NST January 2024: This is Sparta!

ldee2111

NSD 13… but spendy days a-comin’!

Took car to the garage for an MOT today. Car needs 3 new tire$ and two new break pad$, it’s also time to pay our road tax, and we’ve got a roofer coming to patch up our wind damage from $torm Isha. Hopefully Jocelyn doesn’t add any more $$$!

Grateful today for finding a garage with space available for an MOT, for having savings to deal with unexpected expense$, and for Mum and Dad helping out with lifts while we don’t have the car. 

Thrifty_Taylor

Thank you for all your positive thoughts for Mr T.

Glad all hospital appointments went well for people today.

NSD#13

Another night if broken sleep - DS2 x 3, + strong wind on my window & the washing machine spinning! Felt quite zombie like today.

DS1 let me know he'd landed, & a passing motorist saw him walking the 4 miles from the airport, & gave him a lift to my mum's 😊 

Work went fine, a change in timetable this afternoon, but it went ok. Drove to drop my car off at the garage, ready for new windscreen fitting, collected borrowed car & managed to figure out where the important controls were 😂 Went to mum's to collect DS, he was fast asleep, as been awake the last 2 nights. Woke him up & took him to L1DL &Tosco. Luckily he was on the ball in the first carpark, as he reminded me to out in the handbrake! My car has a button, so out of practice using a proper handbrake! 😂 Managed to reverse down our tricky, not well lit driveway (car is an estate, so longer than I'm used to). At least I can get my car back after work tomorrow 😃

DS went straight to bed. A friend phoned me for some support before tea, dud some Norwegian after tea, then the ironing. Time to soak in the bath before bed, I think.

Strong wind forecast again tonight, so no school buses for DS3 tomorrow, hoping they'll close the school's too, so I can have a day off 🤞

Grateful for DS being back, that the car didn't roll back & hit another car, I won £10 on L1DL spin to win, helping a friend

wishus

Sending hugs @DawnW

...and anyone else who needs hugs.

Has a very good call from the NHS yesterday, as my CBT has started. Grateful for that. Got in 18000 steps running errands, and a bit more cardio moving firewood into the lig pile.

And relax!

OH made a very yummy dinner tonight. With David Hasselhoff potatoes! 

Toni'sfriend

Still really wet and windy here today. Himself did the little bit of shopping we needed and I got stuck into to washing, cleaning etc  Fridge and freezers all defrosted and tidied and lots of room for my cooking marathon at the weekend. List of dishes prepared and a shopping list for made for tomorrow.

Himself has put the bins out for collection tomorrow. Hope they don't blow away overnight.

Gin fudge is in the fridge to set. I'll let you know how it turns out, Dawn. xxxx

DawnW

Evening all

Had great plans to get stuff done at home today, as I have been at the hospital for the last 2 days. However, I felt very tired and a bit dizzy so went to bed and slept for several hours. Feeling more human now, must have needed it! I did however get 2 loads of washing done and mostly dried outside on the line - after the storm last night it was still windy but also dry for a change! Also tidied the kitchen, cleaned the bathrooms and tidied the spare bedroom, and went through a couple of drawers, clearing out old paperwork for recycling and shredding. Smallest GS will enjoy doing the shredding (under supervision) at the weekend, as it is his current favourite thing  

Grateful for a day at home, catching up on sleep and OH cooking the dinner.

ldee2111

Staying on NSD 13. I bought a mini funnel for shifting condiments from big bottles to wee bottles, from big bags to wee jars. “Speculate to accumulate”, as they say. No idea who ‘they’ are.

I’m also staying on NSD 13 because I paid a garage bill and a car tax bill! 💸 

Cashed out £10 from PA… I could put it towards a mortgage OP but think I’ll keep it just for me… a wee bit of extra fun money… it’s a couple of cafe coffees or a mountain of onions, depending on how I want to splash the cash!

Wfh. Nothing more interesting to say on that. Nice to have OH wfh too, keeping me company and caffeinated. He prefers to be in the office, but I’m secretly delighted that Isha and Jocelyn have been keeping him at home.

Grateful today for getting car back from garage, for Mum lending us her car, and for weather calming down.

Flying_By

@ DawnW It's amazing how much hospitals can drain one's system, whether it's as a patient or as their companion. It's not just the physical stress of navigating the route, finding somewhere to park and getting there on time for the appointment but the taking care of the patient, especially when he/she is a close family member, and trying to keep their spirits up as well as your own, when you don't know what the outcome of the appointment will be.  I'm not surprised you were so tired and you definitely deserved and needed your sleep.  

Well done on your achievements at home today, it's a good feeling to tick stuff off the list.  Love the idea of GS doing the shredding, might have to train my youngest DS to do the same  xx 

Flying_By

Sorted a few family/pet issues this morning, as I was at home waiting for a food delivery.  I feel a bit guilty about the delivery but reckon I can justify it as it would cost me more than the delivery charge in petrol if I drove to our nearest big town. Also listed something on Freecycle and elicited some immediate interest - just hope they turn up tomorrow as they promised as I want it gone!  

My brother and I went to see step-mum in hospital yesterday. It was very sad to see how quickly she is deteriorating.  Whilst she has recovered from her broken hip and her mobility is good, she appears to be losing her mental faculties very quickly.  She is now on a list to be moved to a smaller hospital nearer to us, as the orthopaedic ward has achieved what it needed too, but she has other needs and problems which need to be investigated.  She has always told us that she doesn't want to go into a home and we will do our best to care for her back in her own house if we can.  However, we are aware of what a strain this could be.  Taking things day by day at the moment.

Thrifty_Taylor

NSD#14

Wow you've all been busy today! And all those steps @wishus! Glad your CBT has started.

Very windy again overnight. No school buses but schools were open, so I had to go in to work & DH into town for his blood test.

Work went ok. Made a detour on the way home to return my borrower car & collect my own one with its new, shiny windscreen. Seemed strange driving it again 🤣 spoke to the mechanic's wife & daughter for a good half hour. His wife used to cut my hair 20+ years ago & I used to work in his daughter's class 4 or 5 years ago, so was nice to catch up.

Unpicked 2 coat zips (1 of which was very heavily fragrances with eau de farmyard 🤢) & watched 3 episodes of Corrie with DS1, had saved them up for his return. Replaced the zip in stinky coat, collected DS3 from the next village & practiced Norwegian.

Sad to hear my auntie is back in hospital again 😓

Grateful for having my car back, the wind speed has decreased, I've got the stinky coat done

Starlight_at_Sea

I am normally a little envious of your rural idyll and your sewing skills Thrifty, but today I am dead jealous of your windscreen. My own rear windscreen sagas continue, three garages in I am now contemplating the fact that it might be that the car is written off, all for the sake of a bit of window. It turns out it is a very rare bit of glass, dealer only, dealers aren't calling me back, no-one knows where to get it. I am somewhat invested in keeping this car going after the amount spent on new tyres, clutch etc recently, and it was my mum's, so emotions are surfacing too. But I cant keep driving round with a bit of plastic forever!  I started back at work this week full time so haven't had the bandwidth to think this properly through yet. 

In other ms news .... um.... NSD yesterday and today as trapped at the laptop working / in bed feeling ill post work!  Today I tackled two difficult bits of life admin. Have established the reason why the council haven't taken any council tax yet is because they still need to value the flat, it's only been 7 months since I started trying to pay them! A very efficient and helpful lady talked me through how to sort the payments out once the valuation does come in, she said as I had the direct debit in place if I didnt contact them they would just take the full amount back-owing in the next direct debit date after the letter. But if I call them they can stagger it out across a few payments, phew as it is likely to be £1k+ I think! 

Also did the family medical history forms as the type of cancer my mum had can be hereditary and I've decided information is power and I would like to know likely risks, and hopefully get access to regular screening at a younger age. Got stuck halfway through as need to chase some dates from relatives - will do that over next few days! 

Actually I did 3 bits - I also got the bnb listing listed.... not totally  unconnected to the large tax bill that's coming and the budget projections I have been working away at which is not very balanced at the moment! 

In other things I am proud of / grateful for, I fitted a screen protector to new phone today, I saw how much damage the last one prevented. I hope this one works as well! 

Thinking of everyone who is caring for others, or with their own health challenges at the moment. Flybe - I can't remember how to quote but your description of how hospital visits drain us really resonates  I hope your step mum rallies in a more local environment. I must admit, I am so glad that I insisted accepting a care package alongside me was a condition of mum's discharge from hospital. She and my dad didn't want it, but I couldn't have coped without it, even for the short time we had with it in place. Have everything crossed for you.