🦞🦂 Lobstars 🌟 still shining bright 🦞🦂

Good news Kaimoana!! your faith in human nature restored -and hopefully your health.

I so love a happy ending.
Lovely to see FGT offering her kind help too.

Awful about your burglary ixion. It's a horrible feeling knowing a prowler has been in your house but worse as valuables were taken.

What a lively expensive facetime that must have been with DGS!

The seagull chick "flew" over the wall to the lower garden which is an improvement. The parents are still intimidating anything passing near chick but no longer dive bombing me whenever I open the back door.

Thanks for the good wishes for Saturday.
I have called off the French helper. I feel bad doing it but it wouldn't work trying to find jobs for someone when I need to devote time to my cousin. She arrives tomorrow.

Friends are offering to bring food and to help. I will be tearful.

So glad you enjoyed your birthday Cherry. You've had some great weather. We think of you often. Xx

I hope you can spent some quiet and calming time with your cousin Gram and what lovely friends you have.

Sounds as if the seagull chick is well on its way to independence, I've been fearing marauding cats.

As I endeavour to get my calme and at least semi-sane, I read:
"Worrying is like paying a debt you don't owe"

You might guess it was Mark Twain with his usual erudite take on life.

Sadly, he didn't explain exactly how to put thata into practive...but I'm trying.
(And here, my mother's cynical voice utters, 'Aye, you're very trying')


Excellent visit to the podiatrist; my feet have so far escaped many of the diabetic issues and she was very pleased with me.

No one very pleased with the current monsoon rain though, least of all my driver who came to the door with a jacket over his head to give me his arm to the Health Shuttle, bless him.

I too am happy about the imminent kumerahou as my face is very disfigured (though only temporarily I hope) and I was quite relieved when, yet again, the kaumatua group was cancelled this week as I am unsightly.

Having completed all the orders for purple slippers, I am looking forward to a quiet, undisturbed weekend to get on with a very special pair of Marae Slippers for an old and dear friend, known to us as Papa Pita, whose birthday is a few days away. He lives nearby, so I can deliver in person. Possibly taking some shortbread as well

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pita_Sharples

That's such good news about the Leaf People, Kaimoana - I am so relieved for you. Let's hope they do the trick🤞.

Is there any sort of ornithological timescale for expecting your 'chick' to fledge and for his parenting to cease, Grammaretto?. He's a bruiser, isn't he? Was your party to be outside this weekend? Will your guests need full body armour protection?

My cousin is coming too, but only for lunch. He and his wife are on their Grand Tour of Europe from Australia. You know the sort- we are on our way from Inverness to Conwy and thought we could meet up for lunch.
Intrepid relative youngsters.

How is DMIL, NS?
Are those metaphorical ducks lining up in a row for you all yet?

Kaimoana so pleased you have heard from the company. I hope your leaves arrive soon. Good news about the podiatrist.
You must be making a special pair of slippers for such a good friend. So pleased you can deliver them personally.
Grammaretto how nice to have your cousin stay for a bit and to have so many willing helping hands from your friends. Tears are fine. Memories of happier times often bring on a tear,
Hope the day is a good one.
Ixion have a lovely visit with your cousin.

As you know, I love birds.
Gull chicks typically fly about 8 weeks after hatching and
spend the last few days on the ground strengthening their wings.
So yours, Gramaretto will do a bit of flapping and hopping and then, one day soon, up up and away.

Just popped in to express minor exasperation over the number of women called Katie/Katy/Kate who are involved with my mother-in-law's recovery.

Occupational Therapist
Physiotherapist
Ear-Wax removal person
Carers (2)
District Nurse
Community Intervention Nurse
Stroke Nurse....

It's really hard to keep her diary comprehensible.
Even the Fire Service person who is coming to check her alarms is a Katie!

I have 3 in my extended family NotSpag. Infact we have a seriously small name pool.
There are plenty of carers for your MiL anyhow which can't be bad and no mistakes about forgetting a name. 🤣😂

I came out this morning to be greeted by a scene of carnage and assumed a fox or buzzard had got the baby. There are 2 babies now and I have seen them flying. But they are both OK so maybe a parent.

It's too hot to do much apart from watch the tennis. I have to buy party food and cook some things. The window cleaner is here.

2 chicks

Yes.
I am grateful for all the interventions Grammaretto - but it's only because I've treated it as a nearly full time job for 3 weeks. 😬

It does make me sad when some people have nobody to do this for them.
One of the lovely carers said she tries to give a bit more time to one person who rarely sees anyone. 🙏
There is a lot wrong with the care in the community system it seems.
In this area they ran a "fantastic" stroke rehab service as a pilot for 9 months.
It was lauded by all but was pulled as "too expensive"

I'm currently trying to find a crash tested wheelchair for a small and slender person with a break on the handle!
Can't find one to hire.
Wheelchair services are apparently 18 more weeks!
Suggested buying one but my mother-in-law says "why? I'll be walking soon" - and yes she can walk with support but not really safely!

The Red Cross used to lend wheelchairs when DM needed one, but I guess you'll have tried everywhere.

Red Cross say no crash tested to borrow.
A local charity says no 16" or crash tested.

I can hire one for £22 a week from Red Cross (plus delivery and collection - which i think was £25 , but may have been 25 ^each way^) but it will only have a footbrake - unfortunately the path to the park is pretty steep here...

She could of course buy one - but then we are back to the "walking" thing.
The OT was lovely and said something like "this would be just for now so you can enjoy life a bit more and do a bit of seated gardening- and then when you are stronger and more stable you can sell it on and someone else will be able to enjoy going outside... "and that will show how far you have progressed and it will feel like a real achievement"

I'm hoping she will think about it.

Would you be able to buy a second hand one? It would be quicker than waiting for wheelchair services.

Yes. Maybe.
None the right type on Ebay/ Gumtree/ Facebook just now.

Most people don't want crash tested or handbrakes it seems

Evening all. I’ve been out a lot of today now eaten ou and had some wine. I am hot and exhausted so am just going to wish you all a good night and hope everyone is ok

How lovely Doodle
Have a nice quiet evening.🌠

Bit of a sad day for me, remembering my good friend Philip who passed away on 12th.. but I have good memories.

Saturday was a delivery day for NZ Post but my kumerahou did not arrive. Next delivery is Tuesday.

🤞for Tuesday then Kaimoana

24° here currently, due to peak later at 29°.

It is, as my Oz cousin has cheerfully announced
warming up nicely.

Happy party, Grammaretto!
Back later.

Kaimana i remember your friend Philip too. Sad when we miss people. Hopeing your delivery comes on Tuesday. You’ve waited far too long already.
Hope the party went well Grammaretto . Did any of your family come? Hope the day was full of happy memories hugs and 💐

I hope your precious leaves arrive soon Kaimoana.

The party was lovely. DD came with her girls and DH but she didn't stay very long. I don't know if the heat or the occasion got to her.

I had cobbled together photos of DH through the years and pinned them to boards I just happen to have
There's one I love of him as a baby sharing his pram with the black scottie dog, Jeannie!

Everyone brought delicious food and drink and I had made a big pasta dish, salads and a cake and fruit salad so despite my trying to get people to take things home, there is a lot left
over.....and quite a lot of clearing up still to do.

The description of your party made me smile Gram. You won't need to prep food for days now as your freezeer will be full!

So cold here, winds straight from the Antarctic Brrrr....

Glad the party went well Grammaretto. I love the sound of all those photos being there to bring back memories.
Kaimoana it’s 10 pm here and I’ve got all the doors and windows open ,the fan on high speed and I’m still melting.

I am so pleased you had a jolly day Grammaretto abd a chance to sort-of "formally" remember.

The photos we love are so very personal aren't they...
I have one or two on the blurry side really but somehow they've captured a look perfectly.

Hello my lovely lobster friends...I am still catching up on all your news. I'm sort of back down to earth...well in as much as I've done some washing and a bit of dusting but the domestic goddess is as elusive as she was before the wedding.

My back and hip have just about recovered from our wedding night...you can unclutch your pearls in case you thought I was about to write a follow up chapter to 50 shades of grey. No it was spending the night in a shepherds hut...originally it was my girlfriend R who was going to sleep in it and DH and I were going to sleep in the converted stable room that R and I had slept in on the Friday night but R is very much OCD and having got everything she needed in its right place it seemed very unkind for her to have to transfer it

Now I'm not sure how much you know about Shepherds Huts but room to move is at a premium and that's before the pull down bed ( yes you read that right) is in place. It was gone midnight by the time we found out way along the track and it was like a furnace inside All I wanted to do was get out of my albeit beautiful dress and collapse onto a flat surface
Now when I picked up my dress from the seamstress she advised using a crochet hook to do up the tiny pearl buttons and R had tried to give said crochet hook to DH when he had picked up our case from the stable room but being male he said he wouldn't need it He most definitely did!!!! I stood in this tiny space willing him to find a way to release me without actually ripping the dress off me

Finally he used his car key to ooooohhhh so slowly undo all 22 buttons and then the zip and then the bodice...I know you are probably all reading this thinking my God what is she going to write next...Panic not..Lobsters....my joy was unconfined as the newly measured boobs escaped from where they had been trapped for the last 12 hours in 29 degrees heat.

There was no sleep that night ( Oh Lord you are thinking here she goes again) but no it was the pull down bed.... No wonder shepherds needed a crook... It's not to keep the sheep under control it's because they couldn't bl**dy stand after sleeping on what felt like corrugated hardboard
It was made worse too as we were meeting some of the guests for breakfast and when I walked in walking like Max Wall the comments and laughter ricocheted round the room

Sleeping in Henrietta MoHo was a doddle after that and we had a wonderful week in Tenby.... NotSpag...I certainly danced in the shallows and thought of you all and you gorgeous wedding present to us. The dogs loved every minute of it too.. This was our third time on this site and it suits us so well...no pool..clubhouse.. activities etc just spotlessly clean showers and laundry room and wonderful scenery and peace
Time to reflect on and be grateful for finding one another.

Kaimoana..one more sleep as they say and you will have your leaves...I really hope you get the benefit from then that you've been yearning and that you enjoy your trip to see your friend and deliver his slippers Keep those happy memories of Philip uppermost in your mind
Grammaretto... What a lovely way to remember your DH...I firmly believe that those we love are never far from us and he will have been there with you all.. Whist kneeling at the altar during the Nuptial Mass I felt my Mum and Dad and Sister standing either side of us...it was such a strong feeling.
Doodle...I hope your wrists are healing and less painful now..to hurt one is bad enough but two....ouch ouch ouch
Ixion.. Have you had a good time with your 'down under rellys' The weather certainly warmed up for them didn't it
NotSpag....I shouldn't have but I did giggle at you post about Katie's....In my head I was thinking ooh how useful I don't have to worry about forgetting their names I can just mumble something that could be Kate,Katie etc and I've got a fighting chance of sounding like I've got it right.
Would DMIL be able to use an electric /battery wheelchair...one of those that can be braked from a hand control maybe...she sounds such a 'gutsy' lady and I really hope she gets to continue to be so...with the love and support from you and your DH I'm sure she will

*I started this post 2 hours ago when it was
almost acceptable not to be dressed but at nearly 10.30am slutty housewife is obviously back in residence*
Love to all especially those I've forgotten to mention