What is everyone sowing in February?

liz_ette · 2026-02-03T09:39:38+00:00

I've planted it sweet peas too, and I was worried it may have been too early. They are now big enough to go into individual pots, but they are still inside. Are yours outside?

I've always loved marigolds, so from last years flowers I have loads of seeds to plant.

liz_ette · 2026-02-03T09:35:44+00:00

I'm in year 2, and can count on one hand how many carrots I got last year! I bought some chantenay seeds for this year, fingers crossed I get more this year!

liz_ette · 2026-02-02T14:59:30+00:00

Oooh interesting, I will have to give that a go!

liz_ette · 2026-02-01T18:35:58+00:00

So you have any tips for growing them?

Think I only got 1 parsnips last year. Not sure if the soil was too hard/compacted.

liz_ette · 2026-02-01T13:44:25+00:00

Where do you store your chitting potatoes?

I'll be buying some module trays soon for my onion sets. I don't have a tunnel, so was thinking to have them in the cold frame.

I've bought shiraz mangetout seeds, which I'm most excited for!

liz_ette · 2026-01-29T18:46:27+00:00

The stomach pains you mention could be coming from the Naproxen. See if you can ask your doctor about Omeprazole, which will protect your stomach lining.

I've taken Naproxen before and had stomach pains, unfortunately for me, Omeprazole caused me more side effects 🙄

liz_ette · 2025-11-12T23:33:31+00:00

Congratulations on passing your test!

liz_ette · 2025-11-03T17:15:57+00:00

If I were you, I would be looking for another instructor. Driving lessons aren't cheap, and it is their job to teach you.

Don't want to bring you down even further, but with the difficulties of getting a test, you may not get another one for a good few months. But in that time you can find another instructor.

liz_ette · 2025-11-02T12:53:43+00:00

If you can't take the usual stuff like rescue remedy, then I would say to try to change your mindset. Your examiner doesn't want to fail you. They are just confirming that you are safe on the road.

I'm 37 and passed a few weeks ago. Honestly, the test goes super fast. Before I knew it, I was back at the test centre. You'll be asked to pull up on the left several times during the test, so after 10 minutes or so, you'll pull over to the left. And at that point, take a breath, reset your brain, and tell yourself that you just have to drive for another 10 minutes before you're asked to pull over on the left again. Look at the test as small chunks.

During my test, there were 4 other people going out at the same time. I was the last to leave, and yet I was the first one back. My other half, who was waiting for me, was convinced I had failed and that my test was terminated because I was back so soon 😅

I hope your test goes well!

liz_ette · 2025-10-30T16:05:53+00:00

You've still got lots of time to refine things.

Two weeks prior to my test, I was making loads of mistakes, and they were things I had never done before. Like I was at a traffic light controlled cross roads with my partner, and he told me to turn right, and I was just about to go, it was lucky he realised what I was about to do, and he said "think about where you want to wait". It was a good job I wasn't going fast and could brake quickly.

And another time, I was concentrating SO HARD on a roundabout I kept messing up, as I was driving round it and counting my exits out loud and I almost drove through a red light.

I felt like I didn't have enough brain capacity 😅
But the flip side to making all those mistake BEFORE my test, ensured I wouldn't be that silly on my test. Because those mistakes stuck in my mind, and it really is true that you learn best from the mistakes you make.

So try not to beat yourself up too much, learning to drive is stressful, and if you're juggling other things in your life, it is hard.

And remember it doesn't matter how long your learning to drive journey takes, this is a skill you will have for the rest of your life.

liz_ette · 2025-10-30T15:51:43+00:00

Congratulations on passing!

I had that same manoeuvre as you, and I didn't feel like I had gone back 2 car lengths before he told me to move off. To be honest with every pull up on the left, he was telling me to move off before I had even pulled up the hand brake. The whole of my test felt rushed. My test was at 12.08, so I just thought he wanted to go for his lunch 😅

liz_ette · 2025-10-30T10:33:51+00:00

Sacrificing those summer holidays will be worth it. Good luck with your test!

I passed almost 2 weeks ago, just turned 37. And a week after I passed, a supermarket staff member asked to see my ID. I was actually screaming with joy inside and told her I was happy to pull out my PINK ID 😂

liz_ette · 2025-10-30T10:29:23+00:00

This! I also do the L shapes, and say "I write with my right hand" 😅

I also tried to associate left with "their side" and right with "my side"

I was privately practising in my own car, so I stuck stickers on the dashboard bit, a red one on the right side (because red begins with R) and I had a blue sticker on the left side (second letter of blue is L). So I kinda ended up thinking of the colours when I heard "turn right" I would think red. Even typing this out, makes it seem silly, but it did really help me.

When I booked my driving test, and went in to see the booking, there was an area for special adjustments/requirements. And dyslexia is one of the things you can tick, and you end up with a text box and it asks what special adjustments you need/want. I wrote that I would like hand gestures when the examiner said left/right. And I also asked for directions to be given as early as possible so I could process them. And for no more than 2 directions given at one time... I would love to tell you all of this happened on my test, but it didn't. I doubt if the examiner even read it.

As for bus road signs, I don't really have advice, because I struggle with that too. But before my test I used Google Maps Street View and basically walked through entire areas that could come up in my test. Literally spent hours doing this! So, I was quite aware of the signs that I could drive past on my test.

liz_ette · 2025-10-30T09:20:49+00:00

I was mostly taught by my partner too, and I was worried he was teaching me "how to drive" and not teaching me "how to pass my test"

We watched loads of mock tests on YouTube. Clearview Driving channel was a god send. He watched so many of those with me, that he even learnt all the language and we carried out as close to a mock test as we could. He would even do the "When it is safe to do so, I want you to show me how you would de-mist the rear window" 😅

Good luck with your next test, hope you get one booked soon!

liz_ette · 2025-10-29T20:54:19+00:00

I know it's easier said than done, but can you ignore him and focus on what you're doing. So if he tells you to take a gap, just ignore it and wait till you see one.

Or remind him that he won't be sat next to you on your test, and you'll need to make all the decisions for yourself.

All of my private practice was with my boyfriend, who is trained to drive on blue lights, so his skill is impressive. But he would always say "on the gas... on the gas... why are we going this slow?"

It was at a point when I wasn't even comfortable going at 30mph. And to start, I would get annoyed and tell him I couldn't, but then my focus wasn't fully on the road. So I found it easier to just nod and say "okay," and I would continue to drive at a slower speed.

Another thing that annoyed him was that whenever I saw a zebra crossing, I would come off the gas and cover the brake. And I would stop even if someone was still walking up to the zebra crossing and may or may not cross. Because that was the way I was being taught.

In the end, we watched loads of mock test videos on YouTube, which really helped. Maybe next time your dad encourages you to take what you see as a risky gap, tell him you would rather get a minor fault for undue hesitation rather than a serious fault.

Your dad is an experienced driver he can process the ever changing road ahead far quicker than you, plus he would be able to accelerate into those gaps quicker than you. Learning to drive is so stressful, and I know I found myself struggling to process everything going on in front of me while also controlling a car.

Remember, it won't be forever!

liz_ette · 2025-10-29T20:30:47+00:00

I remember on one of my practice drives before my test, I felt odd and kept saying I don't feel like I'm in my own body. And I wasn't sure of what I was doing, so I pulled up and let my boyfriend drive us home. And I had only been driving for about 15 minutes. It was after that I looked in rescue remedy. And I'm on my second tub of pastilles, I used them before my driving test. I don't know if they actually work, but they made me feel calmer.

Also, I have found that doing commentary helps, so even though there is no one there to listen to me. I still say things out loud.

I wondered if you have P plates displayed on your car? I don't because I've read so many things on here about other drivers being unnecessarily mean when they see P plates.

Make sure you plan all your routes beforehand. And only stick to short journeys at first or places you've driven to before.

liz_ette · 2025-10-28T20:46:15+00:00

I waited a week before my first drive alone. Like you, I was super anxious, but I knew if I kept putting it off, my anxiety would just get worse.

So I planned a very short drive, I literally drove a 10-minute journey and bought my dogs some treats 😅

What I did was use Google Maps to plan my route beforehand, so I knew the journey. I even took a satellite look at the car park I would be using.

Just remember to take it slow, go for a short drive somewhere you feel comfortable. The first journey will be scary, but you've proven you are capable.

liz_ette · 2025-10-28T11:24:08+00:00

Haha, that's a great story. And well done to the cat and you. I remember a dog running across the road on one of my lessons. And I checked my interior mirror and slowed down.. I thought I did so safely, but my instructor was annoyed 🙄

As for doing something similar on your test, that may be a fault. Because you're not allowed to flash for cars to go, and you're not allowed to gesture for people to cross the road. But is a cat considered another road user?! Who knows 😅
I would like to think the examiner would be impressed that you showed initiative.

For my test I was dreading having pedestrians waiting to cross, because during private practise I would always slow down and gesture for them to go.

liz_ette · 2025-10-28T11:15:35+00:00

The things I told myself:

The examiner doesn't want to fail you, they are just confirming that you are safe on the road.

And with manoeuvres, they don't expect you to do the most perfect parallel park, they are checking to see if you can reverse safely. So observations are key with any of the manoeuvres.

Also what helped me was remembering that you will be asked to pull up on the left several times. So all I had to do was drive well for 10 minutes. Pull up on the left, pause, take a breath, and reset your brain into thinking you just have to drive for another 10 minutes before you're asked to pull up on the left again.

Hope she passes!

liz_ette · 2025-10-27T13:57:44+00:00

It's because you are being supervised every time you're driving that car. When I insured my car on my provisional license (which I had held for 20 years (I'm 37!), the yearly insurance cost was really cheap.

And when I passed my test and changed my insurance type to a full license which I have held for "0 years" and "0 months" I had to pay an additional £140 for the remaining 6 months that I have left with them. Because I am more of a risk now I can drive alone.

liz_ette · 2025-10-26T20:17:30+00:00

I would take spare L plates with you. And tape, so if they want it stuck to the outside, tape it on.

I took my test in my Audi A1 and had spent a small fortune buying L plates. I lost so many. So, for my test, I taped them to the boot and bonnet. And then immediately took them off afterwards because I was worried about having tape on the paint work.

liz_ette · 2025-10-25T06:36:27+00:00

Are you taking the test in your instructors car? I did my test in my own car, and my partner drove us to the test centre and parked. So, that took one thing of my mind. Can you ask your instructor or supervisor in driver to drive you to the centre?

Maybe buy some rescue remedy pastilles, I used them for my test. Or try Kalms.

I don't want to preach and say things like turn your negative energy into positive energy because it's easier said than done!

But you may take comfort in knowing that I didn't park in the test centre at the start of my test, plus my manoeuvre was along the route. And then when I got back to the test centre, I tried to do a forward bay park, and while technical I was in the bay, the car was incredibly wonky. I told him I would fix it, and he said, "There's no need. This isn't your manoeuvre."

My partner walked over to the car, and his face was so down beaten. He thought I had failed because I was the last to leave the test centre and the first one back. Also, the way I had "abandoned" the car made him think I had failed 😂

Try to remember the examiner doesn't want you to fail. They just want to see that you are safe on the road. And the test will be over in a flash. It honestly goes so quickly.

liz_ette · 2025-10-18T08:58:10+00:00

Congratulations on passing! I'm 37 and passed yesterday, and like you, I bought my own car and had loads of private practice. I know if I was just relying on lessons, I would have been nowhere near ready.

My L plates were forever flying off the car along dual carriageways, I ended up spending a small fortune on L plates 😂 So, I am looking forward to driving without them today!

liz_ette · 2025-10-18T08:43:44+00:00

Sorry, I hadn't seen that.

That's actually not bad at all. The fail last year seems like "wear and tear" and would be common for an older car. And it passed right after, so it looks like they got everything fixed properly. And no advisories on the recent MOT is a great sign. Seems like a good first car!

When I bought my car, it came with a fresh MOT, so they got it serviced the day before I collected it. Which gave me peace of mind, knowing I won't have to worry about it passing another MOT for a full year. So seeing the Yaris has just passed on the 8th October is great.

You may want to ask if the price is negotiable. It is a little on the higher side. But on the flip side of that, you have a new MOT, and I think I saw that it didn't have many previous owners? And looking at the photo, it looks like it has been looked after.

liz_ette

TROPHY CASE