strawberry season

I've been sick, again (goodness, do kids ever bring a lot of germs home from school)! And I haven't felt much like knitting lately. However, I picked up a few balls of Sirdar Baby Bamboo in silver, and bought this lovely pattern, in the hope that I would be inspired to knit myself a summer cardigan. We'll see how that goes.

In other news, the strawberries are ready! This bowl won't last the day, but there will be more tomorrow. I must say, growing soft fruit is the most rewarding type of gardening. I love flowers, but you can't eat most of them :)

my garden

I just finished reading The Secret Garden, by Frances Hodgson Burnett. I loved this book as a child, and reading it as an adult, I've found a depth and understanding in some of her characters which really spoke to me. I've been through some dark times in the past 6 months, and I don't think I'm quite out of the woods yet, but this story gives me hope.

If you've been following me for a while, you'll know that we had to redo the gardens in front of our house last Autumn. The weather has been cold, so things aren't too far along yet (and there's plenty of holes waiting for new plants). However, I thought I would show you a few photos of the lovely things growing and sharing their beauty with us.

view of the front garden

tulips and grape hyacinths

pulmonaria and periwinkle

lettuce seedlings

rhubarb

cranberry bushes

strawberry blossoms