Nesting

The holidays are a memory and I find myself settled back into my usual obsession; nesting.  The holidays make me want to nest, the end of the holidays makes me want to nest, winter, spring, summer and fall make me want to nest. You get the picture.  Winter time nesting is made of hearty comfort foods and cups of tea with honey.  Extra afghans and blankets are on the beds and draped across the backs of the sofas.  The blinds are opened wide so that the winter sunshine can stream in or, even better, we can watch the snow fall and blow across the bare limbed trees in our yard.  Fires in the fireplace morning and evening.
We have an unsightly stack of board games, decks of cards stacked in the corner.  Nesting supplies.
The red cast iron dutch oven and my old cast iron skillet live almost permanently on the stove, in the oven or on the counter air drying for the next use.  The weekends always bring a pot of homemade soup.  A skillet of bannock or fry bread is no surprise.  Strong coffee, hot tea or dark hot chocolate steam continually in the kitchen.  Meatloaf, chicken and dumplings, pot roast anyone?
Orange, cloves and cinnamon are the scents I crave. 
A big old fashioned picnic basket sits on our hearth filled with mittens, hats and scarves. 
By 6 p.m. I'm home from work, showered and making dinner in my flannel pajamas.  I have more flannel pajamas and thick bathrobes than I do dresses or pumps.
Speaking of shoes, there are three options now-brown riding boots, black Uggs or L.L. Bean duck shoes.  Dressy days require my black wool hooded car coat and plain old winter days I wear my red barn coat.
Gold Bond lotion sits on my nightstand, winter in the Mitten is more than those girly Bath & Body Works lotions can hold up against. 
I reread the best books during the winter, The Little House books, The Mitford books, The James Herriot All Creatures Great & Small series.  All of the aforementioned reinforce nesting.
Oh winter, I don't mind you a bit!  A person can say, "it's just too cold to go anywhere" and they are sensible instead of introverted.  Topping everything with gravy helps get a body through the frigid days ahead.  An extra cup of coffee is only reasonable before shoveling your way to the car. 
And flannel pajamas are sexy evening wear ;)