas season is cinnamon plum crumble. I made it exactly the same way as apple crumble, but instead of apples, I used plums. I’m not sure how much in weight, I just filled the bottom of the baking dish with quartered plums and it turned out delicious. It’s the red colour peeking out from underneath the crumble that really makes it a "wow" for me - just perfect for the festivities.

Apple crumble recipe

It’s not just our kitchen - it’s feeling very festive in the studio too! I think perhaps I should get us a small Christmas tree to go on Andrei’s desk? 

Sorry, the little rocking horses are sold out, but we should get more in next week!

My husband is a saint and this photo proves it - you can see the lights above his head ;) But jokes aside, I’ve realised that I shared a lot of cake in this week’s diary and I don’t want you to think that I live on sugar. Please remember that this post is a collection of moments from the last two weeks and in between these treats there were plenty of vegetables, lean meats, herbal teas and a reasonable amount of carbs and fats :)

I would really hate to be that girl who claims she can eat whatever she wants and never gain weight. Some of you might not know this, but I lost 25 kg... but that certainly wasn’t the happy ending. Unfortunately, I do like to indulge and for the rest of my life I’ll have to be mindful of how much I eat. I don’t count calories anymore, but I know very well how much my body needs and when I’m exceeding my limits.

This reminded me of a really good video I watched a few years back about the Gilmore Girls diet and how they’re portrayed in the show as these super-skinny girls who eat copious amounts of food, look down on people who diet or exercise, yet stay thin no matter what. This could certainly be true for Rory, but much less likely for Lorelai in her mid-30s. I did some digging and found "The Gilmore Girls Diet and Food Obsession: A Deep Dive" video I highly recommend watching it.

I think we can turn a blind eye to Gilmore Girls, as it’s a nostalgic show that was never meant to be realistic, but it’s worth remembering that their diet is even less real. I wanted to share this because, with Christmas coming, I’ll be baking and sharing a lot of treats and I don’t want you to think that I stuff my face with sugary treats and laugh all the way to the scale… I wish :)

That’s it for today! Thank you so much for all your birthday wishes on the last post - I’m so looking forward to the 37th year of my life! I appreciate you so much and I’m sending you the warmest hugs on this cold November day.

Adriana x