Many thanks for all your birthday wishes. Had a lovely family meal out on the day to celebrate the three birthdays and a wedding anniversary which come in the same week. Excellent meal and the sun shone.

We are now at day 9 of May and here are my first nine days of the Stitch Journal.

Four days of Chevron stitch and four days of Buttonhole/blanket.

I have spent a bit of time this weeke shortening this beautiful prom dress for our grandaughter. It has been waiting on the back of the door for a few weeks while I plucked up courage to attack with the scissors.

I still need to cut the net - 3 layers eeek! - but the dress itself has been done. I had to herringbone the lining to the skirt and it is a long way around!

Remember the partly knitted jumper I showed you last week that I was planning to unpick? Well, that idea lasted about 5 minutes! Fortunately there were plenty of balls of wool in the bag so I cracked on with my crochet basket which grows quickly while I am watching TV.

I think it is going to hold it's shape nicely once it is a bit taller.

The garden is growing beautifully after some nice steady rain last weekend followed by some warm, but not too hot, sunshine. The runner beans are in - always a major highlight for Philip who loves runner beans. And the tomatoes, peppers and cucumbers are in their growbags in the greenhouse. The blue tits have been busy feeding their young this week and there is a lovely family of blackbirds feeding regularly on the green at the front of the house. Spring is well under way.

Have a good week everyone and happy stitching.