So many people are now working from home. However, the boundary between work and leisure time can become blurred. Natural breaks in the day such as a commute to work, a chat at the coffee machine or movement between the different rooms at work have often gently slipped into a slide from bed … to your home work station. So, what small changes can be introduced – and I mean small as nobody needs more jobs – to elevate tiny moments in the day. As ever, nature can help to improve our lives.
First drink of the day
Step one: drink your morning cuppa outside. No matter what the weather is that day. If it’s raining take a brolley. If it’s sunny go barefoot. Feel the elements and take a little time to see what’s growing and what creatures are out there too. Also, choose your very favourite cup to drink from. From a fine bone china to a handmade beauty. Either way, elevate the moment and treat yourself kindly. Try a little sweetie like this from Lucy and Jane Ceramics.
Once you’re at your desk
2. Next step: Choose a window bird feeder that you can see from your desk. Ideally you need to look up from your screen every 20 minutes for 20 seconds. This can be a challenge to maintain but the tiny thunk as a robin lands on your bird feeder is a gorgeous reminder to do this. I make these feeders here in my workshop at The Willower, in Nottingham. They are made from Somerset grown willow and are biodegradable and go back into the earth. Choosing one of these is a positive step to reduce plastic consumption and live in a more planet friendly way.
Willow window bird feeder. Watch the birds from inside in the warm.
Place a fresh suet bird feed ball in it daily and see who arrives. And if you’re not sure what on earth a one of those is that’s landed on your bird feeder, treat yourself to a bird spotting book. Try this one:
Reasons to nip outside
3. Plant a window box.
Even if you live in the tiniest of homes there will hopefully be a window sill or outdoor space for a little container of herbs or flowers. I’d recommed planting a selection of thyme, chives, outdoor basil and parsley as good companions. Mint is a great choice. Perfect in a yoghurt dip or in your Pimms. But mint is not great at sharing, so give it its own pot.
As well as being great to add into your cooking, the window box will act as a tiny oasis for wildlife. If you’re fortunate you’ll get to see a spider spin its web, or, if your herbs flower, butterflies and hoverflies might land to collect nectar. The 2 minutes of watering and tending your window box before you head to your workspace will be a gift to yourself.
I hope these sound like tiny, manageable steps that will create a tiny nature connection in your day. There’s a lot of scary stuff going on out there in the world. Small nature connections like these help to ground us and see the tiny glimmers of hope that will sustain us .
Celebrating 9 years of partnership or married life together is a lovely reason to treasure each other and one way of doing this is choosing a gift for your partner. Traditions have grown around the theme of the gift for each year. Read on to find out more about the ways this tradition has grown. And then peruse the list of gems I have found to help you celebrate your 9th wedding anniversary.
The origin story of wedding anniversary gift giving
So what is the origin of wedding anniversary gifts? Marriage has evolved from a transactional arrangement to a modern partnership with a good dose of love and maybe romance for good measure. Alongside this has grown a recognition that life is a whole lot happier all round if we recognise and cherish the contribution each partner has made towards a growing relationship.
How wedding anniversary gifts all began.
So let’s start in medieval Germany where wives might be crowned with a silver wreath after 25 years of marriage , whilst they might gift their husband a silver buckle. And for the few who reached a 50th anniversary, the same might be repeated but with gold this time.
What the Victorians were good at.
Leap forward to the Victorians who loved to create traditions ( Yes, we have a tree inside our houses during December. And no, we’re not quite sure why). Queen Victoria and Prince Albert were the epitome of a love match. They showered each other with opulent gifts for Christmas, birthday and wedding anniversaries.
The symbolism of a 9th wedding anniversary gift.
Modern and traditional gifts for a wedding anniversary start with delicate paper to mark year one and gradually become more robust and valuable to mark the years of dedication & commitment.
9 years of marriage is definitely a cause for celebration. Nine years of growing together & helping each other to flourish. The traditional gift for a 9th wedding anniversary is made from willow or pottery. Pottery represents the need to shape and mold the partnership over the years. And willow is a plant with deep, strong roots that can also be very flexible under pressure. Both can be used to create beautiful, stronger and useful objects.
If you click on words in bold or on pictures, this will take you to my shop or to affiliate links from which I receive a tiny commission at no expense to you.
Gift ideas for a 9th wedding anniversary.
Here are a selection of gift ideas. Some come from my own shop where I create willow products from willow grown here in the UK. Most are nature based and where possible come from small, independent Uk businesses.
Willow bird feeders.These best selling bird feeders offer an opportunity to engage with the natural world and can bring birds right up to the window where you can view them as you work, rest and play indoors. There is a great buzz to be had from hearing a small clunk as a robin pops by for lunch.
Robin Redbreast on a window bird feeder made from willow
This version can be fixed to a window or hung from a tree. To keep the birds healthy it is suggested that from May to October the birds are fed daily with a suet balland a small amounts of meal worms. A suet ball is included with your gift wrapped bird feeder.
Willow bird feeder ready for breakfast in the morning sun.
This card with a detachable keepsake is the perfect solution for your anniversary. Choose between a willow heart, a willow star, a willow llama or, if you love a good pun, choose the willow deer with the attached card that reads … You are very deer to me.’
This one of a kind Vierno bird drinking station has been made in collaboration with the National Trust and supports their work. Birds drink at least once a day and this beautiful piece ensures the water stays clean for all the thirsty visitors.
A Vierno Hedgehog Bowl is such a beautifully unique gift, such a reasonable price and is a great reason to get out into the garden and support wildlife. Hedgehogs can be fed on kitten kibble or wet dog / cat food.
You might view this as a children’s book but this tale of the riverbank and the the growing friendships of ratty, mole, badger and their high energy friend (we all know one of those) Mr Toad is the most heart warming read of making yourself vulnerable, trying new things, having adventures and enjoying the comforts of a good meal and a cosy home. Which might be a little similar to the experience of being married for 9 years!
The Wind in the Willows was originally published in 1908 and this 90th anniversary edition is beautifully illustrated by E.H Shepard. Buying throught this link to Bookshop.org also means that you will be supporting independent booksellers.
If your dearest is interested in craft and creativity using natural materials, this gem of a book offers practical and inspirational advice on how to use natural materials to create beautiful and useful objects for your home. Jenny Crisp is a beautifully skilled weaver who takes you step by step through a range of enticing willow weaving projects in this beautifully illustrated book.
This pottery date night looks like such good fun. The kit includes the clay, the succulent plants and a step by step video to take you through the creation process to make 2 of your very own unique pottery head plant holders.
8. A personalised pottery bud vase
Handmade by Lola Swain Designs in her UK based ceramic studio, this extremely beautiful and unique bud vase is imprinted with cow parlsey and can have up to 35 letters & numbers added to make it especially personal to you. To have such a one of a kind gift for your anniversary would be a treasure.
Made by the very talented basket maker Anna Liebmann this super cute willow keyring means your loved one will always think of you as they head off in the car (to buy you chocolate at midnight, or whatever your heart desires.) It’s so beautifully made and is a perfect find for hard to buy for partners.
A handmade willow bird feeder comes gift wrapped and, with an enclosed suet ball, can be set up immediately to feed the birds. The gift card has the happiest of colourful lettering and the willow star is detachable so it can be kept as a keepsake. It may even find its way to your Christmas tree.
I hope this list proves useful. Where possible I have deliberately chosen nature based products that come from UK based makers or suppliers. Supporting the small businesses makes everyone’s lives richer.
Robin Redbreast on a window bird feeder made from willow
Robins and facial recognition?
Look at this lovely little fella! He is 1 metre away from where I’m currently sitting. I can see the details of his feathers. The bird feeder, that I made last month, is fixed to the outside of the window and this picture is the 27th time today that my friend has been back for a little snackerelle and to have a look into the human zoo we call our kitchen. Apparently Robins can recognise human faces, the way we walk and our routines. So whilst I flatter myself that he’s here checking out my herhum laughter lines, I really know that he has his tiny bird clock set for food refill o’clock when I give him a suet ball and a ration of meal worms. Click on the picture if you’d like your own window bird feeder.
Do both Robins get a snazzy outfit?
Generally, in the natural world, it’s often the females who get to choose their look from any colour as long as it’s brown. But in an unusual nod to equality, European Robins (Erithacus Rubecula as their latin speaking friends call them) both get to have the snazzy trademark red feathers, a brown back and a white belly. It’s really hard to tell females and males apart. They’re both about 12 – 15cm in length and 20cm with their wings outstretched. And they weigh a tiny, tiny amount of 16 – 20 g.
Home Sweet Home for Robins
At the moment I have a pair of robins coming to the feeder. They land happily on the open front of the feeder as they prefer nesting sites with a wide opening. This is why their nests can sometimes be found outside in flower pots, tea cups and allegedly one was found in a human skull! (An already empty one we hope!). These wooden nest boxes from Gardman are a lovely, plastic free, skull free option for your garden. They have the wide open front door that Robins prefer.
You might hope that robins, with their lovely homes, would stick together for life but generally it’s a 1 season thing. Then they’re off to find a new beau or belle whose shade of red is just that bit more red and whose song is just that bit more beautiful. There’s no time for shilly shallying though as the average life span is 1 – 2 years they might only get one or two chances to find their true love.
Although they might not exude peace and harmony amongst their own kind, Robins are brave and bold birds that happily hang out with us humans.They love to perch on posts or spade handles. (Two Ronnie fans: I resisted the urge to launch into the fork handles / 4 candles routine there.) If you’re ever feeling lonely just go out and dig over a bit of earth. Soon you might notice the red of a Robin coming to see if you have unearthed any juicy worms.
Willow window bird feeder. Watch the birds from inside in the warm.
A Cultural Icon
Although there are many different types of Robin birds all over the world, here in the UK, we fondly call our favourite bird the Robin Redbreast. In the 1800s when the Victorians created a whole slew of new Christmas traditions such as Christmas cards, the postmen delivering these were nicknamed ‘Robins’ and the image of the little red bird became synonymous with messages of good will and cheerful greetings.
What’s in a name?
Initially, the Anglo Saxon name for these little birds was Ruddoc – meaning ‘little red one.’ Meanwhile the Germanic name (for humans) of Robert appeared. This came from the words hrod – meaning fame and behrt – meaning bright. And rhodbert became Robert which was shortened to the nickname Robin. That’s a name well known around us here in Nottingham as our own local hero Robin Hood was here working on his version of restorative justice, stealing from the rich and giving it to the poor. Stay with me … there’s a bit more.
…Time went on and language evolved and human names were often linked to animal names; think Willy Wagtail and Nanny and Billy goats. My name Gerry Rennie is often misheard as Jenny Rennie (and I really quite like being associated with a Jenny Wren). During the Tudor era the Ruddoc with its red breast was often referred to as a Robin Redbreast. And there we are today having shortened it even further to Robin.
And a final note here on the subject of names is to mention the village of Gotham here in Nottinghamshire.This article explains the unexpected link this has to Batman his cheerful sidekick … Robin, bringer of hope, justice and good cheer in his natty red outfit.
