Hello lovely lady,
How has your week been?
Before you dive into the rest of your day, make yourself a cuppa, find five quiet minutes and come and have a little ramble with me.
This week has felt rather like one of those weeks where the roots are beginning to settle into the soil. And maybe after all the rushing, juggling and plate-spinning, you know that feeling too. That moment when something starts to feel a little more real.
For me, that happened on Tuesday.
Inside Our New Holistic Treatment Space in Warwickshire
The Summerhouse has officially become the new Root & Rise treatment space. And I have to tell you, it feels rather magical.
Two lovely clients have already experienced the new space this week, complete with views across the farm, bespoke essential oil blends and, of course, my magic hands.
There is something rather special about being able to offer treatments in a space surrounded by nature. Somewhere that feels tucked away from the noise of everyday life. A little pocket of calm. A place where you can arrive carrying all the things you’ve been carrying, and for a while, you don’t have to be the one holding everything together.
That matters to me because I know how easy it is to become the woman who keeps all the plates spinning.
Work, children, household, family, other people’s needs, admin… the things that nobody else even notices until they don’t get done.
And somewhere amongst all of that, you can quietly disappear.
My hope for Root & Rise has always been to create somewhere you can come back to yourself. Somewhere your body can soften, your mind can quieten and you can simply breathe.
The new treatment space feels like that dream has grown some roots. You can read more about the therapies I offer and book directly through this website if you’re feeling the need for a little time that is genuinely yours.
Ruth’s Visit to Scotland
Meanwhile, one of my little family members has been having a rather different sort of week… Ruth has gone on a road trip to Scotland with Robin and his Dad to visit Robin’s 106-year-old grandmother.
And there is a particularly lovely circle being completed here.
She had an Irish Terrier back in the 1960s, and now she has had the chance to meet our very own Ruth.
From what I hear, Ruth’s visit is bringing her a lot of joy. Which feels rather lovely. Although I suspect Ruth has arrived with her usual combination of enthusiasm, curiosity and absolutely no respect for personal space.
Finding my Feet in a New Routine
I also started a part-time nannying job in Leamington Spa last week, so I’ve been getting to know three new little people and finding my feet with a new routine.
There are familiar things in there too: organising belongings, ironing, creating experiences and opportunities for the children, and generally keeping the wheels of family life turning.
It’s been an interesting reminder that a new chapter doesn’t always arrive with a giant fanfare. It can look like learning where someone keeps their socks.
And ironing them. Lots of ironing.
But there is something grounding about finding a new rhythm.
And perhaps that’s the theme of this week’s ramble really.
Rooting. Finding your feet. Allowing something new to become familiar.
Not needing to have the whole thing figured out before you begin.
The Turning: An Autumn Day Retreat at Hunningham Hill Farm
Karen and I are facilitating our Autumn day retreat here at Hunningham Hill Farm on 30th October, and there are now just 5 spaces remaining.
If you’ve been thinking about giving yourself a day to step away from the noise and nurture your soul, this might be your invitation.
The Turning is a day to honour the land at Samhain and become really present in nature.
There will be an Aromatherapy Workshop with me, as well as Karen bringing us a fire ceremony, a shamanic journey, a hawthorn tea ceremony and more.
A whole day to slow down, reconnect and spend quality time with like-minded people.
If that sounds like something your body has been quietly asking for, you know what to do.
A Surprise Discovery in the Farm Orchard
I found a rather peculiar fruit growing in the orchard. At first glance, it looked like a mango-sized apple. Then I cut it open. It had the texture of a pear and smelled distinctly citrusy.
After a little investigation, our mystery fruit was revealed to be…
A quince!
Naturally, I couldn’t simply leave it sitting there looking mysterious. So it found its way into the slow cooker alongside duck, partridge, tinned plum tomatoes, a splash of Rosé, black pepper, rosemary, thyme and garlic-infused olive oil - not to mention a generous dash of culinary know-how passed down to me from my mum.
Robin tells me it was delicious. I will take his word for it. I wasn’t feeling quite brave enough to try the partridge.
There is something I love about this sort of life.
Finding unexpected fruit in the orchard.
Learning what grows on the land.
Cooking with things you’ve never cooked with before.
Watching an Irish Terrier meet a 106-year-old woman who remembers owning one decades ago.
Creating a treatment space from a Summerhouse.
Starting a new job and finding a new rhythm.
Little things.
Little things are where life actually happens.
What Is Beginning to Take Root in Your Life?
So, before you rush off to your next thing, here’s your invitation to pause:
Look around you.
What has quietly begun to take root in your life?
What feels new but is starting to become familiar?
And where might you give yourself permission to stop spinning the plates for five minutes and simply be?
You don’t have to change everything today.
Just pop the kettle on, take a breath and notice what is already growing.
Until next week’s ramble,
