STANDING within their Toowoomba Carnival of Flowers Grand Champion garden, at Highfields, Kevin and Dianna Drew chat away to the throngs of happy visitors who make their way through.
"I haven't even had a chance to stop and have a cuppa - my mouth's getting a little dry," Kevin laughed.
The garden is spectacular - thousands of flowers are in full bloom, perfectly timed for the carnival, and the handmade water features and floral designs leave visitors in awe.
But for many, the real star of the garden is not even a flower at all, though it does require similar tender, loving care.
A 1926 Austin 7 car is positioned proudly in the centre of the yard, immediately capturing the interest of visitors as they enter and make their up the driveway.
The car was owned by Kevin's father, the late Len Drew, who converted it to a utility for work use around his home town of Glen Innes, New South Wales.
Kevin said the car served its apprenticeship doing the local milk run during World War II from 1940-1947.
Being wartime, petrol was strictly rationed, with limited coupons provided.
"Having a milk run was classified as an essential part of life," Kevin said.
"So you had to have a vehicle which was as economical as possible.
"Dad didn't have enough allowance to be able to use the car all of the time, so he had to do some on horse and even delivered milk on a pushbike with a big basket on the front."
After this period, the vehicle was then used as the family car, though Kevin admits the design was a bit different to current proportions.
"I've got the original handbook there and they advertise them as suitable for mum, dad and three kids," he said.
"In real terms today you'd want to be Japanese pygmies," he chuckled.
Despite this, he said, they still managed to make the most of the car, including using it to get cheap entry into the Glen Innes local show by squashing many of them into the back to hide until they'd made their way through the gates.
The car features in many of Kevin's memories of his time in Glen Innes, including learning to drive in it alongside his two siblings.
"They're not easy to drive with old crash gear boxes and the brakes on them; you'd probably have better ones on a push bike," he laughed.
"The only real safety they had in those days involved you sitting there with one hand on the door handle and if you looked like having accident you'd open the door and jump out.
"Not too many people got hurt because of that."
The only "real" accident Kevin can remember the car having is when a stray horse jumped onto the windscreen one night, smashing it while his father Len was still in it.
It wasn't until the 1950s that Kevin acquired the vehicle from his father and it sat in a storage shed for 38 years.
Rusted out and nowhere near roadworthy, Kevin and wife Dianna then applied themselves to restoring the vehicle.
It took five years to virtually build panels from scratch using patterns.
"We only had four mudguards and they needed repairing, a bonnet, and part of a tub at the back section and everything else had to be replaced," he said.
Now his pride and joy, the car is an award-winning vehicle, taking home the top gong at every competition it is entered in.
Since restoring the vehicle Kevin and Dianna have acquired three more show cars - a 1925 Chevy 4, miniature model T Ford and a 1991 Corvette - which are all undefeated in competition as well.
With a wonderful winning streak in both gardening and cars, it'd be fair to assume Kevin and Dianna enjoy some healthy competition.
"I love competition," Kevin said.
"We go out there to do our utmost to achieve the best results we can get - otherwise why do it?"
