It’s been nice to see this sun this last weekend, and so like many other people we made the most of it with a trip to a local National Trust garden. it’s only around thirty minutes or so away, near Sevenoaks, but it was our first visit to Emmetts Garden which has some great views over the Kent and Sussex countryside. I’m sharing a couple of photos today, but there’ll be more later in the week.
There was plenty of mud about too, unsurprisingly, and my trusty ‘car boots’ (which live in the boot of the car) came into their own. I’m not a huge fan of mud, but it’s marginally more cope-able with the right shoes. These boots, Timberlands which I bought on our first trip to the States in 2000, are a little tight on me, and a little knackered, and could do with replacing. They’re ok for occasional use but not that comfortable any more for repeated use - my feet need more room these days!
Anyway, plenty of other people had the same ideas about getting out and there was a small queue to get into the car park, and a much larger queue for tea and cake both times we walked past the stables, so we left with a huge bar of chocolate covered marzipan instead. It was nice to get off the beaten track and adding seven thousand steps to the days total is always a plus.
I’m sure we’ll be back at some point, and it’ll be good to see the garden in different seasons. Today though, apart from the mud, there were paper thin hydrangeas, heathers in flower and some fantastic views. We followed a trail which saw us cross a road, which we weren’t expecting and then when we saw a signpost for the garden we questioned our wisdom and headed back the way we’d come.
The preceding week had been a bit of a funny one. MOH has still been suffering with unexplained pain in his side which I was beginning to think was something more serious than we’d voiced between ourselves. Thankfully though, the results from his scan last week, had some answers. A small non-blocking kidney stone is the culprit and he’s further tests and appointments to follow. I think just knowing that it’s been identified has helped with stress levels, now to get on and fix it - though he’s not so keen on knowing how it’ll depart his body. He’s under the impression it will dissolve of its own accord, maybe it will but if so, what’s it doing there in the first place…
I’ve also started the sessions for my online coaching session with Nicky Kentisbeer. You may know Nicky as a blogger, but she’s also a business coach and her online coaching appealed to me when I was close to empty towards the end of last year. The title appealed to me - Get out of your own way - as Nicky’s right when she says that often we know what’s holding us back, and yes, it’s often ourselves. I’m looking forward to doing what it says on the tin.
Work has been as busy as before Barbados, and now I know I will never get to the bottom of my to do list. Knowing that I won’t do everything is kind of liberating, and has helped me refocus on doing what needs to be done rather than the stuff that I think will take me five minutes, and invariably takes much longer, and in the scheme of things isn’t really that important.
I’ve booked a few nights away in Lyons in February. We’re staying in a plush, spa hotel in most probably one of their smallest rooms. It’s got the potential to be quite quirky as it’s got a mezzanine and a bath on its own level - I can’t help but think of our stay at Coombe Abbey in the autumn, but I’ll find out when I get there.
During the week, even though MOH has been cooking dinner each night (yay!) there hasn’t been much time for crochet, so this weekend I’ve put that right. Now with these ‘Jean Senior’ squares completed, i’ve ticked off section three from my colourful Vintage Hearts throw. There’s eleven sections in total, so I’ve a few more to go, though it’s not quite as bad as it sounds as I’m taking an industrial approach and completing all squares of a single design, no matter which section it appears in. So I’m optimistic that all of a sudden I’ll be sewing it up.
That’s probably just as well, as somehow I appear to have ordered some wool for another new project. I’m not quite sure exactly what I’ll use it for, but it was way too pretty to leave on the virtual shelf.