All things lovely

Its been a busy month, allotment and crochet - the best things in my life [other than family of course]

Allotment - I finally paid for this years plot, only a month late, it costs us £48.50 a year, we have quite a large plot now and we consider it money well spent, we try not to spend money on things that can be made, K loves a good pallet!! We were lucky to take over the plot along with an 8x6 Greenhouse, the greenhouse was never going to be fully used at the plot, it would be used at home though. K and I agreed that in the Autumn, when he had some time [work keeps him busy] that we would move it home but N [my brother] needed to fill some time between jobs so I asked him to help me move it and we did. We took out all the glass, blimey, those clips hurt your thumbs after a while, only one piece was broke, by me. Then came the dismantling, or not as it so happens, N couldn't do it, all the nuts and bolts were seized so we decided that 1.5 miles isn't too far to walk a greenhouse frame, is it? Let me tell you that at the end of the 1.5 miles it is too far! N has a bigger stride than me so there I was staggering along holding a bouncing frame that either got caught up in tree branches or tipped when the wind blew, still, plenty of people got a laugh from the sight of us. When we got back home another obstacle presented itself - how to get it in the back garden, cue tipping it upside down and lifting it over a 6ft gate and then traversing 2 sheds and a sky dish, luckily for us a rather elderly neighbour came and helped out and steadied the frame as we lifted and shoved it into place. Glass was put back in and replacement glass bought £5 for 2 pieces, yes, I broke another bit! Oh how I admired it. I also washed it and then 2 days later it was groaning under the weight of the seeds that were planted - 195 little pots and 2 trays - runners, broad beans, toms, spring onions, swiss chard, lettuce, radish, beetroot and peas to name but a few. Within 6 days the radish were through and after 2 weeks everything was showing, a 2nd lot of all the seeds has been done and some of the 1st lot are away to the plot tomorrow. The plot itself is taking shape now thanks to K's hard work, in the summer it has full sun all day but in the winter it suffers from being completely water logged - last week it dried out and the digging started, whilst being careful of the frogs and their tiny babies :] 3 beds are now done - 3 more to do, a lot of weeding has been done but there is still a mountains worth to do - great compost stuff!

Crochet - I've done it, I've cracked the secret way of hooking, well, with a little help. Way back in Jan 2012 I wanted to learn how to crochet, I've watched EVERY clip on you tube, I've read EVERY book there is but no, I couldn't do it, fingers, hook and brain refused to connect, oh how I longed to have a blanket of pretty coloured granny squares :[  And then K saw it, and then K came rushing home to tell me about it and then K took me there, where? Magpie and Thimbles little workshop space above the book store, bliss. Hazel does workshops, patchwork this and fabric print that, some are priced way out of my league and if I'm honest [which I am] I'm not interested in some of them but wait, a crochet class to learn how to do a granny square is coming up. I booked it so fast you couldn't hook a 5ch in that time [see, I know the lingo] Thursday just gone saw me at the workshop sitting down worried that fingers, hook and brain still wouldn't "get it" and to start of they didn't! But with much tutoring by Hazel I walked out of there with a 2" square [we wont look at the dc's instead of the trc I did] My brain was buzzing with the terminology and trying hard to remember what to do I came home and wrote it down, next day I sat down and had a go, it was awful - half circle, half triangle lol. Out came a beginners book with a pattern and I had another go, yes, I got it, whilst its not perfect it is a square and in the corner where I went wrong I know what I did and what I should of done. I am the happiest woman ever!!!!  Hazel is going to be running a class on how to make a skirt, its been decades since I last done any clothes making and I really want to have a go but I cant afford to buy material and get it wrong so . . . . I shall be paying for the class, going along and making C a skirt and then once its all sitting in my brain I'll be ok and able to make the summer wardrobe she so desperately needs at a hopefully  much discounted price versus the shops. C cant wait for me to make her something - long may that live.

I hope it all works to plan but if it doesn't then we'll battle through, we always do

Helen x

Snow, Puberty and Crochet

Wow, what a title - talk about a mix of things to say.

Snow is starting to melt away slowly, C and D are out there building things, DS is building a snowman and C is building an igloo, photos will be taken.

C is suffering the pangs of puberty, crying, stroppy, high, low etc. Its all very confusing and frustrating for her. Its testing the patience of everyone!

I can't crochet, more wool has been flung across the room that ever. I can't get my fingers to do what they should be doing and I can't follow tutorials written or on you tube. Its very annoying!!

Off to do some more washing, drying and ironing - the never ending tasks!!

H x

How hard is crochet???

I'm beginning to think I can't count! Mum at mumssimplyliving blog has a fantastic tutorial on how to crochet - can I do it, can I heck!! Those of you that crochet say how easy it is, though of us that can't crochet say how hard it is lol. I'm now loosing count of stitches [there's only 3] so I'm packing it in for the night and having another go tomorrow.

Today I didn't wake up till 9.40am - unheard of, even better was D not waking up till 10am - double unheard of

Washing, drying and ironing have been the order of things here today, not exciting but it was too cold to venture out, C went to see her Dad and then had a birthday party to go to and D stayed at home and played Wii and was thrashed again by me at Pool - poor lad hehe

K is on a late shift today
K is on a double shift tomorrow

Right - off to gather tea together

Frugality is the key word here as we don't get paid till Tuesday [2 days to go] and we have £14 in the bank and K needs petrol. Frugality is the key word for Feb too as we have overspent on nothing this month so I'm trying to reign it in a bit - Ebay is earning its keep for the next few months so that we have petrol money for August when we go on hols

Hope you all had a nice weekend

H x

Knitting, crochet and other things

K has been off work [annual leave] this week and has just gone back. We've had a lovely week but oh boy has the housework suffered so in between hoovering, washing, drying and dusting I'm blogging!!  mumssimplylivingblog - I've been following the tutorial the talented Mum has put on her blog to show  complete eejits how to do it [I'm the complete eejit - no one else is!] I'm slowly but surely mastering it, in fact, I've ordered a book from amazon to back up the tutorial. I've also bought and received a book on Knitting Christmas bits so I've been attempting to do some of that - made a Star, half of which looked good and half of which did not - I know where I went wrong and practise does make perfect. I'd better get better as I'm planning on all this knitting and crocheting paying off in October or November as I'll sell it all then at a craft fair - fingers crossed.

I need to update my blog list

C is off to stay with Nana for the night - D will make the most of it and go on the Wii no doubt. I'll knit lol

If I manage to make something half decent I'll show a picture - don't expect one any time soon!

H x