The Best Is Yet To Come

slm6002

We are home and I happy to report there were no sightings of XH. DD's think I am being silly, but I guess they dont know how it makes me feel. Anyway after a morning of being on watch I calmed down and was able to start relaxing a little more.

Dinner is in the oven and I am on the sofa ready to relax :)

teapot2

Glad there was no XH present but sounds like you were in hyper-vigilance mode, do you do yoga or breathwork or anything else to help your nervous system reset?

slm6002

No I don't. I was very aware that I was on lookout for the first few hours, and only once I knew the coast was clear, was when I could relax a little more. Now home I am ok. At the last concert when he was there, it took quite a while to come back to normal.

I am looking into counselling to see if that would help

teapot2

Hope you can find some counselling, I know its not always easy to find and there can be waiting lists so maybe try to refer yourself sooner rather than later if you find somewhere and you can always say 'not yet' if it doesn't feel like the time is right.

beanielou

Glad no sign of XH.

slm6002

This morning DD2 had a free skating session and lunch at a local town. She also has a library craft session next week and because it is a different library to normal we went and asked where abouts the session would be so she knows and I can just drop her off. She is always very anxious about new things so hopefully this will have helped.

We also bought her some new pj bottoms as hers really needed replacing. The tops are still ok so we opted for just the shorts part. They were also in the sale which was a bonus. I was also able to get some money off the petrol at Asda with a voucher I had on the app, which is always welcome. Our local store doesn't have a petrol station so made the most of being out of town, and in the red!

We picked up a few other bits for the new school year but both came home exhausted. I am now sitting here with the windows open and a lovely breeze coming through.

I am going to clean the living room next as it has become a dumping ground for everything. I also need to do an online food shop for this week. While we still have a little bit left over from the box we got, we still need bits and pieces to go with them to make a whole meal. I will do a meal plan which will need to include some bits that I can use for my freezer meals I will be making, ready for the new term.

slm6002

We have had another few busy but fairly chilled days here. The house was / is still a mess, so today that has been my goal. It needs a good sort. I decided to sort through one of the drawers in the living room last night and got rid of half of what was in there. I might tackle the next one today too.

My main focus though has been to encourage DD2 to sort her room. It is so small, so anything she gets out it instantly looks such a mess. She has so many things stuffed in her room too that she probably no longer needs. With exams this coming year she needs somewhere to revise and to be able to focus. Not sure her room is fitting that criteria at the moment, so it needs a sort out. She is also distracted so easily so I will need to be nearby too or she will end up crafting with bits she had forgotten about. I ended up doing it and it took about 10 minutes.

I never got round to doing the food shop as the fridge was still really full. I did pop to the local shop for a few bits to top us up and to get through the next few days. I will do a food order for next week though.

DD1 is off to an all inclusive day at the races today with her internship. They are collecting and dropping her from home and paying for everything in between, as a thank you for her hard work. I also speed tidied her room and had a pile of washing to complete too. Everything has a place in there so it is easy to keep tidy, but her busy brain also gets distracted and she ends up not knowing where to start. All cleaned in another 10 min, well cleared not cleaned.

All washing done - last few loads are on the line drying. It is looking like rain but doubt it will as we have not had any for so long. Will keep an eye on it though. We don't iron unless absolutely needed in this house so we have just been able to fold and put on the beds of the relevant child.

Not had lunch as yet so may just have a banana as it is too late now

slm6002

The days are flying by and we have been kept busy in between resting. Tomorrow DD2 and I are off to a local town where she will try a new craft at a new library. She is nervous as she has never been to this library before (apart from last week when we asked to see which room she would be in). I will drop her off and then head to the hospital where my hearing aid will be mended and then spend the rest of the day mooching around the town. I think I will do the shops on the outskirts mainly as no parking fee required.

The estate agent said she is going to do 1 more mail out and if no interest she will relaunch in the 2nd week of September. Not sure how this relaunch will go as we can not afford to reduce the asking price (which I have told her on many occasions). She is saying due to the new PM and Iran my house is not selling and mortgage rates are rising. Not sure if she is going to be on holiday for the end of August or if just giving up for a few weeks but it is not looking like anything is going to happen at the moment. The house we were keeping an eye on where no mortgage would be needed is as of today off the market, so assuming it has sold. I guess maybe this last mail out will grab someones attention.

I need to wait a few weeks and the revisit the mortgage person anyway as all income relating to DS will have stopped and I will know what I can then borrow.

Right I must get the cat in and then head to bed as we have a long day tomorrow

slm6002

It was a long day Tuesday and I suffered yesterday. DD2 had a wonderful time and has requested some materials and tools to carry on learning. Maybe something to add to her birthday or Christmas list. Whilst nervous at the beginning she soon made friends with a few people. She is at the local library today doing another craft session.

I did some shopping for things that were needed and took the opportunity to visit shops we don't normally get a chance to go to as they are not that local. I was very aware of the fact that I don't have much in the budget for non planned expenses. This is the last month of getting money for DS so I will need to tighten a few belts / have better control over things, especially as he will still be living here and eating the same amount of food. I worked it out that I will be around £600 less a month if I have got the figures correct. I haven't started charging him or DD1 rent again as any money they earn is going towards the extra that they need for their uni courses after their loan amounts. They buy their clothes and pay for their phones, but I provide basic food and a place to live. Any extra food they want that isn't a normal meal they pay for. I see it as my contribution to their uni journey. Sounds mean but they are happy and it works (fingers crossed).

Today is results day for DS and he got the highest in the class with 3 distinctions which is fantastic for someone that was so depressed 2 years ago, and we were worried about him just surviving. Now he is thriving and loving life. He wasnt impressed however that I woke him just before 8 so he could log onto the college portal to look lol. He has requested a big bottle of strawberry milkshake, which I have since gone and bought for him.

Anyway after the excitement of this morning and my early trip into town to get DS his milkshake and his favourite dinner (also a verry easy stick in the oven dinner) I am having an easy lazy day looking at money and making a list of things that I need to do before going back to school. I think most appointments have been made and attended. Tomorrow we have a better internet connection being fitted, as ours was always dropping out. It is costing and extra £3 a month for full fibre so seemed silly not to. I still need to get some meals in the freezer as the weeks are flying by. I have some sweet potatoes that need using up so will make a lentil and sweet potato curry and portion that up for the freezer. Must do this today though before they get past the point of being usable. I also have 2 sorry looking leeks in the fridge that need using. Time to get some ideas.

It is going to be hot today so lots of just relaxing and trying to stay cool in the living room which is the coolest place to be

teapot2

👏🏼very well done to DS, thats quite a turn around and good on DD2 stepping out of her comfort zone.

I don't think you sound mean at all but a very supportive parent 😊