Soop's pleasant (if boring) kitchen for friendly folk and precious pets.

Oh soop it is so hard. Memories of seeing Gracie go downhill are still very fresh in my mind. Remembering what HAD been , probably bothered me far far more than her. Animals live in the present , so if Rory is still eating and drinking I would take that as evidence that he still has quality of life.
You will know when the time is right and however heartbreaking you will also know that you gave him the best possible forever home.
That ultimate gift is a painfree passing in the arms of those he loves best.
But that time may not be yet, trust your instincts.??

oldgoat; have you been to the art gallery at the old school house? It's somewhere that we didn't go to for years but ended up parking near to it last year so we dropped in for a coffee. It's lovely inside and the paintings they sell are fantastic.

We've not visited the gallery tegan though I saw the signs for it today. Next time we are in Alnmouth we'll pay a visit. Thanks for the tip.

SOOP and CHARLEYGIRL these black cats are quite strange. Ours has lived with us for ten years. He escaped from a bad home so is sometimes worried. This summer he is living outside and only comes in when he is hungry, almost feral really. I do wonder if he has dementia. He runs away from DH unless he is cutting up meat! Cats do their own thing and you are just the staff.

Liaise Tara is black and white- I cannot send a photo as I am technologically challenged. Her tum, rear legs and four paws are white, it is really only her back that is black. Tara pops home to use the litter tray, have a bite to eat and then retire to bed very early. A nice life if one can get it.

soop as you are well aware, Rory has a massive fan club and is loved by many.

Mawbroon Have taking the magnesium tablets really helped? I have some which I stopped taking.

I have some very bad twinging in arms right now which may be a degree of RSI from knitting or the bad effects of the old tendon repairs on my right shoulder.
I will bow to Galens advice.

Poor Rory does sound as if he is failing, but I know Soop and Macsporran adore that once vicious beastie and will do their best for him.

Greyduster I know what you mean about taking someone elses child to a play ground. Two year old DGS loves the tube slide and demands to go on that one. He seems to think it is beneath him to try the smaller one.
I wait and hear him shouting "I'm coming down now." so I can cheer as he comes out.

Touch wood Nelliemoser. The cramps might have been connected with the "route march" from the car park to Paws Ward 4x a day (unaccustomed exercise ) but the main thing is they have stopped
Whatever you do don't google night cramps. First thing to come up was "Alcohol related liver disease" .

A sad day for me. I just thought I would tell somebody.
It is our 59th wedding anniversary. H has no idea, I have reminded him the lasdt 2 years but he just wasn't interested so I won't bother this year. Our S

Sorry finger slipped. Our S is in yet another deep depression, it breaks my heart to see him like this.
This pm I am going to hospital to have a "thing" removed from my temple. I had an urgent referral as a suspected melanoma but the consultant thinks not, however he is removing it, still under the 2 week rule " just in case".

Good morning kitcheners - annsixty sorry to read you're tough place is tougher right now. I had a "thing" removed from my leg a couple of years ago, the consultant thought mine was ok but removed it under the 2 week rule, biopsy confirmed he was right. I tried not to worry but failed, hope you succeed more than I did. Worry about our children and sadness about loved ones is so tiring, keep on fitting in positives as I know you do.
Maw, Dr Google is my friend given the increasing medications my GP insists I need. However, Dr Google also scares me constantly, so I probably should avoid it.
There are some lovely photographs of dogs and cats here. I echo MawBroon's comment to soop, that we know when the time is right for our loved pets.
Speaking of which, I'm off to walk the 3 dogs. The visiting dog is very happy here and we fear that though allegedly she lives with one of our children... she may think she only visits them occasionally.

Morning all !!

The blackberries are ripe here too Grey . I usually take Herbert and Sherbet and they eat their own weight before leaving me the paltry leftovers for apple and blackberry pie.

I shan't be taking them this year as they still aren't feeling too well despite Nana doing her best! So I shall have to bake a pie or two for the freezer for when they're feeling a bit better .

I love the sound of the cottage. We may try and get away late Sept now we aren't moving.

Some people have no tact Swanny !! I complimented Cooper on his lovely bottom yesterday ( we are all involved in the 'POTTY TRAING' !! ( Its a big thing here lol) and he thanked me nicely and replied ' You have a lovely big bottom too Nana!' See what I mean ??

Glad to hear Paw is making good progress Maw !! About time too !! How is the Maserati?

That kind of good behaviour is what we're aiming for with Sam Oldgoat he needs to take some lessons from Oscar. He isn't naughty just over excited. But we are working on the behaviourists plan and hopefully we will get some good results.

Good news about Macs soop . Rory is definitely slowing down ( aren't we all?? ) But as long as he is eating well and not complaining then I think his quality of life is fair. I am sad that this is happening so soon after Bracken, its a lot to bear. So sending you a huge hug xx

Happy Anniversary from us Ann even though your DH is unaware we recognise the achievement and also that 59 years of marriage is NOT all plain sailing. I do hope you have a small treat planned today for yourself, even if it is just a couple of hours escape .

I am biting the bullet tonight and joining Slimming World. I badly need to lose too much weight to contemplate and my youngest daughter has put back on the weight she lost last year so we are going to support each other.

Food is a celebration in our family and its going to be tough but I shall give it my all( only low cal cakes from here on in ladies !!) I am not saying you cant have luscious things but please bring a carrot for me too

Happy Day all !!

ann congratulation on your wedding anniversary from me too. It will be my lovely SIL and brother's 60th tomorrow and like your DH he will have no idea. But it is an achievement for all of you so congratulations are in order. So sorry about your S. Depression is one of the worst things to live with (like dementia) it is hard to cope with. Hope your procedure goes well and here are some virtual for you. Only wish they were real. ((Huggs))

ann so sorry about your anniversary. Going to a hospital for a minor op is not quite the way to celebrate but I am sure that you will have a glass of wine when you return home.

N&G good luck- I went to Slimming World about 100 years ago and lost 3 stone in 3 months. I felt and looked fabulous but I did lose too much weight. I should return but have not as yet. At least one of your D's is going with you- I am assuming that you could not persuade or drag Grampy along also?! Good luck.

Wedding anniversaries can be bitter sweet days can't they? Nevertheless annsixty you deserve all our congratulations for hanging on in there and I hope there are some happy memories from all those years.
So sorry to hear about your son, and really hope there is better news soon there too.
The medical "procedure/" is surely a buggeration too far but always better out than in/off than on.
Raising a to you anyway.

Ann may I echo N&G's sentiment and wish you a Happy Anniversary. That is a good long time to be married, and although you are having tough times now, I'm sure you will have many happy ones to look back on. My son, too, has depressive episodes that he is being treated for. Probably like you, I never thought I would see that - he used to be such a happy chap. It is hard being a mother sometimes.
N&G I'm sure your youngsters will be back to normal in no time (especially if there is blackberry pie to look forward to!). Is your magic wand due for a service, do you think? My BF went to Slimming World and lost a lot of weight. She looked great and said you didn't really feel as if you were following a slimming plan. She still cooks to their recipes. She said you need a 'buddy' as it can be a bit intimidating going on your own, so having your DD there will be nice for both of you!
We are back on the tile trail, having decided that the tiles we chose for the bathroom floor are not right. We chose some more which DH really liked, but I got a bit hung up about the unrandomness of the 'pattern' in them so the lady in the tile shop said why didn't we take a box and lay them out on the floor at home - which we did, shuffling them about like one of those hand held games where you push the squares in a little box from one place to the other to make a pattern! Except the tiles are heavy and now we're both exhausted (it doesn't take much!) from being on the floor! Anyway, these are THE ONES!! ? (at least I b****ywell hope they are!). Who knew this was going to be such a pain in the rear?

Crikey, you lot, would you please stand still!

soop, glad McS's check up went well. As far as Rory goes, I echo the thoughts of other posters, you will know when the time is right and be content with your decision. You will have lots of super memories of Rory and the knowledge that you gave him the best life.

Maw, it's good yo know that your DH is getting better and I know you will stand firm against too earlier a discharge.

Ann happy anniversary and congratulations on making it this far, through the difficult times. Try to remember the good times - I'm sure you will have loads. Hope your procedure goes well. It must be difficult to not be able to discuss your son with your DH.

Glad the bathroom is 'getting there' GD, it's a huge relief to have made a decision and to say s*d it, that's it.

DH went to the GP yesterday fully expecting to be sent to see someone under the '2 week' rule. He came back with Omoprazole(sp) - just as I expected!!

On the other hand, this afternoon I am meeting a couple of friends for . The husband of one of them was diagnosed with bladder cancer about 8 weeks ago. The consultant ordered tests to checked if he was suitable for a trial treatment, which took 2 weeks, he wasn't, so was then sent for tests to have an op and chemo. The hospital keep cancelling his appointments and his wife (and he!) is convinced that all the delays will have caused the cancer to spread and have become inoperable. I think we'll need lots of

I'm well and truly knackered. The ironing shift seemed to take forever and a day. Now that I'm home with a pot of fresh coffee and a crispbread with Marmite and cheese, I'm as happy as Larry (who is Larry, by the way?)

annsixty I'm agreeing with all the messages from our Granspals. You are a wonderful lady. Try, if you can, to celebrate your anniversary in some way. Your friend might be able to join you for a slap up afternoon tea with [cake] and a wee tipple to follow. from Us lot. I wish that they were the real thing.

kitty We all have much to be grateful for. Good health being the most important.

You lot help me enormously when you talk about that unapproachable cat...THANK You. It helps to be able to share what could well be Rory's final episode with you. We're hoping that he may die in his cat cave, in his sleep. For obvious reasons, the idea of calling that lady vet is distressing.

soop I totally agree with you, you do not want his last moments to be distressing- he knows he is loved and falling into a permanent sleep in his cat cave would be ideal for everybody. I did think that he may crawl back into the forest but that may be a step too far.

Anyway, he is going to enjoy his supper this evening as he has been so goooood today. Then cuddles and strokes when he is on MacSporran's lap-that is how royalty on 4 legs should be treated and he is so appreciative.

Had to just share with you; my husband insists there is nothing wrong with his hearing. Coming back in the car today from tying up various loose ends, I said to him "Do you think we've achieved something today?" "Yes", he replied "cheese will be fine"!! ?‍♀️

Greyduster I really do not understand how you thought that your DH has a hearing problem- it seems okay to me!

Will he believe you when you repeat the car conversation? You were probably mumbling!

I didn't take issue with him, Charley - I couldn't speak for laughing!

GD, I have had success!! GD asked the GP for a hearing referral yesterday!!!!!! Apparently, I imagine I've said things to DH when I haven't really!!

Just back from meeting my friend and, apparently, the extra tests are because her husband's kidneys are not up to the chemo. Anyone know what that might mean?

Just back from the hospital.
Very easy procedure apart from the smell of burning flesh when they cauterize it.

ann put your feet up and enjoy a glass or tow of wine. The worst of the day is now over, you can relax although I am aware that is difficult.

Crikey, Ann! Have a or two quick. I hope you have a pleasant evening.