Project 52 2025 week 46
It’s been a busy week with work, a proper autumn weather week too with storms, and it feels like it’s been ages since half term and time off. Yawn. I don’t think it helps that I’m currently ploughing my way through some of the work books in a bookset I’ve read for a long time. I think I need to not finish and move to another book. Anyway, here’s my week 46 for project 52.
Sunday – another day another garden centre. I headed to Daventry to Whilton Locks which I’d heard was good. Their ice rink and Christmas booked activities don’t start for another week, but that meant it wasn’t too crowded. The decoration displays were huge. Most places have lots of trees decorated in different themes. This place just shows the baubles hung up on the walls. So many to choose from, and they were on 3 for 2. So a bargain, although there weren’t that many glass, or unusual shapes (other than the kitsch type). Their picks weren’t my kind of thing either (a bit garish for the metallic ones), but for wreaths or garlands there was so much choice if you’re into that kind of thing.
The rest of the day was back home, prepped a roast (roast potatoes take a lot longer in this oven, so I’m having to get used to it.
Monday – back to work and school. Nipped out at lunch to post a couple of Vinted purchases. Warning to those who’ve got listings, they’ve changed the women’s sizing so all your listing need their sizes edited. Spent the evening getting the OH’s government ID set up (painful) so he could check his NI contributions. Then turned out mine was even more painful. I couldn’t track down my Gateway login details anywhere, so went to set up a new one thinking it was weird it didn’t recognise my email I receive HMRC tax emails to. It didn’t like my newly set up one because I already had a personal tax account set up. Turns out it was to an old BT email I’ve not used for years. So now I’m going to have to ring them. But I don’t understand how I can login for my self assessment with no issues (usually), but this time I’ve been unable to. If it’s because I ‘remembered’ the OHs details on my laptop, that is so frustrating.
Tuesday – office day. It was very wet, so much rain, but we’ve still got the hosepipe ban on (this despite us living 2 minutes from a different water company area who’s have no bans all summer). Dancing was busier this evening, pretty much full complement back in the improvers class.
Wednesday – long working day. I couldn’t make it to the face to face away day so had to dial in due to a lunch time webinar I needed to host. All went well so that was a relief, but I’ve still got a couple of technical bits to sort out for the next one. Exciting times as I’ve now moved to the next level ad network. So hopefully the switch won’t make too much of a change for readers as things balance out behind the scenes.
Thursday – good dancing, back to being quite busy with everyone again. Planning for the Christmas social where it’s bring a plate, so I must remember to make sausage rolls for that one. Back home late to do remember to do my Tesco order, catch up on MAFS, and then noticed Black Friday deals were on, so ordered a new pair of dance trainers as I’d like a spare pair to keep for the nice floors rather than my originally white ones which now have a black sole from the disgusting sticky floor in the community centre.
The school trip to Iceland is up for registering. And bizarrely N isn’t fussed. As it’s a geography trip and he’s never done a foreign school trip I think it would be amazing and worth doing, but fairly he does say for 30 kids, across 2 maybe 3 school years, and split girls/boys, there’s not much chance of going with any friends. Such a shame they make these trips so amazing, when we just did field trips in Wales or Ireland and had a blast with many of your school year going. I’d quite happily go to Iceland, it would be a dream trip.
Friday – horrendous weather from the storm. Thankfully not too much wind, but various routes that I’d go to the dance social were likely to get flooded. The monthly dance social was cancelled due to the weather which was a shame but probably sensible. And tennis was also off. I worked late because I had so much to get done before 2 days out of the office next week.
Saturday – all about the haircuts. I had mine first thing (price has gone up again, ouch, that’s twice this year), then N had his in the afternoon. He was back on car washing, so finally had mine done. It’s probably a bit pointless because it was a miserable drizzly day but at least no flooding risks. I was not happy to hear Last Christmas playing on the radio at just after 8am on the way into town. Way too early, and I’m not a fan of that song as it is.
New posts this week:
Things I’ve enjoyed this week:
- Starting to watch Christmas movies
- The weekend. It’s been a long work week, and I won’t get all my hours back this month
- A new garden centre visit.
Things I’m grateful for this week:
- Upgraded ad network level with better rates, I’m sure I’ll go straight back down because I’m nowhere near their criteria!
- The rain had stopped after I left the hairdressers
- A nice clean car.
I do find the garden centre christmas ornaments a bit overwhelming, but I did find some lovely strawberries at a reasonable price to hang on the tree, yes they do fit my theme as well. I get my hair cut about once a year and my nails done every 6 weeks. If I add it up it’s about the same price Peter pays for his hair throughout the year. I hadn’t realised how much a man’s haircut cost these days. I was surprised at how few kids were interested on going on school trips at the school I used to work at, they said the journeys were too long and they had little time to enjoy things when they got there, too structured.
The garden centre looks like it has a lovely selection of baubles. Government Gateway logins can be really frustrating. Hope you managed to get yours sorted out. The trip to Iceland sounds amazing, it’s a shame N isn’t up for it, but I can see why. Sophie’s registered her interest for her first international school trip which won’t be until 2027 if she gets picked. Definitely way too early to hear ‘Last Christmas’ on the radio. Whamaggedon doesn’t start until 1st December though so you’re not out yet! #WotW
Remembering all the details to log in and check the status on the government’s website is so annoying. My husband does that for me, as I usually can’t be bothered to check.
It’s nice that you have new shoes. I completely missed the Black Friday sale, as I would have liked a new pair of shoes too.
I remember field trips at school, and they were always pretty local. I think there was an annual skiing trip, but my parents couldn’t afford it. The high school my kids go to has trips to America. Iceland does sound amazing, but not if N isn’t going to enjoy it.
It sounds like you had a really busy week. I’m glad you had the weekend to relax.
Yes we were the same. Every few years there was a ski trip, there was a history trip to Berlin to see the wall that had come down, but otherwise trips were outward bound style, then a Welsh week long Geography trip in Y10. N didn’t even want to do the Cornwall geography trip in Y9, but he did do the PGL trip the year before.
I am so sick of this Autumn weather already, mostly the rain! It feels like it’s never ending!
Oh wow! All those Christmas ornaments look fab!
I heard about the sizes on Vinted changing, what a faff for anyone who had anything listed. I helped my eldest set up her Government Gateway a long while ago and it was such pain.
That’s a shame that N isn’t fussed about the trip to Iceland. It is a dream trip!
He’s got 2 friends who want to go too so I’m hoping he will in the end. I think it’s so important he spreads his wings a bit, because he’s on the farm all the time. He needs to experience trips, and he is doing geography. But it would save my bank balance, because that’s the one trip I’d accounted for during his time at school, so it’s that option or only day trips.