It has been some time since I last logged onto this site. I didn't take a conscious break from my blog. It just sort of happened. With the very cold weather and snow covered ground we spent very little time in the garden, so perhaps I was less inspired to write. There was also the busy fun of preparing for Christmas and the winter colds and viruses, which meant the computer seemed far less appealing in the evenings when I finally sat down for a rest. Then, with a quiet Christmas and a visit to my parents in the North West for New Year, I was enjoying time spent playing with our Little Garden Helpers and relaxing with family.
Routine has now returned however and the garden is looming high on our priorities for 2011. I can feel the excitement returning and I am eager to start planning the gardening year ahead. Garden Lass is crawling now and can even pull herself up to standing with the aid of low furniture so by spring she will be able to get fully involved. I am really looking forward to introducing her to the pleasures of throwing compost all over the garden, scattering seeds everywhere but where I want them and getting soaked by water from the watering can. Just like her older brother and sister Garden Lass has a most brilliant smile which is going to brighten up our garden this year and I really can't wait to share the fun with her.
So, with Garden Girl back at nursery on Thursday, I took Garden Boy and Garden Lass to the garden centre. I thought it would fill the hours while we waited for Garden Girl to come home and plan our activities for us (she took full control of how we structured our days over the Christmas holidays and I guessed we would feel a hole on her first day back). We didn't buy anything on this trip because we haven't really made a proper plan for the months ahead but just being at the garden centre put me in the right frame of mind and offered inspiration. We stopped for a drink and slice of cake while we were there and talked about the garden. I asked Garden Boy if he was looking forward to growing vegetables again this year and he said 'Me want to get the big watering can and water the tomatoes... and peas... and me want to eat them'.
Over lunch at home we told Garden Girl about our trip out and after she had finished telling us off for going without her she told us she wanted to move the apple trees, something she had remembered us saying we needed to do at the start of autumn. Then she added, 'And I want to be in charge. I need to make sure Garden Lass doesn't do it wrong.' So we have a willing
Inspired by our trip to the garden centre I made sure I had my priorities straight and began my own preparations for the garden with a spot of sale shopping. A little bit of style in the garden is very important when one is under the critical eyes of Garden Girl so with Christmas money offering guilt free shopping I have bought myself a lovely warm gilet from Musto and some very comfortable and stylish clothes from White Stuff (the new handbag honestly just slipped into my online shopping basket all on its own!). All I need now is some extra warm footwear and I will be stylishly but practically attired for the garden. And this weekend we will get down to the real shopping and start looking through the seed catalogues!
Posts
We're all excited about our garden at the moment too. But for us right now it's all about tomatoes ripening and trying to get to the raspberries before the chickens do. The plums are starting to turn purple and the hydrangeas are looking beautiful. I love seeing my little ones getting dirty in the garden this time of year. Greetings from Australia and wishing you a great year in your garden!
ReplyDeleteHi Sarah
ReplyDeleteI am very jealous of your tomatoes reaching the ripe stage. It is one of our favourite crops and our Little Garden Helpers just love to eat them straight from the plant. We are just at the stage of choosing which varieties we will grow this year. How strange to think that just as ours are ripening you will be clearing your spent plants away!