March roundup.

My spending is still far to high for this years challenge, I purchased more items I required for my loom, and more yarn for the loom, plus another add to my yarn stash for knitting. My gardening spend rose this month, I have itchy fingers and want to be outside, hands in dirt. One of the bigger spends on gardening was unplanned, my sister gave me a blueberry bush, so I had to buy a huge pot and compost.
I have one cost in my clothes list, I have almost finished knitting my jumper, so I deducted the cost of the yarn from my stash list and put it on my clothes list, plus 2 pairs of sandals. Maybe I need to rethink my targets, having more time for craft is expensive. I am trying to use some of my stash as well.

We had an expensive month, 2 trips away, most of our spending money in Liverpool came for our £2 saving jar, we had £260 saved, but it was fun. Plus we had to pay for our new windows and doors, already we have lowered the temperature in the house, and neither of us are feeling cold, the draughts have gone.

I also purchased a new glass kettle, our old kettle still worked (we passed it on via our local facebook recycle page), I don't often buy anything, just because.

Waste is still being watched, no food waste at all which is very pleasing, I have also been shopping at our local hardwear shop, where most of the items are not wrapped in plastic, I want some hanging pot liners, they had them in B&Q, but they were wrapped indivulially in plastic, so I refused to purchase them, at our local hardwear shop, they came in a huge cardboard box and you just pull out the ones you need, I am waiting for the size I need to come back in stock.

I was also given a huge pile of books to read, another saving.

So a pleasing another pleasing month. 

Loads in

I am already wearing the green shoes, they are so comfortable, these were purchased for our trip to Spain next week. I threw away 2 pairs of sandals last summer, they were scruffy. This is a big moment for me, the last time I purchased any foot wear was August 2017, seen here. I went the whole of last year without purchasing anything, and should not need any more foot wear this year.

 This is so cool, we are looking for gifts to take to Spain, Izzy never spends money on herself, so I wanted something nice. In Boots, it's Ted Baker and has products in, on shelf for £26, but at the till I paid £1.33, daughter went and purchased the last one on the shelf for herself. I never get a bargain like this, so chuffed. 

Eldest daughter has loads of these crochet kit boxes, she is not using them, so she passed 4 to me, I do want to try different patterns for crochet. The only box I won't make up as the design are the 4 balls of cotton in the bottom right corner, I love these colours, but don't require a long thin scarf. I have other cotton 4ply leftovers I can use with these, and make something else, not sure what at this moment. 

 Each box has yarn, stuffing if required, a hook, a charm, a postcard and a small booklet with the design and instructions in. One box has a dog soft toy, I will start with that one first. What lovely boxes to pass on. 

Thursday was a relax day, we popped to town and only got the things on my shopping list, had a fantastic lunch with younger daughter, no Will he was at nursery. We got home mid afternoon, for a relax, then I went to eldest daughters for tea, with both Josh and Sam, plus their step brother Ethan, Pizza for tea and loads of laughter. How quickly the boys are growing up.
Friday Will and mummy popped over, I had Will for the afternoon, mummy is away in Dublin for the weekend, daddy was at work. We had a lazy evening, we played in the garden all day, it's staggering how much energy a 2year old has, compared to his Nanna and Grancha.
Saturday we have housework, laundry and time in the garden, ensuring everything is good before we are away again.
I have almost finished my jumper, it will be going to Spain with me, I am so pleased, I have been asked by grandson Sam to make him a jumper, the same round neck knit down pattern, but knitted in black, thank goodness it's summer light nights. I will order the yarn once we are back home.

Feeling good

These are finished and count as my 10th finish of the year. I have a tag above showing all items I have made. 

 I love the colours and they were a joy to knit, and quick as these are a smaller size than I normally knit. I am now pushing on with my jumper. 

My wool order arrived, these are for the Leftie shawl, not normally colours I would choose, but they go well together, this won't be started for a while.

 These just because I love the colours, plus they were on sale and took my order to a level for free delivery, I hate paying for delivery.

 Hubby liked the colours in this yarn, I need two balls he is a shoe size 11/12, whilst I was sorting I found the leftovers from his last socks, and the heather will look good on the top, heel and toes.

 These yarns were in my leftover bag, the plain green from hubbies socks and the mixed colour from my last pair. I weighted the mix colour yarn 40grms, so using the green for top, heel and toes, I have enough yarn for another pair of sock. Tell me how many pairs of socks does one person need, I think I might make some for Christmas gifts. 

I have finished reading One good turn by Kate Atkinson, the story line is good, but the author gives each character loads of thoughts and memories, which often does not feel relevant, but the end was good, I never saw it coming, I will probaly not chose another of her books to read. I purchased the book below after reading about on Eileen's blog, it's her book club read.

I'm a bit anoyed, I booked to go on a needle felting day course, it's something I have wanted to do for ages, and it's due in 3 weeks. I got an email last night to say the course has been cancelled, I could rebook or have a refund. I have gone for the refund, I understand when the numbers don't make the course profitable, but the venue is in the country side, and I had to book a night away in a seperate hotel, and I won't be refunded for not using the room. I have decided to use the refund to purchase a couple of kits and teach myself.
I spent most of Wednesday in the garden, I painted my shed twice, and did some cutting back and sorting, we uncovered the wooden garden furniture. Hubby painted the top half of our bungalow white and the small garden wall, everywhere is looking good. Being outside in the sunshine is bliss, roll on summer.
Later fish and chips and a glass of red wine, perfect way to finish the day.

Weekend

I have pure joy in watching this plant flower, I purchased it last December and all the buds fell off once I got it home. The pink is stunning against the blue of my bathroom walls. 

 I have redone my stack of pots and moved them just along the fence. 

 I also got some more oyster grit, I love it under my Acer, it gives this pot a Japanese feel. I have also dug out the sink behind, which had mint in, but never looked good, just need to decide what to plant. 

 This plant is about to flower again, I get flowers twice most years, it's obviously happy in the greenhouse.

 I cut my sarracenia plant back, the foliage had dried, but now I have what looks like a bud growing, this is new to me, can't wait to see what this is. 

Saturday morning after housework, we popped out for a couple of hours, a trip to Homebargains and B&Q, back to the village for lunch at our favorite bistro, I popped to our local pet shop to purchase the grits I required for the garden, it's much cheaper getting it loose and supporting a local shop.
I spent a couple hours in the bottom of the garden, by my shed, just moving pots and sorting the butler sink and Acer pot. Hubby added a new socket to the top of the stairs, our new front door which is now not all glass has made the hall and stairs darker, so we can now plug in a sensor light, with a torch which will light up in a power cut.
We spent the evening watching TV, I finsihed the socks and did a bit more to my jumper, I will show photo of the socks next time.
Sunday was lazy morning and then I popped out for a coffee with eldest daughter, we went to garden center and Hobbycraft, both of us were good, I did not purchase anything, we enjoyed catching up together, followed by another evening of knitting, I need to get my jumper finished by next weekend. I did spend time looking at the heathers in the garden center, as a possible display in my butlers sink.
I woke up early this morning, lovely blue skies and bird song, a perfect start to the day and it's Monday so Will be arriving later to spend the day with us.

Planning

 I have fabric out, I want to make a gift, a knitting storage bag, but I want to add to it and make it special, it is for a special person. in the 1st view I have a choice of fabrics for the outside, 2nd view a choice of fabrics for the inside, 3rd view is using colours the recipient loves, but the fabrics are very light weight, and I not sure would be the best to use. Humm...

I am struggling with this book, the introduction to the characters is long,

I'm hoping the story will get going soon, I'm on page 101

Having posted about reading my latest Jojo Moyes book, I have had loads of comments regarding which book you prefer written by her. I have not read them all, but so far my favourite book is 'The last letter from your lover', it did help as I was reading the letters I heard the voice of Liam Neeson in my head. So what is your favourite Jojo Moyes book?
Our house is now much warmer, most of the windows and all the doors have been replaced with triple glazing, we have two front windows to replace later this year, we will have them double glazed. We were pleased to have dry and still days, rain and wind would have played havoc. Our front door now does not require a key to open from the inside, a great safety feature, now we watch to see how much less we use the heating, already we have turned it down.
Grace my oldest cat, stayed in her basket at the top of the stairs, happily out the way, Purdy was not too interested and kept an eye on both workmen. Grace has still not settled since 3 little dogs moved in next door, at some point she will get used to them, but she still is often disappearing.
I have placed another order for yarn, I don't need anymore yarn, but I wanted some yarn for the Leftie shawl, as my title says I have a plan.

Tidy and tired

This is the last head of blooms, pure joy from this bulb.

 3 stems, one dead

one dying

one in full blossom

 Flowers here soon, this lives in our bathroom.

 No before photo's, just a perfect tidy shed, with still some of my garden ornaments inside, I will wait until April, before putting them back in the garden.

 The shed has been moved back just under three foot, the back is now close to the dividing fence, it's tucked behind the garage. It's not a huge space, but in my tiny garden it nice to have any extra space, I can use this area when planting and sorting my pots. I have a white arch in front of my shed, I am hoping the honeysuckle will grow around it. 

 The whole area has been sorted, a couple of pots have been placed by the greenhouse, and the huge blue one filled with tulips has been moved, so we can see it from the house. I had placed some of my signs which I love. 

Wednesday was a really busy day, the shed at first would not move, but hubby used his cunning plan and we got it pushed back into it's new spot. I emptied everything and sorted, it was a lot of work for such a small space, hubby spent time cleaning his garage. It was pleasing to see no damp spots inside my shed, I worked outside until just after 3pm, then had the best shower ever, and spent the rest of the day, knitting and reading.
I planted the bulbs purchased on my day out with my sister, plus a couple other items. I want to dig out my white sink, not sure what I will plant, something bright.
Yesterday and today I have been at home, we are having our new windows and doors fitted, they work clean and quick, which is good. I hope to spend some more time in my greenhouse today, nothing much to do, just the joy of being outside. I have done loads more to my 2018 blog book, I'm about a third of the way through, I hope to do some more today.

More knitting

I loved this book, I did not think it was her best, but still a good story line. I am now looking at the books I was given for another good read. 

 I have managed to knit some more on this second sock,

 it should be completed by the weekend. 

Leftie shawl, I am itching to knit this, it uses leftover yarn from socks, the design is here on Raverlry, I have seen loads of different colours on Pintrest, it knits up very easy and beautiful. 

Once the sock is finished, I want to finish my jumper, it's in 4ply and will be perfect to take to Spain, we are away early April, just the sleeves to do, should not be a problem. I will not start the shawl until the jumper is finished, I will not.......
BUT my garden is calling, I don't have much to do, but the desire to be outside with dirty hands is huge. I just love the early growing season, so much joy to come, when plants return for another summer, just like old friends popping back to see you.
My Peony has wonderful buds peaking through the soil, this is my oldest plant in the garden, I remember it as a child in my mothers front garden, when she moved, we dug it up and divided into 4, I got one section. It is at least 60 years old.
Today we are going to move my shed, just a couple of feet back, but it will make a difference in my tiny garden. We left a space behind the shed, so it would not look to bare from my neighbours garden, but the new lady has put up a 6' fence and won't be able to see it.

Growing

Both books a good read, both read on my iPad. 

 In my greenhouse, my plants grown from seeds and pips are all doing well and showing signs of new season growth. I have potted up my lime plant, not shown in this photo. They are, Pomegranate, Kiwi, Cape gooseberry, Lemon and Orange plants.

 My coffee plants were overcrowding the cup I purchased them in, so I have planted the bigger ones into this huge pot and left a few in the mug. These will still stay inside for now, the root systems looked very strong. 

 My sister gave me this pink blueberry plant, which is now potted up and on my decking, behind is my other two blueberry plants, both in the same pot. 

I'm not sure if these are all going to make it, I have cut them back and will watch and hope. 

I have been given this huge pile of books

 I've started The girl you left behind, jojo moyes.

 We had Will yesterday so we spent time in the garden, it did try and rain twice, but the sun won out. I wanted to plant my pink blueberry plant and repot my coffee plants, which was done whilst Will was playing. Whilst he had his afternoon nap, I worked in the greenhouse, not much to do, just checking everything. I had put some sweet pea seeds in water before we went away, so I popped them into a deep pot, I don't have much luck growing sweet peas, but they are in the greenhouse with everything crossed they will grow.  I have more summer bulbs to plant later this week, once they have grown I can use them in any empty spaces in the garden. 

I have not done much craft, I am still really tired after our few days away, plus I picked up a cold, so I did not go to sign class, I had not learnt the rest of the hedgehog poem.

It must be garden season, I have cut my finger nails all short and stopped wearing coloured nail gel, my nails always look bad through out the garden season. I always wear gardening gloves but still manage to get my hands filthy. 

More Liverpool

The Liver building

 Ferry across the Mersey

 Old, very old and new all together

 looking out from the museum

 Inside the Library (sorry this is the museum)

 Albert docks, famous for This Morning, on ITV, in 80's and 90's

 China town

 Statues everywhere.

Liverpool was clean, friendly and really interesting, our hotel was just 10 minutes walk from Albert docks and close to the city centre, perfect location. The weather was kind to us, it only rained on us once on Friday and only for a short while, it did rain every night. We used the tour bus as our means of getting around the city, taking the tour on the 1st morning, and then using the bus as a hop on-hop off transport. Loads of places were free to get into, and eating out was reasonable. We had half a pint of larger and a coffee in the Cavern club and got change from £5, which surprised us.
The mixture of old and new building made the skyline different, we could see the liver building almost everywhere we went.
We did not take a trip on the ferry to cross the Mersey, I'm not a fan of boats, and the wind made the sailings not so smooth, it was enough to see it.
I enjoyed the trip on the eye, it was windy, but not too bad, the views from the top was breath taking. We both loved the library, very old exterior but the inside was modern and bright. We did not go to the Tate, we rather spent our time in the city mixing with everyone. We did walk through the huge shopping area, but I did not step inside any shops, there was nothing I wanted, I don't bother with bringing anything home any more.
To sum our trip up, it was a fabulous couple of days, very tiring, but great fun, and yes I would go back.

Liverpool

We are very impressed with Liverpool, the weather is good, very windy but dry, it did not stop us having a trip on the eye. We are back in our room resting before seeing the city at night.