This weekend, thanks to the amazing Spring weather, we had two family trips down to the allotment. One good, one not so good.

Yesterday (Saturday) we loaded the car up - kids, dog, scooters, flasks, cookies, wetwipes, wellies all got thrown in, not the kids (or dog). We had some jobs we wanted to get done ready for some sowing we've got planned in the next few weeks.

We all got down to our own jobs, mine was digging over the beds (the most satisfying outdoor work out there is), Anwen's was scooter practice (there's no stopping her now) and Sam and Wilf set about filling their barrows with bark chippings to spread over the fruit cage. It was on a return trip to the mound of chippings that the unfortunate barrow incident occured. Sitting in it was good fun until Wilf tipped out sideways and landed his head on the corner of a concrete breeze block. Queue wetwipes (lots of them), cuddles and the cookies.

I'm pleased to report that we (narrowly) avoided a trip to A&E and that the prospect of his best friend's birthday party later that afternoon kept his spirits up. The accident obviously hadn't scared him off allotment life all together as a return trip was the first thing he talked about this morning. "No more sitting in the wheelbarrow, but it's OK if I have my helmet on" were the first words I heard today.

So this afternoon, we headed back and quickly resumed our roles, enjoying the last of the weekend's sun and an all round happier hour.

When we look back on last year some of our favourite times were spent down on plot 2b. Last Spring Anwen took some of her first steps there and I found solitude during a difficult time (I wrote about both of these times here). We enjoyed a fish chip date night there and in the Summer ate peas straight from the pod and welcomed Wilf's nursery class down to pick berries.

This week we've had a few trips down and enjoyed an impromptu picnic before nursery on Thursday.

It's somewhere I know we'll build life long memories with the kids, hopefully teaching them a thing or two about gardening and 'growing your own' along the way.

I'm planning to write a monthly post on here as I want to keep a written journal over the gardening year. Right now it's looking pretty bare but the ground is nearly dug over and ready to rake. We have potatoes chitting and the broad bean seedlings are doing well. Sam is the boss of the plot really so I'll rely on him to fill in bits along the way.

If you fancy following along our journey more regularly you can follow @allotment2b on Instagram. It's mainly Sam who posts (interesting and informative updates) but he's now given me access to post too (they'll be the pretty flower ones come Summer!)

He has the day off tomorrow so we're hoping for sunshine and will be back down there. Sorting the shed out with some bunting and checking on first aid supplies will be the top of my to-do list. Helping Daddy dig and finding holes to put worms in will be Wilf's.

Anwen will be scooting.