Odds and Sods - April 2019

April was a month of contrasts - we've had cold and rain, but also some absolutely beautifully warm days when you didn't even need a coat.  It's made clothing admin very difficult to determine!

Because the weather has been very changeable, I've been spending a lot of time indoors instead of gardening and have managed to get lots of knitting done.

I haven't done any cable knitting for ages but I'm thrilled with this - Dad's birthday cardigan.   (I messed up when I ordered the wool and the wrong colour was delivered, so I had to re-order.  All is not lost though as I'm going to make Mum a matching cardi for her birthday too with the wrong wool!)

Finn's had a smart new haircut and poses so nicely to show it off!

I've finally finished Nan's quilt - post to follow soon.   Mum and I have been to a couple of quilt exhibitions recently and I'm so inspired but have decided to take the easy option this time after all that hand sewing for Nan's quilt.   Squares are fab as there's no tacking involved and you can go straight to the sewing machine.  Fab!

I've been trying to cook some different stuff recently - I know I get very lazy and unmotivated and end up making the same old meals time after time.  This, however, is crab gnocchi.  I KNOW!!!   And it was delicious and is definitely one to make again.

A family trip had been planned to Cromer at Easter, but, due to sickness and transport issues, only Shannon and I managed to get there.  It was a beautiful day and there were people on the beaches and in the sea.   So lovely to see so many people out and about in the sunshine.

I took this photo while stuck in traffic one afternoon - somehow sitting in the car doesn't seem so bad though when you have so much beauty to look at.

Aaah, now, this.   I discovered that I have finally passed my exams and am a fully qualified Horticulturist, with a diploma and everything!   I'm basically at entry level to work as a gardener for the National Trust or RHS.  It's all very exciting (and I've picked up two more jobs on the back of this too, which is great news).

What a cutie!

Amanda and I took Finn over the park one evening after work - Amanda's job was to entertain Finn while I was on a mission to strip the beech trees of their leaves for my gin - you can just see my swag bag of leaves slung over my shoulder!   It's all brewing away at the moment and I'm looking forward to summer cocktails!

Other People's Gardens - March 2019

I've been lucky enough to work in a number of different gardens recently which is fab because I can never get bored!

I love working on these beds - they are so full that I can dig stuff up, divide it, and then move it around the garden.

I've even split babies away from parent plants and popped them into gaps in the paving slabs, to try and deter grass and weeds.

This garden gave me a real crisis of confidence half way through - I hadn't had specific instructions to clear this fence but I could see that it needed doing, so I took matters in hand and took down all the old dead wood.   But then got scared that the garden owners might not have wanted me to do it!   As they weren't actually there that day, I couldn't even go and find them to ask.  Luckily, they absolutely loved it and were excited to start planning what to plant.

Sam and Simon are moving house soon so needed some help with clearing their garden down in Sussex, so I popped down for a weekend to help.  I wish I'd taken some "before" and "after" photos rather than just "during"!

While staying with Sam and Simon that weekend, we went over to Tim and Sara's for Sunday lunch and I very cheekily talked Tim out of a chimney pot - they still had another three though!   I was allowed to have it on the promise of sending a photo every year on Tim's birthday of what the chimney pot was being used for.  Also, I had to promise NEVER to let it go outside of the family, so I took the decision to let Mum and Dad have it for now, but to have it back once they no longer wanted it, or, more likely, check if Shannon or Amy wanted it next.

Mum found a "plant-mover-around-the-garden-thing" on castors - I have no idea what it's really called but it's jolly useful for the chimney pot!  

So much colour in Mum and Dad's garden.

And this photo sums up the after effects of working in any of my other gardens - I usually end up having a little sofa snooze with my boy after all the fresh air and exercise!