July 2017 Allotment Update -

It’s been a while is becoming my catch-phrase this past couple of weeks.

I sat down at my desk on Monday and started to go through all my recipes on the blog. There are now over 550 published articles on the blog. It’s taking me some time to go through them all, dust them off, and start sharing them again. I hadn’t done that in months. Since the middle of May in fact when life (and death) got in the way of having time to do anything other than blog and work.

The longer I continued to focus on work and family, the more difficult it became to sit at the desk and write a blog post, or go to the allotment to garden. Especially because visits to the allotment have been bittersweet.

Those onions are just about ready to harvest:

It kind of reminded me why we love growing with the kids so much when I saw the first-time joy all over again through their eyes.

The peas, the peas are taking over 2 raised beds, they are everywhere at the moment in a giant tangle of pods and climbing tendrils. I will have to do a big collection in the next couple of days and then set about podding and freezing the peas themselves.

Of course that depends on being able to get the peas home safe and sound. It can be a bit of an issue when they are the most delectable treat eaten freshly picked, particularly when you’re 5 years old.

The sweetcorn and tomatoes are also thriving, plus there’s a new baby aubergine fruiting away in the polytunnel. Nevermind all the berries, garlic, courgettes, pumpkins, and much more.

All of this sounds like a really bountiful allotment and it is. However, we have struggled with time for the past 2 months or so. It’s the one thing that will always sabotage us. The allotment has become very overgrown and choked with weeds. We never did get to finish the last couple of raised beds and have to make do with what we’ve got this year.

For now I’m going to count my blessings and move forward. I can’t change the fact that the weeds have grown but I hope to get down there later on today with my trusty gloves.

You’ll find more regular updates over on my Instagram account which is WholesomeIreland and I’m trying to keep my Insta-Stories updated everyday. I’d love to connect with you over there if you’re interested.

In other news:

The Leaving Cert is over, we all came out the other end in one piece. College applications and grant forms are filled in and all we can do is wait and hope that the 17 year old gets the course she hopes towards the end of August.
The kids are all now on holidays, bringing new challenges around working from home. I’m very grateful to have some help in this regard though.
Last weekend I worked with Lidl Ireland* on their LGFA Future Stars Roadshow in Cavan and Galway. There I worked with Tom Dalton of TD Fitness on some cookery demonstrations and chatted with other parents about feeding their families on a budget, fussy eaters, and how to find time out for themselves in a busy lifestyle. This weekend coming I’ll be on the Roadshow again in Dublin and Cork.
I’ll have a new recipe with one of my favourite ingredients on the blog later on this week.
The wash basket refuses to empty, no matter how many washes I put on, and the socks still haven’t learned to sort themselves.

Finally, for those wondering about the bank situation…

Nope, no change there. We got another non-update letter today, the first since the beginning of April, telling us that the review is ongoing. Apparently we’ll hear again from the bank within 60 days, when I fully expect to get another non-update. It’s now been over 6 months since they first admitted their error. Although we have been returned to our tracker rate they still insist we owe them €40,000 more than we should. No redress (restoring the account to the way it should be), no compensation, and no meaningful engagement with us.

*Disclosure

I mention Lidl Ireland as I’m the Lidl Ireland Full Shop Ambassador and you’ll find me writing about my full shop every week on their website.

You’ll also find me popping up in their weekly brochures!