Apple muncher's number crunching

Watty1

All sounding good, especially for pip

apple_muncher

And…to continue the good stuff (and gloss over the fact that I've not posted for weeks) Pip has got his disability travel card after just 2 weeks of applying. He's had an MRI on his knees and an echocardiogram, and returns to the rheumatologist at the end of June when he also has a college interview. He has also got himself some work experience over the summer and will find out in June if he'll be paid or not.

I've been invigilating and enjoying it! And enjoying that I can choose when to work. This last week I have been particularly enjoying the paddling pool and am glad we've had the hot weather in half term. I'm on the 3rd week of a new exercise plan and am loving it.

last week I bought a fan from liddle and Pip has been using it non stop ever since! He's struggles to regulate his body temperature so it's been perfect. I was grateful for a cooler day yesterday, only getting up to 28° and feeling positively chilly at night. But we're back over 30° today and are traveling to London for the mid / late afternoon. Ugh! We'll be 2 puddles of sweat on the pavement 🤣.

I have a fair coming up in about 10 days. The organiser gave me the table for free cos she likes me !!!! That's saved me £30 😎. My sister asked me a few months ago if I really needed to keep making things, or if I already had enough… Um, I have enough! So I've not been crafting anything for weeks. I think I miss it, and have replaced it with playing on my phone. Not good. Maybe I'll get it all out at the weekend when it's cooler, and see exactly what I have.

apple_muncher

We survived our excursion to London and I realised that Waterloo station is kind of near the river and the National Theatre and the South Bank. Well I never!!!

We had a dream journey home. Walked straight onto our first train and when we changed and used the lift, we walked straight onto our second train. Dh was waiting for us at the station, which was the cherry on top!

Aaaand, I have been awarded Carer's Allowance. After 16 weeks of silence, no communication from them, the first I knew about it was when I saw it had appeared in my bank account. Whoop whoop !

beanielou

Good news on the CA.

apple_muncher

Thank you beanie ❤️

I rediscovered the joy of using my sewing machine today. I took down our bedroom curtains in order to remove the black out lining from them, to then pin it to Pips curtains as he's become very bothered by the light. In order for dhand I to be able to sleep, I then needed to sew curtain header tape onto the tabtop curtains for our room, turn them up to the correct depth and rehang them. Mission accomplished 😎

And I then dug out several buntings I'd pinned together, and sewed them to their bindings.

apple_muncher

I deliberately did a non-grip-heavy workout this morning. Then came home and dug up 3 lavender bushes and soil in order to lay a 61x61 cm, 5cm thick slab. When digging a hole for one of the lavender bushes, I discovered half a slab, buried, and then another quarter slab below that one!

Suffice to say, my hands now feel very feeble!

But it now means that Pip's wheelchair using friend can get into and out of the front door more easily on their ramp, without having to plough through lavender! So it was worth it 😎

beanielou

Well done.

apple_muncher

Here we are, well into July and the sun is shining and people everywhere are making comparisons with 1976. That must seem like ancient history to many!!!

I am once again nearing the end of my marking. I do keep on requesting more, so it's my own fault! Overall, it's been quite a relaxed experience and I have had a fab team to look after - efficient, keeping in touch, generally lovely people.

I'm glad I laid that slab, as Pip now has to use a wheelchair when he goes out. We've not got a ramp yet, and he can still walk - but it causes him a huge amount of pain - so he can still get into and out of the house on his own.

Finances are doing well. I've enough in my current account to pay off a rather large 4-figure sum for dental work at the end of the month.

I'm 9 weeks in to a 12 week exercise programme, and am still loving it! I'm trying new equipment and am getting stronger. I've already bought the follow-on programme, but I might go back and do this one again. But better!

apple_muncher

Scored a fab liddle box today: a gazillion jersey royal potatoes, 2 oranges, 3 yellow peppers + 1 red one, 3 avocados, 2 apples, 1 pointy cabbage, 1 cauliflower.

I've made a huge salad (potatoes, lettuce, red + yellow peppers, red onion, cucumber, mayo and plain yog) and a whopping big fruit salad (frozen mango, frozen blueberry [need the freezer space!], apple, orange, strawberry [2 punnets at half price], nectarine). And I used up some manky nanas in nana/peanut butter/cocoa powder brownies. Yum!

Also did a fab workout (I might have mentioned in passing that I'm enjoying them 🤣)

Have been paid for the first part of my marking and have submitted receipts for expenses.

Still to do: (and they all involve money)

1 delay repay for all my delayed trains at the end of June

2 tell DWP that Pip has a college place in September so please keep paying me child benefit

3 write a short report

apple_muncher

2 loads of laundry out on the line.

Tweaked the wheels and brakes on Pip's chair so we'll see if it's more user-friendly for him.

My expenses have been accepted so should be paid next Friday.

Dh has just 2 more lock-ups to do before he will stop his pm job (he'll still be paid up to the end of August.) He can't wait and neither can I! It has served us well over the years but now it's right to stop.

I dyed my hair blue recently, after years of bright pink. I still do a double-take when I see myself in the mirror! It blends perfectly through from blue to purple and looks very different when I have my hair up (mostly blue) or down (mostly purple).

The report has been written and sent off.

Delay repay has been requested.

DWP will have to wait…