Happy First of Advent

We, and many others this year, may have been a little early with some of our winter lights, in windows and out in the garden. However, this first Sunday in the run up to Christmas, the first Sunday in Advent, is still when things really get going and we were working at it for a lot of the day.  There's now a tree in the garden with lights on it. The outside electrics at Betty's have been rejigged so we can have more lights up there, and the veranda is gently illuminated. A long cable that we need for outside lights wasn't working so a bit of plug fixing was needed there. Our traditional 4 candle advent sculpture now has the first candle burning.
Once most of the outdoor work was complete we celebrated by sitting outside on the new veranda, in the soft illumination of our winter lights, with a small glass of Jägermeister. No need for ice as the temperature was -4°C anyway.
All of this activity and no photographs taken. That was an oversight! Early tomorrow morning our bins are emptied and I needed to move the bins to the road (just a few metres).. So I took my 6000 lumen cycle lamp and used it to experiment a little.
The first picture is of frost crystals on top of the bin, illuminated from the side. The picture is in B&W, but only because the colour version showed so little colour. The extra is taken from the car parking spot, showing The red House, our house and the outside tree, all lit up by the cycle lamp. Not brilliant pictures but fun to make.
When we defrosted our kitchen freezer, a few days ago, I found some meat that had been there several years; some goat meat, and some reindeer. It wasn't the best cuts, which is why it had been somewhat forgotten, so I decided to slow cook it overnight in wine, together with carrots potatoes, onions and the usual garlic and herbs. As I went to bed last night the oven was turned down to 80°C, the stew steaming gently and smelling delightful. It cooked until we got up this morning and was reheated for dinner tonight, together with rice, peas, lingon berries, and some rather mature sauerkraut that needed using up before the new arrives. Absolutely delicious, but every time I cook this I think I must add more vegetables, and then I do, and then I think "still more veggies". It was still at least 60% meat but I could definitely go to 50/50, or even to 60% veggies.