Monthly Round Up (April '09)

Golly gosh ... how did April whizz by that fast? :-O Pull up a chair - I have loads about which to bore you yakker on.

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I did something new this month. For the first time ever - in my whole life - I bought a lawnmower. Really, of course, that is man's work, but since I had neither man nor lawnmower, I had to acquire the latter and assemble it myself. I don't think it's possible to acquire the former in a box, take it home, and assemble yourself with a screwdriver and some allen keys?

It was early on in my blogging life that I first admitted my hatred of lawn-mowing, but that garden was a LOT bigger, and so was the mower. My new dinky mower is altogether less of a weight to push around. Our garden at this house is approximately the size of half a postage stamp. Those two facts make the job less of a chore and more of a pleasure.

Now I have started to do 'something' in the garden, I should really also start to think about adding some pots, a border or two, and moving the washing line so the shed doesn't stop it whirligigging. Hmmm, maybe I'll think about it a bit more before I actually do anything? I don't want to strain myself, do I?

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No.2's 2008/09 football season is almost at an end now; there are no more League games to be played. Not that this is a 'real' league anyway, the Government insisting they are too young to be allowed to play in a competitive league. But at the end of the season, there are usually some tournaments, and last weekend saw the first of those this year.

No.2's team did really well, finishing joint runners up in their age group - this is the medal he received:

Guess with which other team they were joint runners up? Remember my post of last year on the whole saga of the ex Assistant Coach going to coach another team, and taking players with him? Yep ... they were the fellow joint runners up. Although they ended up with the same number of points overall, the two teams did have to play one another. No.2's team won it - by a single goal to nil. Needless to say, No.2 and his teammates were all very pleased about that, and their coach told me she'd been grinning ever since.

Speaking of No.2 and his sporting urges: He has just started to attend cricket coaching at a local club. He knew precisely zilch about the sport before he first went, and is enjoying the sessions enormously. My dad, had he been alive would have been SO proud; cricket being his absolute favourite sport, and one which he played for many years. He loved cricket so much that after he was a bit too old to play anymore, he trained to become a cricket coach for kids and coached them for a few years; and he and his friend Mr P were the groundsmen at their club. It was lovely to be at a cricket ground again - albeit one to which I've never been before. I spent many a summer's afternoon at cricket grounds as I was growing up ... I guess it felt a bit like coming home.

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Do you remember me saying, when we moved in here, that there was a chap living next door who played classical music soon after we got here? Over the past 8 months that we've been here, we've exchanged pleasantries, etc. At Christmas we got chatting out in the car park about 'stuff' and he was telling me that he is divorced, but still on good terms with his ex-wife (in fact he'd just spent Christmas with her and their child(ren). He's always warm and friendly and chats to the children too.

Fast forward a bit and one evening this month he sent me a text message inviting me round "for a glass of wine". My phone was under a pile of paperwork on the kitchen table, and I didn't see the message until I went to bed soon after 11pm. I should point out here that he is the 'organiser' of the general residents' thingy here and has a list of our phone numbers, mobile numbers, email addresses, etc. In fact we each have a copy in case we need to contact someone in any kind of emergency. The next morning I sent a text back saying I was terribly sorry but I hadn't got the message until very late and that I apologised for not answering.

The next evening the phone went. Guess who? Would I like to go round "for a glass of wine"? As it happened, I had a friend coming round that evening, so couldn't go, but Dear Reader ... the panic! I'm sure he is just being friendly, at least I hope he is, because I absolutely do not want to be anything other than neighbourly-friendly with him. *blush* He's very nice, but I'd feel a whole lot better if he'd just said 'pop in for a coffee' or something.

Please tell me I'm worrying about nothing!

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Many of you will have seen the stunning crocheting that goes on at Attic24 by the very talented Lucy. As the more observant of you may have noted, crochet isn't my 'thing'. I have tried, and there's no doubt I am improving, but it's not something which comes naturally to me. Nevertheless, I wanted to give her crocheted Jar Jackets a try. In the kitchen we keep an old jam jar full of pens and pencils:

The colours in that room are green, yellow and cream, so I went and rummaged through the old stash, and found some (admittedly grotty) yarn. A bit later, I had myself one of these:

Which looks better than a plain jam jar, doesn't it? No.1 was very impressed and announced it a 'funky pen pot'. No.2 would like me to do him a red and white one for his bedroom (which is a shrine to his love for Liverpool FC). It's not as nice as any of Lucy's but I think that's because it's not as colourful as any of Lucy's. I need to be less constrained with colour!

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Speaking of crochet, I found some bargain yarn at Hobbycraft over Easter: Sirdar's Just Soya was on a 'Sale' shelf at £1.49 a ball. I bought 4, with a view to trying something crochety:

Apologies for fuzzy photo

Also on sale at Hobbycraft that day, A4 sheets of felt for 27 pence each. At that price, I nabbed a few:

I'll use them as backing for appliqué pictures, or other appliqué work.

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I had a birthday during the second half of April. Thank you to all the friends and family who helped make it a special day and gave me some very lovely gifts and cards - xx. I made myself a little birthday '09 highlights collage (this is purely for me, so I always remember, and if I put it here, it will automatically upload to a blog book. Please forgive the self-indulgence):

That birthday will forever be remembered as 'the one with the tummy bug'. Although as a way to lose 4lbs in 24 hours, and half a stone so far, it was a corker. Apologies for not getting round to read and comment on as many blogs as usual this last week - I was kind of indisposed.

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Right, I'd better stop now, or you'll get bedsores from spending so long in one position. I'll end the post with a question No.2 asked me the other day - I'd be interested in your thoughts:

No.2: Muuu-um?

Me: Yes, lovely?

No.2: If girls had a willy, do you think they'd play with it all the time like boys do?

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