Summertime...and the Crepeys are easy

[motherinferior]

With much love to BD.

(We are going to county cork btw in frugal manner.)

MrsS, give them a chunk of money and tell them it's to cover everything. Including food. The End.

I'm with MI MrsS time for them to take some responsibility or eat what is put in front of them....

And I meant for the whole week or however long it is. Be reasonably generous but not extravagant. And tell them very clearly that it's up to them if they want to spend it on food, or they can make sandwiches. "Don't like having to carry stuff" my @rse.

I went to school with one of the Balls clan (a cousin?), called Ian. Generally known as Eyeballs.

MI - I do that, and say it is a limit, not a target. I do think that two 15 year olds should be able to find something to eat that costs less than £10 a head every day, given that this is lunch, they have a good breakfast before they leave and have a proper dinner in the evening. And DD2 also loses money like there is no tomorrow and doesn't give a shit. I made her pay the £10 back that she lost the other day - there was some grumbling, but she really doesn't care. I suggested today that they get a bagel with smoked salmon and cream cheese and maybe a cake from the beigel shop on Brick Lane, but they "fancied sushi". Told them to go to Itsu and not Yo Sushi. DD2's friend asked if we could have "Asian food" tonight. Informed her that we would probably be having a traditional Sunday roast, and suggested they eat Asian food for lunch. I don't cook Chinese food, and I don't think she would consider our veg/chicken stir fry remotely Chinese!

DD1 was babysitting last night and came back with £80. The 9 year old girl loved her (she did loads of craft stuff with her) and asked her parents when she can come again.

LOL at Eyeballs!!

DD2 has little idea of budgeting, hence the daily hand outs. As her friend is here, I don't really feel I can say "if you spend it all by day 2, you can go without/make sandwiches for the rest of the week." (I have no difficulty saying this to DD2 when she is on her own, don't worry.)

Herbs you are so not self-centred. And in any case you would be quite entitled to be given your whole situation

MrsS, who is this friend? Is she from the UK? Has her family had your DD2 to stay and been similarly generous? My DC have to fund their own eating outside the home (well I do give them a fiver if I'm feeling generous) - I would have no qualms about doing the same in full view of the friend (and obvs giving her a fiver too) unless her parents had been ridiculously generous to my DD. Haven't they heard of Morleys FGS?
Well done to your DD1 though - were the parents drunk when they came in?!

Oh gosh Crepeys, so much to catchup on...and not all of it happy, I see. . to bd and herbs ..what a lot you both are facing. herbs as one who had to cut the holiday short last year, I feel for you. Try to hang onto some of the nice memories from your trip. And I hope that the hospital will regulate DMs Meds. It's hard to get the balance right with Morphine, isn't it.
Also auriga sorry for the sadness which creeps up. I suffer from that a lot.

Cv glad the hol is going well..although a bit [shocked] at the no frills flight...given that it's so many hours to the west coast. That's not really good enough...

Mi was it ok with your DDad?

monty any joy with the machine and john Lewis?

tilly train lock-in sounds hilarious although a bit panicky...FB pics are amazing!

mrsS having just been fleeced by three 16 year olds, and gone through about 200 squids in less the three days.... I sympathise. However in terms of what you cook at home, I am of the "if you're hungry you'll eat it...." school. Your cooking always sounds delicious to me! dS2, reading over my shoulder says the tescos meal deal is £3 or less, and you get a sandwich or wrap or salad or pasta, plus drink plus crisps or fruit. Not glam but hey...
Re dress, I have got some nice ones from Onjenu.

Wondering how stropps addle waf and rudy are doing. Who else?

We are chilling at the flat before dropping DH and Ds2 at the station to get home. They will be aback next Friday. We have had a chilled couple of days, yesterday a lovely long beach day where our beach tent even got an airing. And today a long walk followed by a huge brunch locally. DD is a bit low and PMT-ish as she's expecting a period which has been delayed by the Pill manipulation to avoid a period whilst in Switzerland. It's going to be a whopper, poor child.

Gosh Herbs and BD - hang in there both of you. MI - a change of scene for your DF sounds a great plan.

Crem sad about the house but a relief for your parents that it's sold. The moonlight beach walk sounds beautiful.

Mrs S - we often have meal deals from Tesco or M&S when travelling or we'd be broke as a family of five. What sort of teenager doesnt like street food? It all sounds a bit cheeky to me.

BTM - is a huge feature in the Sunday Times on Vietnam proposing a similar tour to yours. I quite fancy it.

Here - mainly lazing around in the garden in renewed burst of hot weather.

Re Mrs S's fussy houseguest, 'bowl of something from the Southbank (street food)' sounds remarkably like the 'Asian' something they wanted later. Hmmm?

I am slightly suspecting that it is DD2 who is the street food refuser, rather than her friend (who is no trouble, but just short of two weeks is a bit much for anyone). But I would like them all to go away and leave me on my own. Preferably on a private beach in the Caribbean.

We are having cold salmon tonight with salads. DH seems to think this requires little effort, but I think salads require more effort than cooking dinner. So we are having a green salad, carrot, cheese and orange salad, mushrooms, bacon, garlic cooked in red wine salad, beetroot, coconut and panch phoran salad and effing potato salad. And banoffee cake for pudding. If there's nothing there they like, they can go fuck themselves.

I hope DD2's friend is enjoying slumming it with us. It must be a change, at least, from her parents' lovely apartment overlooking the Seine. And I am grateful to her for making DD2 leave the house every day!

If anyone is looking for a bit of ad hoc babysitting or childcare this holiday, DD1 is available, She is 17, good at doing crafty stuff with children and keeping them entertained. She also has a first aid certificate and speaks French.

Those salads sound yummy Mrs S - especially bacon, mushroom, garlic in red wine.

Eh, MrsS, the babysitting fee bar has been set a little high: £80 - wtf? I cannot advise Re: long-stay teenage guests, as I have never had any. However, I do have some colourful ones who appear to spend an awful lot of time at my house, but luckily they are almost entirely self-funding, apart from a bottomless appetite for crisps. Sounds like they currently be doing a Zumba class upstairs, but who knows what is actually going on. (don't think I want to know, but at least dd is chirpy again for the moment, as long as there is a 6ft bloke in a leather miniskirt in the house)

Herbs, I have never met anyone who is less of a narcissistic tosspot. Pls desist with the self-slurs, and continue to vent as much as necessary. As a recent recipient of only one type of morphine, I'm about yr dm's painkiller regime. I was scared shitless by the lackadaisical prescribing to which I seemed subject, and felt the need to consult a pharmacist to make sure that all the 5 drugs could really be taken together. He said I would start to feel like a pile of poo after 3 days. He wasn't wrong. Hope the hospital sorts your mum out.

Survived yet another waterfight yesterday, after transporting our smaller (but still rather large) paddling pool to dm's, so that db and the dns could have their fun, after db's B-day lunch. I can't run away at the moment, so got hit with buckets of water by the dns. My nephews are so sweet. Not.

Going back to see Jesus tomorrow. It's becoming an expensive habit, but I can't risk getting into a situation where I can't drive for any length of time, as that would be me out of a job. There is no public transport infrastructure between where I live and where I work in term-time. Zero. 0. So I'm relying on hope and Jesus to keep me functional until the NHS gets round to looking at me in September.

"they be doing.." eh, my phone has apparently gone Dorset-dialect-native

Mum's opiate cocktail comprises morphine patch, liquid morphine, EIGHT TRAMADOL A DAY, and some gabapentine, or some such.

I had ONE tramadol once, and was insensible for 12 hours.

As lovely GP cousin says, in that state she will fall, break a bone, and that will be the end of her. I fear she might even overdose.

Herbs, so sorry to hear of the troubles with DM: like others have said I can't believe the amount of painkillers she is being given. Something doesn't seem right to me. It was a knee replacement, wasn't it? I stopped taking painkillers about three weeks after my op because of stomach issues, but the pain wasn't excruciating. I know a lot of people who have had the op and whilst the odd one was taking meds a year afterwards, the pain was cope-able with. Try to keep your holiday feelings alive.

Hatty, will report back re San Francisco via Dublin, but we certainly have that impression re passport control. We can't fly direct to the US from Newcastle and usually go via Schipol or CDG, so Dublin will be interesting (we avoid Heathrow like the Plague, but unfortunately have to come back that way).

I am rather about the DC's eating habits - and MrsS, your evening meal sounds lovely. I agree that something like that is much more work than a simple Sunday roast.

Crem, it's always sad when an era comes to an end. Enjoy the rest of your holiday.

Stropps, what a spoilsport you are, trying to avoid getting wet! Good luck with Jesus tomorrow.

DH and I are slumped in our chairs, DGC are in bed and, hopefully, asleep. We have told them that if they don't wake too early we will take them out for breakfast. Their DParents are at Dalhousie Castle near Edinburgh, enjoying some peace and quiet. DS and family are in the Lakes so we're i/c of the cats as well. Hoping to go pond dipping tomorrow.

NU Dalhousie castle was part of our honeymoon!

Thanks, NU. The pain from the knee replacement seems to be all but gone. It's this he, sciatica-type pain that's the problem. My sis went to see them yesterday, and mum didn't get up til 1pm, and it took them 20 minuets to get her to the loo. She was screaming in pain, and dribbling with the drugs. She has lost motor control in one of her hands. Three months ago she was chairing discussion groups. Even two weeks ago, when I went to see her, she could walk unaided and have a pretty decent conversation.

I can't bear it if this is it...

Herbs, darling, we just can't tell at the moment. I'm not going to go all jolly and 'all will be well' at you, but let us take tomorrow as it comes. We're all here.

Herbs - can they not x ray your Mum or give her physio? That's an obscene amount of painkillers for her to be taking. Can she not go to A & E, or could someone call an ambulance? No-one should have to be in that much pain. Osteopath, chiropractor, physio?

I had supercharged tramadol and paracetamol combined for my back once, and couldn't bear the effect it had on me.

Good grief, Herbs, it does indeed sound as though she needs to be in hospital. I so hope that they manage to sort out what is causing the pain and get everything under control. Am keeping everything crossed. I was too scared to even take one Tramadol, despite screeching with pain and simply can't imagine how anyone could function at all on the drug mix you're describing.

Crem, sorry to hear about the sale of the house. So many memories tied up with the place, I'm guessing.

Hope the intrepid travellers in far-flung places are continuing to enjoy themselves.

NU, you will have certainly earned your holiday by the time it comes round. Hope your dcs appreciate what amazing gps you and your dh are.

She has a physio that comes once a week, but doesn't seem to be able to help. A hospital physio is supposed to be seeing her today or tomorrow. She's had an X-Ray, and nothing is wrong on the skeleton front.

She also has a UTI, which isn't helping...

Oh gosh Herbs, what a dreadful situation. At least she is in hospital now - surely they can get to the bottom of it?. I guess the carers are looking after your DDad? Remember we are all here to support you

Re Meal Deals, my DC LOVE them! Though apparently the local Coop ones are shite, but that doesn't surprise me - the local Coop is mainly shite.

I have had a huge double bed to myself last night as there are 2 beds in our room - true joy Off to Hoi An in a taxi via various beaches/mountains, etc later. Hatty, I would love to see that article if it's not already in the recycling?!