🎃 Our Little Friday Letter, (Friday, 17th October, 2025)
October 17, 2025/
A weekly catch-up from Our Little House in the Country
💌 Warm Welcome
Happy Friday, my friends — and thank you, as always, for being here.
I hope your week has held a few quiet moments of ease, even if life’s been busy. Here, the mornings are misty now, the hedgerows are glowing in their last bursts of colour, and everything feels just that little bit slower.
This week, I’ve been thinking a lot about belonging — about how the places that shape us can become so ordinary that we stop seeing them. A little reel I shared on Instagram, filmed on the country road I travel several times a day, reminded me how much beauty hides in plain sight.
So, this week’s theme is a love letter to that road, and to the idea that when we finally slow down, the world around us becomes quietly extraordinary.
There’s a country road I travel several times a day. It winds between fields and hedgerows, past a small bridge and a row of trees that lean into one another as if whispering secrets. It’s the road that leads to the yard where our pony lives — the same stretch I once walked as a child, cycled as a teenager, and now drive as a mother.
For years, I barely noticed it. It was simply the way there — a means to an end. School runs, lessons, errands, another journey squeezed between all the rest. There were seasons of my life when I hurried along it without seeing a thing, my mind busy with to-do lists, worries, deadlines, and distractions.
But something has shifted over the past year.
Perhaps it’s age, perhaps it’s the rhythm of slow living finding its way more deeply into my bones. Maybe it’s the fact that the chaos has quietened, that my days, though full, no longer run on urgency. Whatever the reason, I’ve started seeing again — really seeing.
Now, each journey feels different. I notice the way the light moves across the hedgerows; the scent of cut grass in early summer; the shimmer of frost along the ditch in January. The fields change colour almost overnight, the sky tells me the weather before the forecast does, and every bend reminds me of another season of my own life.
This ordinary road has become a teacher.
It reminds me that beauty is never far away — it’s just that we forget how to look. The extraordinary hides in the folds of the everyday: the same stretch of road, the same walk to the school gate, the same view from the kitchen window. When we slow down enough to notice, we realise how much life we’ve missed while rushing through it.
I think that’s the quiet gift of belonging — to live long enough, and slowly enough, in one place that it becomes a mirror of your own seasons. The land changes as you do. The familiar becomes sacred. You begin to understand that meaning doesn’t come from chasing somewhere new, but from paying attention to where you already are.
We spend so much of our lives striving — to get ahead, to get through, to get there. But thereis rarely where the beauty lives. It’s here, in this moment, in this small corner of the world that’s been patiently waiting for us to look up and see it.
Lately I’ve come to believe that slowing down isn’t about doing less — it’s about seeing more. It’s about living wide awake to the quiet wonder threaded through the ordinary.
So this week, I’m simply giving thanks for the road I’ve always known — and for the reminder that sometimes the most beautiful places are the ones we’ve travelled all our lives, only to finally notice them again.
Maybe you have a “road” like that too — a view, a walk, a daily rhythm that’s always been there. Perhaps this week is the moment to see it anew. To pause long enough to recognise the quiet beauty that’s been patiently waiting in the background of your busy days.
This week on the blog, I shared Five Ways I Cozy Up Our Home for Autumn— a simple, heartwarming post all about creating comfort with what you already have. Think lamps instead of big lights, layers of throws and cushions, soft candlelight, and little touches of nature gathered from outside — all those small, familiar rituals that make a home feel instantly warm and welcoming in October.
If you’re looking for a little extra autumn inspiration, you’ll also find plenty in our Autumn Collection — filled with cozy journaling prompts, mindful ways to savour the season, ideas for autumn walks, and slow, grounding rituals for home and heart.
And, of course, for anyone already feeling that Halloween spirit, our Halloween 2025 Collection is brimming with cozy, spooky-but-not-scary ideas — from movie nights and themed books to fun recipes, games, and gentle ways to celebrate at home with your family. Perfect for these darker, candle-lit evenings. 🎃
🔮 Coming Up on the Blog
Next week, I’ll be sharing a post all about the traditions and origins of Halloween and Samhain — tracing their roots in Irish and Celtic culture. I really enjoyed putting this one together; it felt a little like being back in my teaching days, diving deep into research and discovering where so many of our familiar customs actually come from. From bonfires and harvest feasts to carving turnips (long before pumpkins ever arrived!), it’s such a fascinating part of our heritage — and I can’t wait to share it with you.
Then, just before the end of the month, I’ll be sharing something a little different but very close to my heart — the “31 Days of How to Winter Well” calendar for November. It’s a gentle guide for embracing the slower pace of the season ahead — filled with simple ideas, reflections, and rituals to help you ease into winter with warmth and intention. ❄️
📸 This Week on Instagram
I finally got myself back into the swing of things on Instagram this week — sharing little snippets of life here at Our Little House in the Country.
Last weekend, we spent a gorgeous morning at Newgrange Passage Tomb in Brú na Bóinne, just a short drive from home. It was one of those calm, misty autumn mornings — dull and damp, yet so full of colour and quiet beauty. I’ve been there many times before, but this was the first time my kids had actually been inside the passage tomb itself, and it felt truly magical. We finished the morning with coffee at the visitor centre and left with that lovely sense of stillness you get after spending time somewhere ancient and special.
I also shared a cosy little post about my complete inability to cope with overhead lights — it’s lamps, lamps, and more lamps in this house! It turns out I’m not alone in that one — it seems many of us are firmly in the “no big lights ever” club.
And finally, I shared a small reel of the country roadthat inspired this week’s theme — the one I travel several times a day, every day. It’s not the most polished video (it’s dash-cam footage, after all!), but it captured the essence of that little stretch of road that means so much to me.
If Instagram is your thing, you’ll find me there most days, sharing small, cosy glimpses of home, countryside life, and the changing seasons. And if I’ve been a little quieter in the comments lately, please know it’s only because I’ve been taking a step back here and there to slow down, rest, and find balance. I’m still reading, watching, and appreciating all your beautiful posts — and I’m so grateful for this lovely, supportive corner of the internet we share. 💛
☕ Things I’ve Been Loving from Around the Internet
This week, I wanted to give a little shout-out to an old friend of mine who’s just created the most beautiful, cosy corner of the internet. You’ll find Jessica’s lovely new account, @thecosyedithq, over on Instagram — and it’s every bit as warm and welcoming as she is.
Jessica shares gentle, home-focused snippets from her gorgeous new house — all about creating a cosy space, slowing down, and soaking up the beauty of autumn. It’s a brand-new account, but already such a soothing, thoughtfully curated feed that feels like a deep breath in the middle of a busy day.
I had the pleasure of visiting Jessica’s new home earlier this week, and it’s every bit as beautiful in person. She’s such a creative soul, and it’s been so lovely to reconnect after all these years. Fun fact: Jessica is actually a past pupil of mine (and I taught her sister!) and she was one of the sweetest little choir singers at my wedding twenty years ago. There’s even a photo I share most Decembers — a tiny Jessica in her full choir robes — and it still makes me smile every time I see it.
So if you fancy following a beautifully calm, heartfelt home account, pop over and say hello to Jessica at @thecosyedithq — and tell her I sent you her way. I’m so delighted to see her sharing her creativity again, and I just know you’ll love her cosy little space as much as I do. ✨
🌿 Follow Along
If you’d like to keep in touch between letters, you’ll find me most days over on Instagram — sharing gentle reminders, snippets of everyday life, and chats over coffee in Stories.
If there’s something you’d love to see in a future newsletter, blog post, or printable, or if you just want to say hello — I’d truly love to hear from you.
Comments on the blog or Instagram are always welcome too. I read every single one.
🌿 Until Next Time
Thank you, as always, for taking time to read and share these Friday letters.
I hope this weekend brings a small pocket of calm — maybe a walk, a cup of something warm, or a quiet moment to notice the beauty in your own everyday places. Because it’s all there, waiting — in the familiar paths, the well-worn routines, and the corners of life we’ve stopped rushing past.
Wishing you a slow, gentle weekend from our little house in the country to yours,
Ciara x
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Hi, I’m Ciara — writer, homemaker, and the heart behind Our Little House in the Country. I share slow, seasonal living from our cozy corner of the Irish countryside, where life is a little messy, a little magical, and deeply real.
Whether it’s a teen-friendly recipe, a lived-in home moment, or a reminder to let go of perfection, this space is about embracing the everyday and finding joy in what’s already here.
Come in, kick off your shoes, and stay a while — the kettle’s always on.
