Sunday 24th April.

Just going on seven and Lola is happily positioned between my legs. She stayed in her own bed until 6 and she's just had breakfast.

Another day crisp and blue, but no rain again. A very dry month so far. My water butt is dry as a bone, luckily there is the one next to Janet and Leslie which is full to overflowing. I am going to walk up there with Lola around 8 and then head back to Leeds for this afternoon and evening.

Got Ruby from early on Tuesday until Thursday so I will have two clever girls out with me twice a day for those three days.

Yesterday I spent 3 hours on the allotment weeding and banking up the potatoes which are showing because it's going to get cool midweek.

Went to the Brewery yesterday and ummed and arred about getting a burger. Mum had baked a chicken so I made a chicken sandwich instead as I'd already spent quite enough on beer.

The final few days of April and I'm seriously short on funds until May... I do spend too much on beer. It's too expensive for what it is? But it's a fraction of the cost of a café bought coffee, including production, so I feel it's a fair thing to spend valuable pennies on.

At the allotment I fed the rhubarb, which is being forced in the compost bin, manure and brought back some of the smaller stems for mother, who seems rather frail with an issue on her hip. The Chard is going to seed, but I brought a bunch to make into something, with the new potatoes, back at the flat this afternoon. Soon I'll have a bounty of potatoes and will not buy any. Three earlies and two main crop. Some random one has popped up next to the onions so I banked up that one too.

Yesterday I felt really lethargic, so didn't think I'd do much at the allotment, but once I got the juices flowing it was fun in the strange hot and cold wind. The allotment does lots of good things to me - I would never have thought I'd become a gardener!

Mother is stirring so it's time to remove myself from the front room and get ready for the day?