General Chat

Afternoon to you all,

Never got out for a walk, but did go out on the patio. (Can't do it all at once) LOL LOL.

Ros has been out SPENDING. Our kettle has been playing up, it won't stay on when you put the switch down, you have to do it a few times. So they has been replaced. She has also bought new baking tins,shoes for herself, and other bits and pieces. I can see the MONEY TREE will need watering. LOL

What a lovely day it has turned out to be. The conservatory is like a bake house. The sun is still out.

Liver and onions for tonight with mash and peas. Makes a change from MEAT.

Michael Palin has been on, but I have been reading the paper so haven't followed him. He's very interesting on his ravels and seems very knowledgable on his subjects.

U don't know if I dare mention, but, Arsenal V Chelsea on T.V. tonight, but it will mean going to the pub. !!! If I go I will have to control myself, what I drink. But it would be nice to get out for a couple of hours, and see some different faces.

The new light bulb things for the dining room lights arrived today and oh has put them in and they are much better and softer on the old eyes.

Homemade steak and kidney pie tonight with some nice mash and spouts or cabbage. I bought a big pack of steak thats was marked down to three pounds and a pack of kidney for 84p so thats two pies for for three eighty four. Not bad £1. 92 each. Beat that Morrisons !!!

Gill have you done anything today for your anniversary? I hope you have had a nice day.

Its been sunny here all day.

HAPPY 31ST ANNIVERSARY GILL <3 <3 <3

We dont get cards on our anniversary . Just Chris and I exchange cards. I dont even think Hannah and James would know the date if I asked them lol

Well Frank you were lucky getting sun today. I dont think we had any and now it looks like it is getting misty.
I cant say I blame Ros giving up goint to her weigh ins if she has to queue like that . I am sure she can still do well without going. Go to the Pub tonight for the footie. Just one beer will be fine if you sip it slowly :-D :-D It will be good for you to get out.

Well today has been spent booking a holiday .We nearly came to blows as we had planned on going to Annecy (france ) at the end of May begiining of June .But the Hotel I had picked was full. I have been trying to get Chris since Novemeber to think about booking. So now we are too late :-S. So the plans have changed and we will be going the first week of September. Hotel booked :-D. We still need to book a Hotel in Paris for a few nights but I have had enough today so will start looking again tomorrow . We will book something for May/June in England for a week .
I dont know if I said but Fitz's son Ollie and his wife are in Sydney in this dreadful heatwave !!!. They are young so will probably be coping ok but it cant be very pleasant.

James loved the meal I did last night :-D. I did so much of the rice and lentil thing he has taken some to work for lunch and is going to have the last of it tonight with Sausages. Chris and i will have sausages but with Dauphinoise Potatoes .

My Sister and Larry are very relieved today . They were very concerned that Larry might have Prostate Cancer. But all tests are clear :-D :-D. He just need to keep an eye on his symptoms. The other big worry for them is that Oscar (the 13 yr Spanich Water dog) has a tumour on his willy :-(. The Vet says she doesnt know if it is benign or malignant but wont be recommending treatment because of his age. So it is a watching and waiting thing. Their other old dog Riley is on his last legs too !!. I think he is 15 . Jilly is the young one and touch wood there is nothing wrong with her.

I saw the programme on the people with Stuttering. I thought it was amazing how well they all did and boy was it emotional. Their lives are so different now :-D :-D
I was having to wipe my eyes in my nighty . I was awake so early this morning I managed to watch 24hrs in A&E, Silent Witness and Eastenders on the laptop :-D
Thomas seems to be ready to go out in the mornings earlier again now :-S 5.45 am

Janice is on the phone so must go.

Evening all,

<3 <3 Happy Anniversary Gill <3 <3 i hope you've both had a nice day.

What a dreary old day it's been here ,you've all been lucky getting the nice sunshine ,just as i got out the door after lunch with Max to go for his walk i could feel a slight drizzle on my face ,it didn't amount to much so we didn't get that wet but Max had very muddy paws from the wet grass.

A trip to the pub will do you good Frank ,meet up with a few pals and have a catch up it will get you out of your four walls for a while and you don't have to have a lot of drink , you'll probably sleep better too after going out.

Oh Jane that's good news for your BIL, they must be relieved ,but now they'll be worrying about their dear old boy Oscar i hope it doesn't come to any thing and he has a few more years with them .
I watched the stuttering programme too ,i had tears in my eyes when those two boys stood up and said their names and the poor Pharmacist how on earth did he do his job with his terrible stutter ,it was lovely at the end to see them all so much better .

Mel that was a good buy you had at the charity shop with the leather trousers ,what a good idea getting them to cut up for your crafting ideas , didn't they have any lace in the charity shop ? i know one of ours has buttons ,lace and trimmings ,i have a rummage some times just in case they have bits i could use for the childrens costumes for school.

When we went to Tesco's today they had some toys reduced so i got a Toot Toot Garage for Lewis's birthday next week ,only £9.50 instead of over twenty pound !!

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY GILL and GLYNN, hope you had a lovely day with Sandra too of course. How sweet of her to give you.flowers.

Peter and I only exchanged cards between our selves apart from our Silver and Golden weddings when everyone in the family sent us cards.

Had another quiet day, Mandy my friend the hairdresser gave me a very light perm just to give my hair a bit of body she came this morning and came back later to cut Paul & Richard's hair she mentioned that every other house she has been to had suffered with this bug someone had had it for 3 weeks

I hope you made it to the pub Frank and enjoyed your evening

What good news for Janice and Larry that he has the all clear. They must be sooooo relieved. So sad about Oscar though. Sometimes they just learn to live with these things so he may go on for quite a while yet, bless. <3

Oh has made another stile for up in the loft so he can get over the roof struts nicely without hurting his undercarriage. When we start clearing the loft he is going to put the big trailer around the end of the bungalow as there is a window there and we will chuck stuff out there. I know there are a load of garden magazines up there that were here when mum moved in so they will be the first things out the window.

Not done any crafting today. boo hoo. He has had the kitchen in such a mess with all his stuff on the table. He did put the new light bulbs in the spots over the table and they are much better and light up more of the kitchen cieling which the others did'nt and they are much kinder to the eye when you sit under them.

Hope Frank managed to get to the pub tonight to see all his friends and have a little break from being indoors all the time.

I could'nt sleep last night and lay for ages listening to oh snore, then I got hot and then I wanted to turn over but oh had a curry last night and it was very fragrant so to speak and was still on his breath. He arose when it was still daark and I turned over and must have dropped off right away. Then I heard him talking to me telling me it was 11am. I was dreaming about an African Grey parrot singing "and sweet Marie who waits for me" very strange..... he sang it all and then oh woke me up.

Mandy I just love going through scraps of lace in shops. I still have some that mum and I found in a shop in Barnstaple. I have draws of lace and binding and cottons in all colours. Trimmings and even teddy squeeker and doll faces and teddy eyes. Lots of lace and linings in all colours and a lot of material in two trunks. If you need anything forthe childrens fancy dress let me know in good time for me to send you something.

Morning all

Damp and cold here today, it looks like we might of had some rain in the night. It's not raining at the moment but is very cloudy.

Good idea Mel to throw all the rubbish from the loft out of the window. We don't have a window so will have to bring everything down through the loft hatch.

Pleased to hear Larry's test were clear Jane. Shame about Oscar though, hope he doesn't suffer to much. So you were a bit late booking the hotel you wanted, that's a shame, is it the same hotel you're going to later in the year?

Did you go to the pub in the end Frank. OH watched the match here as he supports Arsenal, he was a bit disappointed with the results though.

Well, I finally finished all my washing just before midnight. I had so much material and some of it was quite big so I ended up doing about 8 loads in the end. It's all packed up now and won't be going back under the bed again.

Morning Gill and all,

Cold and frosty morning here today, so everything is white. The suns out so it will soon burn it off where it reaches.

I have nothing planned for today but oh may have something he wants me to do so I can't get stuck into anything. I need to have a good dust of the bedroom and hall. Oh being up the loft and having the hatch open most of the day the dust has travelled all over the house.

Morning All
Damp,dark and dreary here. Flipping miserable in fact :-S
Mel you are the lucky one today with the sunshine. Chris is lopping off branches and taking a tree down at the bottom of the garden. I took the chance while is is out of the house and ordered a couple of presents for his Birthday.So that is a good job out of the way :-D.

I need to go into town but will hang on until he has finished with the tree . I dont need him falling off ladders or sawing his arm off while I am not here !!!!!!!.

I think I will make us a coffee and then give him a shout.

Good morning Gill, Mel, and all.

Didn't get to the pub last night. I had terrible indigestion after fried onions. Must stop eating them, they just don't agree with me.

Glad that Larry is A O.K. It must be a worry. I had a check up a few weeks ago, all was fine.

Ros has loads of old LACE from her Grandmother and mother. It sits in cupboard over the head board. I wonder if and when she will do anything with it !!!

I sat through "GIRL FRIENDS" last night. What a strange lot they are. It's not something that appeals to me, but Ros seemed to enjoy it.

We had a lovely end to the day weather wise, yesterday. This morning it was dark and miserable as usual.

I had a very bad night las night. Went to bed at 10.00. still awake when Ros came in 11.45. Got up at 2.00 still hadn't slept. Took more Galveston, but still laid burping to gawd knows what time. I was awake before 6.00 am and just laid until I got up at 8.00. I called Ros at 9.00 as she is at Stitchery do. She is leaving that early as she is having her nails done at 2.30. I expect her home around 4.00. So a nice quiet day again on my own.

Jane my old LAB had Cancer in his undercarriage, we kept him comfortable for as long as we could, but the end was inevitable, and I had to have him put down. I do hope Oscar doesn't have to suffer with his willy. Poor old chap. That is always the down side of having pets. They do tend to die on us, at some stage. xxxx

Madam is now wanting the Chimney breast that is in the kitchen behind the lounge fire TAKEN OUT. She said it will make more space, for MORE CUPBOARDS. I have said DON'T FILL THE CUPBOARDS SO MUCH that you have, we could last a month without buying soups, B beans tins of Salmon, pilchards, sardines, the list goes on and on. LOL LOL The sauces cupboard over the cooker, is just the same. I don't think there is a spice or sauce in there, that hasn't been produced.that she hasn't got.

Need to sort something for dinner tonight. Have a NICE DAY see you all later.

I have got lamb chops out of the freezer for tonight. I only buy them when they are on offer as they are so expensive otherwise with just the little round loin and a bit on the end. I grill them so the fat crisps up as I like it like that but only eat the crispy bit. I won't eat any other soggy fat and can't stand it in my mouth.

I saw a vapour trail in the sky this mornn ing when I went round to do the chickens. I hav'nt seen one of those for a long long while with the sky being so cloudy lately.

We have, at the moment, blue sky wall to wall and it makes you feel so much happier.

Sorry you had another badish night Frank. Have you rung your sister lately?

Just having a COC and then I am going to cut something out for my craft and then it will be time to get the lunch.

Oh has made another stile for the loft this morning but has put the wood he makes them out of in the loft yesterday and he still needs to make two more. Then he can get right through the loft without bending under or clambering over the supports for the roof.

Those stiles sound a great idea Mel, and if it protects his "UNDER CARRIAGE" that must be a good thing. LOL

Still a damp horrible day here, and don't see any change for the rest of the day.

Have been watching Michael Palin. He is on his last leg in Brazil, and he is now in Tibet on his other programme. Will miss them now they are over.

I rang my sister the other day, when she was very low. and not wanting to live as she is. I think part of it is sympathy as her youngest son (PAUL) is off to see THE NORTHERN LIGHTS tomorrow, She will be relying on the other son (Michael) to keep an eye on her. I will ring again tomorrow to check up on her.

Ros will be pleased when she gets in. I ordered two new shampoos that she uses. They cost £18.00 at the hairdressers. I found them on Ebay for £10.00 each with free P & P. hey both turned up in the post today. Together with another gadget that you use for making flowers and decorations, with this needle thingy. You push it up and down through material and you shape things how you like. I saw it on FACE BOOK at £20.00 plus P & P. I got it on Ebay for less that a FIVER. So it pays to shop around.

I have done Mince Beef with carrot, onion and peas. All cooked down in the pan. Transferred to a dish, and covered with this slices of potato. and dabbed with butter. I will do some cabbage and runners beans to go with it. It surprised me how long it took to prepare. I hope Ros enjoys it, before going to Choir Practice this evening.

Another night on my own !!!!

Afternoon All,

A dull and gloomy day here too!

We have never had anniversary cards other than the ones we exchange either. I hope you had a nice day anyway Gill and that Sandra enjoyed making some cards for you. :-) Don't get overdoing it with the packing. Have you any idea where you will move to?

Janice and Larry seem to have had more than their share of troubles Jane so it must have been such a relief that Larry got the all clear! The poor dog though. I do hope it hasn't spread and that they can do something.

Frank you have been busy getting Ros some bargains! :-) Ithink it must have been the fried onions that gave you indigestion. Too much fat like in the fish batter. I have to leave some now or I get the same! It's a shame your sister feels so low and unhappy. Is she able to go out at all or just not mobile at all now? I think you are doing all you can in offering support by chatting and listening to her.

Mel it sounds like the new bulbs are a lot easier on the eyes. We had some new bulbs in our kitchen that seemed so strong and bright you could do operations under them!! We changed them as well. The stiles your OH is making will certainly make life easier for him in the future. Sometimes you wonder why you haven't done these things years ago when you see how much better they make things.

OH had quite a medical day yesterday. Dentist first for a filling, then hearing test (he is on the borderline like me but in both ears), then eye test (the optician is referring him to have his cataract done). It's a bit awkward now as she said he should hear and get an appointment within the next 3 months, so I daren't book our trip to Cornwall now till I know when!! I would do all the driving, but with all the driving about he likes to do when we are there I would be shattered. Also he isn't a very good passenger, loud exclamations at something he sees, and startles you just as you are about to pull out onto an island........and in his help with directions he tends to say unhelpful words like 'this way' or 'there' and is surprised when you can't read his mind! :-S :-S We'll just have to see how things pan out.

Love the idea of the stiles in the loft Mel,epecially if they stop OH doing himself a mischief :-D. Having a window to chuck stuff out is going to be really useful too.

Ann, can you book your holiday but not pay until you go ? Or do you have to pay up front? We have booked our holiday on a reserve and pay when we get there and no cancellation fee.I think we coud cancel right up to the day before. We have done it this way because of my hip (just incase I had to have anything done)
I can understand you not wanting to be having to do all the driving and with a difficult passenger too LOL.It is a long way to Cornwall.
I had my re referral for the Rheumatologist come through today and it is the 1st March now instead of July which is really good.

Frank i wonder if your Sister is not so keen on having her other Son keeping an eye on her while the other is away. But he does have to be able to have his holiday .I hope she isnt going to make him feel guilty about going. She has been through so much this past year and I feel very sorry that she is feeling so low.

That was a great bargain with those Shampoos for Ros. I have not thought about looking to see if I can get the same one I buy at my hairdressers on line. I must give it a go. Oh no having the chimney breast out in the kitchen !!!!! think of all that mess !!!!.
Does Ros really want to get rid of it or was it just a thought?
Your dinner sounds nice tonight. I love a good tasty mince.My Sister cant eat it.She feels sick at the thought lol. She is like that with mashed potato and eggs too.Mash has to be put through a potato ricer to make sure there is not one tiny lump, and with eggs she has to get rid of the blood spot before cooking them.
I had a lovely mashed softish boiled egg on toast for my lunch today. I was late getting back from town and was starving and I just had a fancy for that.It was delish :-D
Meatballs and Spag for Chris and me tonight and Curry for James.

Ann you are right about nothing ever going smoothly for Janice and Larry.There is always something and nothing is of their own making. I do hope that Oscar's willy problem is not going to be too awful.There is a tumour on the end and the vet said there is another further up on the Urethra :-( The only reason they took him to the Vet was because blood was dripping :-(

Chris has just this minute come in from the garden. He has been burning all the branches from the tree . I yelled down the garden just now as I suddenly realised it was pitch black and he was still down there. But he said he could see what he was doing by the light of the bonfire .I think he still has a bit more to burn tomorrow .
I must remember I have a hair appointment tomorrow. I never ever have it done on Fridays and should have had it done on the 4th but cancelled it as that is when Mark,Kate and Freya were coming. I think I will leave myself a big NOTE :-D

Gill dont over do it with all the packing and sorting.You wont be moving just yet and you dont want to make your self ill again being worn out.Try and pace yourself <3
How is Sandra now? I hope she still isnt too upset with all that is going on.

I think I must be about the only one here who doesnt have a stash of lace ,buttons and materials LOL . I did many years ago have Mums old tin of Buttons but my Sister had that as it was no use to me.I must ask her if she still has it.

I shall cook these meatballs now so they will be ready just to put in the sauce later.

We have to pay a deposit to the agents when we book our week Jane so would lose that if we then had to cancel. We could book direct with the owners I'm sure, but then we wouldn't get the 20% discount we get from Benenden by going through the agent!! The lodges are tending to get booked up more quickly each year now since the hot tubs were installed, so I didn't want to leave it too long. We could go after the summer like last year, but it is so pretty with the wild garlic etc in April/May. June-August will be too hot, noisy on the site with children, would cost a lot more and be busier everywhere to park etc so we always avoid those dates! lol. We stayed at Annecey quite a few years ago and I remember parts we saw were very pretty.

I cleared out most of my materials and other stuff when I moved here as there wasn't room for it all with moving from a bigger place to a smaller one. I have a button tin though with additions from MIL's tin when we cleared their house out.

Frank, it may be cheaper to leave the sides of the chimney breast in place, knock the front out and put a lintel above and fit a frame and cupboard doors on the opening. She'd have more cupboard space without needing the ceiling patching or the walls and floor making good. ;-) It's the bedroom I need more space in for all my clothes that don't fit!! lol. :-)

Better sort my beading bag for tomorrow now.

Morning all,

We have a frosty start this morning but the sun is shining too. Its still very cold though.

There's a couple of crows strutting along our road this morning like they own the place.

I need to go and get our scripts today and see if I can get an appointment with the doc to see if I can get Omeprazole in a higher dose like oh has. Jane what dose to you have to take? Mine are 10 and oh's are 20.

Good Morning Mel, and all,

Same weather as yesterday, dark and dismal.

Just had a call from Jan. She, Jo and Ella are coming to stay with Kerry next weekend, and who do you think we are having. JJ They will drop him off Friday and pick him up Monday, That is providing Ella can have the day off school. It will be so nice to have him with us. He loves it here, and we love having him.

That doesn't sound too good for Oscar Jane, if he is dripping blood. I just hope he doesn't suffer. xxx

Ann I will mention your ideate Harvey when he comes to look at the job. It sounds a great idea to me. It will give her the space she wants without all the patching. I'm not sure that I still have spare floor tiles to match the existing floor as well. THANKS. xx

Gill, Think before you leap. A move is a BIG THING to do just to get away from your MUM. In the passed you have managed to patch things up, so why not this time. ?? Would you move from the area, and cut ties with friends and family.?? As I said give it a lot of thought, and listen to UNCLE FRANK.

Jane, the mince was very nice last night, and we cleared the lot. I have a voucher from a local eatery with 30% off the food, which we might use today. It will get me out of the house for a couple of hours, and save me cooking tonight.

I am still doing well on the drink front. I am down to 3 cans a night. Which I find to be comfortable with, and might well settle for a lesser amount than I was use to.

Conrad has lost out on a Villa that he was going to move into, on a permanent basis.It appears they have a buyer for it, so he will have to wait to see if another pops up, that the company dosen't need to sell. It will mean him renting a Villa for when (I hope) we go out there for our 40th anniversary in June. I would love Harvey,Julia and Lewis to join us, but there is no way we can get HARVEY to FLY.

I will ring my sister later today, to see how she is, and whether she is concerned about Michael looking after her. She told me the other day, that a neighbour offered to do a bit of housework for her. She hoovered the hall, landing, stairs and lounge and had the cheek to charge her £20.00 Who needs neighbours like that ???

Ros came home like a BLOCK OF ICE last night. They have changed venues to the Church in Milton Malsor as it was suppose to be a warmer place, NOT SO. What will happen now no ones knows. !!!

Ros was asked last night if we will have "BIGGLES" over night at the end of January as they are going to a London show. She also hinted that they are going to India for two weeks, and it looks like they will need to book him into KENNELS. Roa made no comment. GOOD GIRL. !!!!

Off for a shower and shave, and get dressed. Have a good day, whatever you are up to. !!

Well, here I sit, hungry and patient, while madam is drying her hair.

I have just looked at the menu for the pub we are going to. It's got to be one of the BGGEST CHOICE menu's around. There must be 15/20 starters, The same with mains, plus 10 grills, and many more options. Of course there is the sweet menu, plus Ice cream Sundie's etc. I can see us having a job choosing WHEN WE GET THERE. < ;-) ;-) ;-) ;-)

Frank you must tell us what you have had when you get back. I hope you both enjoy your meal.

so are you going to take Biggles for the night? I know you won't want him for two weeks as he was a bit of trouble last time was'nt he. You don't want to be falling over him and either of you hurting yourselves.

Oh has cleared a whole BIG trailer load out of the loft and has taken it out of the garden and burnt it along the side of our road in front of the little wood. There were bags with pillows in and one was a feather one which he said had burst open and stunk as it burnt.

I am now going to do some felting as he is not going up in the loft again today.

Its turned all cloudy here now and it is so cold out.

Afternoon All

Mel you have had sun again!! .We have had a foggy horrible day yet again.No rain just yucky. Chris has been all day burning the branches again and still have more to do tomorrow.
He went off about 9.30 this morning to the garden centre in Burton Latimer for Parafin but the road was closed off on Barton Road.Lots of Police . We have since heard that a lady had beeen found dead at the side of the road(just along from your old house Frank) .They thought at first she must have been hit by a car but it is looking like she may just have died :-(. I am sure there will be something on the news later.

So JJ is coming to visit again Frank :-D :-D. That will be lovely for you. It the lady who has Biggles is hinting that he comes to you for a fortnight I would just pretend that I was probably going to be away for some of that time so couldnt possibly look after him.
I dont know if 'Country Companions' is still going Frank. It is a girl who has a grooming parlour but also had a few people who would take dogs into their own home. I used her for Chester and he went to a lady in Wellinborough for his holidays for a while.

That is some menu!!! I hope you both found something you fancied and that it was really good. I wonder where Ros and the ladies will go now for their Choir Practise ,somewhere a bit warmer I
:-D
Speaking of Warmer.. On the way back from the hairdressers I popped into the little Co-op and the homeless man was there. Sitting outside with all his belongings in a huge black plastic bag.He was looking after someones dog while they were in the shop. Finally I was able to give him those Hand Warmer things that I bought ages ago for him. He looked a bit dishevelled today which is unusualand I noticed his nails were dirty too which again is very unusual . I think he is depressed :-(. Not surprising really when you realise where he lives. He has a tent behind a big Billboard down by the Railway Bridge .I think he is there with another man. I had a good chat and asked how Christmas was for him. He said it was a bit miserable as he couldnt face going to have the Christmas meal laid on for any homeless person .He is called Steve and is in his predicament after a failed marriage. I asked if he every went to Johnnys Happy Place and he has but not for some time. He knows Denise (Johnny's Mum) .I explained that Johnny had been a friend of my James. So we had a good natter and he thanked me for the chat. I got a bit of a lump in my throat then.He said he has permission from C0-op headoffice to sit outside the shop as he doesnt ever ask anyone for money or anything. He said they look after him which is great. I expect he gets given things maybe at the end of the day which they might not be able to sell the following day. While I was talking to him lots of people said hello to him and a man came out and gave him four bottles of Ironbru (wrong spelling there ! ) Steve doesnt like Hostels as there are too many drunks and druggies.
I felt a bit bad asking him all these questions and said I hoped he didnt mind. He said no he was quite happy to talk and enjoyed it. As I drove off he gave a wave :-D.
I will make sure I stop and have a proper chat with him each time I see him now.

Any news on Nikko Mandy?

I must get this dinner on the go. It is so late and James is off to Jess for the weekend .