We have a bit of a hate-hate relationship with tradesmen. We put our previous house back together pretty much on our own, only getting the roof done by pros. Now we haven't got the time to do it & we've taken the view that it's better to pay out a little bit and get it done quicker but by the time you've spent hours ringing round, waiting in, not getting quotes & then starting again, I do wonder. Plus a rather holey roof in the new house decimated the savings before we'd even begun.
Like you, we need to get the garden done before the little one starts wanting to run about. I've got a few months on you though, mine's not quite seven months. Waiting in for a fence delivery this morning which should give me a decently defined boundary to start laying out the garden. Downside is that I've got two patios & the remains of a veranda that we took down last summer to move before I can lay out lawn & a more sensible patio. We've got a lot of york stone paving on site already which I'd love to get someone else to lay as they're about three inches thick & I don't want to have the same problem as you in six months. Being on mat leave doesn't add much to the bank though & there's so much to do in the garden & house.
Ah well. At least by the time little one gets properly mobile it'll be winter so he won't be out in the garden much anyway. If motherhood has taught me anything it's patience. I've realised that it's not the end of the world if things take four times as long as they would have before. Plus I can spend more time window shopping & planning. ;D
Hope you get a decent response from the tradesmen . . . .