Blogtober 2021 :: Day 6

 

Back to glorious weather today, so I squeezed in a quick hour of gardening after tea. There's so much to do out there at this time of year. I picked up windfall apples and pears and pulled out the tomatoes and sweet peas and that was about it. But I'm learning the value of doing just a bit when I can, rather than trying to find the time to spend hours on things.

Work is quite full on at the moment and while that's good, it does mean that I simply don't have the time to do all of the stuff I'd like to do. So, quick bits of gardening here and there will have to do for now.

I'd really like to do a deep declutter of the house, but that will have to wait. The children's clothes are a lot of the problem. All that constant growing out of stuff, so it needs to be put away for the next one and then got back out and on and on. I absolutely love decluttering and sorting and making everything neat, or at least I love it when it's been done, so I need to fit in some micro-decluttering as well I think. I am slowly working my way around the place, a drawer here and a cupboard there. 

The littlest boy and I fell out over school cookery earlier on. At least it wasn't one of those, 'Surprise, it's school cookery tomorrow and I need twenty ingredients!' scenarios. Like last week for example, when we ended up doing a tour of corner shops in the hopes that there were some part-baked baguettes left somewhere in town.

Tomorrow it's fajitas and he is cross that, unlike ALL of the other mothers, I have not peeled and chopped his onion for him in readiness. He told me I was lazy. I am still feeling rather incendiary about that to be honest, having worked all day, and probably most of the evening and cooked and washed up and blah, blah, blah. Plus, I don't like the smell of onions on my hands and in my clothes. So the onion is sitting in the kitchen in its whole and perfect state. Honestly, if I cut up the onion, there wouldn't really be anything left to do apart from throw things into the pan.

As it happened, I did pre-chop his chicken for him because we ended up with more than he needed, so while I was dividing it up I cut it into cubes. I did it without reading the recipe because he had the booklet in his room. Unfortunately it transpires that it is supposed to be cut into strips that are exactly the same length as his strips of red pepper (which he will be chopping himself ). Imagine how cross he is going to be when he finds out. If his teacher sees, he might even get told off. Of course, he can always say that his mother did it for him and was too lazy to read the recipe and do it properly. It's going to be brilliant.

Blogtober 2021 :: Day 5

 

Photos from the morning dog walk, after a night of heavy rain. The streams were overflowing and the mud and leaves had washed into ridges with the force of water running down the paths. Rain seems to be more biblical these days. Not so much the drizzle and light showers, more downpours. Of course, now that the flooding has reached Knightsbridge I'm sure they'll sort it all out. Later on I was sat at the dining table working and a butterfly was fluttering around the window outside. Well, okay, I wasn't working, I was looking out of the window. It always amazes me how these delicate creatures with their light dusty wings survive. Where do they hide away to stay safe? 

I was reading about purple emperors the other day and all the foul things they love to land on. The stinkier the better it seems. One lady had some stinking bishop cheese to attract them, someone else was trying roadkill and fish paste. Other things were too revolting to mention here, especially after yesterday's post when I feel I dragged the level a little lower than usual. I have to say though, that the dog would definitely eat all of the purple emperor's favourite things.

Blogtober 2021 :: Day 4

Okay, so not a vast array of photos, but snapshots from my day nonetheless. I made a quick foray into town for food. At the risk of starting something, where has all the soya milk gone? I am very attached to soya milk and being a creature of habit it will not go well if I have to switch to something else. Coconut isn't ethically great, I don't think I like oat milk, and almond milk is an absolute disaster for bees. Decisions, decisions. I shall give oat another go and see what I think. Of course, I could just drink water and count myself lucky. 

After I wrote about having a son thinking about uni yesterday, Dawn reminded me to teach him all the basics for independent life which I have of course completely forgotten to do. I have added 'unblock a toilet' and 'remove sick from a carpet' to her handy list, which also included budgeting which is a very good suggestion. I fear that none of the urchins will be that successful at managing their money when they are let loose with the thick end of a student loan. The biggest boy gets through a LOT of food, so he will need some economical ideas or he will simply eat his way through the whole amount.

I had a spectacularly unproductive day today. I find some days are just like that. Lots of interruptions, not much forward momentum, lack of focus, etc. etc. I did the food shopping instead, so as to do at least something useful. Back to it tomorrow, or maybe this evening. I've got lots of work on at the moment and occasionally I just hit a brick wall. 

I also made what I laughingly call 'energy bars', which are oats (healthy!) stuck together with melted dark chocolate and a bit of coconut oil with cranberries and chopped apricots and maybe the odd peanut in them. I kid myself they are an acceptable afternoon snack. They definitely have energy in them.

Blogtober 3rd: rain

 

I thought I might join Lucy in a bit of Blogtober blogging this month in the hope that it gets me taking more photos. I remember when I used to take a photo a day. Now I seem to go for ages without picking up my camera.

The sunny pictures above belie the true state of affairs here. The last of the home grown grapes have just been eaten and the pink flowers are slightly bedraggled now. The dahlias were rescued from the garden before the weather changed. Last weekend I was wearing shorts and sitting in the sun watching football, this week it was all torrential showers and thick coats.

The littlest boy's team have moved to a different pitch and I was able to watch his match from the car when it starting tipping down, which was utter bliss.

Imagine me there all warm and cosy with a flask of coffee watching the rain and pretending I can actually see the goals. The house has now reverted to its usual winter state of damp football boots sitting about the place. Shouldn't be surprised if you find me lighting a scented candle or two soon.

I am gearing myself up for a big year this year. The eldest will turn 18 soon and is applying for uni and doing A-levels and learning to drive and going away on his own, while the middle boy has GCSEs. If the eldest gets a uni place, then in a year he will be gone. I am very much of the opinion that it is never too early to start getting in a state about this stuff. He made a 'joking' remark about not ever coming home again and spending his holidays at uni as well. But who will do his washing? He's made a lot of jokes about beer and turning 18 too, which I am also ignoring. I always find the children move onto the next thing before I am quite ready for it. 

I am already planning to text him endless photos of the dog sitting in the window looking bereft. That will get him back if nothing else does. And yes, I will stoop as low as I have to.

Summer's end

I have just about reacclimatised myself to my normal life after a week away. Honestly, a holiday is a tricky thing isn't it. One minute I was swanning around a vast kitchen with acres of space and gazing out of the living room window at clouds drifting dreamily across mountains and wondering which of the three bathrooms with underfloor heating I would have a shower in, the next minute it was back to my own small slightly sticky space with spiders in the corners and barely enough room to swing a dog.

Anyway, as I say, I am all back to normal now. I couldn't possibly wash such a vast kitchen floor or clean three bathrooms (and an extra toilet!). It may sound as if we went all out budget-wise, but it was fairly reasonable back when I booked, just very well appointed. And the underfloor heating was only on because we couldn't work out how to turn it off. It came on for a couple of hours and proved quite handy for drying out damp boots. You see, this type of luxury is wasted on me, in the blink of an eye I had it all looking like a launderette.

The eldest braved a night of wild camping, returning to report that he didn't feel it was his natural milieu. I think he may have pitched his tent on a slope and spent the entire night sliding down it. It was very nice in the huge master bedroom back at the house, although I slept really badly all week. I don't think luxury agrees with me.

Last weekend had a glorious end of summer feel. I spent Saturday and Sunday afternoons watching cricket, aka sitting in a deckchair in the sun. Both pitches were in lovely spots, one in the city, one in the countryside. I got stung by a wasp at the second one and my arm blew up like a balloon. I laid awake half the night worrying about what would have happened if it stung me in the mouth and I couldn't breathe. It's a recurring anxiety of mine. I pretty much have it all planned out now though, it will involve a lot of yelling and calling ambulances and possibly a self-performed tracheotomy. I find that once I have a plan for what I'll do, should the worst happen, I am happy as a clam again.

The urchins went back to school on Tuesday, which I think they found fairly underwhelming. The youngest has a new teacher who is apparently really rubbish. It turns out she is really organised and really strict. I honestly sometimes wonder if he is my child at all. Being really organised is pretty much the gold standard as far as I'm concerned. I'm always rushing about the place shouting about attention to detail and making lists. Possibly why he was horrified to encounter it at school as well. 

It's all back to the grindstone here. I'm flat out with work, which is good of course, but also exhausting. The garden is nagging away at me to spend some time on it, but it will all have to wait for now. Busy at your end?

Lakes and mountains

Photos from a week in the beautiful Lake District. The dog and I are exhausted as usual after this sort of thing. He has to run around trying to keep his pack together and panicking in case he is left behind somewhere. I have to make my own bodyweight in sandwiches every day and then climb mountains. 

The biggest boy is loving landscape photography at the moment and wanted to photograph things at sunrise and sunset. Sunrise is early you know. He is also of the opinion that sleep is a waste of holiday. So he is up even earlier, tramping the hills in the darkness. I joined in once or twice, photographing the Castlerigg Stone Circle at sunrise and the view from Cat Bells at sunset. 

The Stone Circle dates from 3000 BC and is probably one of the earliest in the country. I love trying to imagine the scenes here over the years. 

Not that long ago the Lake District probably still felt pretty wild and inaccessible before cars really took hold. These days in August it is pretty packed and commercial to be honest, but off the beaten track it is breathtakingly beautiful. In fact, it's not that difficult to get away from people provided you avoid the most popular spots. 

I am now in a bit of a post-holiday slump, moping around being generally dismal. No doubt I shall pull myself out of it all soon enough. Somehow it has rather upset my equilibrium though. Work has been a bit overwhelming lately, and a break from it all has left me feeling a bit questioning and wondering how to structure things to fit in the stuff that I want to do. That's the trouble with a holiday, it starts all the thinking and assessing. I need to just get on with things and stop the whole navel-gazing. 

The year ahead will probably have quite a lot going on. The eldest will turn 18 soon and also take his A levels. The middle boy will have GCSEs. Then there are university applications to think about, about which I know almost nothing, so there will have to be a bit of research there I think. How to choose??? How high to aim??? Who will do his laundry??? Oh, I am all of a dither about it all. I think I need a very calming hobby, something I can disappear into and re-emerge later in a state of complete zen calm. Axe throwing maybe, or street luge. Or maybe just a bit of knitting. All tranquil at your end?

Summer flames with ice-cream and cricket

I took the urchins to the cricket, which was really glitzy, as cricket matches go. Music and flames and crowd participation. We sat at the top of a stand in the jet stream from the doughnut stand forty feet below us. We watched a women's game in the afternoon then the men's game in the evening. The men's game was really thrilling, it came down to the last three balls and the team we were supporting (Welsh Fire) won. I did threaten to take my knitting, but it was exciting enough that I wasn't bored at all. I did see someone knitting while watching on the television though. 

The middle boy went to Lords to watch cricket that week as well, so he was handily placed to make comparisons for us. It was the old guard MCC members versus dancing on stage, flashing lights and blasts of rock music. 

The biggest boy is pressing on with driving lessons. One of the advantages of this that I hadn't realised before is that he can now critique my driving as we go about the place. It's incredibly helpful as you can imagine, you can no doubt picture the scene. His instructor sounds as if he has an excellent sense of humour, which is probably a prerequisite.

The dog has had his first dog ice cream of the summer. Honestly, who invents this stuff? He thought it was marvellous, although he has pretty low standards when it comes to food. Much of what he eats when he's out and about doesn't qualify as edible, or even mentionable.

I am trying to carve out tiny moments to read. I enjoyed the Judith Flanders book and I always like Kate Rhodes, especially her Scilly Isles series. Any good books at your end? I hope you're enjoying the summer and that the occasional ice-cream is coming your way.  xx