Soop's warm and welcoming kitchen for kindly folk...

I’ve missed a number of days on here - loads to catch up on.

Welcome, Oreo!

Urms I’m sorry your SF is still struggling and I hope they can help him tomorrow.

The photos of GC and GGC are lovely! I do enjoy looking at an ‘all squashed up on the sofa’ family photo. ❤️ I love Mila’s dress, Soop - does it come in adult sizes? Asking for a friend!

I hope Duncan didn’t get stashed away in the attic, BA! He’s living dangerously there.

I’m glad you’re sorted your hospital transport issues, Corner. The jigsaw idea for his birthday sounds good. I found my jigsaw puzzle board today, when we were sorting out the…ahem…rumpus room (aka the junk room) today. Was v pleased about that.

I’ve had a busy few days. Had a last-minute request one evening to look after 15mo GS the next day. He’s getting a bit ‘strange’ now and cried when his mummy departed. Food and an old iPhone to play with cheered him up immensely. Dd came to get him mid afternoon but ended up staying while I fed everyone and eventually left at 6pm.

That gave me just time to clean myself up and get changed to go out to a Viennese gala performance with a friend. We had such a lovely evening and I resolved to do more such things this year.

On Saturday we met dd and children for lunch out and a potter round the shops. GD (5) said she wanted to tell me a secret. She invited Dh and me to go to her house for a sleepover (they live three miles away!) but we’re not to tell mummy! 😂

Today we tidied the aforementioned rumpus room and put away some CDs, found our winter gloves and more toys for the GC to play with. Then we moved onto the garage and went through every single box - and that is not just two or three - to remind ourselves what’s in them and more importantly look for dh’s paperwork for his tax return. I’m sorry to say, the paperwork has not been located but other items were liberated and brought indoors, including some of our books which can now be put onto the bookshelves we had installed last year.

There will be a car full of stuff to go to the dump tomorrow, always an enjoyable outing! Where all the rubbish comes from, I do not know, though. I do feel as though I have achieved something today and before I go to bed I want to sort out some bits of paperwork too.

I should say, all this activity is keeping us warm, too. Our CH went kaput on Friday and is only heating the hot water and our bedroom. The emergency people said they couldn’t do anything until tomorrow as it probably needs a new part. The benefits of having a well insulated house have proved their worth, though, as even after 48hrs with only a small fan heater the house is still at 17 degrees.

Take care everyone. Xxx

Welcome Oreo!
Soop, so sorry that you have sadness to deal with, but hopefully Sweetie-Pie will help you cope. Gorgeous pic of Milo and Teddy, love her dress.
I`ve just finished the second of my 4 boxes of Black Magic that I was given at Christmas. I know, they`re bad for me, but it would be very rude not to eat them when they are presents...........................wouldn`t it?
I love your family pic Kitty, but there must be some mistake, you`re surely not old enough to have working grandchildren?
(CREEP CREEP!!)

How lucky you are to have so many lovely grandchildren Kitty. Maybe not quite so lucky at Christmas! There are some beautiful grand and great grandchildren here in the kitchen.

Welcome Oreo, what a lovely name.

soop

Thank youmformthe birthday gift thoughts. The jigsaw is such a good idea for himself our goddaughter has beaten me to it. .

Keep on with the suggestions, please. I’m currently considering something small like a key ring containing a birth year old sixpence along with tickets for a day out or perhaps for the theatre.

Trouble is the man says he has everything he wants or needs. He’s not such a bad old soul.

Goodnight everyone. Sleep well.

Hello dear Kitcheners, I have been trying to catch up on all the news but not able to spend much time using a screen lust now. Soop I’m so sorry to read you and MrSoop have had yet more shocking news

Hope your stepdad’s appointment goes well Urms

Very late arrival! I hope you are all sleeping peacefully.
Lovely photos of all the children!

By George...who ever George may be. A thunder storm earlier today b'd up the computer. Mr Soop spent some time fiddling with a router. At last, I'm back in circulation.

A very warm welcome Orio. You will make new friends here in our kitchen.

Urms I am relieved to hear that your dear stepfather will be be seen by a medical expert today. Will you update us, in due course.

Our daughter-in- law's mother died yesterday. Two dear friends (with cancer) are receiving end of life care. We await further news. Two lovely friends who joined us for our pal's 83rd birthday, returned home after the celebration, let their beloved dog out into the garden, where it chased a deer. When the dog came back into the house, he died in their arms. Must have been heart failure. An awful lot of distress in so short a time.

I won't depress you lovely lot any more. It isn't fair. My love to you all.

Oh soop so much sadness in your post.
Lovely picture of your DGC kitty.

We have just had a lovely weekend in London with DD and SiL. Surprisingly we had easy journeys there and back. We also went to a show in central London with easy transport. They are moving at the end of the week (hopefully) to a house north of the M25 which will cut an hour off the journey!

While in London my tooth sheared in half so seeing the dentist tomorrow.

Hope to hear good news from Urms.

Soop a great number of sad events have struck you. 💐 I'm sad on your behalf. I'm back to providing childcare on Monday and Tuesday. I've dropped the boys home and I'm having a rest before dinner which is played up ready for the microwave. Have a good evening Kitcheners.

Sad times soop sending you the gentlest of hugs 💐
A busy day here, the gym this morning, a dip in the pool and then a shop at Tesco, I’m pretty much done in now! Just got to make a quick stir fry for later then I’ll sit and watch the TV
Prompt treatment from the dentist dragonfly that’s good, hope all goes well
Hope you’ve had a good day grandmabatty and enjoy a rest this evening if you can

I’m so sorry, Soop, that’s an awful lot of sadness. I don’t think it’s a bad thing to share it on here, if you wish - we’ve collectively got broad shoulders.

I hope Urms will be long later to tell us of her SF’s progress today.

A funny old day for us. The plumber and electrician came this morning and mended the central heating - hurrah! We were also entertained by goings-on in a near neighbour’s garden, where they have a newy installed garden home office. Two men arrived, stripped off all the roofing and replaced it with what looks a tin roof. They were still working when we came home, banging and hammering in the dark!

We got to the dump and disposed/recycled stuff there, then went for a coffee and a few bits of shopping. Final call was to drop off yet another form at the doctor’s surgery, to access online services. It’s still all clear as mud to us.

Then home, where I tidied out a small cupboard and threw out various bits of paper and manuals for microwave ovens I no longer possess etc. the weather forecast for tomorrow is dire so I think organising the study will be high on the agenda.

PS dh’s tax papers still haven’t turned up. 🤷‍♀️

Take care, everyone. Xxx

So sorry, Soop, it sounds like you’re having a rough time indeed. 🤗

I’ve had a busy day which included a trip to a busy village nearby, with coffee stop. But having had the flu over Xmas I’m now brewing another sore throat! 🙄

soop, I am so sorry for all the sorrow in your life. All I can do is offer a gentle hug.

And a picture of a fabulous rainbow over the cottages opposite us. It was a perfect arc but dh couldn't be persuaded to take a spade and dig.

I love to see a rainbow, thank you kittylester, isn't it always that the base of them are "over there".!!
Great photo of your grand-children, too.
Our 5 DGC ages range from 5y., to 20y., How the time flies!

Sorry to hear of your sadnesses, Mr&MrsSoop.

Take care, all in this cosy kitchen. x

Dear soop I’m so sorry that both of you are going through such sad times. I’d like to echo brook’s post and send you the gentlest of hugs. 💐

Any news, urms?

Good luck tomorrow dragonfly.

Sad times indeed soop. Much love to you both

Our promised sunny day deteriorated after our walk. Heavy showers and sunshine produced a rainbow which we followed driving home, it vanished just a few hundred yards from home. What a shame .

The sorting continues here. 5 jigsaws to a charity shop today. Another six are destined for a friend (yes, she does want them!). Mr C has kept those he wants to do again - all 25 of them.

Not sure what to tackle next. It should be weeding the paperwork, my guess it won’t be. .

Rest well everyone.

‘Evening All’.

A full-on day. My stepfather had a soft flexible scope & camera passed further up into his nostril. A bleeding point was found. That is the good news & the fact that some gel was syringed into to area. And yet. We will have to see. Cauterisation is not undertaken until a ‘protocol’ has been established. Gel first. Then, if bleeding continues, we have to present at A&E in the middle of the night. Riight. We are on stand by for a phone call at 2am. We drive over, pick him up and get on the motorway. Or ‘ring 999’ as this is classed as a medical emergency. What?? An an ambulance will come for a nosebleed when some punters are being advised to ‘get the bus’ with a suspected heart attack? I asked the doctor “what if we lived in a rural area and going over to pick him up took 40 minutes before we even set off for the hospital?”. It beggars belief. A telephone call to report that he’s had a bleed doesn’t ‘count’. He has to be seen and a visit logged. Sigh. Okay. (By this stage Himself was me-mowing to me that this is a tick box exercise’. If (when) he next bleeds during the night, this, or the next bleed after, will be ‘packed’ for 24 hours. Then, and only then, if it bleeds again, will cautery be considered. And this train of events “cannot be leap-frogged”.

So this is where we are.
We might of course be very lucky and this gel does the trick with no more bleeding.
More likely? We will, during the week, jump through the necessary hoops to get, finally, to cauterisation.

I just think this is “cheapest option first (gel), followed by next cheapest option after several night’s of bleeding (packing) followed by the most expensive treatment when all other options have been tried (cauterisation).

Cynical? moi?
Watch this space.

Rant over.
In the meantime I will jump if the house phone goes in the wee small hours and we are ‘under starter’s orders’.

Sorry everyone for my long post. I think I’m wound up.
Himself says all may yet be well.

I`m keeping everything crossed for the gel Urms.
Soop, so sorry for your sadness, hugs and kisses from down here to up there!
Love the rainbow pic Kitty.
Best wishes to all who are sad or poorly, TOYA xx

Little wonder if you are wound up, Urmstangran. What a worry for you all. I do hope things work out for you & your stepfather. Take Care. x

Oh gosh Urms that sounds horrendous. Don’t the two hour bleeds he has already had, leading to him needing an infusion count?
Is it possible for you to stay with him overnight?
I used to take my dad to the hospital in the middle of the night when his catheter came out but they were only 2 minutes up the road.
I really hope the gel works.

It sounds like one of those flow chart things, Urms, where you get sent back to the beginning if you don’t choose the right answer. I wonder how much it will cost all told if your SF goes through all those steps and still needs cauterising?

I will hope that the gel works. What is it - superglue?

Sending hugs to *Mr & Mrs Soop" - difficult times indeed. And keeping everything crossed for your DSF Urmstongran. Another early night for me - I'm constantly tired 💤💤. TOYA 🌷

for soop & Urms. Has this stopped you travelling Urms?
We have the DGC asleep upstairs - two tired little people. I did the first run to Beavers only to find they haven’t gone back yet. Well done DS!

Oh dear Urms sorry to hear that, no wonder you’re frustrated. I hope things get resolved fairly quickly now for you and your DSF💐