The month opened with a visit to the Salutation Gardens – the sky was grey-white but the tulips, daffodils, wood anemones and flowering currant made up for the lack of sunshine.

I was so thrilled to get this lovely review for Book 3, Sarah’s Story, that I typed it up and pinned it to the wall in front of my writing desk to remind me why I write.

I spent two days looking after my favourite small person in London – we had a trip to the park each day and we did so much playing back at home that I had bruised knees from crawling around after him!

Back home again, my tulips at the front of the house had been battered by the wind but their fabulous colours drew lots of compliments. And they lasted for ages – thank you Peter Nyssen nurseries.

In the back garden, a few Pheasant’s Eye narcissi popped up, and lots of forget-me-nots in different shades of blue, as well as pink. And the pear blossom was out in the orchard.

The weather at Easter was absolutely glorious. Ellis came to visit (with his Mum and Dad) and we had breakfast and lunch in the garden each day. We really only left home to visit the new local playground, just across the field.

Ellis was frustrated by his shiny new cars on Easter Sunday – until he discovered what they were made of. His first taste of chocolate! And we got some toys down from the loft – including a tray with legs that must be thirty years old and once belonged to his Uncle Jack!

The end of the month brought the flowers that I call snub-nose daffodils – they remind me of the 1930s and Clarice Cliff pottery for some reason! The quince blossomed in the garden, the hawthorn started to bloom in sheltered spots and the apple blossom appeared in the orchards. And I found this log bench, returning to nature, on a walk at Quex house.

At the end of the month, I took a trip up to London for lunch in Hampstead with four lovely ladies who all went to the same university as me in the ’70s. I shared a house with three of them. There was so much to talk (and laugh) about that lunch took four hours!