General Chat

I hope you are all battened down Florence, the storm sounds as if it going to be bad.

Yesterday went well, Eve bought lots of nice presents, which are all now wrapped and hidden in her bedroom. She is not at all well, I think that she could have a chest infection, but getting a doctors appointment would be impossible, so hopefully she will get through it.
It is Esme’s carol service in the church next to her school this afternoon, so that is another trip for us. It would have been so much easier if we had moved.

The house viewing went well yesterday, it was a mother doing preliminary viewings for her son who lives in Gloucester. He is coming up for Xmas and has made an appointment to come on the 28th. So fingers crossed, although he wanted her to check if the kitchen could be extended to make a big kitchen diner. The answer is not easily, so I am not holding my breath

Afternoon from a watterlogged and very wet & windy village! Its just dreadful. So much rain today and now the wind is picking up to bring us storm PIA I think its called later on.

Waiting on Tesco, time given 5-6pm, 5 stops away so may be sooner.

I asked daughter to get me an orange and bless her she got everything else except the orange is a grapefruit!! Haven't the heart to tell her yet as she has been doing all the extras that were out of stock with Tesco in the coop. It just came with 3 bags.

She is now on the bus coming home, so no more going to town now, that's the food all sorted thank goodness.

No ferries, no post but we are safe and well stocked and the house is warm and cosy.

Always feel a bit guilty at this time of year seeing people begging on the streets sleeping rough. But i do give to various charities throughout the year not just at xmas so I do my little bit for those less fortunate.

Hope your day out is going fine Linda with all the mileage etc and hope your hair looks nice too.

Hope you are ok Joan and cosy inside today.

Anyone else looking in, take care in the awful weather.

better keep a look out just now for me delivery.

Back later on

I am glad that your children have managed to see their dad Florence.

I went to Esme’s Christmas concert today. It was a real shambles, but the children enjoyed it <3. Seeing them performing brings it home just how severely disabled the majority of the children in the school are. I will go to the croak concert in the church on Thursday afternoon as well.
Tomorrow via m taking Eve out for the day. It would be so much easier if we lived near them, but I have a half hour drive down the motorway to pick her up. Then we will drive the half hour almost back here and continue north for another half hour. She will come with me hike I get my hair cut, but that doesn’t take long. Then we will take the holly wreath to my parents grave. We take water and a cloth, so she gives it a clean. After that we will go to the retail park for lunch and to that she can buy presents for the family courtesy of my credit card. Then it is an hour to get her back home and half an hour back for me. I will be up and gown the motorway like a yo yo, you wouldn’t like that at all Joan.

Aw naughty but nice Joan :-D :-D

Hi Florence.
Yes 5 children, lol, we had some lovely times when they were little but as they have got older they have drifted somewhat from each other !
Son has just phoned to tell me he has reached home (NHL) so that's good news, he said his dad was in good spirits when he saw him this morning.

I had a wee chuckle re your Fish supper, I was treated to a fish from the chippy on Sunday when the youngest daughter visited, & treated to another last night when 2nd son arrived !
I did sooo enjoy them but 2 in 2 days, that's naughty . LOL.

Joan.

Getting a real treat for tea. Daughter went to the chippy and i'm getting haddock and chips...yummy :-D

That has brightened up tea time and no washing up lol

She's on her way now and should be home about 4.45.

My the sky is black and very angry looking with torrential rain and the wind is in full storm force. At least if the electric goes off, we wont go hungry today.

Ive had the heating on awhile so at least the house is warm and cosy.

Hope all ok with everyone

Afternoon Joan and everyone else looking in.

Well you have had some nice company Joan seeing your sons and catching up with your daughter too. i didnt realise you had 5 children! Hubby would have enjoyed their company too. Hope your plants do survive and then in the Spring you will have a good show in your new planters.

Its so blooming wild here with hailstones and showers, sooo cold too. Glad i didnt have to go to the hospital in one way as it wouldn't have been pleasant being shifted in a wheelchair from door to ambulance!

I finished of the laundry so just a small basket that needs to be ironed. Had 5 cards today which was a surprise as not had any since a few days ago.

Daughter will be back around 4.30, no doubt with lots of bags and more laundry lol.
Just finished off my Tesco order coming tomorrow and saw some things out of stock but managed to find alternatives so its all ok.

I have just noticed that my Amaryllis has grown about 2 inches :-S I didnt notice that yesterday so it must have grown overnight lol

Oh another heavy shower of hail, hope it doesn't turn to snow!

Better pop on the heating, then vacuum the whole house before me coffee break.

Florence in the hebrides

Good afternoon to you all.
Lovely bright sunny day here today, slight frost first thing & it's a bit chilly even though the sun is out, I did venture out into the garden earlier & planted up the last of my new wooden planters that our eldest son made for me.

So that's 4 lovely Clematus all nice & cosy, they are quite big plants & I can see new buds appearing on the current stems so fingers crossed they will survive the winter.
I am really hoping they spread upright & sideways to cover the old wall at the very top of the main / best part of the garden.

Our 2nd son arrived last night having travelled up from Northumberland, he stopped in at the hospital in Aberdeen spending 3 or 4 hours with his dad.
Our 3rd son who lives in Aberdeen was also visiting his dad at the same time so the 2 brothers spent the hours catching up with each other & their dad.

It was lovely seeing our 2nd son, it's been a while with him living in Northumberland, we chatted & laughed mostly about the times past when the 5 children were growing up etc.
He's on his way back home now after spending some more time at the hospital this morning with his dad.

Well I best go & have a tidy round, re make the spare bed etc.
I hope everyone is well & that the weather is nice, take care.

Joan.

Enjoy your supper Joan sounds yummy :-D

Hi Florence,.
Our daughter has reached lanark & is now settled back with her hubby & 2 small boys, she was a start when here, helped me greatly & spent a lot of time with her dad.

Our 2nd son set off from Northumberland this morning, he's coming on his own, he phoned at about 4-00pm to say he had reached Aberdeen & was on his way to visit his dad, he is going to bring me a fish from the chippy when on his way to me, yum.

Not sure how long he is staying but I don't think it will be for very long, I'm not bothered just so long as his dad gets to see him, sone will most likely call into the hospital again when he sets off for home.

Sounds as though you are going to have a lovely Christmas Florence, you are sooo well organised, well done.
I was always well sorted at Christmas time but not bothered with it much since all the children left home.

Joan.

Afternoon all.

Joan, lovely to hear from you. Very brave of you to do that long journey and i'm sure it lifted hubby's spirit to see you and also for you to see him too.

Terrible food he's getting! We are very lucky here in our hospital as portions are generally very good and the menu has a good choice.

I really have a dislike for staff that don't smile or attempt to say hello etc to the relatives, there is no excuse for that. Did they say how long he may be in there? I'm guessing your cottage hospital is more local to you? Here's hoping it wont be too long.

Well the weather here is just dire and getting worse. i wondered if our power would go off but not yet! How long were you off for Joan? Hope your daughter had a safe trip home. Nice you got a bit of time with her and you had company.

Linda, poor Eve, not well again. Must be so many bugs going round just now. Hope she feels better before xmas.

Put my daughters presents under the tree today and a few things in her stocking lol but couldnt find her xmas card anywhere! I had to go and move things in my wardrobe until right at the back it had slipped behind a box. Thank goodness as I begun to wonder if I had actually bought her a card :-S :-S All sorted now anyway.

As for tea tonight, might just have a cheese and onion toastie as not terribly hungry but need something.

Well better draw the curtains and put the fairy lights on as just realised how dark it is!

Florence in the hebrides

Hello to all.
Sorry to hear that your knees are painful Florence & having your appontment cancelled.

Well I went to visit my hubby yesterday but I didn't enjoy the journey to the hospital, it's about an hours drive & mosty dual carriageway & I was soo nervous, our daughter tried to assure me re the speed but it made no diffeence to me, the number of cars that were costantly whizzing past didn't help either, my hands went numb whilst gripping the seat belt, not a nice journey for me at all.

When we got to the hospital daughter dropped me off at the entrance whilst she went to the multi storey car park, then we had a rather looong walk to get to the ward where my husband is.
I had to climb the stairs (too scared of lifts) some 4 floors & then along a really long corridor & not a seat in sight !

I found hubby in quite good spirits, though he didn't look at all comfy in his bed, slumped over to one side, we had to help him adjust his position, the room he is in is very small,I MO, like a cupboard with a window !
There was hardly any room to get round the bed & the chair I sat in was not great, my legs were in need of a foot stool but none to be had, ended up with my feet resting in the framework below the bed !

3 nurses came into hubbys room to do various things only 1 of them had a smile on her face & spoke to me nicely, the others were rather abrupt both in what they were doing & how they spoke to all of us !!
As for the meal hubby had chosen I couldnt believe how small the portion was,2 tiny Roast potatoes, a thin sliver of Pork, no veg because he no longer orders them, he says they are not cooked properly!!, the portion of Veg Soup he was given wouldn't have satisfied a small baby, IMO, served in what resembled a plastic baby sippy cup!

We spent around 4 hours with hubby but had to leave around 2-0pm as I was needing to get back home before it got dark. not nice having to leave him but it had to be done.

Our youngest daughter arrived from Lanark on Firday, & she visited he dad on arrival in Aberdeen before coming to me, she was back in Aberdeen again on Staurday & stayed with her dad for most of the day before coming back to me.
This morning she headed off for Aberdeen once again calling in to see her dad, she managed to stay with him for a couple of hours before heading off for Lanark.

The power went off at breakfast time today before we got the toast & tea made so she had to leave here without anything substantial inside her.

I am very glad I managed to get to see hubby but I'm not going to be able to do the journey etc again, fingers crossed that he night at some point be moved to the local Cottage Hospital.

Not a bad day here today, bright, sunny & flat calm, but a bit chilly, no garden jobs done again, lol.

Hope everyone is well, take care.

Joan.

Oh that is a shame Florence, just what you didn’t need. I hope your knees won’t be too painful over the holidays.
We went to my daughters yesterday afternoon so OH could help put the fence up. I helped Esme wrap all her presents up, we then hid them in a cupboard in the house, she was very pleased with herself.
Poor Eve was ill again. She had been off fit two days last week, but had gone back for the last couple of days. They had gone out on Sunday morning to the Santa special on the North Yorks Moirs steam railway, but by the time they got home ,she was feeling very ill, so had to go to bed. We did a Covid test, but it was negative

Afternoon everyone looking in.

Not a happy bunny!!!

Got a tel call from outpatients at 10am saying my appointment for tomorrow has been cancelled as "Mr Bone man" has been taken unwell. My appointment will be rearranged in the New Year.

Whilst I hope the gentleman isn't seriously ill and recovers, It means, no injections in my knees which are now very painful as its 6 months since the last jags which have worn off. Nothing I can do about it and there is no other dr that can do these injections either, you have to be specially trained to do them.

So just have to plod on as you do.

Awful day, very windy and brrrr and some showers too and of course.....bin day lol :-
D :-D :-D :-D
Anyway they have been and bin safely secured back in its base.

Home alone until tomorrow evening so a bit of peace & quiet and the tv to myself whoohoo!

Hope everyone else is ok and if you are travelling out & about, take care as some awful weather and floods about. Don't think there is any chance of a white xmas here,

Florence in the hebrides

I'm pleased to see that your boiler is OK now Ann.
A house gets really cold if there is no heat at all going through it. Good to see that it was easily fixed and not costly too. Now you won't have to worry about the weather over Christmas.

Our local schools have all broken up on Friday, which is earlier than some years, but Kent works on a 6 term system now, so some breaks are longer and some shorter than in previous times. The junior school, where I volunteer returns for the new term on 2nd January.

It was really still, first thing this morning, but by late afternoon there was a really chilly wind blowing. Daughter drove me a short way out of town to hand deliver some cards and the wind coming off the sea was really cold..... We were glad to get home in the warm.

Yes Florence boiler ok now. If it happens again I know now how to fix it, it was very simple and no charge.

Afternoon everyone looking in.

AnnG, hope you got the boiler fixed. Yes sometimes at the back of my fridge, there are icicles and I have to use a cotton bud to clean the drainage hole but still don't understand why it ices as my setting is always at 3 and less than 4 years old.

Linda, I see about Eve. Yes the private schools do have a longer break. My tesco order was ok last time and so far the lists look ok. Think the freight ferry has sailed overnight bringing supplies but the rest of next week is looking quite iffy on some days.

Made 2 dozen mince pies today and a fair few gone already lol

Light tea tonight as still quite full from last nights meal so maybe a sandwich will do me.

Joan, thinking of you and your family and hope hubby is doing ok.

Right off to be busy in the kitchen, back later on

Florence in the hebrides

Good morning all. 8 degrees here, at least something is on my side. hopefully the boiler man will be able to fix the problem when he comes this afternoon. If he can't I will come home to a really cold house in the New year.

Florence strangely, up until now the veg which is under the bottom shelf has not frozen. It is very strange because although it is a larder fridge (No ice box), at the moment the back wall of the fridge is like a freezer with ice on it. I have checked that the drain is not blocked but it really does seem like the thermostat is just not working.

Florence, Eve goes to a private school, so they have much longer holidays than the state schools, that is why she has finished early

I hope the ferries bring all your shopping Florence, this is not the week for them to be delayed as all the delivery slots must be booked up. I went to Tescos this morning and did a large shop, but I will have to go again to get the fresh stuff for this weeks meals. I haven’t planned the menus yet, I was just getting non perishable things

Evening all

Linda, that's quite early for them to be breaking up. Children here don't finish until next Thursday.

AnnG, re your fridge, I have noticed that when my large salad bowl is full, some of the carrots and potatoes on the bottom get frozen?? I thought maybe its because it's too full as when I empty it down, the problem goes away, it's very strange and mine is less than 3 years old.

The weather here has been dire today, wild, wet, windy and just abysmal. No ferries today or tomorrow. Just hope they are running on Tues as I have my Tesco shop on the 20th to finish off my xmas food shopping etc.

Nothing strenuous today, just usual chores etc. I had a lovely tea tonight for a change, salmon en croute with carrots, peas and potatoes. Haven't had that for donkeys and really enjoyed it.

My neighbour is popping in tom afternoon for coffee and mince pies, so looking forward to that.

Joan if you are looking in, hope you are looking after yourself too and taking care outside in the garden.

Right coffee time now

Florence in the hebrides