Imbolg 2025

Last Sunday (2nd February) it was Imbolg, more commonly known as Imbolc. I celebrate it on the 2nd, but some people celebrate on 1st Feb, or from sundown on the 1st to sundown on the 2nd. And others may do it on 31st January. I normally make pancakes, which as I've said before, are a good fit for this sabbat. This year I made oatmeal pancakes again, using this recipe from Don't Waste the Crumbs: https://dontwastethecrumbs.com/oatmeal-pancakes/

Pancake Day is later this year (because Easter is later), it's not till 4th March. Last year it was 13th February. I normally make English pancakes (similar to crepes) for that, but the DWTC oatmeal pancakes recipe would be good too. (See the bottom of the post for a few links with inspiration for that day.)

I had a bit of trouble getting the mix to come together this time, but never mind! lol. They still tasted quite nice. I had them with butter and lemon. I just remembered that I normally eat them with golden syrup, but I forgot this year. Here's a pic: 

 

I also had a San Pellegrino limonata drink with them (I normally have some kind of lemonade as well). Here's a picture:

 

In the evening, I went to the park for sunset. Going to the country or the beach and takng sunset pics is something I tend to do fo festivals during the warmer months. However, some years I go to the beach for Imbolg, most recently in 2022. For Imbolg 2023 I went to the park instead (a few days afterwards) and had been intending to go last year as well, but the weather wasn't very good, so I didn't in the end.

There was quite a nice sunset. Here are a couple of photos:  

Sunset at the entrance to the park.

Sunset in Buckingham Park, Shoreham-by-sea.

 

There was also a light parade going on in the park, which was nice. :)

Part of the display for the light parade.

 

I hadn't been to that park for a while (I've mainly been going to Hove Park), so it was good to go.

When I got back, I lit a candle because the light is growing stronger at this time of year. I had a grey one this time because it seems like a cosy, "winter into spring" colour. Here's a photo:

 

I'd also planned to make some hot chocolate but didn't end up making it till a few days later. (Some years I make spicy hot milk, but more more recently I've had hot chocolate instead.

I was going to use a recipe for Polar Express hot chocolate that I first made last Imbolg. So I made this one instead, from Belle of the Kitchen: https://belleofthekitchen.com/polar-express-hot-chocolate-recipe/ 

It was quite nice. It was similar the other one and to the Chrismas Eve hot chocolate I've made for the past few years, except it has both cocoa powder and melted chocolate (the others don't have cocoa powder).

So now we've had the first sabbat of 2025 and we're moving towards spring. This is a weird time of year for me (January to February), it just feels dreary and cold and not much to be inspired about (although I try!). The weather has been quite cold lately (about 5C/40F during the day and 3C/37F at night in my area), but it's supposed to be getting warmer towards the end of February. As I said in my autumn-winter 2024 update, we haven't had any snow in my area of Sussex. I don't know if we'll get any at all this year. 

Although we've still got some more of winter to go yet, I'm looking forward to spring. The next festival (in the Northern Hemisphere) will be Oestara/Ostara aka the Spring Equinox (20th March this year) which is the "official" start to spring. I'll do a post about my celebrations. (In the Southern Hemisphere it will be Madron/Mabon aka the Autumn Equinox.)

Hope you had a good Imbolg/Imbolc! :) (Or hope you had a good Lammas for those in the Southern Hemisphere!) 

P.S. For some mid-late winter inspiration, check out these links: 

Seasonal Cooking For February (An Oregon Cottage): https://anoregoncottage.com/seasonal-cooking-for-february/

Winter to Spring Quotes (YR Studio): https://yrstudio.co.uk/blogs/adriana-tudorache-blog/winter-to-spring-quotes-slow-living-english-countryside

A helpful post from Adriana Tudorache (YR Studio) about how to love seasonally when you're tired of winter and rain: https://yrstudio.co.uk/blogs/adriana-tudorache-blog/how-to-live-slowly-winter-rain

 

Pancake Day:

My post (written 10 years ago!): https://livingseasonal.blogspot.com/2015/02/pancake-day.html

Getting Ready for Pancake Day (Lavender and Lovage): https://www.lavenderandlovage.com/2021/02/getting-ready-for-pancake-day.html 

Plus, check out las year's Imbolg post for a few more links, as well as more winter links (scoll to bottom of post): https://livingseasonal.blogspot.com/2024/02/imbolg-2024.html