Did You Clap?

Last night at 8pm people were being encouraged to stand at their doors and clap for the front line workers dealing with this current pandemic.  I wasn't sure if the folk in my neighbourhood would get involved but they did and it was quite moving to all join forces and show our appreciation at this difficult time.  I must admit I was sad when the street was quiet this evening, it was almost a case of 'job done' whereas  the folk in Italy are clapping and banging night after night, maybe the enormity of the approaching tsunami is yet to hit home in the UK.  The current lockdown is an attempt at flattening the curve but the predicted peak is in early June, so we have a long wait ahead of us for sure.

I am so grateful for the current warm spell, we have made the most of it and taken our lessons into the garden.  In between the home schooling I have managed to keep up with household tasks and done my absolute best to tackle a job and then have at least a twenty minute  sit down in between.  It has been great to peg the washing on the line, you cannot beat the smell of line dried laundry :-)

Our Sainsbury's click and collect order was arranged for just after 8:00am this morning and this meant leaving the house just after half seven.  In normal circumstances you would avoid travelling into the city at that time of the morning due to schools traffic and those on the daily commute.  It was quite surreal to be sailing through the city centre and even the pedestrians were thin on the ground.  Sadly the homeless folk are still on the streets but the latest news is that councils have to organise hotel accomodation for them all by the end of the weekend.  Without a doubt we have a duty of care to those less fortunate but when all this blows over, I hope and pray that they won't just be turfed out onto the streets once more.  Can you imagine how awful it would be to be given the luxury of a roof over your head, clean sheets and the luxury of running water only for it to be taken away as quickly as it was given?

After a yummy beakfast of porridge, cream and chocolate pieces Pip set too with her English work, I tackled the bedrooms and Ben organised the lunch and put away the shopping.  Our afternoon was equally productive, Pip had her first Skype session with her maths tutor and Ben began painting our new compost bin.  I kept him company in the sunshine and we prayed The Divine Mercy Chaplet for some dear friends that are poorly with the virus.  I also decided to lay aside my current crochet blanket and instead work on some rainbow coloured bunting for the dining room window.  I don't know how it started but kids around the UK are colouring rainbows and hanging them in their windows as a sign of hope to the world.  As a result I have joined forces with the yarn community to spread some yarny cheer as folk pass by on their daily walk. 

Here are some pictures from our days:

 Even Poppy is enjoying the sunshine.

 Gathering the necessary sheets for the maths session.

 Garden maths from yesterday.

Really tasty Lasagne courtesy of Ben.

This lad always loves to help and really enjoys practical based activities.

One of the "Good Morning" WhatsApp family photos courtesy of Sara and Tom, that smile says, 'Isn't life great!'  xx

The Best and The Worst

It is interesting to note human behaviour in response to this pandemic.  We hear of balcony musicians and artists serenading in Italy and neighbours leaving notes offering help with shopping or collecting medicines.  Conversely we also hear of people buying huge quantities of pasta and refusing to share a bag with an elderly person or baby formula milk being sold on ebay for at least twice its normal retail value :-(  Hardly surprising then that the supermarkets are now limiting items and even offering early morning shopping hours for the vulnerable and elderly.  There is enough for everyone's need but not for certain folks greed!

Needless to say we were very grateful that most of the items that we ordered were in our delivery this morning, the only two missing items were chicken breasts and toilet roll!  I had managed to purchase a pack of loo roll last Friday so we are not without. 

Pip has once again kept herself busy with her illustrations and it is great to see the progression of her work.  Ben did struggle with not being at college but he rallied after lunch and had some fun in the garden, in fact they both enjoyed some outdoor time.  Thank goodness for blue skies and sunshine, it makes this whole lock down more bearable for sure.

Maintaining contact with family members is reassuring.  We telephoned Em in Northern Spain this morning and the community is fine at the moment. However there are two Home of The Mother communities based in Madrid and Em said the city is on a total lock down which is enforced by the army and police.  She mentioned Fr Raphael's homily from yesterday and three coments particularly struck a cord, " Don't complain, be thankful and be brave."  It is true things could be a whole lot worse, we have access to medical services and sanitation, the poor folk in impoverished communities or refugee camps have nothing.

Sara, Tom and Oliver are well and were able to celebrate Ollie's 2nd birthday with friends.  That little boy is such a cheery chap, you cannot help but smile when he is around.  Naturally we weren't with them but thanks to the wonders of Whatsapp were able to see pictures of his day.

Prayers would be appreciated for our daughter Kathryn as she works flat out navigating support for the vulnerable people in her care. On top of which Mary has had a second asthma attack but due to the current guidelines associated with any cough, they are now both on self isolation for seven days. Poor Kath is having to work from home whilst entertaining a not actually sick child, it will be a challenging week for all concerned.

 Left over roast dinner vegetables and gravy from yesterday topped with our favourite herb dumplings.

 Busy weeding along the side fence.

 Mum and Son Selfie :-)

Fire Fun

Trying to keep warm over the measly flame, thank goodness for the mug of tea!

Ollie Bear Birthday Photos

 A walk to a castle.

 Helping in the garden.

 Hiding in the teepee.

 Playing with the vacuum cleaner hose!

 Tea trolley boy :-)

Saturday Snippets

We actually managed to make church today! This is a big deal at our end since we have not attended in months due to continued ill health. It was just lovely to be in the presence of The Lord and I had a bonus by also attending confession, the best form of therapy and totally free :-)

It has been a mixed week in the school room with bursts of activity followed by periods of independent learning when I had been up all night due to sickness and needing to rest the next day.  I have rallied in between so two outings were accomplished much to Pip's relief!!  That girl just hates being home bound and can climb the walls both literally and metaphorically if she is cooped up two days in a row ;-)

Knitting has been my go to therapy and I am currently tackling one of my goals which is to make handmade gifts throughout the year for birthdays and Christmas where possible.  I also have an additional challenge of 12 pairs of handmade socks in a year, so it will be interesting to see how I fair.

Here are our pictures of the week:

 I made my own home made deoderant and it not only turned out surprisingly well it works well too!  It is a combination of coconut oil, bicarbonate of soda, cornstarch and organic essential lemon oil.  My mix is not an anti-perspirant but I don't have any real issues in that department.  However I have since learned that Zinc Oxide is a natural antiperspirant and so I might consider adding it to the next batch.

 Pip enjoyed using the felted Rosary that I made and we prayed one of the joyful mysteries together.

Pyjama home school before breakfast and yes that is the correct time!  That was the morning of my being up all night quite unwell.  I sat in the rocking chair with a hot water bottle and my knitting.  Pip was quite surprised to see me up and about at such a time!

 My January socks, one pair down eleven more to go :-)

 Sour cherry, cacao and almond bites.  The cherries contain anti inflammatory properties and the combination of the three ingredients are also supposed to help with insomnia aswell as pain, I can report that they and the Potters' Herbal sleep remedy did the job.

 Pip totally bemused by an old fashioned type writer, " You actually put paper in the top and it doesn't send emails?!!"

 Lovely gifts from friends!  Pip grabbed the camera and took this fuzzy picture to show Chanda that she loves her cat!  We love the napkins Dorina and the books what a lovely gift to cheer on a dreary January day :-)

 #womensmarch #pinkhat

Women and men marched on Washington today sporting pink hats in the shape of a cat's head;  there were also similar marches in London. Even Cate Blanchett was spied wearing such a tifter in a similar march in NYC on Thursday.  They were marching against Donald Trump and his so called "values."

Here in the Madness Abode there have been no pink hats but pink slippers instead!  Standing in solidarity with those marching against hatred and division today.  These slippers are quite poignant; they were bought by a dear family friend whose wife died at the start of last year.  Aunty Maureen loved butterflies :-)  She had a generous heart and would always reach out to others in need and I know that she would be appalled at the state of our world.  How can one man who has displayed such appalling behavious be in charge of and represent a nation?

Renegade knitters unite! 

Weekend

 Jungle Clearing.

 Harvesting.

 Mid afternoon well deserved snack.

 Playing shop.

 The stamp game.

 Paper plane experiments, a straw tube plane versus...

 ... a sleek pencil point dart version.

 The tube plane did admirably but it was not a match for the traditional old fashioned and time honoured technology ;-)

 "Let's have a race!"