General Chat

Evening All

Another freezing day here today but bright and sunny. Yesterday as is our tradition James and I went to buy the Xmas Tree.It is much earlier than normal but as I don't know how I shall be feeling once my Chemo starts I thought it best to get it now.It will stay outside until maybe next weekend.Hannah and I went to a Xmas Fair in the Village Hall in the afternoon.There wasn't much that took my fancy really but did buy a little wooden vase with a test tube inside to hold 1 flower.
Hannah told us that she and Gareth will be moving back home at the end of January.
Not this house but they have found a 3 bed to rent. Hannah will be giving in her notice this week and already has a couple of phone interviews set up in Northampton. Gareth will stay in his job until March and commute from here. I was so shocked when she told me . They want to be near us now .I just was quite overcome with emotion as it is such a kind and thoughtful plus major thing for them to do.
Tomorrow is the pre assessment with the Chemo Nurse and then Tuesday ...well we all know what begins then. I am trying not to dwell on that now but it is hard not to.

I loved your Christmas Village Scenes AnnG :-D :-D. I didn't realise what a big display it was.
Ann,your Pompom wreath is so pretty and very different .It looks great as does Mrs Owl :-D :-D

So Naughty Elf is causing havoc again I see :-D I saw a lot of Naughty Elves in the Post Office the other day and was tempted to buy one. But resisted :-D

Sandra will be in her element now it is December and counting down the days to the big day. :-D .Your house must be looking soooo festive now.

I hope you don't have any more tumbles Frank.You dont want to be getting any more black eyes just before your Birthday and Xmas. I wonder what happened to that Nail thought was up her nose :-D :-D. I wouldn't be surprised if it was in the hoover.

Vera how is your headache now? It sounded a real nasty one. Fingers crossed you don't get another one like that.

Mel how are your Xmas wreaths going? I cant remember how many you said you were making this year.

I am off now. Strictly is on ,I am in bed drinking Hot Chocolate . Have to be at the hospital for 9 in the morning :-S. Same again Tuesday and Wednesday .

Thanks for all your good wishes . I will let you know how it all goes as soon as I can.

I had to laugh at you training your OH to clean the bathrooms Vera, I was exactly the same as you the other week and my OH missed things I would have done, so it looks like both our OH's are still in bathroom cleaning training lol :-D :-D I don't know about your OH but if he's anything like mine once he gets it right the novelty will wear off and it'll be back to me doing it......never mind at least he's willing at the moment. ;-) ;-) Oh dear caramelized fruit and a burnt saucepan, not a nice combination, I hope the pan cleaned up okay.
Your son is the same age as me, I was 53 last week and my OH was 53 last July. I said to my mum the other day that my next big birthday is 60, you should of seen the look on her face when I said that, I don't think she thinks of me as an older woman, it certainly gave her food for thought. Yes Sandra is loving her Advent Calendar and counting the days to Christmas Day, I buy a big bag of sweets from Aldi and pop one in each of the 25 pockets, the sweets don't cost that much and there's always a few left over in the bag. I see what you mean about the Advent fillers you had to buy though and it probably seemed a great idea at first to. At least the children loved them which is the main thing and thankfully it was only once a year.

Sorry to hear your OH is in pain Ann, I hope he feels better soon. Just noticed the pic you sent of Mr and Mrs Owl, they are brilliant you are so clever and the wreath is wonderful. The Autumn colours were lovely, it's a pity they don't stay like that all through winter though.

I've been thinking of Jane again today and hope all goes as well as it can for her on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Going to catch up with a few of my programmes now while OH and Sandra catch up with their Celeb jungle programmes, they have three to watch plus the one tonight to be recorded. We've had problems with all the set top boxes today and have lost all the channels so two out of the three of them have been tuned in again, I hope their Celeb programme records okay tonight as it's almost the final and Sandra will be disappointed if it doesn't record. I can't record it on Sky as I'm recording two other programmes at the same time. She managed to record "Deck the Halls" film today, but still doesn't know we've bought her the DVD, so if anything happens to the set top box she'll still have the film to watch in the future from the DVD. I hope she doesn't get fed up of watching it by Christmas though.

I missed your post Jane with mine going onto another page.

What a kind and thoughtful thing for Hannah and Gareth to do, it shows how loved you are. I hope Hannah does well with her phone interviews and finds a job she likes very soon. I'll keep my fingers crossed for her.

Good luck with your pre assessment tomorrow, I'll be thinking of you and of course I hope all goes well on Tuesday and Wednesday. <3 <3 <3

So you have your Christmas tree ready to be put up next week. Yes ours is up and looking very festive, in fact the whole living room is with everything in there, plus Sandra's bedroom, you can hardly move for Christmas decorations in Sandra's room and don't get me started on the Christmas lights, it looks so nice in there and the smile on her face is lovely to see.

Its lovely to hear from you Jane and good luck for the next three days we shall all be thinking of you and hope everything goes ok. How nice that Hannah and Gareth are moving back to Northampton. You will be able to see so much more of them hwen they are closer to you.

Ann the wreath is beautiful. What so you make them on a wire frame? I would'nt mind having a go myself. Mr and Mrs owl are great and its nice to know they have each other now.

Sent a few pics.

Signing out and noticed your post Mel. Your pics are great. You've done a lovely job of the wreath and I love your little bobble hats, what a good idea. How did you make them, were they knitted? I love the colours.

Morning all

No frost today, some of my plants suffered with the cold over the last few days so I'm hoping they recover now it's a bit warmer.

Good luck today Jane, I'll be thinking of you <3 <3 <3

Nothing planned for today so I think I'll do a bit more on OH's tree, I'd like to have it all copied over from the tree I have access to before Christmas. Hopefully the bit I'm on now is the only part I missed.

What is everyone else up to today?

Morning Gill and all,

Well you may not have any frost but I think you sent it down here. This morning everything outside is white as snow. Bedroom window is all covered in condensation so I knew it was going to be cold this morning.The good thing is the suns out.

I knew this was going to happen and its a bit too cold to go out gathering stuff for the wreaths. I am behind with them this year as I have been having fun with the crafts but must now knuckle down this week and get some done if I ant some pocket money.

Vera like topsy, 'it growed'. It is a bit time consuming but so is a tree and I do both for our pleasure. Although next week we do have the gardening group here so they will see it. We haven't had a real tree for years. The plastic tree we have is a very good imitation one (from a distance) we have had the same one for over 30 years, cost us about £20 at the time so we have had our moneys worth.
My 'baby' is 52 and eldest is 58 still think of them as 'the children', even though they have two more generations after them in the family now.
I too had a burnt saucepan yesterday I was steaming some carrots in a small steamer over a saucepan of water and completely forgot them.

My other half, if cleaning a room (well he doesn't dust but does do the floors and does clean the bathroom), takes longer than me to do it because he is very thorough, which is fine unless I am waiting to dust after he has hoovered.
Ann hope your OH's back is better. why not get him some slipper socks for Christmas, the ones with non slip bits on the sole.

Jane, pleased that you liked the village display, it cheers me up in the evenings when all the lights are on.
How wonderful that Hannah and Gareth are moving to be near you, that will be a big help when you need company other than OH. Lovely that you are such a close family.
I hope the hospital visit today went ok. Have you stocked up with book or magazines to read tomorrow, I think it could be a long boring day. Hope it goes OK and that you don't feel too bad afterwards.
Mel loved the advent ring photos, very attractive.
We too had a hard frost here this morning. OH went to golf but was home by 0930 as it was still too frosty to play. so we have put the tree up and I am in the middle of dressing it. Have to do it in short spurts as I find it makes my back ache.

Afternoon all,

Heavy frost here this morning. Now blue sky and sunshine.

Ros was at the Drs this morning. Dr is making an appointment for her to see the HEART Specialist, as she is getting these pains in her upper chest /neck area. So It might mean another stent. She has to go for more bloods on Wednesday. If she has anymore of these pains, she has to ring 999 for an ambulance.

Jan's daughter KERRY popped over at lunchtime to pick up TWO BIG BAGS of presents to take to Bristol, when she meets up with Jan. who is having Alexander for four days.

Ros has given our old artificial christmas tree to TRACY next door. She will put it up in the Charity shop, she works at in Towcester. Now Ros is getting her new tree out, which I understand is SILVER, with the branches already decorated with lights. She will no doubt add bits and pieces to it.

I have a loose tooth, one of the four of my own, I have left. i keep wiggling around with my Tounge, so won't be long before that's out. I will then need another tooth added to the plate.

Next door (PAM AND DENIS) had a fire break out in their washing machine this morning. I looked out to see TWO Fire Engines with BLUE LIGHTs and the Fire Chief's car with his blues going also. No damage to any cloths or other things in the kitchen. So just a New Machine.

Jan is on the phone, and has offered to come and collect us for CHRISTMAS and bring us back after Christmas. Ros seems to think she will be able to drive, so we will have to see how she goes.

I haven't eaten since yesterday's lunch, so I will get a COC and a sandwich . I have Pigs Liver out for tonight, with Onions, peas and Mash.

I have just heard a bird hit the window, so will go and see if it's alright.

Afternoon All,

A sharp frost here and there are still patches in the shade and the lake down the road at the office park was frozen at lunchtime. I slept like a log thank goodness and with that and my cough improving I almost feel perky today. :-)

That is an amazing thing for your daughter and SIL to do Jane as she is just really starting her career having got her PhD. You have always been there for her though and I expect she will be happier being close by to help and support you if and when you need. Bless her, she is not one to let grass grow under her feet though and is motivated to get herself another job with setting up these interviews. She has a great attitude so I wish her good luck with them. I hope the next couple of days pass quickly and hope that you are ok afterwards as we are all hoping for you.

Thank you Mel, I will email you details! I must have a look at your Advent ring next too. It sounds like you had a really bad frost this morning. Your little birds will be grateful for their breakfast.

Thank you for your lovely card that arrived this morning AnnG. I must get cracking and write some myself! That's not bad idea to get OH slipper socks!

Frank that is very good of Jan to offer to fetch and bring you back at Christmas. Ros did the right thing getting checked out didn't she. It sounds like she may need a bit more treatment so it's good the Dr is referring her to the Cardiologist. That was lucky only the washing machine was damaged next door. I used to leave things on when I went out like the oven timer, washer or dishwasher and heating to come on, but not anymore after reading about fires from them.

I did 5 minutes on my exercise bike this morning when I got up, then hoovered the utility and rest of the lounge before my shower. We then went to the carvery opposite Sainsbury's down the road and did some shopping after and managed to spend enough to use a money off coupon. OH also filled the car up while we were there. I now have some penguin furry mule slippers that don't slip, but I keep sliding them off my feet as they are making them hot.

There was an article in today's paper about the lost Apostrophe and it's misuse and it made me smile as Mrs O opposite has changed the name of their bungalow and put up a new posh sign. If only she realised how 'unposh' they seem when they have spelt 'The Yews' wrongly by adding an apostrophe where it shouldn't be and called it 'The Yew's'. :-0

Oh the advent ring is lovely Mel. You have made a super job of it with the shades of green and the white flowers and candles with red berries and ribbon. I love the little hats with pompoms on too.

Pleased you like my Frozen pom pom hats Ann. As Frozen 2 is oput this year I thought the little girls may like those. I have made three Harry Potter ones for boys in the hogwarts colours but they are not quite finished yet. I have to put their hanger uppers on yet and see if I have some tiny badges in my H P stickers to go on them.

I think it would be such a good idea for Jan to drive you down to Devon and back home again. I know you feel you you'd like to make your own way down but it would be such a help to Ros and she would be fresher when she got there if she did'nt have to drive all the way. If Ros is having chest pains it would be more of a rest for her than if she had to drive 300 odd miles.

I have had my first Christmas Card today from AnnG and thank you very much its really lovely and I know just how much work goes into one of those. Its on top of my pc box with Sandra's thank you card at the mo till I find my string and its glittering away at me.

I have been out in the shed all day except for when I came in to do the lunch and went back out after it. I have done loads of picking and wiring and mossed two rings. There are so many thing I put into them but I have done a lot of cones, masses of yellow fir and some holly and some fluffy fir but I need to do more of theat as thats one of the basics round the edge. I have also picked lots of ivy leaves and flowers and wired all those too. Brought the ribbon in and some wires to see if I can make a few of those tonight if I feel like it. I shan't get much done tomorrow with shopping day and I still have to price a lot of the things for my stall on Thursday.

There you go Vera!!!! I just hope it will work for me as I have lost my new seccies oh bought me last Christmas. I had them down the church and hope I hav'nt left them down there.

I hope it helps you find your secs. Mel. When I couldn't find mine earlier in the year I discovered OH had been using them and left them out in the rain. When I complained I got "Oh, I meant to put them away". "I meant to......" seems to be his constant refrain. Your advent ring looks wonderful - the church must be so pleased. The bobble hats are really cute as well.

It was good to hear from you Jane. I hope today went well and I will be thinking of you tomorrow and Wednesday. Try and relax if you can; it may not be nearly as bad as you fear. How wonderful that Hannah and Gareth are going to be near you. That was a big decision for them to make and just shows how much you are loved. It is great you are such a close family as you will all be able to support each other. Keep your chin up <3 <3

It is lovely that Jan has offered to drive you back and forth at Christmas Frank. I expect Ros feels she doesn't want to be a burden but it might be wise to take Jan up on her kind offer. It would relieve some of the stress for both of you. Let's hope the heart specialist can sort Ros out quickly as, between you, you have more than enough problems at the moment. I am glad your neighbour only has to replace a washing machine. It could have been so much worse. I am a bit neurotic with machines and never go out and leave them running. I won't even go to bed until the dishwasher has finished and I can switch it off.

AnninG, I got my first three Christmas cards today and one was your lovely card. Thank you very much. So you had a burnt saucepan too. Did you manage to get yours clean? Mine took a bottle of white vinegar, a whole drum of bicarb, a dishwasher tablet, some biological washing powder and a lot of elbow grease but eventually it came clean. If it had been any cheap old pan I would have dumped it but it was the large saucepan from a complete range of Stellar cookware and it would have been expensive to replace.

I think your neighbour needs some English grammar lessons Ann. I am sure years ago people didn't shove apostrophes in willy-nilly. I find myself grinding my teeth when I see boards in shops and restaurants with lots of unnecessary apostrophes. I admit I am a bit pedantic about it. I blame my old school. When I went to grammar school at the age of 10 almost the first lesson was to teach us how to write the name of the school correctly. It had, would you believe, two apostrophes in the name, one before an s and one after an s, so of course we were also taught why they were there. I think it got so drummed in to me that I don't think I'll ever misuse an apostrophe again. I'm not so sure the rest of my punctuation is as accurate ;-)

I had an appalling night again last night, eventually getting up at 3 am, making a drink and sitting reading. Then I went in the spare bedroom and had the radio on for a while and eventually fell asleep sometime before 6. That meant I didn't wake up till nearly 9.30 and I seem to have been chasing my tail all day. We did get out to a garden centre this afternoon and bought our Christmas tree. We'll keep it in some water outside for a couple of weeks yet but we like to buy it early to get the pick of the bunch. We usually get a Nordman Fir as they don't seem to drop their needles much but they are expensive. We used to have a very big one but since moving to this house we've gone a bit smaller; usually between 4 and 5 feet. The one OH picked out is good and bushy and I think will look quite good with some lights and baubles. We also bought four sarcococca plants to put in two troughs outside the garage. A couple of years ago we had some in the garden and they seemed to be dying so I dug them up and put them in some troughs by the back door and they have flourished so I am hoping these will do the same.

The glazier rang today to say he has now got the new window pane for the study so he is coming to fit it tomorrow and is likely to be early so I hope it's a good night tonight as I shall have to be up and about sharpish. About an hour and a half ago I told OH I was going upstairs on the computer for a few minutes so time I closed it down for the night. I expect you have had enough of this screed by now anyway. Sleep well everyone.

Morning all,

I am really p*ssed off this morning as I have had an email from Anne at the shop to say there are no stalls available at the fair this year and she has enough to more than fill her stall and she was booked as a regular. so I have done all that work for nothing....

I am so cross I think there is smoke coming out of my ears.

Oh dear Mal, did you leave it a bit late to apply because there are usually not many stalls? Can you look around to see if there are any other Christmas fairs in the vacinity? Maybe local churches or schools.

Morning all

Bright and sunny here, so a bit warmer than it's been lately. OH has just cleaned a bit of the patio where the big Red Robin was that we moved the other day, so that's out of the way now and is as clean as the rest of the patio he did a few weeks ago.

What a shame you couldn't get a table Mel and after all your hard work as well. When I did craft fairs I used to book the next one in before I left the one I was doing, I used to do them all through the year, I think they were six weeks apart, so I booked them in advance. Maybe you could look around to see if there are anymore on and if anyone has changed their minds in going, you might strike lucky and be able to have their table. Try Googling Christmas Craft Fairs in your area then ring around them all, there still might be some tables available. Good luck I hope you find one soon.

I've been thinking of Jane this morning and hope all is going as well as it can with her first bout of Chemo. Keep strong Jane, we are all thinking of you <3 <3 Sending gentle hugs from Sandra and I.

That was nice of Jan to offer to do the driving at Christmas it will save Ros driving all that way and back again. I hope things go okay with her heart when she sees the doctor.

I hope you had a better nights sleep last night Vera, there's nothing worse than a few nights of no sleep. It seems to take ages to feel back to normal again and less drained all the time.

Pleased to hear your cough is improving now Ann and that you had a good nights sleep, hope you had another good night last night

Sandra's sore throat never cleared so we took her to the doctors yesterday and she's got a virus, the doctor wouldn't give her paracetamol, apparently they're not allowed to do it now, so we had to go to the shop and buy her some liquid paracetamol as she can't swallow tablets, we've also got some more Strepsils to help her. She hardly ever gets ill so I hope it's cleared by Christmas as these things normally last a few weeks and it's not long off Christmas now.

I do hope Jane gets on ok today I just can't send more possitive thought to her than i am at the moment. Sending love and wishes. I think she is there all day so its going to be a long one for her. Bless. <3 <3 <3

Good morning to you all, and special thoughts to our JANE. xxxx

I had a Christmas card this morning, un-signed and no Post Mark.It says the sender has bought a BMW Mini. I have mentioned it on FB so hopefully someone will let me know who sent it. !!!

The clasp on Ros's watch has broken, so that gives me a chance to BUY her a new watch. I have found one in Rose Gold that will go with her bracelets. It's a SEKONDA which I believe is a reputable manufacture, so should last her. I bought her last one in Leicester, many years ago.

Conrad is coming home for Christmas on the 22nd December. If he know what Jan has offered, I can see him driving up to collect us. I have looked on British Rail BUT the prices are far beyond what I would pay. From Northampton to Newton Abbot is close to £150.00 each. and GAWD knows how long it would take. So that option is out.

What a pity all the stalls have been taken Mel. Surely the organiser
knows you always have a stall, and she would have reserved one for you.

Another bad night for you Vera. SNAP. Ros said I was tossing, and turning all night long. She was up at 6.00 am, to get a bit of a break from me. So she's not a "HAPPY BUNNY" this morning. She gone shopping with Carolyn, who's Birthday it happens to be today. I believe she is 75 today,

I didn't look back at Janes post, so don't know what Hannah and Gareth have done. Something nice I expect. I will have to go back and see. xxx

Very still sort of morning out there, no breeze,and I don't think we had frost either.

Sheep Sh@t pie tonight, with Swede and cabbage. I will set about doing that soon. If there is enough, I might make one for Tony and Val.

Blow me it's now afternoon. lol lol Take care all, see you later. xxxx