{"id":98390,"date":"2020-07-23T11:20:45","date_gmt":"2020-07-23T10:20:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/stories.qvcuk.com\/?p=98390"},"modified":"2020-07-23T11:20:45","modified_gmt":"2020-07-23T10:20:45","slug":"gooseberries-and-going-out","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stories.qvcuk.com\/presenters\/jackie-kabler\/gooseberries-and-going-out\/","title":{"rendered":"Gooseberries and going out"},"content":{"rendered":"
Hello,<\/p>\n
Great excitement in the new veg patch in the garden since my last blog – we\u2019ve finally been able to eat some of our home-grown produce! First it was gooseberries – just a handful so far but oh so delicious, sweet and juicy! I decided I needed to protect them from the birds (the swinging monkey \u201cscarecrow\u201d I mentioned in a previous blog hasn\u2019t worked – Gloucestershire birds are clearly not scared of monkeys!) so I got this brilliant \u201cumbrella\u201d cloche<\/a> from QVC, which has worked a treat.<\/p>\n And then it was lettuces, which you can see in the background behind the gooseberry bush. They were delicious too! The garlic is also coming on nicely and I\u2019ve got a mini greenhouse now with cucumbers and chilli peppers so it\u2019s all very exciting.<\/p>\n I\u2019ve still been spending a lot of time in the garden – even though bars and restaurants are open again we still haven\u2019t been out, although we are planning to go out for lunch one day this week at a restaurant with a nice outdoor terrace. I\u2019m torn between being a little anxious about it but also really looking forward to eating out for the first time in months; I\u2019m also very aware that our local eateries really need our support so I\u2019m sure it will be lovely.<\/p>\n I\u2019m also hoping to meet up with a group of friends in the park where a new outdoor cafe has opened serving tea and cake – yum! I know lots of people are having picnics at the moment too, and there\u2019s a Today\u2019s Special Value offer coming up on Monday 27th which might come in handy for that.<\/p>\n California Innovations are bringing us a set of four insulated tote bags which keep food hot or cold so perfect for picnics but also for the supermarket, picking up takeaways, bringing food to loved ones – the list goes on. The bags come in really nice colours and patterns, fold down to clutch bag size and are leak proof and wipe clean. I took two to the supermarket the other day and they were brilliant. (I also took a photo of the four of them in our little herb garden area outside the back door, just to show you how nice they are!).<\/p>\n\n
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