Soop's welcoming and supportive kitchen

Aw, bless!
GreyD, I forgot to say, your cloakroom looks very smart, love the tiles.
To all who thought Max was gorgeous, thank you, I agree totally!

Morning all, I’ll just have quick cup of tea this morning. I’ve had a grumbly tummy so I really should give up eating anything too rich and give it a rest until it settles. I just loved the golden wedding anniversary piece on you tube thank you so much for the link. I’ve only been to Tenby once but thought it was beautiful. The day is ‘fixed’ in my head. We went with my late MiL who just wandered off I was rather annoyed with her, I wish she was still here annoying me big sigh. All your photographs were uplifting and cheered me up. It’s lovely to see photos of darling grandchildren. I hope those of you struggling one way or another have an easier day.

Little bit of a worry that the gorgeous Flynn might have measles or a virus akin to it??
He had his MMR so shouldn’t but DD is taking him to the Dr to be sure as he is complaining that bright lights hurt his eyes, he is sniffly and coughing and had a bit of a temperature in the night although that seems to be receding again.
However they have just FaceTimed me and he is too perky and lively I think - also “milking it” for all it is worth. He’s learning! (Little man flu?)

Good morning the kitchen, my goodness there is lots to catch up on!
Happy birthday to all those celebrating.
(((hugs))) and to ann Maw corner Panache and to those who need them.
soop so pleased you are getting hope and trust the rest follows on swiftly. Glad to hear that Macs enjoyed his birthday and chocolates - and that he shared them with you!

We had a lovely time with the family and they did so many things for us while they were here which was such a blessìng. Such a short time but what a difference they made. I was like a cat on hot bricks on the day they left as it was such a stormy day but the boat sailed anyway and they got home safely, albeit the crossìng was longer than usual. In spite of it being so rough DGS1 actually made it without being sick and I think that was the first time ever! We don't expect to see them again before Easter at the earliest but then we didn't expect to see them at half term and it was an early surprise birthday present for me which was wonderful.
Quote of the week from youngest DGS, "Granny doesn't eat much because she has a sedimentary lifestyle"

I haven't felt like eating anything at all recently as I have been in bed for the last four days with 'flu like sympoms' and now a hacking cough. Yes, I did have the flu jab - who knows?!? I have to get up today as I must get DH to the surgery for his appointment but I think I should stay in the car, just in case, as I don't want to give anything to anyone. Onwards and upwards!
Have a good day everyone.

If it is not too late should you not think of calling in a favour or booking a minicab to get DH to the Dr?
Go with him by all means but I am not sure you need to give yourself the extra stress of driving. Take care whatever you do.

`Morning my kitchen friends.

A very November day,damp,blustery,bleak......and the talk of 5 storms before Christmas certainly sends me into Hibernation mode!!!

Every time I wend my way through those doors I get taken aback by the many postings,all so varied, interesting and impossable to reply to each..........however what a tearjerker,straight from the heart poem Soop,
I can see many tears following a great silence.
Thank you for sharing.

Loving young Max....... and on a completely different theme,a very smart cloakroom GreyD love those tiles you have chosen?Pity the colour was not clearer.
However hope it is pleasing to your eye?

Awaiting pictures of the Nordic Log cabin too N & G

Someone has the right idea.......a cruise for Christmas eh Galen??

Ooops Gran on call doing her duty I see,hope the little fellow is merely “milking the issue” Maw.....but with all these bugs flying around, of course it pays to be ultra careful.......plus you never complain about that extra visit I bet!.......and another welcome hug!

Am so pleased you too have visited our lovely Tenby * Morethan* and therefore would have enjoyed that celebration I brought even more.
However please go easy on these cakes we are always being offered ......a treat a dicky tum needs to avoid

.
So sorry to hear of your flu like symptoms plus a cough Synonymous,you obviously wonder if it could be due to your recent Flu jab........whilst on the same breath you say what a wonderful family time you have recently enjoyed which does make me think you might have simply been spreading yourself far too thinly.
Whilst heedi ng Maw`s advice might well be in order ....you really need some restful periods.

I know you care for my welfare Corner and I truly appreciate that,it seems that after tomorrow`s Hospital visit, I am having a break,so will be able to enjoy periods of rest.......in fact we both shall.

BTW my gut feeling was not far off the mark regarding our viewers......the feedback was short.....”Beautiful home but far too small”........Now that`s a new one!
Although downsizing from a farmstead, they want to cut down the land .......but still need a rambling farmhouse to accommodate 4 children during holidays!

So I was not far wrong was I Callgirl??

So back to the drawing board........and give our young Solicitor yet another chance.

Sending my loving thoughts to all in need, and sadly there are many......Ann hoping that you are coping and that you are more able to accept that change is a must.

Wishing each and everyone a pleasing day and no great mishaps.......love to you all and what a treat these visits are thanks to you lot as our Soop would say!
Take care!

Good morning to everyone. I don't post very often but do read about what all of you are up to each and every day. I know that life is hard and sympathy and hugs are needed.
I am off to London later, meeting up with OH and we are going to see the torches at The Tower of London. Looking forward to it. Afterwards we are going to The Sky Garden in Fenchurch Street, somewhere we have been planning to visit for some time.

Sar53 I wish you and your husband a memorable day. I would greatly enjoy seeing the torches at The Tower of London. It will be a moving experience.

Panache Yet another fulsome and interesting post fro you. You have put into words all the feelings us lot share. Thank you.

morethan2 The grumbly tum bug is on the rampage. Stay warm and hydrated. The care home remains closed again this week.

Greyduster I also love the new cloakroom. It is extremely tasteful.

Galen Have you packed? If not, why not?

Thank you all for your kind comments regarding the poem that I've written for tonight's service in the village kirk. I can almost recite it by heart. However, as I may feel slightly flustered when my time arrives, I shall have the printed version with me.

callgirl1 Max most certainly is a wee treasure. Isn't he beautifully bonny. I could cuddle him for the next hour at least. I'm betting he's at the wriggly stage.

Synonymous I understand that the flu jag does not give the recipient flu. I'm thinking that you picked up the wretched virus somewhere along the way. It really is a buggeration.

Maw It certainly sounds like Flynn may have picked up a bug of some kind. The temperature says so. Thank goodness he had the triple vaccine. He is well protected.

Beautiful poem soop so full of the true meaning of the carnage and the loss of innocence that was WW1.
I hope Flynn soon recovers Maw they seem so vulnerable when they are not well.
My GD is 20 tomorrow and she and her friend have gone to Amsterdam for 3 days, she has just sent some lovely photographs, aren't mobile phones wonderful things?

I am having a slightly better day today, yesterday was not good, I will say no more.

The SW has been this morning, she is coming in a couple of weeks to do an assessment prior to a full time place in care, she has advised me to make an appointment with CAB as Finance seem hell bent on leaving me with very little to live on, actually £305 per month. That won't even pay the council tax and the utility bills.
I will need a virtual army of Grans behind me when I do battle with them.
Dull but not cold here, Panache I would bet diamonds that you are looking forward to your break from hospital, enjoy it while it lasts.

Thank you, Ann.
Us lot care about you, and if there is anything at all that we can do to back you up, please do say. Sometimes, virtual support seems all that we can offer. I wish that our concern for you could be proactive and of real value.

Blimey soop I don’t go until the 17 December. I shall pack on the 16th as usual. It’s only a 12 day one so I think 2pairs of bloomers and 3 strings of pearls should be sufficient wouldn’t you?

Please do make that CAB appointment ann, that finance calculation sounds more than unreasonable. I’ll be there in the virtual army, I’m sure we all will be. Pleased today is more bearable.

Hope flynn stays cheerful maw and isn’t too poorly. They seem so vulnerable when unwell.

If I didn't laugh I would scream.
My H has had a thing all day about what happens when he goes to bed tomorrow.
He has got it muddled in his brain with the window cleaner coming today.
He is very,very concerned about whether the window cleaner has a key to get in to put him to bed.
Also how much does the window cleaner charge to lie him on his bed so that he can go to sleep.
I am unable to reassure him ,hopefully he will forget soon and another topic will excersise his mind.

https://www.gransnet.com/uploads/talk/201811/medium-466928-0848.jpg https://www.gransnet.com/uploads/talk/201811/medium-842641-1141.jpg https://www.gransnet.com/uploads/talk/201811/medium-955308-1320.jpg

Afternoon all,

I'm late in today and cannot hope to keep up with you lot !!

So --- hope Flynn hasn't got measles Maw but if he has better to get it now than at 32 like me |!!!

Ann we are ready to storm the finance peoples office and have your back !!

I love the poem Soop very talented.

The log cabin was erected in exactly 6 hours yesterday and is looking good. The electrician is currently fitting the plugs and lights. Only drawback so far is I ordered the wrong stain... for some reason I expected it to arrive looking brown but its very pale . So tomorrow we are off to change that and buy flooring and then comes the mammoth tasking of relocating everything !!

Ive added a couple of pictures .

Sam has gone off for a cut and blow-dry and Grampy has gone to keep him company , so I am away to tackle Kilimanjaro in the shape of the ironing mountain !!

Will you be taking paying guests N&G?
It looks very impressive.
Are you kitting it out as craftroom?

Galen I would have started packing at the beginning of autumn. Not really!

N&G Wow! I would have such fun in a cabin likes yours. It would be my art studio. I would have a sign on the door in large print...Private. In small print... open to bearers of chocs or cake.

Ann Your post puts me in mind of the behaviour of one of the ladies I visit in the care home. She is waiting for a bus and cannot refrain from asking where it is and when will it arrive. When she accepts that it's delayed and will come along later, she then gets herself worked up because she has lost her handbag and has no money. The staff have given her a bag and in it is make-believe money...enough for the bus fare.

N&G The boys (all three of them) will have great fun in the cabin.

I'm in a sate of nervous anticipation due to the reading of my poem in front of others. It's one thing to read it to MacS but tonight's audience will include folk with whom I'm not familiar.

I know the world is full of problem relationships, dysfunctional families and small minded bigotry, but with the exception of this thread and the Good Morning one, I find myself less and less interested or engaged in some of the weird things I am reading on GN.
I am not an unsympathetic person by nature but some people seem to be going out of their way to make life as hard as possible. Others live in what sound like unbearable circumstances but seem to think total strangers on a website will somehow sort everything. From my years as a Samaritan I should be aware that there are some very troubled people around and yet I am gobsmacked on a daily basis by much of what I read.
TBH the Kitchen is a haven of “normality” of loving family members, of sympathy, patience and good humour. Sadly in short supply it seems elsewhere.
Not talking about anything in particular, but my faith in human nature is often challenged until I get my “kitchen” fix.
Thank you Kitcheners!

Thank you, Maw. If I had some cake, I would share some it with you.

I'm logging off for today. I need to tidy my art stuff away and then make myself look presentable for tonight's poetry reading gathering. Silly, I know, but I'm nervous.

I shall be ironing tomorrow morning. After which, once I've had some lunch, I shall pop into our kitchen for updates.

(hugs) for all of you in need of tender loving care.

At the home my H goes to for respite, there is a bench and a bus stop sign,an authentic one, which was put there for one of the residents who also wanted to catch a bus home.
As long as she can see it she is ok.
My H is still on about tonight's routine.
He staggers to his room every 15mins to check on it.

Oh yes, Maw I understand what you mean and I feel an increasing 'disconnect' with so much that 'the world' is and does. Sadly there doesn't seem to be much unity amongst families never mind the love that binds us together. To some people the world seems to revolve solely around them to the detriment of the most vulnerable family members and one could possibly have a suspicion that that it is very calculated to ensure that they are not inconvenienced in any way.
I find some discussions on GN futile and meaningless so I don't intrude and there is not much that truly engages me. I am increasingly thankful for the kitchen - just find it hard to keep up with everyone!
Incidentally thank you for your concern regards the driving but it was fine. So little traffic around here and my car has all the bells and whistles which make it really easy. Feeling much better except for the irrepressible cough.

soop we will be thinking of you as you give your poetry recitation today but I am convinced that all will be well because those words will take the attention of the people and you will be the means to their hearing them. I understand the stsge fright though, only too well!

ann that sounds so difficult to live with. I hope that the CAB will be helpful as regards the finance side of things. It seems nonsensical that suddenly you should be robbed of your husband's financial support in addition to all that his illness has taken from you both. Friends in England are in exactly the same situation as you, even with the same diagnosis for the husband as your own (including the Lewy bodies), and all the standing orders which had previously been set up to automatically pay things like council tax and utilities have been left in place even including the regular standing orders set up to put birthday and Christmas gifts into the bank accounts of their AC and GC. There does not seem to be proper consistency in how people are being treated which makes for great unfairness. If you need me to ask the family anything I will certainly do so if you wish so please PM me if you want to. I hope you will be properly looked after as that small amount of money is barely enough to keep you fed and clothed. In fact on that income you would be entitled to benefits to include the council tax as well ax other things. Taking money from you with one hand and giving it back with another really does not make sense unless it is them ticking boxes.

Lovely photos on here with so many different subjects including adorable GC and amazing projects, thank you to everyone contributing them.

Well we got back home yesterday after our family fest aka the country wide tour! We were almost home when the tyre pressure alert thingy began sounding. We stopped and put some air in but when the old boy nipped out later for some milk it came on again. After a kwik visit to that well known repair place, he had 2 new tyres and a much lighter wallet. We are just very grateful that the one with the slow puncture didn’t blow while we were doing any of the 1000 or motorway miles we’ve travelled over the last 2 weeks.

I must admit it was very nice to be back in my own bed last night, much as the family try to make us comfy it’s not “home”. We’re both feeling rather weary today. It was good to see our oldest gd looking a bit more relaxed and while things are by no means sorted there it was a much happier house altogether. Another teenage gd is experiencing extreme anxiety, which is a big concern, this seems only too common theses days. Folk often comment on how expensive it must be at Christmas etc with our tribe, actually that’s the easy bit, the harder thing is that there’s always one or another of them with something or another going on. After 48 years of motherhood my fretting skills have been very well honed! It’s not that my old boy doesn’t care about them all, he certainly does, but he doesn’t “fret” in quite the same way.

Anyway moving swiftly on..... soop that poem was very moving you are not only skilled with a paintbrush but also with a pen. I’ve no doubt it will be well received, I hesitate to say “break a leg”... perhaps safer to settle for “good luck for tonight!” panache, it’s always good to read your posts and I’m glad you’re well enough to be here in spite of all you have to contend with.

Ann all the money business will be a big worry for you until you get some accurate advice. In the meantime you carry on caring, not easy I know. Your patience and strength must be sorely tried a hundred and more times a day if not an hour. maw, I do so much agree with your comments about the stuff of life that is played out in so many places. We all have our personal challenges to face..... but they are set in the context of a “normal” family life where where folk generally speaking want the best for each other. Even allowing for the fact that one persons “normal” is another persons “weird”, there does seem to be a predisposition towards extreme conflict in some places.

The cabin looks amazing n&g, I bet you’ll enjoy setting it to rights once you get going with it. Just think you’ll have it all in order before that unmentionable season is here! greyd your little room is very tastefully done, worth waiting for I think but maybe not that long, do I here you say?

Right then, this won’t get the dinner cooked. Sorry to anyone I’ve ignored, not deliberately, I’ve just run out of steam! Wishing you what I wish for myself - a quiet relaxing evening! I’ll leave you with some autumn colours and a rare bit of blue sky on an otherwise greyish kind of a day

Sorry synonymous, I wrote in instalments, amongst doing other things, so didn’t notice comments before I posted. You said much of what I meant, on several fronts, only better expressed! Hope that annoying tickle clears up, that kind of cough is very wearing. x

overthehills thank you for the lovely cake. corner good job you hid yours or I'd have had that too (You know me so well ?)
Excuse me Galen but just what sort of cruise are you going on? Three strings of pearls but only two sets of bloomers !!! It's not one of those sort of cruises is it ??
maw glad to hear Flynn is not feeling tooo bad. Just wanted a cuddle with his granny I expect ?
synonymous glad you had a good time with family. Hope you are feeling better soon.
Dear panache I do feel for you. Why is it the 'right' people take so long to be found when you are trying to move. With your health problems I do wish it could be smooth sailing for you (sorry was obviously thinking about Galen there ?). At least you can have a break from the hospital for a bit. Hope for better news on the house front soon.
sar53 hope you have a lovely visit.
ann I cannot advise of over the financial matters but I do hope someone in the kitchen will be able to give you some good advice. They will take all the money they can off you please check with someone in the know before they do.

Only got halfway through the posts but have to go and sort out dinner now. Back to catch up with the rest later ?