What are you all up to

Thanks WN - we are lucky living here - with nothing to speak of between us and the North Sea.  Main reason we bought the house - for the views. Pleased that you're back safe and well.

As for the recovery programme - I'm slowly going stir-crazy! I only have to move around a bit and the leg swells up like a balloon and there's only so much 'resting' I can cope with in a day. Yes - I'm impatient - always having been fairly active in the past.  Just looking forward to getting the van back after the boiler repair and heading off to Skybarn Farm CL, near Lincoln, on 1 March

Good to hear you are safely back WN. 

We've had a few good settled days, not as cold as you guys south of us. For once we got it a bit milder, took advantage and managed to tidy another section of the garden. 

Been busy around the house doing odd jobs and some work at the sewing machine. 

Should have had our eldest grandchild here for the weekend but she decided at the last minute to stay on at school with her friends and go to the hockey and rugby games. We now  know it wasn't just the stress of exams that she wanted a break from. It turns out her and her boyfriend have broken up, at 15 it's the end of the world (well for 3 days)  all ok again now. Oh the fickleness of youth 😂😂😂

I'm having a lazy morning catching up on here. OH is sorting out admin, he has a pile of paperwork to file. Used to be my job but when he retired he took it over, think he might regret that nowadays. 

Will go out after lunch for some fresh air, not looking great grey skies with the odd break in clouds, it looks chilly and breezy. 

Another sharp frost here and blue skies all the way beautiful and even a bit warmer upto 10C but ground is quite hard so no gardening yet. Just spoke to a friend who lives about 6 miles from us and said they have been eating lunch outside their back door as very sheltered we do not have a sheltered spot here really and OH said not warm enough for me yet and he does not feel the cold no comment.

Will go for a walk later even if it is around the village as the hunt are about with this weather.

Just take care Richard with your recovery good photo too.

Home alone. OH is somewhere over Athelney way (where King Alfred burnt the cakes..) and it's another grey day. No nice sunsets here at the moment Richard! Hope you start to feel improvements soon, take it easy.

I had an early walk with the dog, the mud has settled down to walkable but at least it's not Midlands clay where you have to stop every few minutes to remove the build up underfoot! No-one around, I think it's too chilly to tempt the fair weather walkers! 

B2 I presume you've got to sign papers off now, get witnesses to signatures etc.? It's a sign of progress, do hope you don't have to wait too long. I believe some exchnages and completions go through very close together at the moment? Either way I hope you can send it all off soon and get some sleep.

I think you've done well WN hope you all get some time to unwind too.

Been cat sitting today or more precisely cat feeding. My son has two Ragdoll cats. He and his wife have been in London overnight so we went across to feed them. ( he does have an automatic feeder but that only dispenses dry food) Strange animals are Ragdolls as they are not the sort of cat to snuggle up on the settee with you. They seem to like human contact but strictly on their terms!!! The male one is massive although if you pick him up you realise its all fur!!! The younger female is smaller and more timid. Anyway they were pretty hungry and polished of their food in short order!!!

David

As a lifetime insomniac Bakers I can sympathise. Slept fine until I had my first baby, 50 years ago, and never since. My Mum was the same, never a proper nights sleep. She always said it was better to lay there and at least get some rest. I have tried everything, Dr sent me on a ‘course’ once, they said as I had already tried everything they could offer there was little point me keep attending. Sometimes I can go a whole night without any sleep at all, quite used to it and can manage. OH can’t make it out as a couple of hours of no sleep and he is not good the next day. He wants to move and put our house on the market! Really not looking forward to that!

Same here re - moving DEBSC.  Although it’s me instigating it mainly.  I’d like to be nearer our Hertfordshire family.  Reading B2’s trials it does make one think a little harder!  As I have an scheduled operation soon, also our son and family visiting here for a few weeks/months from Macau it’s not top priority just yet, but when all settles down again it will be looked at again! 🥴🤦

Thanks for your kind thoughts folks, much appreciated I can assure you.

Yes I think my current 'wobbles' are that the paperwork that has arrived is the actual contracts to be signed, at the solicitors but read and digested before, once exchanged, hopefully in the near future,  it's final. Something we've wanted for months but now it's actually here it all seems very daunting, and I'm leading on it because I have to be the strong one now and I know we do both really want to do it. Oh how contrary is the human state at times?? 

I really hope I'm not putting folk off, it's just all so long winded and unsettling! A lovely estate agent phoned yesterday to see if we were sorted, we chatted generally about 'our house buying and selling' system, she has 25 years experience and thinks it awful still. Apparently a friend in the same trade went to Canada a few years back and its usually all sorted in 15 days 😱😱 with the seller obtaining reports etc so from the moment you view a property you have all the facts. 'We' have discovered there are chancel repair liabilities - sorted quite cheaply as an example. Never mind the home straight is in view, but like any marathon it's the stamina that's important. I'm sure the last couple of years have not aided our confidence, but we can't keep blaming it all on the pandemic! I might have become a jibbering wreck without its help!

I have spells of not sleeping, generally for a reason, and find it difficult to cope with - goodness knows how those of you who suffer regularly manage.

Heddlo how exciting that the family are visiting. Fingers crossed it all goes smoothly. NZ entered 'red' for Covid a few hours ago, shouldn't make much difference to our fully vaccinated family but it's always on my mind.

Right I must take myself in hand and prepare a roast. Its cold grey and uninspiring here, variety got light. I came back from my earlier dog walk, fairly mud free - we stuck to hard surface paths and cycleways for 4 miles through parks - it wasn't all that busy either and nice to have a change of venue and Dora was able to have free run for almost all of it.

DavidKlyne those cats are beautiful 😍. We5ll be able to do similar, son has dog not cat, when were nearer and it will work both ways 😉🤣

I went through a period of stress and not being able to sleep. Like others, tried all sorts, but finally dropped on something that worked for me. I listen to talking books as soon as I turn off the light. Just one bud of some small earphones in the ear I am not resting on, and it’s enough to dispel any other thoughts, and lull me to sleep. Doesn’t stop me hearing things, but stops the mind dwelling on things that it shouldn’t. OH has timed me, and from closing eyes to “fast on” can be less than a minute….Bliss. 

Very beautiful cats DK. I miss our cats.