2017 seems so long ago, now they're fledgling graduates.

[latedecember1963]

4 years since A Levels and the wait for August and confirmation of where our chicks were about to fly the nest to.
It's been 4 years that has sprung a few surprises along the way, not least this lovely series of threads.

Oh gosh @Haffdonga, that’s not an easy one - poor DS

Lovely pic! @latedecember1963

Haffadonga the travel rules are certainly complicated and lead to difficult dilemmas. If I were the son I would do the skiing. I read in the FT it may be possible to get the PCR on your way back through the air port and get the result 3 hours later which might save his Christmas. I just tried to find it but cannot so perhaps I am totally wrong.

I just found this one - you test at the airport when you land (and pay) - PCR test and get the result by the next day www.getreading.co.uk/whats-on/whats-on-news/how-book-day-2-pcr-22303659

He could probably have a PCR test at the airport and book the very fastest result there is I suppose. However I have not read the latest rules so may be even if you get a negative PCR within 3 hours of landing or 24 hours you still have to stay in one place? I think not.

Haff, there is a lot of Covid around. DH has just had to dash off for a PCR test as one of his colleagues has tested positive since their department Christmas lunch on Tuesday. Whilst a doctor friend says they have had to cancel their lunch rather than risk the London teaching hospital losing its entire capacity in her specialisation.

I love the pictures. We have ended up with my parent's flat by the sea. All rather complicated with tenants threatening to wait till eviction and having to buy my brother out, but nice to have in these Covid wfh times. (I don't think I am a natural second homer as I hate not knowing where anything is and suffer a level of anxiety about leaving a propery empty. Did I turn everything off, so am not sure what we will do when things get back to normal. Plus itcwould take a lot yo get me out of London. ) The flat is right on the beach and pretty exposed. The wind last weekend was spectacular. Glad it is a flat not a caravan.

That said, young people have missed so much. He should go on the ski trip and make plans visit the oldies some other time soon. I think, for about £350 some testers can do a 3 hour turnaround.

DD has not done STDs or obstetrics yet
This term is gerries, which suits her as I suspect she has no memories of her grandmother without dementia, and indeed at 16 spent the summer working in her grandmother's sheltered housing.

There are so many different careers and students are all so different. DD struggled with psych. She got quite upset by a patient slightly older than her, with MH issues and self medicating with illegal drugs. The future looked so bleak. Weirdly a patient, who she was quite fond of, who died was less of an issue and she is fine with bodily fluids. And she is clear, after a season working for a family ski company, that she is not interested in paeds.

There does seem to be quite a spike of cases brewing. This morning the YR class had 5 children absent and this afternoon instead of splitting my time between 2 KS2 classes I spent all afternoon with 1 class and my other class was taught all afternoon by the teacher I normally switch with mid afternoon. I only had 16 out of 30 children present which meant I could give them more individual attention which was 1 bonus. The YR Nativity went ahead this afternoon with parents/carers present which is an improvement on last year.

I think your son should go skiing, Haffdonga. I know there's always the worry about how many Christmases grandparents have left, but how many more times will your son be able to holiday with university friends? The rapid tests on return sound like a good solution.

Hope your DH is settling into his new routine, Parker. Your celebrations sound like a lot of fun and how lovely to have your family together again.

Thanks for the ideas for rapid PCR tests everyone. You may just have saved Christmas

Haff, let me know if you find anything where results are given less than late the following day. There are plenty offering 3 hour tests for departures, but none, as far as I can see offering the same for arrivals.

Reading between the lines it looks as if tests from arrivals are scrutinised further to determine which strain rather than a straight yes/no.

If not, and given some are offering money back if results are not there by 10pm the following day, we will hope they actually arrive earlier allowing DS to emerge from his bedroom. He is only home for two weeks and has so many places to go and people to meet that he had set up a spreadsheet.

In the meantime DH are avoiding being in the same room till his results come back. I was on so many trains, tubes and buses yesterday that it seems a bit silly. DD is coming home this weekend, to meet up again with people from her course last year, the ones she only met in person at her graduation 6 weeks ago. She has decreed that if her dad tests positive he needs to take her car and isolate on the south coast away from her. She does not want to miss more social life or teaching.

Life has become so complicated.

Good with those needing tests etc.

For unto us a child is born .....The new baby arrived today and she is gorgeous. I didn't speak long to my daughter when she called but all is well and it is the best Christmas present for us all.

One son is going to a law firm Christmas party tonight which is very kind of the firm - he worked for them for 12 weeks over the summer as a paralegal. My twins still have 2 more full weeks of this 15 week law course term 1 so not quite in Christmas mode yet and are out at the local library.
Suddenly we seem to be getting at least some value for my £4000 a year council tax as they are in a heated library although they coincide on Thursdays with the under 60s dementia group who are pretty noisy, so much so that the librarian came over to apologise but my sons don't mind. I applied for my free London under ground travel pass -well not quite free - it costs £20, for when I leave my 50s behind later this month. 3 grandchildren whilst in my 50s is quite good going so far.

No visits to the hospital are allowed due to covid other than from the husband or birth partner but that is fine. We can wait and the last thing new mothers want particularly when just starting to breastfeed is loads of visitors anyway.

@Xenia - congratulations! Hopefully you’ll be able to see the baby this weekend.

@Needmoresleep - DH knows I won’t forgive him if he does anyone GP more. He desperately needs a break, particularly after the last 20 months. He may do some sessions as a vaccinator. As usual the government have made announcements about the booster programme but no provisions for the extra workload for those managing it.

We’ve only a few months left in the U.K. so doing some vaccinating will keep DH out of trouble!
Have just come back from a weekend in New York with my sister and sister in law. A lovely break and a return to a more normal world.
Am looking forward to our usual family Christmas. Including DH, DT’s and I, we’ll have 17 travelling over to us for the holidays. Lots of trips to the airport to meet their flights - cannot wait!

Congratulations on the new baby @Xenia

I am so jealous @Parker231 - I love NYC. And it sounds like a lovely social Christmas!

Congratulations on your new grand daughter, Xenia! 💝🎉🥂

Congrats on the new baby granddaughter, how exciting. ❤️
I'll be ancient by the time my two consider children. 🤨 Think that's the downside of us being slightly older parents - and we weren't that old really - early 30s?

We are away to DS's Masters graduation on Monday. He's currently working in a local supermarket & enjoys being on the tills! 😆 He has to work Xmas Eve & Boxing Day but isn't too bothered about that.
He's applying for some jobs that close next week, so hopefully he will get interviews.

@bigTillyMint, has your DD had her Masters result yet? Have I missed that?

A trip to NYC sounds fab, I'm hoping to go next year with my sister for her 50th. Neither of us have been before, so tips will be most welcome, please. 🙂

Congratulations Xenia!

@Horsemad, not AFAIK! She said there’s a week earmarked for graduations next year, so fingers crossed! She’s actually gone back to Bristol this weekend - to paartay

@Horsemad - let me know nearer the time and I can give you some suggestions for your New York visit. I love it more each time we go.

I’ve got loads of suggestions too - Ive been twice, but I’d love to go again!

Congratulations @Xenia. Lovely news. Hope mum,dad and baby are well.

Congratulations on your granddaughter @Xenia - our first thread baby!

I'm like you Horsemad - no likelihood of grandchildren for the forseeable if ever. Ds1 is adamant he'll never want children and ds2 seems resistant to long term girlfriends Enjoy the graduation on Monday.

@Needmoresleep I can't tell you any more about the same day Covid PCT tests yet because ds has been impossible to pin down with any sensible information on arrival times etc yet. He only finished his big exam yesterday and is still hungover

Thank you. She is my 3rd grandchild as my older daughter has 2. one is that I had my daughters when I was 22 and 24 which was always likely to ensure I had grandchildren reasonably and also meant that although my parents waited until their 30s for parents they similarly had some grandchildren (my older ones) in their 50s too.

Good luck with those travelling in in these complicated times of changing rules. I just had that vague recollection the Financial Times said you could pay for a PCR test on arrival at Heathrow or Gatwick and one service was 3 hours but I could not find that once I looked at it.

The other issue is I suppose the difference between the law and the recommendations in regulations which has always made this situation so hard. Indeed even when a recommendation or non binding guidance does not even suggest keeping away from old people some will still think it best to do so and others won't.

We used ExpressTest at Heathrow for PCR’s. I think they operate from other airports as well. You book online so you have your code for the Passenger Locator Form. The site was well organised and we got the results back in the timescale.

There's a thread here which may or may not be helpful

Fast PCR test turnaround after arriving in UK www.mumsnet.com/Talk/_chat/4417877-Fast-PCR-test-turnaround-after-arriving-in-UK

Good news for anyone planning on a ski trip to Switzerland - they have dropped the quarantine requirements.

Thanks also Errol
DS's situation Christmas eve test situation is complicated by the fact that he's coming back by coach rather than via an airport with testing services. He's trying to get a cheap flight flight now to get back quicker but not surprisingly easier said than done at this point (and I'm getting frustrated with his inability to feel any urgency about looking into the arrangements).

If by coach into central London there will be likely to be some kind of private quick tests available somewhere in London.

We as a family are getting fed up with ever changing rules so may not be going too far for a while. It was very complicated for my daughter in Majorca going to and returning from Spain in August and the fact the rules change in England and abroad so often makes it very difficult.

I believe there is now a requirement to test whilst you are abroad - pre departure back to England (I saw England as often the other parts of the UK have different rules).

www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-59534685 "Everyone aged 12 and over will be required to take a pre-departure test a maximum of 48 hours before leaving."
So anyone with a student child abroad might be worth letting them know they will need to arrange a test abroad within 2 days before they return to the UK.

We are now ordering the pre departure tests before we travel and take them with us to do and upload the results. It’s something else to think about but we don’t want to stop seeing family and friends so worth it 100%.