Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz - that was ALL of us in the living room this afternoon. I had to have a nap - Ghengis was cwtched up by my tummy, the babies by my feet and Keith in his chair. I never did find out how the ancient Western film I was watching ended! I'm not surprised Keith fell asleep as he has had a bad night on Monday - awake half the night with his legs going into spasm. Yesterday he could barely drag himself around and it was such a worry. Then the Surgery refused to do a repeat prescription on a slow release dopamine prescribed by the PD Nurse. It would seem this happens EVERY time something new is added. She informs the Surgery by letter and it never gets added on to his list of repeat medications. The PD Nurse has just phoned to say she is faxing a prescription to Boots and we can collect it tomorrow. I think I need to have a word with whoever is the Manager at the Surgery though, as it is very worrying, time consuming and frustrating to have this happen repeatedly.
Today the car went in for its MoT. It failed - the ??? arm to one wheel needs replacing. I had said there was a noise last time it went in, but then we had the replacement air conditioning unit. I was hoping the noise would be sorted by that, but no. It's back in on Friday. She wasn't sure if they would do the other repair which involves the hanger for the spare tyre beneath the car, but I will settle for one wheel not falling off ! so we can use it at the weekend. I've booked tickets for Keith, Pam and I to visit Llwyn Celyn, the lovely Landmark Trust property which is having an Open Day weekend, all decked up for Christmas. We plan to take in an Antiques/Collectables Fair in Crickhowell on the way. Keith's been looking forward to it so it would be a shame to miss out.
Yesterday afternoon I finally got my act together for a Christmas cake - gosh, it was nearly ALL fruit. The Recipe comes from the BBC Good Food pages . There was so much mixture, I had enough left over for a small one in a loaf tin, which Keith can enjoy this week.
This new brushed cotton duvet set arrived today from Dunelm. Keith had requested a 2nd brushed cotton duvet set as he finds the sateen finish ones I have heavy rather than warm. I changed to the autumn weight duvet too, and we are snug as bugs under the Paisley one we already had. This had gone in the wash, ready for the next change in a couple of days.
The obligatory kitten photos. Really must learn how to use the video button on the camera - if I can follow them fast enough, as they hurtle round at warp speed!
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Oh, how happy I am to see this post!!!!
ReplyDeleteI didn't realize I'd left it so long between posts. I will Be Good in future!
ReplyDeleteLulu's Siamese coloring is in marbled tabby patches--how lovely! That little Pipi is going to make up in personality what she lacks in size.
ReplyDeleteWhen I worked in the quilt shop we carried a line of brushed cotton every winter--nicer weave than outing flannel and stitched up nicely.
Sounds like a 'tie-rod end' at fault on the van--maybe?
Your Christmas cake looks wonderful--just the thing with a cup of tea.
Yes - when they were born the 3 most Siamesey ones were cream with tabbying. Now her colour is developing into the marbled tabby patches. So pretty and unusual. Pippi is indeed quite a character and very much MY little one.
DeleteI've seen the brushed cotton fabrics on offer at Doughty's - tempting, but they aren't cheap.
Ah, a tie-rod end it could well be. Put it this way, it needs fixing before I end up stranded by some remote church with the wheel having rolled into the ditch!
The cake is fairly uneven on the top but nothing that cant be covered in marzipan and icing!
WHat a lovely cat! And having had a prescription messed up by Boots this week, I sympathise
ReplyDeleteIndeed :) This time it was the surgery, not Boots. They get a letter from the PD nurse, stating medication which has been dispensed - then don't put it on repeat. The GP refused point blank to issue a prescription and we had to rely on the PD nurse faxing one through.
DeleteI so love the antics of the babies, and Ghengis is such a good sport.
ReplyDeleteGod bless.
Sometimes Ghengis gets a little tetchy but as he has no teefs it's just his claws they need to be wary of. The other two still aren't to be trusted.
DeleteJust had some bedding also from Dunelm, their delivery service is pretty good. We are also doing a trip on Sunday to See Elizabeth Gaskell's old home. Best wishes to Keith as he fights against his illness. Must be hard for both of you, and with a car that keeps having faults.
ReplyDeleteOh how lovely. I didn't know it was open to the public. Photos please Thelma! I have had no trouble with Dunelm and although it's Evri delivering, he knows to put it in the stable if it's too big to go through the catflap!!
DeleteI can't begin to tell you how hard it is to see Keith struggle so. Without a proper night's sleep his movement is sloth-speed. It's a heavy weight on my shoulders this week.
All looking so lovely. I would love a cat to find me again I think and the cake looks fabulous and I think the uneven top makes it looks artisan. Excited to see your photos from the Landmark farmhouse. I went into Petworth this week to see the fIlm Emily, which was very dour and depressing and rainy, but the Christmas lights are on and everywhere is looking very pretty, including the bookshop. Today we have sunshine and blue skies and after food shopping I went down the soggy garden
ReplyDeletewith compost for the bin, ash for the asparagus and to pick spinach and flowers. After lunch (celeriac and apple soup) I may change into gardening kit and do rose deadheading, cutting back of collapsed perennials and weeding standing on the paving under the pergola. I seem to have a rash of bronze fennel, alchemilla mollis and Nigella seedlings popping up all over and they need hoeing off or thinning. Bulbs are already showing the tips of their noses and the hellebore leaves need cutting off as there is so much new growth. Hooray for our gardens BB. Sarah x
I hope a cat will find you. We had a never-ending procession at Ynyswen. A cat would die, and hey presto, within the month another stray arrived, requiring bed and board. Here we have seen a couple of young tom cats from the farm up the hill, but the Big Boys have seen them off in no uncertain terms.
DeleteEmily I would like to see, but if it's grey and depressing, then I will save it for when it comes on tv eventually. Hah - today's indulgence (!!) was bad enough to make an old B movie look good, but it took no concentration and made us laugh in places and was actually worth watching for the distraction factor (T-Rex's and Pterydactyls!) - being a remake of The Lost World. With Germans for good measure!
I have not been remotely tempted to garden as it has been so cold and damp - fog all week. I tell myself I am leaving dead perennials for insects to over-winter in. Mind you, I still have Salvias blooming (they didn't manage it in the summer as it was too hot), Primulas flowering, several other perennials still putting out blooms and a yellow rose absolutely covered in blooms. The David Austin ones aren't so impressed though. I am going to give them a good muckheap feed the next sunny day.
Our Christmas lights in town are fairly basic. I am unlikely to be in any bigger town between now and Christmas, which is a shame as I'd have like to have gone to Hereford. My prosaic choices for Christmas pressies from Keith have now altered to an equally prosaic chunk of money towards my Findmypast renewal. Left to his own devices, Keith's choice for a gift can be somewhat random!
Yes, the salvias are still flowering here too - especially Salvia Nachtvlinder, tiny scented leaves, deep purple flowers, which sprawls around under the white lilac flanked by two pergola posts supporting Rosa Penny Lane (rose of the year in 1998 and a child of R. New Dawn). Salvia Uliginosa of the sky blue flowers which really do reach for the sky is also holding up well and I have another salvia with orange-scented leaves and tomato red flowers which is clashing delightfully with magenta cyclamen flowers under the protection of the purple cotinus which is still holding onto its now faded leaves. As your David Austin roses are still settling in I would be tough this winter and prune them right back to a six inch framework, always to just above an outward facing bud, remove all leaves and then give them a mulch of muck. I did garden yesterday and it felt lovely to be outside in the sunshine - almost springlike on 1 December! Encourage K to get outside and doing as much as possible. Sitting indoors too much is bad for anyone, regardless of PD. There, I’m sounding like your PD nurse now - sorry! Did you see the Billy Connolly programme the other night? It was made in 2018 when he was 75 and demonstrated the importance and power of doing things you love. Billy is another Parkinson’s patient. Gotta get those natural endorphins flowing - the synthetic levadopa works so much better when combined with naturally produced dopamine. Take care BB, I know it’s tough.
DeleteMy Salvia nachtvlinder didn't do much this summer. It's in a big tub and was watered, but clearly not enough. I may plant it out although the garden is dry pretty well everywhere, especially on the Bank. You have some unusual Salvias- will have to go and look them up. The David Austin roses are definitely still settling in, and the couple on the Bank are probably struggling for both moisture and extra nutrition as it's not an ideal spot. The Malvern Hills rambler that Danny bought me for my birthday is in its permanent home, loving it, and still has a sprig of flowers out! It has flowered on and off ALL summer and is so pretty.
DeleteWe are still in freezing fog here - Keith still recovering from being awake half the night several nights in a row. He has slept all morning in his chair again. I have to say, his medication doesn't seem to work as we would like it to. The Consultant who diagnosed him said it was a "form of Parkinsons" and my gut feeling at the time was that Keith wouldn't respond well to the Dopamine - for whatever reason (too much damage done to his brain by the Steroids I suspect), so he really struggles. We will go out to the little Antiques& Collectables Fair in Crickhowell tomorrow, but it's not "outside" weather here this week!
I won't go into details but believe me, this is a long hard battle and Keith is struggling. I know what he should be doing but he is fighting me all the time and saying he can't, hehas no energy.
In the happiness of seeing your post, I forgot to say, I love that picture of the exhausted Lulu, sound asleep with her paws stretched forward. When I walked out to the kitchen this morning, I heard a small sound and found the rug in front of the sink all skitter-scattered in disarray. I think I may have found our cellar dweller is coming up and exploring upstairs at night. Perhaps we will have a Christmas miracle.
ReplyDeleteOh that is such good news about your wee kitten-cat. Has he got a name yet? Hoping for a Christmas miracle with him for you.
DeleteHis name is Houdini. He disappears. Like magic.
DeleteHaha - good one. I bet he's eating his cat food though, inbetween the disappearing acts.
DeleteHe eats an amazing quantity of food. He gets fed morning and night. He's also a big water drinker.
DeleteNo need to apolgize for kitten pictures.
ReplyDeleteI shall indulge you with a few more then hart.
DeleteWhat a worry over Keith's medication! I don't think it's something peculiar to your Surgery and Pharmacy though. You should hear some of the stories happening here as well. It seems to be UK wide. I do hope you manage your trip out this weekend coming. Yes, I did mention the tornado. We used to get water spouts here. Probably still do. It's just that because we no longer have a boat, I don't get to see them. Your Christmas cake is looking good there.
ReplyDeleteWhat's more of a worry is that it doesn't work as efficiently as it should. Trouble is when surgeries employ young girls (Pharmacies too), the job doesn't always get done properly, and it's a cause of stress for me.
DeleteIf you're wondering about today's choice of crap film - after so few hours sleep last night, we weren't fussy!
Those kittens cuteness are overload.
ReplyDeleteAren't they just? And I can forgive them any naughtiness. They just have to look at me with their innocent eyes. Little ratbags!!
DeleteUgh, we had to have the control arm and shocks replaced on our car today. I'm so lucky to have a mechanic for a husband. I'm not so keen at being mechanics helper though. It's one thing or another lately isn't it? We don't have a GP so getting any meds, tests or consultation sorted is just a big worry.
ReplyDelete