Day 863 & 864 - Another Weekend

Day 863...

Simon was up and out early this morning for a 7.30am barbers appointment! After he arrived home we had a coffee before popping on our walking shoes and venturing out for a longer walk than normal. As it had been a bit wet overnight we kept to the pavements and headed in the direction of a local garden centre that has a lovely cafe called Piptree Cafe.

It was a 2.2 mile walk which we managed in 40 minutes and then we had the same journey home again. The day was rather grey and looked like it could rain at any minute so we went out armed with an umbrella and rain coats and needed none of them! Typical!

After a bit of brunch we had a decidedly lazy afternoon. It was raining off and on and Simon had his latest piece of digital art that he was desperate to get completed. I had a few online bits to do but then spent the remainder of my time just chilling and watching some TV and some YouTube.

After a very lovely keto dinner of black pepper chicken stir fry we settled down for the evening to watch a couple of Drag Race shows. We had the final of All Stars Season 7 which has been phenomenal to watch and in our opinion the right queen won. And then we started watching the second series of Drag Race Down Under.

Day 864...

The day started a little later than usual and after a coffee we decided that a walk was very much needed. Not sure what was up with me this morning (and the majority of the weekend if I'm honest) but I was struggling to feel motivated and actually felt quite grumpy. I'd hoped that getting out for a walk might have lifted my mood but I'm not sure it made any significant difference. 

It was another grey day following rain over night and again looked like it could rain at any moment, although it was surprisingly warm. We kept to a flatter route and tried to avoid too many wet fields but we still clocked up 3.5 miles in 1 hour and 6 minutes.

While I had the exciting task of updating our online grocery shopping ahead of collection tomorrow Simon was focused on cleaning up his recent set of 3D prints. This involves sanding the pieces to remove any lumps and bumps that shouldn't be there along with smoothing out the lines that appear with a 3D print, followed by the application of a resin filler to fill in the gaps and help create a smoother surface.

I made a start on my newest jigsaw which by the power of Amazon was ordered yesterday and had arrived by late morning. I have still not found the missing piece of my last jigsaw so have packed it away in the hope that it may show up at some point in the future. But today I was able to get the edge completed of my new Winnie the Pooh themed one...

Simon has been able to hook up a special camera to his 3D printer which means that he will be able to keep an eye on the printer from wherever he may be, which as the printer is at the opposite end of the house to where Simon normally works is going to be pretty useful. He can even control the printer from the app that runs along with the camera! It's a nice safety feature to have in case a print gets too hot (although it should shut down automatically) or if it starts to misprint. This way Simon will be able to avoid unnecessary errors and the waste of printer filament.

And then for the first time in like forever we had our Disney Dream Girls Sunday meet-up/quiz. We started doing a weekly quiz on a Sunday sometime in 2020 when the world was going mad and we'd been pretty good at making it a regular weekly occurrence but as life became more 'normal' and our lives resumed it had become harder to find time when everyone was free to 'meet up'. Since out last meet-up it would appear Zoom have reduced the amount of free time you have to chat and so our little chit chat was cut short and we didn't even get around to having the quiz element! But we have put next Sunday in our diaries and so hopefully then we will be able to chat and quiz!

OK, I think I will sign off and see you all tomorrow.
xx

Day 856 & Day 857 - The Weekend

Day 856...Saturday

With Molly and Dan visiting for the weekend I have deliberately left writing my blog until they had returned home as I wanted to be able to spend as much time with them as possible.

So our Saturday morning started with a walk, but today we were accompanied by Molly and Dan and also Ethan. It was a proper family outing as we walked the 2.4 miles over the fields to a local cafe called The Cowshed. It took us just 45 minutes to get over there and we had the pleasure of meeting horses, alpacas and very friendly dogs along the way.

But we had good reason for making the walk as we took advantage of a very yummy cooked breakfast in a lovely setting. Although the day had started a little grey the sun decided to make an appearance and it was great to be sat outside enjoying the weather, the food and the great company.

We took a little longer walk back clocking up 3.2 miles in 59 minutes. It was great to be able to have 'the kids' with us and introduce them to the places that we walk and have talked about to them, and whilst Molly had been on some of these walks before Ethan had not. 

The remainder of the day was spent at home chatting and catching up with each other, drinking coffee, eating food and just generally having a very relaxed and chilled time.

Day 857...Sunday

In a change to our normal routine we decided to have breakfast before we did anything else. Simon and I were up and about a little later than normal and enjoying a coffee before we decided what the order of the day should be. Once Molly and Dan appeared we decided to get breakfast under way while they nipped out to get some petrol in their car ready for the journey home later today. With petrol costing so much at the moment and them living 3 hours away we have helped them out by paying for a tank of fuel for them...we simply couldn't expect them to visit when the cost is so high at the moment, without helping out a little.

We did still manage our morning walk but it was after breakfast and we were accompanied by Molly and Dan. We did one of our standard walks of 2.3 miles in 47 minutes, it was a little grey out and a tad windy but still really quite warm.

By early afternoon Molly and Dan were on their way home; it is always lovely to have them visit but always makes me realise just how much I miss Molly. She would normally be my partner in crime; helping me out with odd jobs, someone to chat with when the boys start getting all techy and nerdy and good company for whenever shopping was involved! But as much as I miss her I know that she is happy living with Dan by the seaside and all I ever want for her, and for Ethan, is for them to be happy and content and living their lives the way they want being the best possible version of themselves.

This afternoon Simon did a little tinkering around with the 3D printer as he wanted to re-design and re-print a couple of pieces for additions to his R2D2. With the printer set off printing we popped out to our favourite Starbucks for a coffee and for the car to visit the adjacent jet wash! It was the first time Simon has been able to drive the car since breaking his wrist and as a result the first time the car has been washed since then too!

Back home and it was more 3D printing for Simon along with a little video capture. We have re-discovered our digital video camera and having charged it up Simon decided to take it out with us yesterday and do a little filming as a test. So this afternoon he has been busy taking the video and editing it and so while I type the video is 'rendering out' and we will find out whether or not the camera will be worth using going forward. Whilst mobile phones are great for capturing photos and video the available memory can soon fill up and so having this compact camera might be the way forward, especially for when we are off doing new things and visiting places.

And with that I shall see you tomorrow.
xx

Day 842

Day 842...

It was a pretty early start to our Saturday as Simon had a 7am appointment at the barbers, with me as taxi service!

Once we got back home we put on our walking shoes and headed out over the fields for our early morning walk, completing 2.5 miles in 45 minutes and we were still back home before 9am. Without really stopping we headed straight back out the door to go to my dads house so that we could load the car with items that I am going to try and sell tomorrow at a table top sale. We were limited by the amount of space in the car and so couldn't take everything I would have liked but we will see whether or not we can get anything sold and passed onto new homes.

The remainder of the morning was spent with me finding yet more paperwork to shred as well as a few bits to file away. I also discovered that I have more Disney theme park memorabilia than I realised and I am going to need to figure out a way to store it all effectively as I know I won't be able to part with it. I have stacks of park maps, hotel details, park tickets, room keys, pins, coasters, note paper...the list goes on! 

While I did that Simon made a start on getting his 3D printer up and running again and after initially making some good progress he hit a snag with the 'hot end' which means that he needs a good amount of time to try and re-configure it. He has also started looking at different printers as this one is over 5 years old and was bought as a 'test to see if it was any use'; suffice to say it has been well used and a newer, improved version is probably overdue.

After our lunch/brunch it was time to play taxi service for Ethan as he was off to a friends for a BBQ, which also involved a stop by Lidl so that he could pick up some suitable supplies.

With Ethan dropped off we headed off to a local Next store to pick-up my online order that I'd placed a couple of days ago; some new shorts. And because we were out we took advantage of the air conditioning at the nearby Starbucks and enjoyed a coffee and a cool down. It has been another lovely, hot and sunny day again today.

It has been interesting watching the mileage range on our electric vehicle today as in warmer weather the battery is supposed to perform better but we could see the miles disappearing disproportionately to the miles we knew we'd actually travelled. Then we realised with it being so warm the air conditioning was working at full blast and as a result was eating up our battery charge. We do have an 'eco' mode that we can put the car in which would scale back the heating or air conditioning in order to give a greater range but as we were only staying local it wasn't something we needed to use today but we need to keep it in mind for if and when we are travelling longer distances on hot days!

Back home again and it was time to try on the shorts I'd picked up as well as the gym shorts that had arrived earlier this morning. Thankfully they all fit beautifully. I'm always reassured when buying new clothes that my size (that I'm always critical of) hasn't actually changed, even though I may think it has. I bought UK size 8 shorts for the first time 7 years ago, the summer after I lost around two stone in weight, and today I am still buying size 8 shorts as well as size small gym shorts...so I must be doing something right.

Well that's about it for today...we still have Ethan to play taxi service for...maybe...just waiting to hear whether he needs us or not, but otherwise I will see you tomorrow.
xx

Day 841

Day 841...

Friday and the weekend have arrived but the day started with a little disappointing news. Molly and Dan were due to come home for the weekend but we woke to a message from Molly saying that Dan was not well. Stomach pains and a disturbed nights sleep...at best it's just a stomach bug and nothing worse.

Molls and Dan wanted to see how he felt later on and then travel up to us but I put my 'mum' hat on and told them 'no!'. They have a three hour car journey to get here and it was going to be a hot day so not ideal for being stuck in a car for three hours. Plus there would be nothing worse than if Dan became ill while travelling, or either of them were ill while here, or they could pass it on to us or if it turned out to be something worse then they would be stuck here. So no, sensible head on, and the decision was made to postpone until a couple of weeks time and let Dan get better.

But that didn't stop us having our early morning walk and we took our usual route of 1.9 miles in 37 minutes. It was a beautiful, clear, bright and sunny morning and was just an idyllic start to the day.

Having ventured into our garden yesterday and discovered a few plants that were getting a little overgrown I made the decision to get out and do some gardening. Despite having completed three days gardening at my dads last week I have still not fell in love with gardening, but it needed to be done. So a few bushes got chopped back where needed and some weeds removed and everywhere now looks a little tidier.

After lunch I continued with the outdoor theme as I decided to wash all the windows...thankfully our house is all on one level so it was a relatively straight forward job. It was then time for a much needed coffee in the sunshine before jumping online to record this weeks episode of the Disney Dream Girls podcast.

And at the end of the day while Simon jumped on the exercise bike I took a glass of red wine out into the garden and sat and did a little research for my next Disney themed tattoo. I need to get some ideas together so that I can get a date booked in with my tattooist of choice (Saint Heywood at Acadia Tattoo) plus I was also waiting for my brother to stop by.

The selling details for my dads house have been approved today and so it will be on the market in the next day or so. Very strange to think that the house that I grew up in and have known for almost all my life will be passing onto new owners...the end of an era.

See you tomorrow.
xx

Day 828 & Day 829 - Another Weekend

Day 828...Saturday

We started the day with another morning walk, a slightly longer route today of 2.5 miles in 46 minutes.

After breakfast we rallied the troops - okay me, Simon and Ethan - and headed off to my dads house to get a little more sorting done. Now we have a date for the estate agent taking photos along with another date for an auctioneer to visit we need to get organised.

We moved all of the items from the attic room downstairs so that the room is now clear and the items we moved are going to be so much easier to go through. As Simon has one wrist out of action I needed Ethan to help out and be my secong good pair of hands!

In about an hour and a half we had gotten everything moved to where I wanted it to be; I will now be able to re-organise, decided what needs to go where and get the house looking all spick and span. As a reward for a job well done we ventured home by way of Starbucks to get much needed coffees all round.

With a pit stop at home Simon and I jumped back in the car and went back to my dads house as we had noticed a curtain rail was hanging off the wall and needed to be put back into place. Despite Simon's wrist he was able to drill a new hole and rehang the rail with relative ease.

The remainder of the day was then taken up with technical stuff. Both mine and Simon's phones were full to bursting with photos and videos and so it was time to get them off and backed-up. Not a very stimulating job but a much needed one, plus this way we have copies that we know are safe and stored in a chronological order.

And to round out our Saturday it was RuPauls Drag Race All Stars!

Day 829...Sunday

A slightly steadier start to the day but once up we headed out for our morning walk of 2.2 miles in 43 minutes.

Next on the agenda was a visit to my dads house to get on with a bit more tidying. I managed to get one room completely clear, store items out of sight, re-organise stuff and bag up yet more towels, sheets and even curtains. I filled the refuse bin and brought stuff home to fill up a refuse bin here (we have a neighbour on holiday so are taking advantage of their empty bin!). Just over two hours later we headed home. It was enough time to make an impact without getting completely burnt out by it all, I think slow and steady will win the race.

So it did mean that the first meal of our day wasn't until about 2pm! So that equates to a fast of around 19 hours!

Because the weather was lovely, if a little windy, we decided to make the most of it and head out for another walk this time managing 3.6 miles in an hour and six minutes.

The remainder of the day was rather chilled out and just saw us catching up on a few odd jobs.

See you tomorrow.
xx

Day 814 & 815 - The Weekend

I decided to write up 'the weekend' as one post as it has been a relatively quiet one.

Day 814 - Saturday...started very slowly and with a coffee to get us going we headed out for a not so early morning walk. We took a slightly different route to normal which turned out to be slightly shorter at just 1.8 miles, in 40 minutes.

After a very late breakfast/early lunch (maybe I should just call it brunch?!) we had an afternoon of catching up with a few bits and pieces. I managed to get all of the cataloguing of items from my dads house complete...finally! One of those jobs that seemed to take way longer than it should because searching the internet to figure out what things are is never as easy as you think it should be. Now I just need to figure out what to do with all the information I've gleaned.

Simon also had the task of replying to a retro game journalist who'd contacted him with some questions for an article all about the good old days of the Amiga, Rick Dangerous and gaming in the late 1980's and early 1990's! Simon managed to find an app that would convert a voice recording into text which meant he didn't have to type all of his responses as typing is a little awkward at the moment with a cast on his left arm!

A very quiet Saturday.

Day 815 - Sunday

We had a very slow start to the day as it was the first time in long while that we had no particular reason to be up and about.

But once we'd had a late breakfast we took off in the direction of Nottingham to have a wander and a mooch about. We had no real focus or intention, simply just thought it would be somewhere different to visit as it's been a few weeks and somewhere that was less likely to trigger Simon's hayfever!

It turned out to be a successful trip as we came away with a couple of t-shirts, a shirt and a pair of jeans for Simon and a t-shirt, dress, jumper and some make-up bits for me. Simon's shirt is unfortunately a little on the tight side over his arms (which he was quite pleased about!) so when we are in Nottingham next weekend (as we have a Dr Sketchy's to attend) we will get it exchanged.

I couldn't resist a walk through Primark and as is the law I came away with a couple of Disney themed purchases...

T-shirt - front

T-shirt - back

Cute dress

The weather was lovely as we wandered about and by the time we headed home we'd walked just over 3.5 miles! So shopping and exercise in one go - win!

It was then back home for coffee and blog writing!

See you all tomorrow.
xx

Day 807

Day 807...

And we have reached the weekend and it's a Saturday.

We did not rush to get up, but once we were up and about, and fueled with a coffee, we set out on our morning walk. We completed 2.5 miles in 48 minutes, and we are loving this new way to start the day. A chance to get some fresh air, blow the cobwebs away and chance for us to chat and connect.

The morning saw us catch up on a few boring household tasks and Simon made more headway with the plinth he is constructing to go under our table top mirror in the bedroom. In fact by the end of the day he'd managed to shape the plinth to fit through a combination of chiseling, filling and sanding, and had also applied a first coat of varnish.

This afternoon was yet more housework as we had a bit of a good old clean through in a couple of rooms. We had thought we might get out for a second walk but the day was rather grey and it threatened with rain on and off...this does not bode well for our activities tomorrow. We are joining some fellow East Midlands Garrison Star Wars friends to take part in a local charity event, however the day is forecast to be very wet all day and as far as I know the whole event is held outdoors...this could be interesting!

And I think that is where I will leave it for today.

See you tomorrow,
xx

Day 786

Day 786...

So yesterday was a tad on the busy side which meant I simply ran out of time for writing and publishing a blog post.

So yesterday...after a full day at work I took a quick diversion home via Lidl to pick up a few bits I'd forgotten the day before. I wanted to pick up a cake for Molly for her birthday but unfortunately there was none to be found for the second day running. Once home I was then busy making keto bread and keto pizza as well as wrapping up some last minute pressies.

Then before I knew it Molly and Dan arrived home. The evening was then spent with lots of catching up to do, the giving of pressies for Mollys birthday the day before and plenty of food and cake to eat. Molly had made herself her own birthday cake, along with some keto chocolate cake, which is something she has always done for her birthday, and she had brought what was left with her!

And then we have today...

A reasonable, but relaxed, start to the day which saw Molly head off to her old kickboxing academy to take part in their Saturday morning class. A chance to catch up with all those she had trained with over the last few years. And while Molly worked out there Simon and Dan decided to grab thirty minutes down 'our gym'!

Then this afternoon we headed into Nottingham. Molly, Dan and Simon went ice skating while Ethan and I hit the shops and had a coffee! We then all came together and went to one of our favourite restaurants, Soulville Steakhouse.

Once home it was time for more birthday cake with a glass of Prosecco!!

Night all and I will see you tomorrow.

xx

 

Day 785

Day 785...

Oops no post today as the day has been rather busy and I have simply run out of time.

Back on it tomorrow.

xx

Day 772

Day 772...

We have reached the end of the working week and we have an extended bank holiday weekend ahead of us.

The day was spent in work and consisted of more handing over of my job role. Next week I will be working from home to see whether the information that I have passed on over these past few weeks has been successful or not. I will be 'on call' should I be needed for anything or should anyone have any questions of me but otherwise we are working steadily towards my leaving date of 27th May.

Once home it was time to grab a coffee and sit outside in the sunshine to top up my vitamin D! After a grey and chilly week today turned into quite a good weather day and it was lovely to sit outside and enjoy it.

I had a little paperwork to complete relating to my dad's ashes. My brother is able to collect the ashes next week and we are then arranging for them to be scattered at the same crematorium, and in the same area, as my mum. But as with everything in life paperwork was needed!

I rounded out the day with a little jigsaw time before making keto pizza for dinner and then settling down to watch some rubbish on TV!

See you tomorrow.
xx

Day 738

Day 738...

Another busy day and another short blog post I think.

It was another full day in work which to be fair is the norm for a Friday as that is my only contracted full day. The day was split in two as we were hosting a 'parents to pre-school' event this morning and then the afternoon was spent catching up on all the normal work stuff.

We had a number of our existing parents attend as well as a few new parents who have expressed an interest in their child joining our pre-school. It was a very productive morning and it should see a handful of new children join us after the upcoming Easter break.

For the remainder of the day it was back to transitioning my role over to another member of staff who will be picking up some of the more 'admin' based duties. We still have a fair bit of work to get through but I'm sure over the next couple of weeks we will make headway ready for my last few weeks after the Easter break.

I had a quick stop at our local Lidl on the way home and tried to make it as quick a shop as possible; Friday would not be my day of choice to go shopping but unfortunately needs must!

Arriving home it was a quick change of clothes, followed by re-locating of my laptop into a quieter room and making a pot of coffee before hooking up with my podcast co-host Michelle online. It was time to record a Disney Dream Girls episode for release this weekend, which I think was a nice distraction for both of us!

Recording done and it was keto pizza making time before finally stopping and putting up my feet! See you tomorrow.
xx

Day 731

Day 731...

And we have reached Friday and the end of my working week!

My fourth full day in work in a row...which is not the norm for me! And today I was working with a new member of our team who will be taking over some of the administration type tasks that make up my job.

One thing I am realising, as I pass on my knowledge, is just how eclectic my job can be and how each day is always different from the day before. I may start a day with a plan in mind but this can often get derailed as the day unfurls. But we had a good day today and made steady progress, all ready to get back at it again next week.

Once home, and with coffee poured, I needed to do a little online research ahead of podcast recording. I needed to find some interesting Disney history facts, have a look at the news happening in the Disney parks as well as listen to some music by todays guest Tom Ameen. It was then time to hook up online with my podcast co-host Michelle to record this weekends Disney Dream Girls show. We had a great time chatting and as always Tom was a lovely guest to have on the show and talked passionately about his love for music, and especially Disney music. He has a new album being released on 1st April and Michelle and I have had the privilege of being able to listen to the tracks already.

It was two years ago on the 18th March 2020 that myself and my deputy made the horrible decision to close pre-school because of the Covid outbreak. We were faced with scared parents not knowing whether to send their children to pre-school or not, we had staff worried about what it all meant for their safety, there was panic and scary stuff on the news and we were all simply confused, worried and scared. We took the decision to close one day before our government said that schools would close and for the next 12 weeks we remained closed. As a small charity pre-school, operating out of a shared building that was classified as a 'community room', we could not have opened even if we had wanted to as the emergency laws put into place forbid community rooms from being used by anyone. 

Looking back now I remember how scared and nervous we all felt and how emotional it was to take that decision to close. There were tears as myself and my deputy made the decision but at the same time relief that a decision had been made. We were blessed with very supportive parents who even bought us gifts of wine and chocolate as we embarked on a very surreal few months. We could not have envisaged that two years later we would still be dealing with the effects of the 'pandemic', that it would have been drawn out for as long as it has despite science saying otherwise. 

Two years on and I am even more sceptical and challenging of anything that the 'main stream media' are want to tell us. After two years of being fed mistruths I find myself extremely cynical and distrusting and now seek greater information and question what we are being told. I no longer watch the standard news channels but instead prefer to use the internet to discover differing viewpoints in an attempt to uncover a more balanced view and hopefully one closer to the actual truth. I will confess that I don't like what these past two years have done to our lives; the questioning of those in power, the distrust of those supposed to be looking out for us, the lack of accountability of those in charge and the feeling that life will never be quite what it was two years ago. 

But onwards and upwards we must go. We are fortunate living in England that most of our restrictions have been lifted and we are able to go about our lives pretty much as we used to. But there are still a few that remain so fingers crossed we can get everything back to normal sooner rather than later.

Happy weekend, I will see you tomorrow.
xx

Day 724

Day 724...

Hello Friday and welcome to the day after the night before.

Last night we had an absolutely fantastic time seeing White Lies play at Rock City in Nottingham. They were, as always, brilliant. We were able to secure a pitch pretty close to the front of the audience and we had an unobstructed view of the stage for the whole gig.

They had a young band called Vlure as support who knocked it out of the park. Full of energy and performed as though they were in front of a massive arena audience. Their lead singer even came into the audience to get up close and personal. It was a great way to start off the evening.

White Lies played a mixture of new and classic songs and killed every one. The atmosphere was phenomenal and the ticker tape finale during 'Bigger Than Us' was a perfect ending to a cracking show. Please indulge me while I share some photos...

And I know it was a great concert because I don't think me ears have stopped ringing since, my voice was all croaky until late morning and I can feel it in my feet and legs!!

So after the excitement of last night it was with good fortune that I had today off from work. Having worked some extra hours, and having a few more extra to work next week I have had today off in lieu. It has been a quiet day, although at times infuriating.

I've been able to help my deputy out at work with a few questions that arose over the day. I've done a few household chores. I nipped to our local Lidl to pick up a few bits and bobs, although note to self; do not visit Lidl on a Friday morning when it's relatively busy and filled with mainly older people who are more than happy to meander around the store (in their masks!!). Nope, I want to be in and out as quickly as possible grocery shopping is a 'must do' not a social occasion! 

But the ongoing saga of the day, and the thing that has been rather infuriating, has been waiting for my butchers delivery to arrive. Everything was looking rosy with an expected delivery time between 9.10am and 10.10am. By 10.20am nothing had arrived but I wasn't overly concerned so I went to Lidl hoping the delivery would arrive by the time I returned - nope!

So I jumped online and followed the delivery link only to discover that my parcel was back at DPD's depot because 'your parcel was refused, as the contact name was not recognised' - err what? No-one had been to the house so how on earth could the parcel be refused? After much searching on their website I found an online chat option...but no-one responded! So I downloaded their app and again tried the online chat only to be told that I wasn't connected to the internet when I knew that I was - argh! My next option was to contact the butchers online to see if they could do anything.

At that point in the day Simon broke for lunch and so we decided to take a walk out. It was grey and a bit blustery, but it was dry and so we took our usual route of 2.4 miles in 44 minutes. As we walked in the door my phone started to ring and it was DPD calling!! Turns out that contacting the butchers was the best thing to do as they had chased the delivery for me.

I was told by DPD that they had tried to deliver my parcel but that we had refused it because it was not in our name. Okay so where do I start with that; first it is in our name but more importantly no-one had attempted a delivery at our house. To which I was told 'but our driver said...' At that point I reiterated that we had not seen their driver but that we have a very similar address to ours in the next village and that they might want to check where exactly their driver had been! I was then told they would go away and investigate for me...nearly four hours passed by and no return phone call as I'd been promised but then there was a knock at the door and low and behold my parcel was delivered. Thank goodness for that!

This then meant the end to my day was sorting 5kg of bacon, 100 sausages, 1kg of steak mince, 1kg of chicken, burgers and a few steaks into meal sized portions for the freezer. While I did that Simon finished work for the day and took some time out to complete his zone two training on the exercise bike. 

And with all that I think it's time to stop for the day and see you all tomorrow.
xx

Day 717

Day 717...

We have reached Friday and the start of the weekend but it was a full day in work first.

My work day saw me catching up with the banking, dealing with emails and then I had a project to print out a big chunk of our policies and procedures and file them appropriately. We have tried to keep everything online rather than print pages and pages but as some of these policies can be quite lengthy we decided that paper copies would be easiest for reading through and referring back to. I made pretty good progress and whilst I still have some more that need printing I have completed the vast majority.

Arriving home it was time to set-up my laptop ready for podcast recording and to make a coffee! I then spent about an hour online chatting with my Disney Dream Girls podcast co-host Michelle, as we looked at some Disney history and the 30th anniversary celebrations starting at Disneyland Paris this weekend.

And the day has rounded out with playing taxi service for Ethan as he enjoyed a meal out with his work team, at work's expense!

Roll on the weekend, and I'll see you tomorrow.
xx

Day 710

Day 710...

The end of the week and the start of the weekend.

Today was a mixture of getting jobs done and a little me time. I had a few household chores to do, the laundry to sort and a couple of emails that I needed to respond to.

I then had a little pre-school work to complete. As a registered charity we have to submit an annual return to the Charities Commission which involves producing accounts which have to be independently reviewed, writing an annual report and then making sure that all of our trustee information is up to date and correct. 

From previous years I knew that the documents that I needed to submit had to be in PDF format. This meant figuring out how to convert a Google document, a Google sheets workbook and a JPEG picture into a PDF file. And I was quite pleased with myself that with a little online research I was able to get them all converted over with relative ease. With them all converted and saved out I could then complete the annual return online; another job done and out the way.

We had a butchers delivery arrive this morning which meant splitting everything out into meal size portions. Thankfully this order wasn't as big as some of my previous and only involved splitting 5kg of steak mince, 2kg of bacon, some burgers and some sausages.

And then at the end of the morning I even managed to squeeze in a little time to paint my nails which is the first time I have done that in I can't remember when. But as we are off out this evening I thought I would use that as a good excuse to pop a little colour on.

This afternoon has been a much more relaxed affair. I spent some time with my jigsaw, I sorted more laundry, responded to a few more emails (both mine and work), watched some YouTube of the new Star Wars hotel over at Walt Disney World and took advantage of the natural daylight to get my make-up done ready for this evening.

So it is now time to get my glad rags on as we are off into Derby to see La DeDa Cabaret; an evening of burlesque and cabaret and chance to hook up with my good friend Michelle. These are always such a fun night so I will report back tomorrow!

See you then.
xx

Day 703

Day 703...

A very windy, stormy Friday has been upon us today.

One bonus to being stuck at home is that I haven't had to venture out in the horrible weather. Although I think we have been rather lucky as being in the middle of the country we have escaped some of the worst of Storm Eunice.

So another day sat at my laptop getting lots more admin completed. This week has given me chance to get a couple of non-urgent jobs completed because I've had a bit more time on my hands although this did involve fighting with my printer at numerous points. What's that saying about how great technology is until it stops working!!!

At lunchtime Simon and I did venture out into the garden as the felt on our garden shed had started to lift and as the morning had worn on it was getting progressively worse. So armed with a hammer and some nails and with me holding the ladder Simon managed to get it all tacked down. 

Mid-afternoon I nipped outside once more as one of my team was stopping by the house to drop off some work for me. It was very blustery, a little bit damp and rather chilly and so I was glad I was only outside for a few minutes. This does now mean that I can actually complete the half term accounts at some point over the coming week.

And while the wind howled around the house I used the surprisingly sunny at times daylight to complete my latest jigsaw...

...depiction of the London Underground map! It was not as bad as I thought it was going to be and I actually really enjoyed the methodical approach that I took with it.

Well Friday is done and now it's time to say hello to the weekend and a week off from work!

See you tomorrow.
xx

Day 696

Day 696...

And we have reached the end of my working week and as is usual for a Friday it was a full day in work for me.

It was a busy work day made up of the standard mix of admin, emails and banking. But I was able to get caught up on pretty much everything that I wanted to.

Back home it was time for a coffee and a chat with Simon as we filled each other in on how our days had gone so far. I then jumped onto my laptop as I had a work related email that I needed to send. I then spent the remainder of the afternoon going through a few policies and updating them where needed, followed by a little more re-organising of documents and folders. I hadn't intended on doing more work but as I found myself in the flow I thought I would just carry on and get done what I could.

So by the time Simon finished work for the day I was still amending policies - whoops! Simon then had a little more digital art time while I finished what I was doing before setting about making dinner - keto chicken fajita casserole...yum!

And that was Friday...roll on the weekend.

See you tomorrow.
xx
 

Day 682

Day 682...

And we have reached Friday, the last day of the working week and time for the weekend to start.

But it was a full day in work for me, as is the norm for a Friday. This morning, due to a change in staffing, I was actually working directly with the children for a change. The afternoon though saw me back to my usual role and playing a little catch-up with admin, banking and emails.

Arriving home I was greeted with a freshly poured mug of coffee and chance to chat with Simon and exchange our days so far. I'd promised myself a spot of time doing my jigsaw while the daylight allowed and although I didn't get too much done I did manage a bit more than yesterday's efforts.

There was a little pre-school work to finish off the day as there were a few learning journal entries to update following a baking activity we'd run with the children this morning, along with another couple of emails.

Simon managed another 45 minutes on the exercise bike for some more zone two training...I on the other hand have struggled to find the time this week. I must admit Simon is a lot more motivated than I am when it comes to exercise and I do find that the later in the day it gets the less willpower I have to get active. Note to self...I must do better!

And then the day ended with a bonus thanks to Instagram...scrolling through, as you do, I came across a post from my favourite band, White Lies, who were promoting their latest single. The post spoke about a new video available on YouTube and to check out their 'story' for a 'special announcement', which I dutifully did. And am I glad I did! The band are playing three stripped back gigs to promote the launch of their new album in February. The gigs are happening in various 'Rough Trade' record stores and one just happens to be in Nottingham....suffice to say tickets have been bought. A small intimate gig, followed by a signing session and we get a copy of the new album on CD...although I already have that on pre-order so we will probably end up with three copies!! But at least one of them will be signed by the band which means I will get to be up close and personal with them...again!

February 2019

We were very fortunate to see the band in a small venue back in November and this next gig looks like being an even smaller venue. Plus in early March we get to see them again as they kick off their tour at Rock City in Nottingham! I am so looking forward to these gigs and doing 'normal' stuff once more!

With that excitement out the way I shall see you tomorrow.
xx

Day 626

Day 626...

And we are at the weekend.

Our Saturday morning had an early start as the men of the house had a trip to the barbers. There were a few odd jobs around the house that needed doing, but nothing major before I tackled the main task of the day Christmas shopping.

At least it was all done from the warmth and comfort of the house but trying to figure out what to get for everyone gets harder each year. The trouble is we all have everything that we need and so we seem to end up buying just for the sake of buying! But by late afternoon I'd managed to get a good amount done although I think there will still be more to sort but I need some inspiration to hit for that!

The saga with our new electric car continues and as of today we are scheduled to give up our current cars on Monday and have a courtesy car from the garage until we can get the charging point sorted. The ground works should have happened last weekend but the snow put paid to that so we are now waiting for decent weather and the company scheduled to do the work being able to fit us in. It's a complete nightmare but at least we can go down to one car, stop paying for them and concentrate on getting the new one as soon as possible. So today we took ten minutes to go through both cars and remove all our bits and pieces so that on Monday we are all ready to hand them over.

The remainder of the day was spent with Simon working on his latest digital art piece and me working on my jigsaw. We put 'Christmas with the Kranks' on the TV (such a brilliant film) and lost ourselves in the film and our respective tasks. It was nice to be able to switch off and escape from all the madness going on around us at the moment.

I would like to have a rant about the current circumstances; about the restrictions and mandates being imposed around the world but to be honest I don't think I have the energy or the inclination at the moment. I am just sick of the whole thing and fed up of it taking up our lives. I want the normal of 2019 back again, I want our freedoms restored, I want to be able to see who I want, where I want and when I want without papers or injections or masks being needed. We need to accept this thing is here to stay and treat it like we do the flu. But I appreciate that for some people that is heresy to say that, but then again perhaps that's because I look further than the end of my nose and am prepared to take in all opinions not just the ones being forced upon us. Oops looks like I had a little rant after all!

Well I need to switch off for the evening, red wine and chocolate it is. See you tomorrow.
xx

Day 471..Friday...Finally!

Day 471...

Yay we have reached Friday and it's time for the weekend!

I ended the week with a full day in work and it was taken up with more forward planning for September. I was also able to generate and print off a special poem for those children leaving us this year. Each poem is personalised and has a photo of the child when they first started with us and a photo taken just this past week.

On my way home I had a slight detour as I needed to pick Molly up from one of her friends houses as she'd spent the afternoon there.

Back home and it was time for coffee in the sunshine while I composed and issued a couple of work emails.

And before I knew it Simon had finished work for the day. So we grabbed a coffee and sat outside for a short while as we discussed each of our days.

Before I cooked dinner we opted to partake of a martini and this weeks episode of 'Star Wars The Bad Batch'!

And with dinner consumed it is now time to stop for the evening and enjoy the weekend.

See you tomorrow.
xx