Less outside

 This is the before photo, we got a local guy in the shape our Magnolia tree, this year it has grown loads, we often cut it back ourselves, but decided it needed an expert to take it smaller. We used the same guy as last time, he is very good at explaining what he wants to do.

Now it looks so much better, and all the leaves sorted in one go, hubby shredded everything and I've popped it all into our 2 black dustbins, more leaf mulch next year. It does look bare, next spring it will fill out again, I'm happy it's small again.

I have broad beans sprouting in one bed and a few parsnips growing, as well as onions and leeks in the other bed, and a lone winter cabbage, I will order 4 bags of FYM to spread across, a local family run nursery delivers to our area on a Friday evening.

Inside my cactus in the bathroom is full of colour, these will bloom for weeks, my orchid looks great back in the corner, where it can be seen and not knocked, the poinsettia is fake, I've had it for years, I can't keep the real ones alive in this house.  

The garden looks bright again, the tree was taking away so much light, it's no longer over the veg bed, and hardly any leaves left to fall. I love we still have loads of colour around our plot, the grasses around my wildlife pond are different shades of green, which will help later when the final colours have gone. I have my tulips to plant, they all go into pots, I have worked out where each will go, it's just a case of getting it done. 

I've deep cleaned our kitchen, being open plan the dust from the stairs had got everywhere,  I do like to give everywhere a clean before I put up the decorations, this year I did the kitchen on two separate days, a sign I'm getting older, it's a job I love once it's done. Next to do both bathrooms, again they are not dirty, mainly dusty, but getting  into corners will give me the impression it's cleaner.

We have seen loads of the three little ones this half term, Friday we walked to the village together, and then home with loads of musical instruments to play with, Sunday Molly and Will came over, George went to a birthday party, daughter is not able to leave him, Molly and I did some crafting, mainly stickers and colouring, she was happy.