Tag Archive for: 2021

Jamie bought a sofa

If we are getting new flooring in January we obviously need new furniture, right? Well I agree, we actually do because our existing stuff is on its way out, and that is being kind. The chair, two seater sofa and sofa bed were all free second-hand so were worn when we got them and in the last 5+ years they ain’t got any newer lets just say! The rest of the living room needs a bit of TLC so the new floor and sofa doesn’t look out of place so we have decided to decorate too and as we are decorating lets get new light fittings obvs but there is one good thing I get to rewire the TV and hang it…better and with tidier cabling and bit of shelving to boot (definitely gonna need a new tool for that project)

Now as soon as we decided to decorate Jamie goes into full on interior designer mode and started thrusting swatches at me “what about this one or these three together, tell me me which one you prefer?” Now I knew at this point no matter which I chose, it is not going to be the one she chose, so I thought I would say I liked 1 and 3 but not 2…

…Jamie said “OH? I liked 2!”

Un….BELIEVABLE! I went for 1 and 3 because they were more textured and that’s what you ALWAYS go for, the same as you ALWAYS add spices to food that was actually ok before you added shit, tut, so I steered away from the plain blind in the middle and went for the blinds that were plain until shit was added to make the plain that little bit more….!

Jamie, “I thought the middle one was a bit more classy!”

Me, (Inwardly I thought that’s the one I would have gone for but she’s conditioned me) “Oh yeh I agree dead classy, they’d be perfect!”

Jamie, “No you don’t have to agree with me, your opinion matters!”

I’m sure we’ll sort it out 50 50 right down the middle Jamie will pick the colours and I’ll paint them on, sorted?

I jest of course, I can’t wait to have a grow up space again free from toys and kid crap ok maybe the odd bit or two but not too much…

So, Jamie entered the big girl adulting world today at 40 years old and bought a three seater corner sofa, arm chair and foot poof with storage compartment. She was so proud of herself, it’s not something you get to do too often in life but today was her turn.

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Symptoms?

There’s a lot of concern from Jamie about my symptoms or lack of, but I can’t tell what are symptoms or what are just aches and pains from working hard removing skirting boards in readiness for new flooring? If I am honest I am more achy than I would expect from just doing a bit of DIY I also am a bit sniffly but not that much and I feel overly tired for the amount of work I have done but again not excessively. I spend about 4 hours working today similar to yesterday and took a long hot bath afterwards and once I got downstairs for tea I felt ok no worse than I would normally so symptoms….maybe but nothing much so far?

The project removing the skirtings is going well, I removed the hallway and under the front window which had quite bad damp which I had always believed was due to poor brickie work when the house was built because the damp at the bottom of the stairs was caused by this and cured by my Dad who removed the mortar that had dropped into the cavity breaching the damp course and the damp went away, so when I noticed the same thing happening under the window I assumed I need to clear the cavity under the window. I mentioned this to Karl who straightaway said why not try moving the sofa away from the window to allow more airflow and that got me thinking, the curtains were down to the floor and the sofa is pushed back almost to the window sill. When I removed the skirtings under the window today the wall paper was wet and mouldy but the wall behind it was bone dry confirming to me that Karl was correct the damp is cold moist air trapped behind the curtain condensing when mixing with the warm air of the living room.

Our plan is to have new flooring but also to get rid of the sofa and other furniture and replace them with a corner sofa and an armchair under the window and also get rid of the curtains and replace them with blinds, both these things would naturally cure the damp because there would be air flow all around the window area so we just need to decorate the area and it should be fine, which is a lot better than the upheaval the cavity scenario would have been.

Uncle Karl saves the day again, he’s good’un really!

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She gave it to me!

Our PCR tests came back positive a full house all four of us and it’s all Mommy’s fault, I jest of course it was inevitable no matter who caught it first all of us would get it quite soon after because you can’t isolate in the house it’s impractical. So tonight we got a text message with the results, we knew Mommy and Reagan would be positive and it was no surprise Lincoln and me came back positive too.

My symptoms are possibly a headache but nothing else but I may be a few days behind Mommy who can now no longer taste or smell anything and is tired all the time, the kids are fine Lincoln when told just said ok and went back to playing on XBOX, Reagan has been fine today accepting she has COVID and the headaches have gone. So we’ll see what the next few days bring on the COVID front, and hopefully it won’t impact the living room prep for new flooring?

A picture paints a 1000 words

My Christmas bestest present was a DeWalt cordless multitool which I had asked Santa for specifically to remove the skirting boards and boy did it deliver today, making it so much easier than it would have been without it although it still took a few hours to remove them from the kitchen door to the hall door behind the sofa, once it was done I put all the furniture back and because it was so neat you could not tell I’d removed them unless you looked. Tomorrow I will hopefully be able to remove a lot more but will need to pack the Christmas decs away first before I can start.

Staying healthy is the most important but it really would be great if I can get stuff done and waste the rest of my break feeling ill!

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Why take a lateral flow…?

Yep, why take a lateral flow test when we can have a family trip to the walk in Covid test centre in Winsford and get a PCR test each? Well Reagan tested positive this morning and was worried that she was going to get sick but we explained to her that she was already sick, the headache and lethargy she was feeling were the symptoms and probably the only thing she will endure. Mommy’s taste is disappearing and she is a bit up and down with other symptoms like lethargy and blocked or phlegmy sinuses which is good if that’s all she suffers, we just need to get through this as best we can. Lincoln’s lateral flow was negative when I got back from taking Billy for a walk and there didn’t seem any point me wasting a lateral flow test if we were all off to the walk in test centre to get a PCR done.

I know going to the store to stock up on food was not strictly what I should have done but while I had not tested positive technically I still could according to the rules so I got some supplies and then we all went to get tested. Reagan getting a positive test had the opposite affect on me it sort of took my mojo away and I spent the rest of the day lazing around not doing much really least of all skirting removal.

Apart from eating tea three of us sat and watched Stand by Me while Reagan sat in her room talking to her mates on her new tablet. The film had more grown up content than either Mommy or me remember but he did enjoy the film and it was just what I wanted to end today.

I haven’t mentioned last nights game because it didn’t go well losing 13 – 17 in Las Vegas even thought defensively we played great turning the ball over 3 times but offensively we managed 158 yards total and the lone touchdown came when Bradley Chubb intercepted Derek Carr and got the ball to the one yard line leaving the offense one yard for Devonte Williams to walk it in. The loss means mathematically our season is still alive but realistically we’re done and should be looking towards next season and in my opinion new coaching and hopefully a quarterback but the ownership is also changing in the spring which could complicate things. I am hoping the rumours about Peyton Manning being involved in the new ownership in some capacity because I think he would be good for the organisation. I am #DBFL win or lose!

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4 more sleeps

Today I realised there is only 3 days to go before Christmas day after today and Jamie is still working, I know what Jamie worries about on the run up to Christmas and it’s a tiday house and lots of nice food to cook things I can help bring together so I set about pottering for the last couple of days and bring the house together and today went shopping for the Christmas lunch ingredients. What I had planned was to remove all the skirting boards from the hall and living room but making mess would just not be conducive to a happy Christmas so I have refrained until after boxing day (I got a new Dewalt multitool early Christmas present, desperate to use it but will have to wait)

Buying the Christmas day supplies without having alcohol on the list makes it much cheaper, so a little update on sobriety, tomorrow will be day 40 and I have found it easier the longer I am sober. I do think about drinking and that it is me that is denying myself something I like doing but I also think I don’t need to drink to have fun! Christmas should be as easy as Thanksgiving if not easier I will taxi me mum to here and home again on Saturday and I will also drive Boxing Day. My goal at the moment is a calendar month sober which will be completed on New Years Eve and once thats completed I reckon a dry January should the next one, but lets complete December first!

Me and the kids will disappear in the morning, perhaps go see Grandad and then wait for Mommy to finish work, tomorrow night and then we can all get ready for Saturday and pray we avoid a positive Lateral Flow Test between now and then.

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Dunham Massey 2021

As Christmas approaches the world is being ravaged yet again with Covid and we are praying that negative lateral flow test continue until at least next Monday because we are desperate to spend this Christmas with family especially Nannie who is due to spend the day with us on Saturday. That said we can’t not do things through fear so tonight we went to Dunham Massey Lights and it was spectacular

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Walking coz I can

So I have finished for Christmas and that means I can take Billy for a better walk than he normally gets, everyday. We went for our morning walk as usual but then after dropping Reagan off at horse riding we stopped at the bottom of Byley Hill and walked along the river doing lots of training along the way including retrieve, directional retrieve, stop retrieve etc Billy loves it even though fetching a ball is his favourite it’s all about pleasing me.

He is very good at retrieving and is pretty steady when told to wait, I am teaching him to leave a dropped dummy as we walk away from it then go back for it when told I love training him and on cold dry mornings like today there is nothing better than an hour along the fields just me and Billy.

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Christmas Pony Party

I took Billy for a walk this morning marking time until DPD delivered 4 x monitors to allow me to finish off the install I started yesterday the rest of the family went to Reagan’s riding school for the Christmas party Reagan had been looking forward to it all week and talking about it incessantly all weekend (rolls eyes) but hey she loves riding and has stuck at it even when it didn’t go so well so deserves to enjoy the good times for that fact alone!

Mommy and Lincoln went to help out but on a cold foggy day they were happy to so but really glad to get home where I greeted them with a hot bath and a roaring fire plus homemade burger for tea

I am now sat watching the Bengals vs Denver on me own everyone else has gone to bed…

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The 2000th Blog

Well Alan has tasked me with the honour of writing his 2000th blog!

Where do I even start? The world is a very different place since my last guest appearance in November 2012! (1000th blog)  We are just now starting to get back to normal after the Corona virus pandemic and months and months of lock-down, working from home, and home schooling.  We have a long way to go but we are getting there. If you’d have told me back then that I’d be wearing a mask indoors in public places, I’d have thought you were insane!

So, over the past few years Alan and I have moved up the ranks in our careers, I have a successful counselling business and have recently accepted a new job as senior counsellor for London Women’s Clinic, Alan is testing the waters with his new venture Akeso Consulting. Reagan has just started high school, and Lincoln is living his best life in year 5.  Sasha is still sauntering around the house, though she is getting quite old and a bit fat now, and finally our new addition Billy, our 2-year-old Springer.  We are currently getting ready for our Christmas celebrations and are desperately trying to avoid Covid at the moment, so our plans aren’t stopped by this crazy virus.

Christmas is special to us this year because last year it was really taken from us.  Not just that but both of his parents have suffered significant health issues, which nearly meant we lost them both in a matter of months, but by God’s amazing grace they have both recovered, and are nearly back to new! It’s for this reason that Christmas is so special, and I think we are all aware that time isn’t promised so we need to make the most out of the time we have.  Which is also a reason why we are working so hard to go see my family next year because it has been far too long and I miss them terribly.

Otherwise, we are just ticking along, everyone is seeming pretty happy right now.  I think Alan has the biggest struggles with work at the moment and is pretty stressed out by that a lot of the time.  He is a simple guy in the fact that he functions best with routine and stability.  He loves his job, but that job just seems a bit unstable at the moment and that just doesn’t sit well with a guy like him, particularly because change of any description isn’t his favourite ? I am so proud of him though, he is an amazing husband and father, he works SO hard for us and is honestly the glue that holds us all together, I don’t know what any of us would do without him.  Ultimately, I feel like he is happy, it’s just this work thing niggling away at his contentment, but we’ll get there in the end, he has us at the end of the day that is enough to sustain us all. 

I’m doing ok but starting to struggle with balance.  My family sacrificed so much for me to study and those first few years of working for free, that it feels very important for me to earn enough for them to see that all those sacrifices were worth it…stupid I know.  The truth is now that I’ve reached a point of fighting and clawing my way to the top of the counselling ladder, I need to transfer from clawing to living and I’m finding that transition difficult.  Although, for the 1st time in my life my parents at home are really proud of me and I have to admit that their approval drives the hell out of me…though I kind of wish it didn’t matter so much to me.  The other secret is, that yes, I work for my family but also, I like it…  like a lot? It makes me feel very good but if the cost of that feeling is me being present with my family, then I’d give it back in a second…so balance is my word for 2022 and we will see where that gets us. 

Reagan is doing fantastic, busy living her best life.  She is such a happy little thing and is working hard at school, socialising, horse riding, playing violin, drama, and finding her place in the world.  She is such a good girl just chatters and smiles right now.  She is in such a good mood on the lead up to Christmas which is a nice change from the hormone monster she was a month ago.  I think the transition to high school was a difficult one for her, mostly affected by the year of lockdown we had in her final year of primary, but honestly, she is so clever, and like me finds the school routine easy.  She seems to be finding her feet now though, long may it last!

Lincoln is the same as he always is, stable and consistent just like his dad.  Everyone likes him because he is just so laid back and easy going, has a smile and a kind word for everyone.  He does have quite the temper but that is mostly fuelled by too much electronics, which is really something we need to tackle in the new year…balance (there’s that word again).  He is really into anime, gymnastics, cricket, video games and Sasha, that is his life in a nutshell.  He really does love school, but I don’t think he is particularly challenged by it, such a clever dude.   He is so grown now, bigger than his sister and on his way to being as tall as me!

So that is us in a nutshell, so different that we were 1000 blogs ago, yet so the same.  We all love living life together, we are a happy family, not flawless, but happy and ultimately, what else is there? The future of the world we live in is a bit uncertain at the moment, but we are good, the Fabulous Forster Four, together we can do anything.

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It’s going to feel a bit like Christmas…tomorrow!

One day of work to do before my Christmas break and I am really looking forward to be honest because I can relax and forget about it for a couple of weeks, well I say forget about it what will actually happen is my phone will still ring and I will answer it but unless its an emergency I will explain that I have finished for Christmas and then listen to them apologise for bothering me for another 5 minutes. I have set my stall out to remove all the skirting boards from the living room in readiness for laminate flooring in the new year, living the dream! Actually I will be because I intend to buy a “new power tool” Awgggh Awgggh
I am looking forward to it though it will be good to spend time with Jamie and the kids and hopefully, if we avoid the Omicron variant of COVID that is spreading the country, have a Christmas day with Nannie and a Boxing Day at hers?
It is also a big day tomorrow for my blog as this post is No:1999 and I have invited Jamie to write the 2000th post as I did 27 November 2012 for the 1000th post. I wish I had kept posting regularly when I think it took 4 years to write the first 1000 and 8 years the next 1000 because I love blogging so much, I get so much from writing posts. I also see it as a journal that Reagan and Lincoln might read one day, when they’re older obviously, they might get an insight into who I was and how I saw our lives?
Not sure thats a good thing or bad but I hope they do read it one day!
Anyway tomorrows blog will be No:2000

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