General Chat

That is interesting Mel. I am also hoping that with the lower dose my ankles won't swell as much in the evenings.

Frank so a day of solitude for you. At least nobody to fall out with. slow cooked lamb sounds good. didn't you have the roast lamb yesterday?
We just have cold chicken and oven chips tonight. after the pasties lunch time we shouldn't want a lot.

Funny you should say that about the Amlodopine AnnG as oh was on a highish dose of those and when he went for some kind of check up a couple of years ago we had a phone call a couple of days later saying not to take the pills he had as he should have had a lower dose one with the other drugs he was on. Once he started taking them he said he felt better and had more energy.

I have finished what I was making this morning and the other day but hav'nt put their ribbons on yet and I was going to take a pic but oh is in the bedroom so I don't want to disturb him.

Afternoon all,

Nothing to report , weather not brilliant, rain this morning, now dark and very overcast.

I got to sleep last night around 1.00 am, and was wide awake again at 4.30. I really don't know what to say to the Dr. She is bound to say "GET OUT MORE and EXERCISE. It's alright for those who can walk a few miles, I have a job to walk round the block. I think my right knee might need replacing. I will ask her to send me for an X ray. Just getting around the bungalow is getting more difficult with the knee clicking and giving me pain.

Ros is at the Theatre tomorrow night to see "LADY IN BLACK" I think that's what it is. She is taking three others, they are having a meal before they go in. So I will decided as and when I eat, and what I might fancy. It's one of the Mothers Club outings, so will meet up with the others around 5.00 pm. She will be out most of the day with Carolyn, so I will be HOME ALONE.

Have had no contact from the family, so don't know how Sister and SIL are doing. I expect it will be ME who rings, to find out.As I said to my brother Bill, the phone is connected both ends. lol lol

Slow cooked lamb tonight in a mint and rosemary sauce. New pots, Swede and carrot mash, brussels and cabbage. Bread and Butter pudding for sweet.

My it does seem a long day, and it's not 3.30 yet. Hope you are all well. See you tomorrow. xxxx

It was supposed to rain hard here today so OH didn't go to golf it has only just started to rain with that very fine stuff. We had to go to see the specialist nurse re medications review today. OH was in and out quickly, he only has a statin to take. I have three meds two for BP and a statin. He decided to give me a full review.

BP110/66. which, of course is low, they prefer it not to fall below 140/80. During further conversation asking him what causes low BP. Answer medication!!! Err, if it is that low is something not right with medication? Answer, well you are on the highest Mgs of Amlodopine. Me ???? So he has done what I have long thought should be done, lowered the dose for three weeks when another check will be done. This all dates back over 20 years when I came off HRT and it was then the normal thing to put you on BP tablets. To my knowledge I had never had high BP (although my father did). 18 months ago I had a low reading, 10 months ago it went up to 122/72. Strange it has now dropped again. Anyway, picked up the new prescription so we shall see.

After the appointment we decided to go next door to the community centre and get some lunch. We both had really tasty pasties. They only had one traditional and one steak and ale. We shared but both agreed the traditional was really the best and was very good, almost as good as the 'real thing'.

OH is fed up of course as he can't get out into the garden because it is drizzling.

The bit of sun here lasted about 2 minutes, then clouded over again and we had more rain. It’s dry again now but I don’t think it’s going to stay dry for long. I was going into town but I’m not really in the mood so it can wait till tomorrow. I think I’ll go and sort out a few more geraniums and other plants ready for overwintering. If it rains I can do them in the garage.

We got rid of the big, dark, old shed that was here when we moved in as it took up too much room in our little garden but we have a large double garage. We only run one car now so use the other half for tools and gardening stuff.

Looks like just you and me today Mel. Where is everyone?

No chance of it brightening up here Vera its just as cloudy and damp as it was when I got up. Its that fine rain blowing in the wind.

Not getting on well this morning. I have done a couple of little things and soon it will be tiime to get the lunch. I wish I did'nt have to stop for these things.

Sheep Sh*t pie tonight as oh calls it. I remembered to get the mince out of the freezer this morning. Marvels will never cease! :-D

Morning Mel and all

Another grey, damp day here. I’ve done two loads of washing but I am not going to bother to hang it out. Some is in the dryer and some is hanging on a clothes airer. Now we have put the underfloor heating on stuff on the airer will dry quickly.

OH has been on the phone for about an hour to our acquaintance who lost his wife on Saturday. He seems very confused and doesn’t seem to know what he has to do, where the death certificate is coming from, how to register the death etc. He said that today he had to go to the Home where his wife died so OH has given him a list of questions to ask. Apparently he and his wife recently updated their wills with a local solicitor so OH has suggested that he asks the solicitor to deal with any official forms and letters.

I have just seen a small gleam of sun through the clouds. Perhaps it’s going to brighten up.

Morning all,

Awoke to chickens making a noise this morning on this dull and dreary wet day.

Looked out of the bedroom window but could'nt see any chickens so got up and got dressed. Oh came through and asked if this was one of the new girls so I went and looked and low and behold one of them was int he run closely followed by an old one whilst trying to have some food. Oh said it was the first time he had seen one of them.

I must try to gt a pic today to show you my lovely Daisy and May.

Been raining in the night so everywhere is wet wet wet.

I started something else yesterday afternoon. I downloaded something of the net and did a bit of jiggling and made two with another three on the way. Will send a pic later if I get them done today. They are only paper but I have reinforced them with card.

I agree it is hard to keep track of all the posts some days. AnnG since we called in at Gloucester Services a couple of years ago on our way to Cornwall, we don't bother with the others now! OH was always reluctant to call there before .......I don't know but think he might have thought it would be all pine nuts and Chia seeds! But once we'd been he suggests it going and coming back now. It is a bit pricey, but we have enjoyed what we've had there and some of the old services are a bit dire in comparison. I can well imagine people complaining when they wanted to build it though but it does blend in beautifully.

That's a shame the bench is useless now Jane, but one of our arbours is going rotten too and will have to be got rid of soon. I wish they would start doing arbours with the plastic injected wood so they last, like they do with some of the furniture now. It will be good for James to change his image a bit....like us ladies when we change our hairstyle or clothes, we feel better in ourselves. :-D

I think Downton Abbey is on the cards for tomorrow.

It is a long time since we called in to Glos services mainly because it gets so crowded but also because it costs me money if we go there, the meat is great and all fairly locally sourced. We should make the effort to go there more. Strangely it is quite a trek for us to make a special journey because we have to go from J 11a where we join down to J12 and back up the other side. When we next go up to visit daughter we will be going further up the M6 so will call in to the services there which are the parent services to the Gloucester ones. It begins with T but I can’t remember the name. When the services were going to be built there were huge protests against them saying they would spoil an area of natural beauty etc. But they blend in beautifully so that was all rubbish.and they provided a huge number of jobs in the area. Both sides of the M5. Strangely I prefer the one on the M5 north.

Sounds like Ros is going to be busy with her Pansies Frank! ;-) lol She puts us to shame with the way she gets on with things. I need to get my Violas and heathers put in next week. Don't you go upsetting that shower while it is behaving or you'll be sorry if you get a cold one! :-0 I still have my old hoof pick (nearly put tooth pick!!) somewhere in the loft with the rest of the grooming kit. It's one that folds in two so you can put it in your pocket. What a good idea to use it on the weeds in the gravel.

Mandy thanks for sending the pic and you have made such a great job of the bedding! I bet she will be running for her dolls to tuck them in as soon as she sees the pram on Christmas Day bless her. You do make some lovely things for the children. I had a smile at Max waiting for the children, then sitting on the mat to be dried even though there had been no walkies! They know what;s supposed to happen don't they.

I see there's the usual working out the pecking order with the chickens Mel. I suppose it helps a bit with there being two new ones rather than one. Fancy you finding your copper wire just after you'd bought more! It's the sort of thing I would do!

They were Breton Pies Ann. Chicken with Cider/mustard and something else. There were several others including Venison. Not cheap pies. I think they were £4.20 each. But then nothing is cheap at Gloucester Services is it. The Beef on the Butchers counter looked amazing!!.The Cheese counter there has to be one of the best I have ever seen with so many different cheeses. It has to be the best Motorway services . There should be more like that ,with no Mc Donalds.KFC Burger King etc etc. Saying that I do love a McDonalds cheese burger
:-D. Trouble is no-one will ever go to a McD with me :-|

Gill did you see my bit about the Michaelmas daisies, you didn’t say.

Jane glad the pies were ok.,what were they again?

Afternoon All

That was different Vera seeing the show in the TENT :-D I hope the seats were comfortable. At least the show could still go on :-D We are going to the theatre on Thursday afternoon to see Calendar Girls at the Derngate.I am not sure who is in it other than Ruth Madoc.

I am going to have to have a look at my wedding photo album now and see how many people are 'still here' . I know a lot have gone,especially all relatives :-(

Daisy and May are lovely names for your new girls Mel :-D. I hope they ventured out today.

I bet poor Max had his legs crossed this morning Mandy. I am sure Thomas did too.I let him out at 5 and it was raining quite heavily.He dashed under the patio table and I left the door open while I went to the loo. By the time I had finished he was back in doing a wee in the litter tray :-D :-D It was back to bed again for both of us.

That sounds a great bit of kit for getting the weeds Frank.It sounds like it made easy work for Ros :-D

There have been soooo many posts here today!!!. I know I have missed most of them :-S Sorry.

Frank, I didnt bring Pasties home.It was Pies and they were good and tasty. Not as nice as those Pasties we had though.They were so good with proper bits of beef and not the mincey stuff.Not a bit of gristle either.

I looked at James just now and thought he looked different. He has shaved off all his facial hair !!!! I have to say it has taken a few years off him.

Physio again in the morning.I think ti might do me good as I have felt a bit stiff .Probably from sitting in the car for so long on Friday.I have done some excercises today to try and loosen up a bit.

The bench that Chris broke is only fit for the bonfire Ann. It wasn't that old really but has obviously started to rot. We won't bother getting a new one now until next year.
Chris has moved some of the pots around to fill in the gap it has left.

The wind seems to be getting up a bit here.It has been a nice sunny day and no rain :-D

Yes Daisy and May were put in the hen house last night so they have met but the big girls are picking on them and they hav'nt been out of the house at all yet. I had to put food and water in there and shut them in so they could have a drink and a feed. Whether they did or not I don't know as I can't see them from the outside of the house.

My paternal grandmothers middle name was May too and she was always know as May when her first name was Edith. Also her maiden name was Martin so thats why I named my son Martin.

Sounds like you have been given a Hoof Pick Frank for the weeds. I probably still have one up in our stables. If I could get in there I would try and find it and send it to Anng. There is so much stuff in there we were keeping for someone who moved and they never picked it up. I must admit to using an old carving knife which works well.

Made me laugh about the dogs Ann. I could just imagine them all doing their thing.

I saw something I wanted to make on the pc and did'nt take a picture of it. I usually do but do you think I can find it again? nooooooo. Its only a simple thing and I do know how to make it but wanted to see if there were any variations with the things on the ends.

Afternoon all

It's raining and very windy here, some of the downpours are very heavy so the weather has put paid to any work on Sandra's little garden today.

It sounds like some of you have bought some nice plants. We have Sedums and they look lovely dotted in amongst the other plants in the borders.

Nice to see you back on here Jane. Fancy Chris falling through the bench, I must admit I did smile when you said how nice the bench was but didn't mention how you felt about Chris's injury. ;-) I hope he's not badly hurt. The make shift planter will be around 12 foot long and 2 foot deep and high, so quite big. It's more like a box to go around the pots to hide them and once it's finished we're going to add a bit of a shelf type thing on the top to go around the plants to hide the pots from the top, then cover that in some artificial Ivy I've got left over from when I did the planters in the front garden last year. All we need now is some nice weather so we can get on with it. It's far to wet and windy to do anything today. I'm then hoping to buy some nice flowers to pretty it up. Sandra loves flowers and at the moment the plants we have are just green with no other colour which she'll find a bit boring.

That was a bit tent Vera. Oliver is one of Sandra's favorites, she loves to watch it on TV every time it's advertised and never get fed up of it.

How have Daisy and May settled in Mel? They are nice names.

I'm going to take another look at OH's tree to give me something to do, before our programmes start later.

Just having a think about those who were at our wedding, difficult without getting photos out to check but we had 80 guests 59 yeats ago. A couple I don't know about but I can count at least 20 of the 80 are still alive. However we are more or less the eldest with a few friends around the same age and we did have quite a lot of children (cousins and children of cousins) at the wedding.

I don't have early nights Mandy, it doesn't work with me. I just have to wait and see if I get a good nights sleep.

Frank missed you there. that tool sounds just the thing we could do with, I hate having to weed the gravel, some things come up easily others won't budge. Will Ros put the pansies in pots or in the ground.

OH is outside planting bulbs we bought this morning

Good afternoon to you all,

I see you have all been busy,stopping for things for the garden and Mel with two new Chucks xx What breed are they Mel ?? Ros has trays of pansies sitting on the patio table, together with loads of others, When she is going to put them in and WHERE, I just don't know. She will do it in her own time, I am sure.

I say up until 10.30 last night, and would you believe was STILL AWAKE at 4.10 am. (the last time I looked at the clock) Was awake again at 8.00 am. Now feel totally DRAINED.

The takeaway from our favourite Chinese in Towcester, wasn't up to Par. So I will mention that on my next visit. They gave me a surprise. !! When we were last in a couple of weeks ago, the card transaction didn't go through the machine, so I had that to pay for as well.


The shower behaved itself this morning, makes you wonder why I bought a new one, lol lol. More to the point, when am I going to get it fitted. ??

So Chris is doing a ME, Jane. I hope he didn't hurt himself, can the bench be repaired. ?? Those pasties sounded just the "PROPPER JOB" on your way home. How were the ones you bought for dinner ?? Sad about your friend, but it's no more than you expected. At least she is in the best place, with 24/7 care and attention. Thinking of you. xxx

Suns just come out here. Ros is weeding the front gravel. Would you believe what she is using ??? Carol down the road, gave her a tool her daughter uses to get stones etc. out of Horses Hooves. You just drag it through the weeds/gravel,and they come loose, so you can just pull them up. Great piece of kit. !!!

Roast leg of lamb again tonight.I know it's not the cheapest, but it is so tasty. Mmmm

Will go and see if Madam wants anything, and catch up with the football scores. BE GOOD, See you later. xxxx

So how are Daisy and May settling in Mel have they met the others yet ?

I have nearly finished one side of the bag ,so i might get the other side done today but i was naughty making the bedding for the pram before the bag but i bought the fat quarters and wadding from Aldi and couldn't wait to start on it, i have made the cover reversible so she can pick which side she likes the best ,i've also got a crochet blanket on the go for the pram too .

I hope you can get a better nights sleep tonight AnnG sounds as if an early night might be in order for you .
Still raining hard here ,i was just reading that the A47 to Norwich was flooded and some cars had got stuck .

Ann what a the tree like that you made i liked to see a photo you make some really pretty things .
I'm a bit like your OH when i see old bits of black and white films i look at all of the people and think they've all gone and then wonder what they would think if they knew people were looking at them now .

Had to smile at the golden retriever.wanting to play , poor Max couldn't understand why the children didn't come this morning for the usual play ,he keep going to the door and listening in case they were coming :-D
He hung on and hung on this morning to go out for a wee in the end he had to go ,he then comes in and sits on the mat waiting for Colin to towel him dry :-D
There's been no walkies today !!!

Didn't see you here AnnG. I want to get another Sedum or 2 with the dark leaves and pinky red flowers. They will be less trouble with spreadling and don't need so much watering in the summer and attract so many butterflies. They tuck themselves nicely into our rock edging as well.

Had to smile this morning outside the shop I popped in. Two chaps met up, one with 2 black Labs like Max and a brown working Cocker Spaniel, the other with a just about fully grown young golden retriever. The Labs and Spaniel just sat and waited patiently, but the Retriever wanted to play and kept turning to bite at his lead while jumping around. The man wasn't really assertive enough to start with but after a few louder 'sits' the dog looked at him and just squatted low enough for it to be called a sit, before jumping straight up then rolling on his back. You could just imagine him thinking 'right ho that's a good enough sit, let's get back to some playing!' :-D