The wildlife pond is filling up nicely in all this wild weather, but the beans are on their last legs. The eldest has taken to the roads with a first driving lesson. He went to a nearby village and it was bin day. The bins were in the road because there aren't pavements, and apparently he nearly took one out as he flew by. In fact it all sounded fairly eventful, with pedestrians in the road and oncoming cars and torrential rain and overtaking and kerbs and all sorts. I wonder if driving instructors ever wake up with a huge intake of breath in the middle of the night imagining they are being driven off of a cliff or something. It makes me nervous just thinking about it.
Within two days of the urchins not having to wear face masks to school any more, the littlest boy managed to catch a cold. This has morphed into a hacking cough, so I am wondering if he will be sent home. With only five days until half term, I could really do with some peace and quiet. We are at loggerheads quite a bit these days, mostly over screen time. Honestly, it's a battle. The other two often give me helpful parenting advice over it all, which is marvellous, as you can imagine.
Work has been busy, which is good and I am very grateful for it, but it hasn't left me much time for fiction writing lately. Plus, I fear I have been a bit slack. I tend to work every day, including weekends and bank holidays, and I think that it's left me a bit drained. Must try harder. The weekend working started over the past year, partly because I've been busy and partly because there hasn't been much else on. And somehow it's become a habit.
Having ice-cream in the house has become a habit as well. It used to be a birthday treat, but there must have been a point during the pandemic when I suddenly thought we deserved to have ice-cream all of the time. Of course, there will be complete outrage if I cut off their supply now. I fear it is a bullet I will have to bite. Just as soon as I am feeling up to it. Pick your battles and all that.
Any new habits at your end? I am sure lots of people have taken up very good things like exercise and painting and learning a language and I am definitely going to do that next time instead.
Sounds like an initiation to driving by fire!. Be kind to yourself and take some time off - maybe with an ice cream.
ReplyDeleteYour post really made me smile. Second Daughter was 17 last Wednesday so L plates were purchased and hubby has had the pleasure of taking her to a quiet industrial estate for some lessons. She is quite feisty so I think some shouting has occurred! There is quite a long waiting list here for instructors so I reckon it will be a couple of months before a professional takes her out.
ReplyDeleteYes, please try harder to take time off from work and enjoy and yourself! You have many talents and it's important to keep ourselves topped up before we can give to other. I hugely enjoy your blog and your beautiful photography, thank you for sharing it.
ReplyDeleteOoh, you have a wisteria - one of my favourite plants. There's a house in our high street which has a metal bridge from the high street to their upstairs front door and it's covered in wisteria - so beautiful.
ReplyDeleteSomeone told me that Co-Op has blackcurrant, lemon and lavender ice cream - I really NEED some but I'm assured that our local shop doesn't have any. I may actually have to venture out to find it for myself!!
Take it easy before half term is upon you!
I simply can't imagine a time where masks are deemed no longer mandatory....it feels like a dreams. Still, I take heart from the advancements being enjoyed in places where they have their act together *takes dig at Canadian vaccine rollout debacle*. :)
ReplyDeleteAnd yes, you must take time off....even when what you do is enjoyable, one needs the pause that refreshes. Take it from a chronic burn-outer.
Your garden looks lovely -- pea travesty notwithstanding...ah, wisteria...oh happy day. xo
My eldest has also just taken to the roads, two lessons down. It makes me feel so ancient, I cannot get my head around it.
ReplyDeleteOur freezer must-haves at the moment are the Mr Freeze ice pops, everyone loves them and they feel like a treat but very few cals. There would certainly be outrage if I let those run out. xx
Those scary learning to drive days. My husband did all the early lessons and I took them on once he said they were safe...ish. I remember my heart pounding on quite a few occasions. They all passed first time so they can’t have been too bad.
ReplyDeleteI’m still waiting for my beans to come up. I planted them when the rain finally came but since then it’s been so cold. I’m sure they have rotted by now. Hope you give yourself a few days off just to eat ice cream. Sounds like you deserve it. Have a calm week. B x
When my girls had their first driving lessons I sat at home listening for the sound of sirens! Bins, pedestrians and torrential rain sounds like a baptism of fire; things can only improve. Tesco does a vegan dark chocolate digestive, our consumption of which has rocketed over the last year. We ran out today and it isn't the supermarket shop until Wednesday ..... it was a tense moment! No new pandemic habits here, unless you count shouting abuse at the television during the Downing St. Coronavirus Updates! Good luck going cold turkey on the ice cream. xx
ReplyDeleteI know the feeling with learner drivers. We now have 2 grandsons on the road. I think I worry more now than when their parents were learners!The roads are busier now than back in the 90s. I also have been eating more ice cream at home. I used to only have it as a special day out. The pandemic has a lot to answer for. I don't think things will change much here in Aus as more people come in from overseas and testing seems to get false negative results. I have had my first injection, the next one in August.
ReplyDeleteHa yes for some reason we have also ended up with a lockdown ice cream habit. They used to be sunny summer day treats & now there is uproar if there aren't any in the freezer!
ReplyDeleteI'm a bit ahead of you on the driving thing as our elder son is 18. So scary letting them go off to see their mates for the first time alone - or in our case drive himself back to college at Hartpury (from Swindon) one Sunday evening. Despite the fact he has now been able to drive for over a year, I still feel odd when he goes off on a long journey (Puckrup Hall in Tewkesbury today to play golf)!
You need to be kind to yourself & take some time off. If you fancy it & need to justify time out of home, we could meet up?, I'm coming to Thornbury on Saturday morning to visit the Severn Vale Art Trail & will be in The Art Barn from 10am. Fancy a jaunt? 😊
There's been enough rain to fill the pond. Shame about the beans.
ReplyDeleteI think that you need to get out of the habit of working every weekend, and possibly the same with ice cream every day.
No new habits for me, I'm still practicing all the old ones. xx
Eek driving lessons and practices, horrendous. One son wouldn't get out of second gear and 10mph, another was far too gung-ho with my beautiful new car and as to the other who passed his First test and was promptly pranged on his first solo outing, well you don't need to know. You will need the ice cream.
ReplyDeleteAh yes - driving lessons. I still remember the terror! Even though our girls were and are (mostly) very sensible, the thought of them behind the wheel of a car reduced me to a quivering jelly!
ReplyDeleteDriving lessons! Exciting time but quite worrying, too. Annie has a test booked on 5 August. She is a good driver but maybe more confident than warranted. I thought I'd never go out driving with her but it is not half as bad as I thought, although we've had a couple of hairy moments. I am sorry about your beans. Maybe we the drier weather ahead this weekend, they'll make a miraculous recovery. Fingers crossed. Have a lovely weekend (when it finally comes) xx
ReplyDeleteGardening weather has 'bean' a bit sporadic. I am on my second lot which look a bit better. Fingers crossed for happy driving 🚗
ReplyDeleteI am constantly having to watch what Little Buddy is doing on his iPad, while his Dad, who doesn't like policing him says he can't get into anything to bad......... really? I hated teaching my kids to drive. We did it in a hospital parking lot that was empty and I freaked out if we went over 5 miles an hour. I think you deserve loads of ice cream.
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