We really needed to get out of the house last weekend… our baby was still not very well (she has subsequently developed chickenpox, and thankfully is recovering…at last!!) we had enough of the snow (lovely and all as it is…)
and if any of us had to watch “The Snowman” one more time…!!!! Fergal made the sick baby her own snowman:
and several times during the day we would wave hello and take a run out to the garden to have a conversation with it… (and I wonder why my neighbours think I am mad….)
So on Sunday we decided to take a walk in Portumna Forest Park, get some fresh air and have a winter picnic. So off we went, drove the half hour to Portumna, armed with my trusty bag of yarn and hooks to ward off any potential boredom!…
(delicious purse by Cutie Rage!)
…to find that the one day of the year we drove all the way for a walk that it was closed!! For a deer cull of all things!!! Undefeated, we drove to a ruined abbey nearby to take a walk there… and it promptly poured rain. So we sat in the car, laughed a lot, drank tea (tea-leaf, in the teapot, of course) and ate a very un-homemade picnic (thank you SuperValu) 
Then once the sky brightened we took a stroll around
our lovely family!
This is Portumna Lake- note the ducks, they are standing on the frozen water- It was quite extraordinary- and cold!!
And so, revived for another week after the fresh air and mad dash around the abbey, we were glad to head home to blazing fires and a slow-cooked stew… real food!!