Pip’s Bedroom

 After all of Pip’s hard work in assembling her bedroom furniture it seems only right and fitting that the final results are showcased here on the blog.  The only item that she did have some help with was constructing the bed, namely the end panels, but the rest was completed by her:

This is the smaller of the Billy bookcases and fits very neatly in one of the recesses in her big white cupboard/wardrobe. 

Her bed complete with fab under bed storage and just behind it you can see the top of her Malm bedside cabinet - she  made Ben’s bedside unit during his bedroom refurb. 

The Harry Potter bunting which I made her last year finally has a home 🙂

We repurposed what we could and since Ben’s old Billy bookcase was still in good order it made a much needed addition to the bedroom.

This image of a local longstanding football team was the inspiration for the blue backdrop for one wall.  The three remaining walls are a chalk white/grey.

Pip’s desk housing both her computer and her art/model making station.

This unit contains all her various art and model making supplies.  On top you can see two of her airplanes just in front of a photo of Grandad H next to his beloved bike.  

Pip loves her room as do I and not only is it a peaceful haven it is also a breeze to clean 💙

A Tale of Two Gardens

 Dave’s mum stopped over from Thursday to Friday and once we waved her off I noticed some interesting growth in the garden:

The free winter squash seeds are abundant!  We also have two other fully grown squashes in the back garden.  This squash plant took ages to develop but thanks to a summer of rain and then a week long heat wave it’s suddenly sprouted 🙂

I also spied this interesting creature:

It caught a whole heap of Midges for its tea, those webs are pure magic 💚

Today we did something completely different, it was our well deserved reward for managing to get to a Saturday evening vigil mass four weeks in a row!  Nothing short of a miracle and all down to Our Lady of Mount Carmel 🩷  We set off after breakfast and actually had a day out 🙂 and visited RHS Garden Harlow Carr Pip pushed me in the wheelchair once we arrived at our destination and upon arriving home at the end of the day, Dave and Pip made tea whilst I crashed on the sofa 🤪  It was utterly exhausting but so lovely to do something different:

Our first stop was Betty’s Tea Rooms but unfortunately the queue was ginormous and since Covid is on the rise we felt it was safer to sit outside.  Thankfully they had a shop and take out service so we shared two gluten free cakes washed down with Earl Grey tea.

After our tea and cake treat it was time to visit the gardens - we chose a carefully planned route which included various flower beds and the arboretum.  Unfortunately the path around the arboretum was not really transport chair friendly so it was a mix of Pip pushing me and then me walking slowly with my stick.  It was only when we arrived back at the visitor centre we saw the off road self propelled wheelchairs that could be reserved, will definitely give one a go next time we visit 🙂

After our combined walking and wheeling it was soon time for lunch so we stopped at Betty’s in the gardens and had soup, sandwiches and another mug of tea.  A very Happy Sunday was had by all 🙂

A New School Year Begins

 Pip is now in Year 10 and officially at the start of her GCSE journey; her journey with InterHigh continues as in Maths, English, Spanish and Geography.  She is also attending our local agricultural college one day a week for Landscape Architecture and Design.  Her first day last week was beset with all sorts of problems due to the hearing loss and PoTS, yet despite all of that she persevered and finished the day with a smile on her face.

We’ve had a summer of bedroom decorating and furniture building, Pip’s was the last room to be sorted.  Naturally this caused chaos in the rest of the household 🤪. I’m trying to very slowly finish painting the dining room which was promptly abandoned due to Covid last year.  The perching stool, a long handled roller and some new medications are helping 🙂.

I had my long awaited cardiology appointment last week and was finally diagnosed with post covid PoTS and I’m now on the same medications as Pip.  I’m trying to do bits of work but the payback in the form of post exertional malaise is pretty naff - horrendous nerve pain, increased fatigue, swollen glands and loss of balance.  I recognised where I went wrong last week so I’m hoping with some adaptations and cooler weather I’ll manage better this week.  

Here’s hoping I can be a bit more consistent in this space too.  Sending hugs to my blogging friends 🩷