we visited any town, in particular London, Peter would wish to gaze into stamp-shop windows while I fidgeted and waited to run to the nearest underground lavatory. Now I was surrounded by workmen all day – and the tent containing the Elsan kept blowing down.
Mr Woolnough came up to us both one day with a very red face.

“Don’t take me wrong,” he said, looking away into the distance, “but my men tell me Mrs Hewett is having trouble with your tent. Now, I’ve just renewed the pews in Kirton church. How would it be if I were to put up a little hut for you made out of the old pews – to hold your Elsan? There would be no charge.”

We thanked him and accepted gladly, and next day, as if by magic, a little hut went up to be our lavatory and my troubles were over.

The builders made good progress because of the good weather, and soon another problem arose. Our tortoise chimney pipe stuck out of a small window right into the space that was going to be our extension. As the walls went up, day by day, we could no longer use it. So we had to get rid of it and invest instead in a paraffin heater which smelled a bit, but kept us reasonably warm.

Gale was doing well at school and seemed to enjoy it. She went on the bus by herself now and had lunch with Mrs Powell’s family. I think, though, she wished we could live in an ordinary house like other people. Yvonne next door began to resent the amount of time Graham spent with us and made it a little difficult for Gale to play with her children, but we found a Susan the right age who lived opposite the Co-op in Kirton.

Luckily I kept well and was not sick at all. I enjoy being pregnant. Sometimes I made the workmen tea to save them lighting up specially. They were a lovely set of men – so considerate and helpful. The walls rose apace, then the roof rafters appeared and we could see how it was going to look. The rooms looked very small but I was told they always do at that stage.

Soon it was time to put in parsnips and broad beans. Everywhere we went Peter begged plants. That first spring he grew sweet peas from seed, sown in a cold frame made out of turf with an old window as a top. He bought £1.3s.7d worth of flower seeds and £2.1s.5d of vegetable seeds and sowed them all. Friends, relatives and gardeners gave us plants of course My oldest brother, Roger, sent a dark purple lilac, a white one and a pale mauve one, all of which are still there.