Snuggling

After having Will on Saturday night, last night for the first time we had George on a sleepover, he was in bed by 7.30 and slept through as expected. We had Will at 2 months on his first sleepover, mummy took longer to be able to let George stay, which is good with us, we hope to have him again next week on his own, ready for the new year when we will have both of the together. 

I could not put this book down, it was compelling reading, the story twisted its way to a brilliant ending. 75th book read this year. 

Will was a good boy on his sleepover, we had homemade pizza which he loves, he did wake up at 5.30am and I got up with him, normally he would crawl into our bed and snuggle, but he was wide awake, I had a few things planned to do, but he just wanted to play with the dinky cars we have. 

It's a mixed start to the week here, hubby went out on his motorbike on Sunday and came off, his front wheel slid on a drain cover, luckily it was at a junction and he was going slow, but he has strained his ankle and had a huge bruise, so he is limping around the house. 

Having George was bliss, he's such a happy little man, and interested in everything, Purdy one of our cats loves him and will stay very close to him. He was not interested in the Christmas tree, just all the toys we have here for him. 

I am now feeling much happier, I still have the huge worry, we won't know the outcome until the new year, I have everything crossed things will happen to allow us a better life, but I also know I'm not always that lucky, as they say 'time will tell'. Your recent comments have helped, I grew up with a mum who was a strong woman, so feeling sorry for myself was never entertained. 

I should have been having a coffee and chat with our sign class friends, outside in the village, but George is with us until after lunch, only half the ladies will be there, so hopefully we can all get together before Christmas.

I have not done any crafting, I have spent most of my time reading, at least I have stopped staring into space most afternoons, I did finish daughters cake, and just have to marzipan and ice ours. I also still have to finish the item I am making George, so a sewing machine day is needed. 

Small change

It's that time of year when we look at saving pots, this lovey German beer bottle is our small change bottle, we can't put 50p's in there but all other change fits through the slim neck. We have not been out spending much, so very few coins in there, it's not worth counting them, the bottle will be left to next year.

We started saving pound coins as our Co-op in the village closed and we could not save any cash back amounts, this being from the national chain, again we have not been out much and have very little change, even so we had £48. £50 of vouchers came from hubby's pension scheme, which will be used in our local Co-op. Both of these we use to stay local through the busy Christmas times, avoiding the bigger supermarkets. 

In our last savings we have £168.00, but most of that are notes, from gifts we have been given, (last Christmas and wedding anniversary), we always save money along with £2 coins towards short city breaks, but we have not been anywhere for just over a year. We will add any cash given as Christmas gifts, so hopefully a good trip or 2 can be planned for next year.

I am a saver, my parents had no spare money as we were growing up, and it was much the same as our girls were small, we always managed a holiday and a few treats, but we never had savings. I always have some notes tucked away in my purse, it's my just in case money, I can't ever see me stopping. We now save monthly, not huge amounts, but enough to cover any surprises, and I do like to save coins, the only strict saving is £2 coins, we never spend them, all the other coins we sort out once or twice a week.

Its a very early start 5.30am, Will has been on a sleepover, he wakes early most days and wakes baby George up, which unsettles him, so for a break we have Will. Its within the rules as a family with a disabled child under 5 can bubble with another family for support. We have not had this rule for most of the year, but now happy we can help and support and feel blessed we can see more of the boys and our daughter. I have offered to have George on his first sleepover in the coming week, just to see if he's happy then next year we can start to have them both to give mum and dad a break. 

Acts of kindness

How cute is this, George under the Christmas tree, with his new best friend Buster, given to him by a staff member, the nicest man ever in John Lewis, Southampton, brought a rare smile to me. 

I am really disappointed with my Amaryllis bulbs this year, the Lidi bulb has only leaves, normally the flower pops up first, my garden center one has no signs of growth either. The bulb from last year has huge leaves and no bud. The seeds grown from previous years, have all been nibbled by mice in the greenhouse. I'm waiting until my local florist has them in stock part growing, I will have their blooms this year. 

On Monday I got up early and drove my friend and neighbour to our local hospital for a check up, she recently had an eye operation, she would have needed to take a bus in their busy time for 30 minutes to get there, it's just a 10 minute drive from our home, she is not allowed to drive yet. She got me this lovely thank you plant, mine has finished flowering so lovely to have a 2nd plant. 

I added sage green braid around my cushion, I had intended to purchase gold braid, but decided the green would look better. 

I am struggling with crafting, I have managed to finish the 1st sleeve for Will's jacket, the body is the correct length , I need to do armhole shaping and the top sections, I have pulled out a WIP cross stitch to finish. 

Another great book, I read this super quick, Sharon Bolton is another great author I love, really good story line and brilliant ending. This is my 74th book read this year. I am now waiting for the next set of books from library. 

 I am still watching The Crown, I watch 2 episodes at a time, I am reading as well, but in truth my heart is not in anything, I can happily sit and waste every afternoon. We try and have a daily walk, being outside clears my head, I love our tiny park, as do so many other people, walking around, nodding at each other, keeping our distance. Your comments last time were all very kind and understanding, we are due some happy good news, but this year is just not that giving. Having a shopping trip with daughter and George has helped me, the kindness of a stranger lifted my spirits, I was surprised to see the city was not that busy, everyone was wearing mask and keeping apart, the shops had good safety systems. 

Shops are open and the village is busy, we purchased cards from our independent shop, we also have a big chain cheap shop, but I do love nice cards, not cheap, but most of them are for our grandsons, so I don't mind paying extra. 

Blue Christmas

I have done the marzipan layer on daughters cake, our cake had another drink of brandy, as usual I used the best brandy for the cake, poor hubby shakes his head every year, but he does love my Christmas cake.

Another great book, this being my 73rd book read this year, as always with this author, I loved this story line, it was very different, an interesting look on how we can change if things around us change. 

It's very comfortable to have old friends out this season, George loves Rudolf and has chewed his ear, I have loads of these handmade by me cushions of all sizes. 

My Lidi Amaryllis is growing well, but only leaves, last years bulb has only produced leaves this year, my expensive bulb is simply not growing, probably won't have any flowers this season. 

We had Will and George on Sunday for an hour, mummy had a hospital appointment and daddy was unwell in bed, so we took care of the boys, Will loved our Christmas tree, but spend most of the time in the garage with Grancha, boys like to stick together. It was unexpected to see the boys, but I will never see any of our families struggle with childcare. 

My computer is fixed, not cheap, but he retrieved all my data, which I am very pleased with, I have backed up a couple of things, one being my stash list, which I started in 2015.

I don't have much Christmas spirt, to be honest I am struggling, I know I'm not alone, I think this festive season is going to be hard, with the announcement of so many retail shops, within just 2 groups to be in administration, with the huge number of people who already have lost their jobs, so many people facing a bleak future, most of our companies survive each year on a good Christmas season, which is gone before it could start,  how can it be a merry time. I am also worried about a personal issue, one which will effect every bit of our lives but one I can't control, it mad to be worried, but it's how I am, December has not had a good start.