Walking into another chapter ...

benbenandme

First few days of the holidays have gone well - seen my brother, scattered my Aunts ashes, spent time with Mum, had a lovely walk down the beach today with friends, had my nails done and now I need to focus on Christmas.

Tonight is all about sorting the house (again!) and writing the food shop list. I'm planning on going at silly o'clock in the morning, get it done then get some last minute present bits in the shops. 
Wednesday is about wrapping, delivering and baking. 

benbenandme

Busy day here so far but I think I'm done for Christmas now.

I was at Tesco, ready for opening, one full trolley later and £150 out of my bank account
Then on to M&S to get something Mum wanted, another £20 spent there but £10 of it was a gift.
Then Sainsburys as Tesco didn't have any large pots of double cream and I needed it for the pavlova. Another £20 there on a few bits.
Finally into Home Bargains and another £15 there but that was one big gift bag and the rest was cleaning stuff for home that were needed (and cheaper there than the supermarket).

Once I got home I played fridge tetris, just about squeezing everything in. I then put the gammon in the slow cooker, we'll have gammon, egg and chips tonight and then Mum wants some and we will eat the rest cold.

After that it was a trip to the tip with 7 bin bags of stuff that has accumulated already (3 were from the garage). I don't want the bins full before Christmas so made sense to go there now and it was so quiet, so that was a good job done.

Back home and now I need to make a shepherds pie for the freezer (using loads of the cheap carrots, onions and potatoes), 

I washed the filters in the hoover last night so am waiting for them to dry properly so I can reassemble it and get on with cleaning again. 

Finally I've ordered ds main present - nothing like leaving it til the last minute! He and friend have talked about getting  little projector for in the garage - I don't let them vape indoors so they sit out there a lot (they have her sofa in there), so I found one half price on Amazon (£100), so that's it, I'm done

Lots of presents to wrap, tidying, cleaning, baking and all sorts to do, but hopefully no more money to be spent

benbenandme

Happy Christmas Eve 

Up early this morning, finished the wrapping, apart from the two presents Amazon are bringing this afternoon. 
I made my sausage rolls this morning and some chocolate cornflake cakes for Mum (don't ask - her current favourite thing in the world).

Then I went and saw Mum for a bit. Two final parcels arrived from Amazon, just about to wrap them now. Pavlova has been made, table laid for tomorrow. Looking forward to watching Kates carol concert in a bit then pottering and working out a time plan for dinner tomorrow. I'm really trying to get into it but already I'm itching to get back to my normal routine, get the place back to normal and move on. I really wish I could enjoy Christmas but it just reminds me I'm on my own, and the gaps around the table are getting bigger. Anyhow, sorry for being a bah humbug, off to do the time plan

benbenandme

Aah and relax! The day has arrived, the pressure is off and we can get on with it.
The cat has been fed, I'm showered and dressed, ds and friend are still snoring happily Time plan is sorted, aiming for dinner at 2pm, so time for some breakfast now, well a coffee and yule log Wishing many merry moments to you all xx

Four_Seasons

Merry Christmas have a lovely day x

Blackcats

Merry Christmas to you and yours.  It's a shame that there is only 1 Premier League match tomorrow as I normally enjoy Boxing Day footie.  

benbenandme

Me too ... best bit of Xmas normally! Tomorrow ds and friend are both working so I will have a lazyish day, pottering about, tidy up a bit and try to avoid online sales as I really don't need anything. Famous last words though

benbenandme

I hope you all had a lovely day yesterday, mine was good on the whole. I knew it would be difficult this year due to my Aunt and the dog not being here anymore, but the bit that got me was how much my Mum has declined over the last few weeks. She is barely mobile and as the day went on here memory was getting worse. At one point she kept asking me who I was and where (my name) is? Having been through dementia with Dad that was really hard, especially at Christmas. She has (currently) accepted that she needs to go into a nursing home, not sure how it will pan out when she realises they won't let her smoke indoors though ...

Anyway, Happy Boxing Day I'm up with a coffee and pain au chocolat (it is Christmas, right?!), making plans for the week ahead. Between now and New Year I want to clean and sort every cupboard and drawer, make regular trips to the tip and generally get stuff sorted before New Year. I also want to get some nice walks in. But for now its the sofa, watching James Martin (James Martin and Alan Titchmarsh are my latest hurtle into middle aged-ness) with the laptop, planning and sorting finances

benbenandme

Well according to my calculations I've got £14 left to last me until the end of the year ... I do have a bit extra in a savings pot that hasn't yet been allocated to anything, so if needed I can spend that, but I will try not to if I can help it. The only thing I am planning on buying is my new fitbit / alternative.

Leftover Christmas pie is in the oven and smelling amazing, I literally chuck everything in a pie dish (chopped up turkey, stuffing, pigs in blankets, sprouts, broccoli, cabbage, carrots, parsnips, roast potatoes, cranberry sauce, gravy) and put a layer of ready rolled pastry on top, egg-wash it and whack it in for 40 minutes. Should be ready in 5 minutes and can't wait, I've not eaten anything yet today so am hungry and looking forward to it.

6 more bags of shallots have been peeled and chopped and are now in the freezer, I shouldn't need to buy any onions next year I've got 2 bags of potatoes left, I will peel and parboil them and freeze them later today.

My bedding is in the washing machine currently, so a nice clean bed for me tonight and I have written a list of bits and pieces to do this week. Off now to dish up lunch and get ready for the footie later.

Sun_Addict

That must be a worry for you with your mum, especially since you’ve experienced it with your dad. Dementia is such a cruel disease, hopefully a cure will be found soon. 

That aside, enjoy your Boxing Day 🙂