Come and tell us your dull and unexciting news 36: Calmly through the day

[MissConductUS]

A quiet and friendly corner of MN to share the very dull day to day happenings of our lives. No criticisms, political discussions, or controversies here. Think of it as neighbors (I'm a Yank) chatting over the garden fence or having a cup of tea while the kids play together. Everyone is welcome.

It will be calming for all.

Previous:

https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/_chat/5477400-come-and-tell-us-your-dull-and-unexciting-news-35-calmly-through-the-day?page=1

Thanks @MissConductUS It's a 1937 Talbot Ten. Lovely plants and cat.

Glad you had a great day out @bizzey and great pictures. We used to go by Windsor a lot when kids where younger for Legoland.

I love that @HildaTablet I saw an article about it but have never seen it. Used to see shire horses a lot as a child but rare to see them nowadays.

Love the wild bunnies @Mumtobabyhavoc

I have watched Below Deck on Hayu today's episode, we had a shed roof guy round to discuss replacing current sheds roof. We were going to get a new shed but DS appears very attached to old shed, he has made himself a nest in there to escape the world a couple of hours a day and I got him things for it, but has an asbestos roof so we need to at least change the roof. The shed will be for DS to use as like a summerhouse. We got fresh sourdough bread and pain au chocolate, almond croissants and cinnamon buns from a bakers we found out about on the vineyard tour. They are excellent but huge. Then we did 3 hours in the garden.

I am now fully addicted to Below Decks !!
I am on series 3 of Below Decks Down Under.

With Captain Jason .( 😍😍😍😍)
And the love triangle !

We got fresh sourdough bread and pain au chocolate, almond croissants and cinnamon buns

Yuuuuuummmmm @MrsSPenguinz 😋😃

@bizzey, when I watched Below Deck it was the versions with Capt Lee and Capt Sandy. I watched during the pandemic/while pregnant/when Havoc was a newborn and I was awake at all hours. They were obv reruns, though.

https://www.bravotv.com/the-daily-dish/below-deck-captains-every-season-franchise

Took my mum to see a specialist for a procedure at a hospital today across town in North Vancouver (a separate city). Stopped for donuts before heading home.

Hope all is ok with your Mum @Mumtobabyhavoc and good to have doughnuts.

You're up late?

I just watched a vid comparing a typical (diner) American breakfast with a Full English (minus black pudding - go figure!).

The Full English won. 🙂

I didn't even realise it was that time, 😬

Happens to me often. It's usually due to just trying to turn my brain off by scrolling mindlessly - it's my rare alone time.

DD is currently on her way home to us and will be here about a week. The neighbours dead tree came down today and the tree surgeon managed to do it without affecting our shed.

Had a quote in for replacing our current shed roof but it's really expensive. We are still awaiting planning decision on new shed.

Havoc, it's been a long time since I had a donut. People would occasionally bring them into work, but not often. The only shops that have them locally are chains like Dunkin, which are okay but not great. Yours look fabulous.

I watched the first episode of the new season of Ted Lasso on Apple TV yesterday. It was good, with some lovely moments, but it was mostly a setup to get him back from the States to take the job coaching the women's football club.

DS has plans for this weekend but will come over for dinner with us on Sunday. It's good that he's getting out and doing things on the weekend, but I will miss having him home.

I harvested the big heirloom tomato yesterday and had some in a salad. It was really sweet and flavorful.

It's so satisfying picking produce from your own garden, isn't it @MissConductUS 💕
If you come up north, go to a local independent doughnut shop. Do. Not. Go. To. A (well-known) Chain. Our internationally known chain has been the victim of corporatization to its detriment. It is just fast food and awful. The coffee is awful. I would never ever go there. Ever. Last time was pre-Covid and never again.

Planning on skipping chores and errands and just heading out with the kids after I tidy the kitchen and finish administering my mum's IV.

Hope your Mum is OK @Mumtobabyhavoc and hope the IV went as well as it can. I hope your managed to get to do fun things with the children.

Great to have a tomato from your own garden @MissConductUS and good your son is coming home for a Sunday meal.

DD arrived back late last night, DH collected her from Oxford and he left at 4am to go to France for his Mums birthday. They are an hour ahead of us. Reminds me to put my mobile on charge - he won't have arrived yet, takes about 7 hours of driving including crossing and waiting for it so will be there in time for them to go for a birthday lunch at a lovely restaurant. DD will go to stay with MIL once DH is back with a couple of her male friends from Oxford.

So its DD, DS, me, the cat and the silkies.

I do love tomatoes @MissConductUSand that one is a beauty. We are harvesting too at the moment!
Glad your DH will get to celebrate with his mum @MrsSPenguinz- I love France. Enjoy the peace!

Had buffalo burger tonight. Really enjoyed it, with onions in a bun. A calamari starter as well.
Not quite as hot today. Did a seascape drawing in coloured pencils. Passable but I’ll stick to my beach huts I think.

It' Friday!

I headed out to work this morning and forgot that they've dug a trench across the bottom of the alley, so had to back up, turn around in my parking spot, and drive up the other way. Came home and forgot about the trench yet again, so had to drive around the block to get access to the other end of the alley.

If it's nice out tomorrow morning, I'll visit the Farmers' market.

That's a splendid tomato, MissC.

Busy day here with medical- related things for my mum, but managed 3 loads laundry and kids to a playground for an hour after dinner.

That's quite a bit of driving to France, Penguins.

Been busy doing a big work project and got sil to help me as he’s very handy with tools. But boy I am shattered. Decided to take today as easy as I can and just do project shopping.

having friends with kids over tonight for a kids movie night. Thought I’d found a new one on Netflix with cartoon cats only to watch the trailer and realise it was for adults. I don’t normally watch trailers so that was lucky!

Thanks @sproutsandparsnips Great you are harvesting too.

Yes @Mumtobabyhavoc DH is doing a lot of driving on his France trip, more than is sensible imo but he wants to drive to Paris and back (7 hours each way) to see his Mum and also drive from there to a friend undergoing cancer treatment (about another 7 hours each way further). He will be exhausted on return. But it does mean he'll see his Mum for her birthday and she's in her 90s, his twin brother and his family and his friend with cancer and possibly another friend with suspected second time cancer.

Here's its me, DD, DS and the cat and the silkies. Both the kids did not get up until after midday though DD is normally a whirlwind so she needs the rest. DS was cooking sausages and the cat was very interested. I am watching Netflix the American experiment which seems to be going through American history, quite interesting. Did history at A level but was all European and British / Russian.

Its DHs 60th this month and he wanted a spa day but not on his actual birthday as he wants to stay home so can be with DS that day so have booked that. He originally wanted an Eric Clapton concert and I held out on booking it with his age but good I did as it got cancelled. Still hot here, we have had almost no rain for almost 2 months now, never known a summer like it, we normally have the opposite issue.

💐 for being shattered.
♥️ for your planned movie night
🍿🥤

Wow- definitely a lot of driving! But, do it while you can and as long as you enjoy it! We did lots of cross-country road trips when I was a kid. Although, being a large country, 20 hours driving over two got us across just two provinces to visit family. 😂
(So, think driving Amsterdam to Naples, Italy.)

Yes Canada is so big @Mumtobabyhavoc

The silkies are wandering the garden, there's a sparrowhawk about, but it's 31C here today and they love wandering the garden. It's sunrise and sunset main risk, sunrise is easy to avoid them out, sunset will need to play chase the chickens.

Just having a lazy day really and catching up with DD. I will be watching the American experiment on US political history on Netflix some more. Had some smoked salmon for breakfast which I managed to eat without the cat spotting it. Managed to open a jar of pickled onions I had been trying to open and DD tried to open and ate them all. I love pickled onions and pickled red cabbage though have to be careful not to eat too many, this was in balsamic vinegar so think was fine.

@MrsSPenguinz I’m with you on the pickle front 😂. I look forward to having cottage pie, just so I can have pickled red cabbage with it. I love pickles, piccalilli and have found out I enjoy cornichons and gherkins as well. The cornichons were a new one on me, discovered when we had a cheese fondue and I was looking for ideas for something to dip. Very tasty.

@Mumtobabyhavoc We’ve been seeing the wildfires in BC. I do hope you are nowhere near them. Stay safe. We’ve had high temps in this part of the country, but no droughts, as we have had some days with rain, so it’s still very lush vegetation here. I’m glad the temperature is not too high at the moment as I’m wearing my wraps, which are really warm on my legs and feet. I have got a lovely free standing adjustable fan next to me, which is rechargeable and lasts for 13 hours without a charge anyway. I have it blowing on my legs at the moment.

When watching programmes like The Middle or Modern Family I’m always amazed at how long road trips or rail journeys are. I think the furthest I’ve travelled in this country is to Cornwall, which takes about 6 and a half hours from here, but we usually have an overnight stay about halfway. We try to stay at Coombe Abbey near Coventry and get the same room, with a four poster bed. Last time we had a different room with a bath in the corner with a heavy curtain to pull round it. Thankfully the bathroom was a separate room but we still got the four poster!

Wild boar sausages and mash last night. Very tasty, salmon, asparagus and possibly the last of the season’s Jersey Royal potatoes.

Ive been struggling with pain in my feet so my boyfriend sent me money to go halves on one of those foot spas to help with the pain. Can't wait for it to arrive

Penguins, I rarely buy pickles. They used to be on my mum's regular shopping list. 🤷‍♀️
Uman, I've forgotten why you've got your legs wrapped. It sounds very uncomfortable, though. 💐

Baby is naked and jumping over me while I lie here on the bed. Says, "I'm jumping over you!" and laughs. It's a literal diving lunge. I'm getting kneed here and there and am a bit worried about getting a knee or foot to my face with each launch.
Have given kids a snack of whole wheat seeded sourdough, toasted, and with butter; a hard-boiled egg; 1/2 an orange; and a some blackberries.
Havoc is watching Shawn the Sheep on CBC.
My mum is napping.
Hosp appt today and need to be out the door in 89 mins. ⏳

Havoc, if the trip is more than five or six hours, I tend to fly. When the DCs were looking at universities, one criterion was that they be within about a five-hour drive. Fortunately, we are spoiled for choice when it comes to universities on the East Coast, and they both wound up in Massachusetts.

penguinz, after you mentioned it, I found American Experiment on Netflix and have watched two episodes. It's very good. There's a similar series called America: Our Defining Hours that covers a longer time period, and biographies of Washington and Lincoln that were also very good. Until I watched the Washington biography, I had no idea that he served in the British Army but left when they wouldn't commission him because he was born in the colonies.

I was rather poorly over the weekend. The medication I started last month is an immunosuppressant, so I had to get vaccinated for Hep A&B and shingles. I had the first jabs five or six weeks ago, and the second doses on Saturday morning. I had been warned that the shingles vaccine (Shingrix, which is acellular) doesn't provoke much response on the first dose, but the second can be quite a lot. It certainly did for me. I had body aches and headaches all weekend and didn't sleep well at all. The silver lining is that the shingles vaccine leads to a 20% reduction in your risk for dementia, which is extraordinary for a single, low cost intervention like that. It's recommended here for everyone over 50.

The wildlife is out. I went out for a very early walk this morning and found a turkey in our front yard and just managed to get a picture of her as she jumped over the wall. The deer I saw in someone else's yard when I was out walking. The deer in this area are quite used to being around people. These two didn't even run off when they saw me.

Have you got your foot spa yet? Hope it helps you 💐