Look back in wonder

I've got something to celebrate today and no, it's not my birthday! And as our wedding anniversary was back in February, it's not that either. Now, what can it be? Well, today it has been four years to the day that I published my first blog post!

Now I know that many of you have been blogging for much longer, and that four years might not be all that much in the grand scheme of things, but I already couldn't imagine my life without it.

Blogging has brought me so much pleasure. The pleasure to be able to share my passions, to keep a journal and mark the passage of time and, above all, the pleasure of getting to know so many wonderful people, whom I would otherwise never have met, some of them becoming real-life friends in the process.

In fact, the only regret I have is that I didn't take the plunge earlier, but that's me, forever dithering and thus always late to the party!

Since my blog doubles as a diary, I just love being able to look back and see what I was up to at certain moments in time. Before blogging, the years were all a bit of a blur. Some years, there wasn't even all that much photographic evidence apart from our holiday snaps! Or at least not until I bought my current camera and starting making collages, which initially I posted on Facebook.

As in this part of the world the weather is such a topic of conversation, it can be quite a revelation too, travelling back in time to a particular month last year only to find that the weather was in complete contrast to this year's.

Take the above photo, for instance, which appeared in a blog post last March but was actually taken at the end of February, when the temperatures were so balmy that I could comfortably pose in the park in just my dress without getting all goose-bumpy or rain-drenched!

So, in order to celebrate my Blogiversary, I scrolled through all of last year's posts, choosing some of my favourites from each month. Quite a daunting task, I must add, and my original shortlist was quite a long one, but in the end I managed to keep the photos to a fairly reasonable amount. 

Apart from the photos, there are a few favourite posts as well. How I loved writing (and re-reading) the story of the two coats in the attic which I published in March!

This collage, in which I'm wearing a floral skirt suit and my lilac Tweed jacket for a walk in the park in April, makes me yearn for Spring to finally arrive.

As does this photo, taken in the same month, where I'm twirling the full skirt of a favourite vintage dress. There was no need for a cardigan or coat on this day when we visited a local nature reserve and were captivated by carpets of wood anemones. My heart is making a little leap of joy as I remember exactly how I felt that day.

April also saw us going on our first short holiday of the year, staying at the B&B near Bruges. While we were there, we visited the charming little town of Damme, where I couldn't resist becoming one with a sea of daisies. Pure bliss, and so easily evoked by just looking at this photo.

In May, my blog reminds me of the fact that I got new glasses, my first pair of multifocals.  I took them for a test drive (or, more appropriately, walk) in the park, wearing an old floral skirt and blouse, both vintage, topped by a recently charity shopped orange velvet jacket. I'd almost forgotten about those pale pink booties! 

In June, we said goodbye to the parental home, to which I paid tribute by writing a farewell post full of bittersweet memories, one I simply cannot re-read without getting a little tear in my eye.

Here's me, wistfully descending my childhood home's magnificent stairs for the very last time. Sigh!

In the second half of June, we embarked on our annual UK holiday, which we spent in Shropshire and the Welsh borders. 

Starting as we meant to go on, we met up with Vix and Jon on our very first day. It was almost a given that a spot of charity shopping was involved! Can't wait to do it all again in a couple of months' time!

On one of the hottest days, we hopped over the border to Wales for a visit to Powis Castle. My outfit, consisting of a vintage waxed cotton wrap skirt and a top which was a sales bargain from New Look, might well be my favourite of the past year!

Another hot day saw us seeking shelter in a secret garden, a definite contender for a return visit. The dress I was wearing was a gift from Vix, while the hat was a cheeky buy from a National Trust shop right in the middle of Slow Fashion Season. 

July and August were months of extremes. First there was a heatwave, when we were melting in unheard of temperatures of +40° Celsius.

Even if it wasn't nearly that hot on the day we went to a rather disappointing outdoor flea market, we were still glad to be able to cool down in the park afterwards. I was wearing a blue flower-sprigged 1970s cotton frock accessorized with pops of red, another one that's in the running for favourite of the year.

July was followed by a partially rainy August. On the 15th of that month, a public holiday in Belgium, we briefly ventured outside between showers to photograph my 1980s inspired outfit. If only the skirt is vintage, everything else except for the ring was charity shopped. Don't you just love that crab bag?

Oh how I love the promise of the first day of a holiday! We had our usual sojourn in Belgium's west country in the first week of September, and here I am soaking up the afternoon sun on the steps of Poperinge's town hall, wearing a King Louie dress I'd found at the charity shop only a few days previous.

Our holiday was a mixture of sunshine and showers, but Summer made a brief return when we were back home, prompting a walk in a shady park wearing a € 2 Think Twice find and a pink plastic chain necklace converted into a belt. The first signs of Autumn could no longer be ignored, though.

The second half of September was very wet so we anxiously kept an eye on the weather forecast as we had plans for a day trip to Bruges on Jos's birthday. The weather gods must have been looking out for us, as it remained virtually dry that day, with even a hint or two of sunshine!

Ah, October! The time to indulge in Autumn walks and a bit of leaf-kicking. But not this year, as the rains returned with a vengeance after that one-off day on Jos's birthday.

Then finally one weekend it stopped raining for long enough to go for a stroll - and hug some trees - wearing a dress which had been on Think Twice's rails for only 30 seconds before I grabbed it.

November saw us cat-sitting the delightful Abby, who had no problem stealing  my limelight ...

... and going for another little holiday in Zeeland, where I was finally able to kick some leaves in the abbey courtyard in Middelburg ...

... and go for a bracing walk by the seaside in fashionable Domburg!

Looking back, I seem to have been wearing a lot of red in December, which was purely coincidental and had nothing to do with the approaching silly season. This grey and raspberry red dress, another Think Twice find, got its very first outing.

But it was almost a given that I wore green too, especially when years of being patient finally paid off and a pair of green boots came my way. This dark olive green and pink flapper inspired outfit is another one of my favourites. 

Those of you who have been following my blog for a while will know that I love green, so it will come as no surprise that I picked it as the main colour of my New Year's Eve outfit.  It was based around a wide Scandi print maxi skirt, which had many admirers, both on the blog and on Instagram, which I'd joined in a moment of madness back in June.

We've reached 2020 by now, and the final posts of my 4th blogging year. I'll be brief here, as it wasn't all that long since I posted them. 

It was a cold but reasonably dry January day when I wore this pleated dress, fur collared jacket and pink feathery scarf for a charity shop rummage. The yellow snake print handbag was an irresistible sales bargain. Oh, don't tell me you wouldn't have been tempted too!

Another Saturday in January, and feeling the warmth of the sun on my face was a delight after the endless succession of grey rainy days. 

On this crisp sunny day we walked to the beautiful ruin of Sleeping Beauty's castle amid a juxtaposition of Autumn and Spring.

A final January outfit, again featuring green with a generous dollop of pink, was based around this stripy pussy bow dress, which again had many admirers. 

I'm concluding this round-up of my blogging year with our 25th Wedding Anniversary in February which, as you'll probably remember, we celebrated with a couple of days at our favourite B&B near Bruges.

And while looking back has been a rollercoaster of emotions, I cannot wait to fill the still empty pages of a new blogging year.

A big thank you to all my readers and followers ❤❤❤ 

I hope you will be joining me on my journey through year 5!