Sashybo - Back Again

sashybo

Just continuing in a separate post as the previous one was getting too long.

After my visit to Mr L, I went into the range as I wanted to get a photo frame for a print I got my mum for her birthday next month. I ended up buying a few things I needed for the house as well, like a storage basket for the kitchen to chuck the kids' toys in rather than leaving them piled on the kitchen table. I did spend a while in there just having a look around, I miss browsing in shops.

Later we had my mum up for dinner and DS had a great time seeing her again. She gave him his bath and helped get him ready for bed. DD is still a bit strange with her as she's not used to seeing anyone else. 

Yesterday I took the kids down to my mum's house as my sister and nieces were there - DS was completely overwhelmed and had a good cry at just seeing them. DD was smiling away at my nieces - she loved them. 😊 It was good to see them, they've grown so much in a few months. 😢 

My mum spotted a balance bike on FB marketplace for £10 so DH went and got it last night for DS. The guy selling it said his son had learned to use it really quickly and they had moved him onto a proper bike.

It's a great size for DS and he already loves it - he was walking about with it and seemed to know what to do straight away. Hopefully he'll manage the balancing part soon, we just need to get him a helmet.

DH & I had a takeaway from a local Thai restaurant last night as it's our wedding anniversary today but DH is working early shift tomorrow. The food was lovely and we really enjoyed it. DH also bought us a bottle of gin which is much needed these days, 😂 

beanielou

Happy anniversary to you both. 

Willowtree222

Happy anniversary. Glad you have had a few nice things, the gin in particular!
I love the Lidl Hortus liqueur gins. The rhubarb one is a particular 😋.

Have a lovely evening 

DancingInTheRain

Happy anniversary, pleased you've got to see a little more of your family too x

sashybo

Thanks guys. 😊 

Nicnak, my MIL bought the Hortus rhubarb & ginger gin liqueur, it was really nice and very similar to the Edinburgh gin one I would usually buy but a bit cheaper. 🥂 I haven't tried any of the others yet.

DH & I had some Cremant de Loire sparkling wine from Mr L - it was lovely as a change from Cava or Prosecco and was about £8. I'll buy more next time I'm there, as well as their cava which is really nice too. 

Thanks Beanie & Dancing, yes seeing family is much needed, definitely getting to me being stuck in the house with the kids!

DS has had a good time today in the garden with his new (to him) balance bike. He's now busy playing with an emergency service toy set my friend dropped off for his birthday - it has a police car, fire engine and ambulance so he's well impressed. 😊 

sashybo

DH & I have been looking at the garden and thinking of how to re-jig it a bit. We have a climbing rose at the back fence that isn't looking great, we might take it out or just remove the two big stems that are looking quite diseased (black spot). 

DH wants to extend the bed along to meet our honeysuckle and plant wildflowers there for the bees. I think some heather or another type of shrub might be a good idea as well so that there is still something there during the winter. We might also add another climber, maybe clematis. 🤔 

We currently have 3 gooseberry bushes in big pots and I was thinking of moving them to a bed along from the rhubarb. I'm not sure if that would be a good idea or not. Anyway I was thinking we could then fill the space where the gooseberries currently are with a large raised bed that we could use for growing our courgettes on. This would give us more room in the greenhouse, I'd also like a potting bench to save me bending quite so much and hurting my back/pelvis. 

We've also been thinking about putting a small hedge at the front of the house as the side of our house/grass is right next to another longer area of grass that belongs to the house to the side of us. They always cut the grass up to the line that their fence ends and no further. 😂

We get quite a lot of kids running about there and up past our window/down the side of the house where there's a small area between our house and the fence of the other house. I think a hedge would be a good idea and would stop the kids running about over our grass/down the side area. I'm thinking of cotoneaster hedging as it has white flowers in the summer and red berries in the winter and it looks a lot more attractive than a bog standard hedge. 😊 

beanielou

Hedge does sound like a good idea 😊

Willowtree222

I think the hedge would be a good idea too.
Have you thought of lavender? Great for the bees, great smelling and lovely colour! X

sashybo

Hi Beanie & Nicnak, I think we need to measure up and then look at how much it would cost for the hedging and then make a plan. I think getting bare roots plants works out cheaper but it would take longer to become established, will need to have a read up about it. 🤔 

I only noticed the kids running up there recently - it's a small area and they're only playing but still would rather they didn't! I didn't want to give them into trouble because they weren't really doing anything wrong but if there's a physical barrier I think that will stop them.

Nicnak, lavender is a good idea for the extended bed at the back, we had some a few years ago but think a particularly harsh winter killed it. There are a few different varieties so will have a look.

I have so many cucumber and chilli plants now that I'm giving 2 of each to my mum and my brother's gf. That will still leave me with 5 cucumber plants and about 8 chilli plants! I think my job share partner at work will take a couple of the chillies off my hands as well, really need to phone her as keep forgetting and haven't spoken to her for a few weeks.

Yesterday I managed to do about 20 mins of cardio tone and 20 mins of yoga whilst DD had her morning nap and DS watched fireman Sam on my ipad with some fruit to keep him occupied. 😂 I did try to get DS to do some exercise with me but he was supremely uninterested so I just set up the ipad for him. 🤷‍♀️ He is constantly hungry already so I dread to think what he'll be like when he's bigger.

Later on DS & I went out into the garden and he played on his bike for a bit, he wasn't happy at all about having to wear his helmet and then refused to play with the bike. I just left the helmet on him and he ran about playing for ages with it on, so I'm hoping he won't protest next time we put it on him.

We had the bubble machine on as well which DS absolutely loves. 😊 

I hung two washings out and refilled DS's sand table with sand that we managed to order on click and collect from smyths - £2.99 for 15kg which was very reasonable. It's been out of stock everywhere for weeks. Of course he started pouring it all over the patio again - when he came back in the house it was in his hair and everything. 🙄 😂 

I also repotted a couple of cucumbers and decided which plants can go to my mum and brother's gf. I cut the most diseased stems off the climbing rose, deadheaded my roses at the front of the house and dug out a couple of jaggy thistles that had started growing in the borders. Also put all the recycling in the relevant bins and got the bin out that's being collected this week. I generally had a nice time pottering about and DS wasn't too destructive for a change. 

DD was napping in her cot whilst we were in the garden and DH was home from work, so he was also napping upstairs as he'd been up at 3.30am.

I'm all organised with DH's father's day stuff, last present arrived yesterday and I managed to pay £20 of it with vouchers from surveys. 🥳 

I had also noticed that the back elastic in one of DD's nappies had went really slack and it was gaping at the back so I emailed the place I bought it from as had only had it for around 7 weeks. They contacted the manufacturer and are sending me a new one out and a label to return the faulty one so that was a good result. The nappy was one of the more expensive ones I'd bought (£15) and I have a few others of the same brand where the elastic is fine so I knew it wasn't right it had gone so slack.

Could really do with hoovering today and have my shopping being delivered too. My brother's gf is also coming round at some point to collect her plants.

Willowtree222

Did you sleep?😂
Lidl also have a moscato wine in a purple label bottle that is lovely and sweet.
Yes, I agree the Lidl gins are similar to the Edinburgh gin. I've tried a few but go back to the rhubarb every time x