*The Holly and the Ivy* and the You Know What 2013 Chatter Thread.

Nanamia

Caitlyn hope you are feeling ok. Australia has a blooming lot to answer for, when I'm there next I think I will lasso it with a blooming big rope and tow it a little closer, don't worry Mrsinvisible I will grab china too on the way past. xxx
Mrsinvisible according to my DH the weather is set to improve, did you get out in your garden at all today? Hope the Skype went well Will your laptop fix? xxx
Feisty I feared this for you:( lazy day tomorrow and no arguing ! I will be checking.
Freespirit hope you are ok my lovely xxx

Another busy day here! Few jobs done, DGD2 for the day (such a cutie you can't help smiling) giving DD and DSiL some peace then an evening of good company with DH and BFF then a tv programme on Australia that featured Perth five weeks on Thursday woooo hooooo xxx

mrsinvisible

Another new week, 7 days to play with, now, what shall I do first? Arrange for world peace,... or fix the uk economy,.... or get dgs up and ready for school? I know, world peace will be more achievable, but hey, I love a challenge, so, DGS it is
Nanamia, please catch china with your lasso, and yes, I got into the garden late afternoon, and filled two containers with fuschia and coreopsis, with a nice heuchera for height and colour interest, and howked some weeds out of the drive. It is not raining right now, so hopeful for today, too
Feisty, s l o w down, willya, if you need to be in control of something, see my list above, and try any one you like, if not, well, nothing important out there is there?
Now, chair? yes, whip, yes, liontamers hat? yes, ok, here goes, opens dgs bedroom door and........

freespirit66

:rotfl:Morning everyone, am back will be on at funny times this week though, having to get up at 6.10 each morning to take DD1 to train station every morning, it will kill me, i am such a lazy teenage wannabe (i think i lie in more than when i was a teenager) :rotfl:she was so excited this morning i wish i could be like her, just go off, get on a train to london i am such a wuss.
Everyone is feeling better now, so got to get house back in shape, never got a thing done last week and it blooming shows, did a bit more in the garden yesterday, jet washed the decking, the outdoor chairs and table, so is now beginning to look in a reasonable state for summer (if we get one).
MRSINVISIBLE that was so sweet your lovely DGS playing in the rain and puddles
FEISTY hope DH is recovering well, it will be you really ill next if you dont relax honey
NANAMIA your cake is brilliant! Yes she has already told me that she will have to practice on me :rotfl:she is doing manicures, pedicures (she is dreading this my girls both have foot phobias for some reason), gel, acrylic, and nail art, she wants to do it in her spare time, she loves doing make up and beauty. How is your friend and SIL? Hope you are feeling ok and not tiring yourself out again, you have only got 5 weeks!!!
CAITLYN sending you hugs, my friend went through all these feelings when her sister moved to oz, its natural you will feel like this, you mustnt feel guilty about moving, if you feel that is the right thing to do, at least if something did happen to your mum, she isnt living on her own, she has help all around her

Right must get on with flying, hopefully pop back on later

FeistyFidget

Reprimands noted and acted upon I did manage to [STRIKE]run[/STRIKE] walk into town, visit the post office, Wilkinsons and The card factory, and get home in just 25 minutes earlier But I swear all proper work and cleaning was done by 10.30am so I plan to just relax for the day. I may do a bit of crafting work, but that doesn't count as I enjoy it - will stay away from stressful business aspects though. Also managed to update my signature for presents and new deposit total so feeling quite happy

Freespirit, I don't have a foot phobia but don't think I would be keen touching other peoples tootsies (although people say that about my business and teeth ) so don't envy your girls at all! Enjoy the pampering, it is a very MSE way of getting it

Nana, I can't believe it is almost Oz time again! Where or where has the time gone?!?!

Mrsinvisible, how did raising DGS go? x

freespirit66

Well got lots of flying done, mainly the kitchen, then DD2 decided to make a cake and..... well you can imagine
FEISTY hope you did manage to relax or do something nice and crafty this afternoon, yes i did think of that, it would be nice to have lovely nails and a) not pay and b) go to a nail bar. Ooh your deposit is going up very nicely now
right going to sit down, watch the soaps and Revenge, then early night, hopefully fall asleep pretty quickly then another 6.10 wake up call tomorrow, kids eh!

caitlyn22

Thanks for the support everyone, knew you would all understand!

My sister is absolutely doing what's right for her family, both little ones have asthma and allergies and were like different kids in the sunshine in Florida, so I know it makes sense for them.

I had a good chat with my manager last week and today she has suggested the very big bosses want to do what they can to keep me. That won't necessarily mean more money, but it's not really that I'm after (though would be nice!) I've always loved my job and feel that's faded recently, so it's nice to know they're keen to adapt the role to keep my interest. Nice to feel wanted I suppose! My mum has finally been diagnosed with shingles bless her, so there's now a drama about whether to admit her to hospital or not. Where she is is better for her obviously (it's basically her own home, she shares it with 3 other tenants with dementia and has round the clock care - though 1:4 isn't ideal and doesn't take much to fall apart as a system!) but they're a bit concerned the carer won't be able to know when she's in pain, so from the doctor's perspective, she'd be better in hospital. The issue is this silly country hasn't really designed hospitals for dementia patients (despite the looming dementia crisis!) and our local options are limited. They always talk about admitting her to a secure unit (a psychiatric ward) but having seen her get stuck on one of these wards for over a year previously, I'm reluctant. So all in all, today felt like a day to be very glad I was close by her and wasn't too shabby a day at work either!

Did all my meal-planning again at the weekend, so felt wonderful to come in tonight to a veggie stir-fry that was all prepped and just had to be tossed in the pan! Such simple things keep me happy - two things drive me mad, having to think about what to cook when I get in after work and washing my hair!! Yet to find a solution to the hair-washing.

How is your OH Feisty? Great to see your savings climb up, you're doing so well, you put me to shame, especially considering the run of expenses you've had recently. I hope your OH is proud of you! (If he's like mine he'll be thrifty in his own way but I *OWN* the finance planning spreadsheet so I claim all savings as my own little victories! ) I was thinking of you and your magic cutting machine the other night - could you do those wraparound cupcake cases? Everywhere online has them at 10 or 12 for £5, some even £7/8! No idea of the cost involved (and guessing from what you've said it takes a load of time!) but that might be another avenue for you!

Glad you're feeling better freespirit, but do take it a bit easy, especially if you're doing early mornings, everyone I know who's had the bug have been wiped out by thinking they were better before they'd really recovered - two people fainted at work last week!

Can't believe it's only 5 weeks Nanamia, how exciting! I wasn't as shocked at price of flights when I looked the other night, think I'd convinced myself of the very worst scenario so was pleased to see it might be manageable for us after all. I played around with costs and think we could probably afford once a year if we cut back on other things. While it's just the two of us anyway - we'll be b*ggered if we have kids. But to be honest, OH says that by the time we have kids it'll likely be £12 for a loaf of bread and the cost of holidays will be the last thing on our mind!

Think I need an injection of online inspiration - sat the other night and couldn't even remember what websites I normally buy presents from. Think it's because last year there were loads of online sales throughout the year so I am now used to only checking a companies sale section and won't even entertain the full price stuff! This year there doesn't seem to be as many sales on, am I missing them?

FeistyFidget

Freespirit my day of relaxing kind of backfired. By the end of it I ended up feeling frustrated and fed up - who knew that without all the running around and work I cannot function

Caitlynn, having gone through something similar with my Nan you have my sympathy. You are right, despite the fact that alzheimers is on the rise society isn't equipped to deal with it We were told that even though Nan had almost set fire to the toaster a few times, flooded the bathroom countless times and had serious falls - she was okay to stay at home with just three carers popping in a day (who she would refuse care from). When we finally moved her into a decent care home (whopping £725 a week!) we have been accused of trying to get rid of her to sell the house out from under her! Last stop was Nan owes almost £15k to the care home she is in, but we are legally unable to sell the house until it has been legally approved (paperwork was sent and received by them Easter Bank Holiday!). Nightmare

I have made a few of the cupcake wrappers, but the problem is that on Etsy there are people in the UK selling 12 for £3.50 and it would mean making way below minimum wage per hour so has kind of put me off. Not ruling it out though, they will be perfect for craft fairs

freespirit66

:bdaycake:HAPPY BIRTHDAY PINKSTEPS :bdaycake:

Morning everyone, just watching the devastation in Oklahoma from the tornado, those poor people its heartbreaking seeing how much they have lost.

CAITLYN oh your poor mum, how horrid to have shingles, you must be worried sick about what they decide to do, sending hugs, its meant to be so painful, hope she recovers quickly. Hope it is good news re: your job will keep my fingers crossed for you. Oh you are very organised with your cooking, we have our meals for the week listed and i just choose each morning what to do its much better, i hate having to decide at 5.00pm what to cook.

As for sales i have only got bits and pieces for xmas from online sales at Debenhams, Tesco and Asda not much help im afraid.

freespirit66

FEISTY we crossed posts, ah thats not good feeling like that sending you hugs too honey, are your family (i think your aunty) still taking action against you selling your nans house or has that been resolved now? Hows DH recovering? I know the cupcake wrappers would be below minimum wage, but you might sell more being cheaper, i love them but i would never spend the prices the shops charge for them, but 12 for 3.50 is a much better price that i can afford, do they take a lot of work to design? Hope you have a good day today x

FeistyFidget

freespirit66 wrote: »

FEISTY we crossed posts, ah thats not good feeling like that sending you hugs too honey, are your family (i think your aunty) still taking action against you selling your nans house or has that been resolved now? Hows DH recovering? I know the cupcake wrappers would be below minimum wage, but you might sell more being cheaper, i love them but i would never spend the prices the shops charge for them, but 12 for 3.50 is a much better price that i can afford, do they take a lot of work to design? Hope you have a good day today x

Legally we will never know if it was my auntie that took the formal action, but we do have very strong suspicions. It's sadly not resolved as the legal people are dragging their feet.
DH is very, very slowly recovering. He is complaining about breathlessness which is a huge worry, but he wont let me phone the hospital He has decided not to go ahead with legal action against his prior employer for the injury. I'm fine with this, we never planned to sue anyway, so it's not like I was counting on the money.
The wrappers take an hour or so to design, and probably 20 minutes to do a batch of 12. After all fees and materials have been deducted, I would probably make £2.50 which in hindsight would equate to roughly £7.50 an hour (not including the design time) - It may actually be doable

Have found the perfect combination of taking it easy AND working - DH is bed bound today, so keeping him company whilst working on the laptop. Have made some cute love bird wedding name cards Have also found a tutorial on how to make seed bombs which I can make out of business paper offcuts!