Frump to Fab 2021

maman

To ad to the platitudes there's also an element of 'Once bitten, Twice shy'  or 'False Dawns'.  This is the third lockdown and I know the PM hopes it will be the last but....🤔

I'm finding there's a huge lack of urgency to get anything done. Tomorrow will be exactly the same so everything can wait. Normally I look at my diary for the week and because I'll be out on various days and evenings doing things I have to plan to fit other things in between. It's not making me miserable/depressed just a bit aimless which isn't a good feeling. I find giving myself a bit of structure even if it is just a trip to the shops or a special meal to look forward to at the weekend helps. 

Today's fashion features were about rings, bras and dressing up indoors for Valentine's Day. The article on rings was linked to engagement rings/Valentine's day but the gist of it was that you get more bang for your buck with coloured stones. My own engagement ring is largely sapphires with a few small diamonds around them and the 'Princess Diana' ring is also a sapphire surrounded by small diamonds but the same applies to rubies or emeralds. Bras apparently have gone the same way as high heels during lockdown in that people are going for comfort and wearing those little stretchy tops instead of more upholstered/wired styles.

I had a nice chat (unexpected) with a friend on the phone today and went to the shops for a few things I needed to do some batch cooking tomorrow. I went into our little Coop and treated myself to some more YS roses. I already have my carnations and a couple of vases of daffodils that DD1 brought me on Monday but at £3 for 12 instead of a fiver they were too good to miss. 😊

thepurplepixie

I think one of the most depressing things for me is I have nothing to say when I talk to my children.  I have 4 adult children, the ones with children are easier as the children are always up to something and little ones change so fast but with the other two every day is the same for them and me so what do you say?  It isn't as if I normally have a particularly exciting life but oh is it dull now.  The most exciting thing I have in my diary for the next few weeks is an appointment with the hygienist in two weeks.  Actually it will be nice as I haven't seen her in over a year, I've been seeing her for getting on for 20 years, been through her wedding, birth of her children and all their landmarks so will love having an update but should seeing the hygienist be the highlight of your social life for the month?
GS breaks up for half term today so we might go mad and have a takeaway of his choice to celebrate.  Living the highlife here, takeaway and a trip to the dentists, don't know if it will all be too exciting for me.
My positive news is two days of crocheting has sorted out my wrist and hand, the crocheting isn't getting very far, started and changed my mind and undid it, started again and it just didn't seem to be working out and on careful inspection I had lost a stitch in the first row so undid it again.  I think I have got it going now so hope to make some progress, I've also sorted out all my bits of leftover wool and I'm going to make something with that, not sure what yet but I thought some big multi coloured scarves might be useful for some of the homeless guys in town.

helensbiggestfan

Good morning lovely ladies 

A real winter wonderland  here this Mornjng,  light dusting of snow, blue skies, bright sunshine and currently -4. 

Does anyone remember  the big freeze of 1963. Six weeks of sub zero temperatures.  I was 12 at the time, living with my parents in our freezing damp Council house, no central heating, single glazing, ice on the insides of the bedroom window, the beds always felt damp.  It really was a different world. 😂.  The "good old days" ha ha.  

Had a good day yesterday, mini spa in the Morning, gave my self a facial, manicure and pedicure then in the afternoon I went to Lidl for a change.  A chance to challenge my brain with some new input, different store layout.  Actually it was quite a nice shop, bigger than the Aldi's I usually visit, although as expected the goods and prices were comparable with Aldi's.  Bought some tulips but I think some of them must have got frost damaged, a couple of stems need to removed from the vase.  It passed the chocolate test though, some lovely 70% dark sea salt chocolate for my little treat.  

 Still too cold to spend much time in the loft so no decluttering today.  It definitely needs to be a warm kitchen day so will finish deep cleaning the kitchen and do some batch cooking.  Will pop out later when it warms up a bit.  

Speaking of platitudes, nice cheesy mantra for you this morning.  

H.O.P.E.   Have Only Positive Expectations.  

I actually think this works.  I know, I know ........it all sounds a bit woowoo but I do believe that if you send out positive vibes the universe will repay in kind.  

Have a great day y'all and keeep Fabbing,  

helensbiggestfan

Oh dear pixie.....that doesn't sound good.  

One of the things I have tried to do over this last year or so is keep my brain in good working order.  It is essential that we continually work it to keep it active, just as we need to work our muscles.  But I hear what you are saying, telephone conversations can get a bit "samey" can't they.  

With my kids I first of all joke that I havent any real news because I haven't been anywhere or done  anything, they then confess the same and we take it from there.  Then there's  no embarrassment on either side if the conversation flags a little because we've have already established that we are all boring old f a r t s with nothing to talk about and it gives us a good laugh.

Perhaps you could make a few notes, before the phone call, just little pointers or conversation starters.  My late FIL used to do this when he first noticed that he was experiencing memory loss.  Obviously he did it because he didn't want to forget anything but maybe something along those lines might help.  Just as you would maybe jot down ideas on cards if you were called upon to give a speech.  For example you might talk about a book you've recently read or a film or tv programme you have watched, items in the news.  It might sound a bit forced but often this can really open up interesting chats and discussions.  

When my boys were little we used to play the "tell me a story" or "tell me something nice" game.  Often it would be something that they had enjoyed in the past so maybe something like that where you could reminisce about something in their childhood.  Another one we use is "have you got any nice juicy gossip"....And never forget to use the classic communication aide of asking open ended questions.  How, what, when, where and why, although I advocate using caution when asking "why". It can seem a bit intrusive.  

I joked about going to Lidl and feeding my brain a new store layout but I think it's essential to challenge our brains, especially now when we aren't getting much stimulus from being outside and getting out and about.  I am not one for crosswords or games like sudoko but I do like quizzes and so do my family so we do sometimes have quizz sessions on our little whats app group.  

I am deliberately seeking out new films and documentaries to feed my brain as well as reading non fiction.  I am not an intellectual snob and I see nothing  wrong with reading a bit  of chick lit or relaxing with a rom com but I do try and make a point of adding more challenging content.  I am finding you tube and things like Ted talks useful too.  

Good to see your crochet is helping your hands.  

Wednesday2000

I had such a bad sleep last night. I think it might be due to not going out for my normal daylight walks and also (deliberately) not drinking any wine for quite a few days! I slept in quite late and woke up ravenous today so I'm having a big brunch.  

I have been looking at my beauty products and thinking what I wanted to buy. I am looking at the Superdrug website now. I remember saying on a decluttering thread on this forum that I had almost 40 moisturisers at one point, which was ridiculous. Now I am down to half of one jar! I think I might look for an eye cream as I'm nearly 45 now.

My skin is still a bit blotchy. I have been taking milk thistle tablets as that is meant to clean out your liver (as not been having any booze) so I'm thinking maybe my body is detoxing and maybe that is why my skin has broken out over the past few days. I used a hydrating skin mask before my bath and it felt like my skin soaked it up very quickly so I used two layers of it before my foundation.

I hope everyone is keeping warm!

MrsPorridge

My Ebaying and decluttering is going well.  I had to go to the local garden centre yesterday to get some empty boxes!  DH is great at packaging stuff.  I am selling a lot of my old china that I have collected for the last 40 years!  I have decided that I want to declutter and buy some different stuff with the money I make.  It feels really good.  The dining room is a mess though - it is transformed into an EBAY office with the camping table to put the stuff I am selling and the big dining table for packing and labelling stuff!  It has given me something positive to do which is what I have been lacking so far this lockdown.

Very cold here today and very. very windy which is really biting.

I normally facetime my adult son once a week or so.  We text in between if we need to.  I jot things down to mention to him, as like you Pixie I don't really have a lot to say.  It does help me to write it down as then I can remember.  Its always a lot of little fiddly stuff which in normal circumstances I wouldn't bother to mention.

maman

I'm like you Mrs Porridge. I see DD1, on average, once a week for a quick chat on the doorstep. Well, I'm on the doorstep and she's at the end of the drive. With it being so cold we don't hang around for long enough for conversation to dry up! 🤣 In between we just send each other WhatsApp messages and photos of any 'thought of you' messages. We haven't seen DD2 since November but keep in touch via WhatsApp and phone calls. Both are key workers so they are just as busy as normal (more so with DD1) so not available that often anyway. 

That's good that your crochet 'physio' has worked on your wrist and hand pixie. Much more enjoyable than exercise just for the sake of it. I was saying to DH how much it helps to have a purpose for a walk even if it's something minor. I remember in the first lockdown, we'd walk to various shops to track down porridge oats which were in short supply! 😁 At the weekend, DH wanted to take some photos of local landmarks for a newspaper article he's writing and just walking round a suburb, finding the locations and discussing what we saw really felt worthwhile. 

I know I'm a cynic LL but when things don't go as expected it's the HOPE that gets to you. I'm sure it's my inconsistent football team that's ingrained that feeling in me. We started the season brilliantly but recent scores have been dreadful. We're playing tonight and I know I'm better off expecting nothing as it feels worse to hope for a win and be depressed when  it doesn't happen. I know that's a superficial example but I find it helps me not to raise expectations. DH is starting to feel miserable because it's looking as if summer holidays aren't going to happen. We have a holiday booked in June (rolled forward from last year) but I'm just pushing it from my mind.  It was irritating me to hear the PM and Grant Shapps yesterday. Don't they realise that so many people haven't booked 'illegal'  holidays irresponsibly but have vouchers/ rearranged holidays because that's the way the travel industry pushed them? 🤔

I'm not in your league Wednesday (OMG 40 moisturisers!🤣) but one of my projects in recent months has been to use up as many products as I can. It's cathartic to throw away the empty containers and move on to the next one. My face wash is getting low at the moment and I'm undecided as to whether to buy my favourite Clinique  or try another that I saw advertised. 🤔 I need to go into the city centre and go to Boots in person. I find that, unless there are offers, they are the best value for branded cosmetics because of the Vantage card. I have loads on my card at the moment but it can't be redeemed online so I'll have to go to a large branch with cosmetic counters. 

I decided not to wash my hair today as it's suffering from too mush central heating and heat in general. I've rubbed some serum into the bad parts to try and help. I'll put some make up on too, and some jewellery,  otherwise the 'rat's tails' will depress me. 😊

helensbiggestfan

Hi back again, just having a late brunch,  naughty croissants today,  yum, yum.  Never mind I shall make up for it with a super healthy courgetti bolognese later.  Zero carbs. 👍. Resting my back, it's a bit sore today.  

Maman. Had to laugh about your football woes, you remind me of Nick Hornbys "Fever Pitch". Describes you to a T.  My son and husband were very sanguine about Derby County but I have a friend who gets very emotional. He can be like a bear with a sore head when things aren't going well.  You're right though HOPE can be as much a torment as a Comfort.  When Pandora opened that box and all the evils of the world escaped, it was only HOPE that remained.  But you know me .....ever the optimist, always sending positive vibes out to the universe.  Once a hippy, always a hippy.  😂🤣

Had a brainwave about the tulips,  googled how to revive them.  Just waiting to see if it works.  

I have just contacted my dermatologist.  Clinic is closed for a while yet but they have now starting taking messages for advance bookings.  I feel safe to start making bookings for non urgent medical treatments now that I've had my jab.  I might need a minor surgical procedure.  I have developed a couple of small cysts on my face. I don't think they are anything nasty but given my previous run in with skin cancer I think it's better to get them sorted.  They will probably check the original cancer site too.  

I've got a list of catch up of minor medical issues to deal with, dentist, opticians, chiropodist, physio or chiro.  It's going to cost me a small fortune.   😟Still if it keeps body and soul together.....I'm a bit like my old car, just holding it all together with extra TLC and maintenance.  

Well done on the eBaying Mrs Porridge.  I shall be joining you shortly.  That's my take too.....get rid of all the excess, then use the money I make to either treat myself to something special or maybe a nice holiday at some point in the distant future. 😂🤣

Wednesday2000

I got quite a good deal on the Superdrug website as I'm a member. I got £20 off my retinol cream and serum. I got a gel face wash and nail varnish and I got a free blusher and a sheet mask. I got a lilac nail varnish. 13 Best Spring Nail Colors for 2021 - Coolest Spring Nail Polish Shades

I saw that the CK fragrance has been reinvented and is also now vegan so I bought some for the sake of 90's nostalgia as it was £10 off.  I hope I still like it!

I have the dentist tomorrow. I called up to see what the procedure was for going in there. It is just a check up to hopefully make a later appointment to get my tooth taken out.

I'm about to put some of the makeup, skin and hair products I use everyday out next to the mirror in my bedroom on the desk. I only moved the mirror there recently and put fairy lights around it as I used to use the bathroom mirror instead. I have a floral dining tray that I never use that I will put it all on and I will see if I have any pretty containers/cups to put the makeup in.

sugarbaby125

Maman just so that you and other interested persons know Boots Advantage card points are definitely redeemable online. I have been redeeming mine online for years