29 crepes a leaping.......

[magimedi]

Well, I've grabbed the bull by the horns & am leaping into the new thread........

Felt very sad no one else had started one whilst I scoffed dined.

If no one like the title I am more than happy to have it deleted & go with anything else.

DH has taken over the catering for the month of February......... the food is good but the angst is another matter

CV, am agog.

THE TOILET IS MENDED! I performed several test flushes while DH lay on his side under the eaves in the loft, feeling the waste pipe for leaks. The seat is as sturdy and wobble-free as the day it left the factory. There is only a small hole in the plaster.

Wondering if I dare ask him to sort out the cistern, which overflows spontaneously whenever you take a shower

CV, but he bought you one. And mended the toilet!

DH and DS returned from the mornings skiing very cold and wet but their stuff dried out v quickly whilst we had lunch in the chalet. Our friends arrived and it stopped snowing so they have been skiing all afternoon whilst my friend and I have been for a walk. Time for a hot chocolate/beer before going out for dinner

CV, hurrah!

BTM, do you ski? I have always assumed that I wouldn't like a skiing holiday because I don't want to ski.

Yay! CV

BD . My thoughts are with you.

BTM - glad you made it through the appalling weather.

We had a lovely lunch with friends we had invited except I slightly forgot my beef because of chatting so it was a bit overcooked . I always cook it really well except when people come.

My friend said happy Valentine's to which DH said "is it today?" Needless to say no flowers for me!

Oooh, Rudy, I was about to PM you! No itinerary planned yet, have done nothing apart from booking the flights and listing a few places we want to see. Would love to know about places you stayed as a family of five, so please let me have all the details.

Oh BD. So sad. Take care

Sending love and strength, BD.

MrsS, hope things are going ok on your trip to far-flung places. Hope any hospital re-tests come back NAD.

BTM, have a super-fab time and relax. Hope you can catch up with your zzzzzz.

Dd drove me and ds on a 50 mile round trip today. It was all fine. Apart from the bit at our destination where I tried something on in a shop and looked in the mirror and saw a wizened potato with a brillo pad on top of it

Dh gave me an exquisitely naff giant Valentine's card, which said "To my wife" on the front of it and had a dreadful rhyme in it. He was all proud and said "It is naff, just like me." He also signed this card "From a secret admirer". Dd laughed until she nearly cried. I am suspecting said card to be a wind-up, as we don't generally pay any particular attention to the 14th Feb. Apart from it being the date I need to renew the house insurance...

Dd laughed until she nearly cried.

Such a good thing to hear - she is obviously engaging with all the family.

I have all my fingers & toes crossed for your DD, Stropps.

Thank you, MM :). We have certainly had a very different atmosphere around here for the last week or so. But I am wary of making any great pronouncements and just take each day as it comes. She has her next appointment at the hospital on Tuesday.

Strops - I guess passing her test was a lovely boost to her confidence. Long may its effects be felt.

BD - if you're out there - hope you are OK and DM is comfortable. Look after yourself.

BD, MrsS sends love via text too.

Lots of love, BD. Tough times. Maybe she's just had enough.

Back from our poignant trip to 'the seaside' that MiL wanted to do. For some reason she decided to go to Portsmouth. And for yet more unknown reasons, no one did any pretrip research, so we ended up eating in an in fact ok Brewers Fayre, but then battling our way in horizontal freezing rain down a grim bit of out-of-season seafront, to the east of P, without any access to any actual sea but plenty of fenced off non-functioning rides.

DP, DS and I later went to the front in actual Portsmouth, which was great and would have been a much better place to go. Not my place to suggest people actually THINK before they set off, but still... So we had a nice time, the three of us, going up the Spinnaker tower, grooving around the dockyards, HMS Victory, etc, though DP was v quiet and subdued. And snappy with DS.

I am beset with hot sodding flushes. I do realise they are partly stress- related. Reluctant to try HRT at a point when mum has ovarian cancer - I'd just be stressed about that.

Hi All... Well she rallied yesterday - amazing what drugs and oxygen can do..... We are all at a loss as to what is happening and how long, and will she get discharged to a home and all that. Saturday she looked dreadful. Yesterday much perkier. But clearly her body has taken a hammering and who knows how much longer it might go on?

I am back home - not a lot I can do in London at the minute - and am just ready for a phone call. I will go down the coming weekend for a couple of days. It's exhausting.

CV trust the loo is sorted

Stropps glad dd is laughing - good to hear....

MI - hope all is okay with dmum

BD, it IS exhausting. Not easy to sleep with all that on your mind never mind all the travel.
Herbs that sounds hard

Stropps that sounds great - yes the card and DD driving and laughing and you looking like a wizened potato. Not!

Well I had 10 hours sleep last night, after a big meal out with everyone. Nice slow start this morning, but off walking with my friend shortly.
Lalsy, my friend doesn't ski at all but this is the first year I'm not skiing - I can do red runs, but my knees are ducked and I just worry all the time that I will do permanent damage, so I decided not to ski at all this year.

MI - I doubt they'd give you HRT, with your family history. My mums had breast cancer, and when I asked for HRT the doctor had a face on her like I'd asked for some crystal meth.

BD - am not surprised you are shattered. Take care of yourself.

MI this is a good resource for all things menopause (the forum is a bit 'hunny'). Lots of alternative suggestions for flushes etc.

www.menopausematters.co.uk/index.php

Helped me to solve & sort out vaginal atrophy.

BTM - wave towards the Aravis & PFGD for me will you?

How's DD getting on at home?

BD, exhausting indeed, I hope work isn't too awful this week on top of it all.

Herbs - how miserable.

MI, quite right not to do anything that stresses you at the moment. Does the weather make a difference? (As you doubtless know, NICE has finally ruled on HRT, reassuringly -and possibly still controversially - for many.)

I have accidentally got a day off ON MY OWN. Am seeing succession of friends in lovely places . I did spend yesterday sorting a fairly ludicrous saga of family admin kerfuffles.

Aha, I see, BTM. Sounds like you are having a lovely time - look forward to hearing what you do!

BD and MI, you need to take care of yourselves - I know the stress is unbelievable.

I smiled at your news re DD, Stropps, baby steps and all that.

I have swum and Aquafitted, shouted at DH for, once again, not listening to what I said to him earlier, and almost finished decorating the birthday cake for DGS who is five today. We're going round later on for a birthday tea.

We have some snow here, BTM, just enough for sliding. Enjoy your week away.

BD - and so the roller-coaster continues......

Herbs - I quite like the dockside area in Portsmouth, and we do an annual pilgrimage to Gunwharf Quays to get the majority of the Christmas shopping done (it barely takes any time to get down there now they've built the Hindhead Tunnel on the A3). Still haven't got around to seeing the new Mary Rose museum, though....too busy hunting for bargains in Gap Outlet.

I have an assistant at work this week! Tis DS, who is earning some half-term cash by sorting/filing/shredding/scanning a heap of training records. He was quite relieved when lunchtime rolled around and he was able to escape for an hour; it's probably a bit boring for him, but hey, when you are 16 and need a job, it's not likely to be hugely stimulating.

Oh good, someone else haranguing me on the need to get my mother to eat more. I lost patience and pointed out that she has a lifelong eating disorder and helpfully did her best to pass this on.

I am SO FUCKED OFF pardonmyfrench about all this.