Project 52 2020 week 22 – in the sun
Week 22 of the year, and now lockdown is being eased slightly with some shops and places now open. Next week will see even more as well as some children going back to school. Sounds like school reckon about 80% will be heading back. N won’t be due back until a later phase.
While I’m not convinced school will be able to fit them all in without mish-mashing timings, and the group restrictions, potentially having to be taught by a TA rather than his teacher depending on how it works. Lack of all the stuff that excites N, and antisocial distancing I’m dithering whether he’ll be going back. I don’t like most of the things that will have to be in place, but my big concern is if he doesn’t go back, he’ll be so far behind those who are being taught properly as well as being behind where friendship groups move on. The OH says he’s not going back til September so that might be it anyway.
Here’s our week.
On Sunday, it was the 2nd day of my Ceroc dance weekender. I did a bit of zumba, some tap, and a couple of line dancing classes. It was nice to be able to do some solo dancing as well as try some new classes. I made some jam tarts from leftover pastry, but managed to drop one as I took it out the tin and got hot lemon curd all over my fingers. Luckily the cold tap plus a medical spray did the job and no sign the next morning of any pain, burns or blisters.
Monday was bank holiday. The OH wasn’t doing any jobs that N fancied helping with so we got out a karaoke bluetooth mic I’d got on a Black Friday deal to give as a present. But then I decided not to give it, so haven’t got it out yet. We couldn’t work out how to get the volume down when using the tv vs the laptop. good fun, but only for when noone else is around on the farm to overhear us.
Not much done on Tuesday. I had 2 days off work for half term, but N spent most of the time off out on the farm. He said he’s seen a couple of his school friends when he’s been out checking the cows with Gramp, as there’s a footpath behind the village which goes across the airfield where the cows are. I read, did some jigsaw puzzle, watched a film, and just generally relaxed.
On Wednesday it was more of the same. I’ve snacked really badly this week so decided to make some keto fudge to at least attempt to get back on my diet. It definitely wasn’t like fudge, and too coconutty without a decent chocolate hit (cocoa just isn’t the same for chocolate flavour in fudge). So not the best, but I’m plouging my way through it a square or 2 a day. I’m glad it was only a small batch.
Thursday I was back working although after only a few days off, it was really hard to go back to it. I was really excited to see a jay come into the garden for the first time ever, although it was so much bigger than I thought (bigger than a starling). Someone mentioned they eat baby birds, and with all the tits and finches presumably nesting at the moment, I don’t want that to happen. So hopefully it might go away again. We had a very successful tea of pork tenderloin cooked in butter, garlic and herbs in foil. It’s nice when someone appreciates the food I cook (N), especially when it was a bit of a ‘dig whatever meat I could find out of the freezer’ meal.
On Friday, I worked a half day as I had some flexi time to use up. I had my INR appointment at the surgery through the window. This time the nurse was in full PPE visor and scrubs. My INR level had skyrocketed to the highest it’s ever been. It means my blood isn’t clotting for ages so this is dangerous and I need to look out for bruises. Given it’s been lower rather than high for most of the last year, it’s odd. Apart from the last few weeks doing more exercise and eating less salads than I was before lockdown, there’s no real reason for it to have jumped. (Although I did have a mental block earlier in the week because I couldn’t remember if I’d taken my tablets, so I might have actually doubled up, Oops).
I guess now my medication has dropped to try and lower it, we’ll see if it goes way too low when I go back next week. In the meantime, any random bruises or cutting myself my accident, I’ll need to go to hospital and might need vitamin K to bring it out. Salad eaten at lunchtime to help as well.
It was another beautiful hot day, so I sat out in the sun in the garden for a bit until the irritation from my sun cream got to my eyes too much. N and his cousin spent a lot of time playing – pretty socially distant with one on the quad bike and then N racing him on his push bike. Hours of fun.
Saturday was a lazy day (again). Felt a bit like a Sunday. Spent a bit of time sitting outside doing my jigsaw. N got a bit upset because his cousin drove N’s quadbike into the fence and now it doesn’t work. I rescued some glass from the puppy who had discovered the glass that N had left on the BBQ top. She managed to knock it off, smash it, and then make off with a large piece. She held it so daintily in her mouth. Luckily one thing she is trained to do is return with an item she’s collected and to drop it. So it was easy to retrieve. Then I had to pick up all the broken glass while holding her off. Let’s just say I had a very sopping doggy breath hand afterwards!
This week’s project 52 photo was taken after I’d finished work for the day on Friday, and I decided to do some blogging in the garden.
Posts this week:
Oh no re the quadbike!
I am not sure how much formal teaching will happen anyway for those are at school at the moment considering the percentage of kids that have gone back is so low.
So lovely to be able to sit outside and do some blogging and glad you enjoyed the dance weekender. Hope your INR levels come down to safer levels soon. #project366
Sorry to hear N’s cousin drove his quadbike into the fence. If I remember correctly, he has a tendency of taking N’s things and breaking them. I would be terribly upset in N’s place.
I’m not worried about Eddie not being taught at school. I think we are good teachers. It’s the social aspect that’s missing, but then they wouldn’t have that at school anyway with all the social distancing.
Sorry to hear your INR levels are high, hope you get it sorted. I have my kids name down for school as I am back to working in the nursery, but I watched them playing on the field and they were all kept two meters apart. It was really sad 🙁
Oh no! I hope you have managed to get the quad bike working. Love the outside space. I wish I could work outside but our wifi will not reach. Sorry to hear about the fudge, my youngest has a dairy allergy so we are use to the coconut subsitute but it doesn’t mean it always works!
I hope you can get your INR levels back to normal soon. It’s a bit of a worry if anything goes wrong healthwise at the moment. Glad you managed to get the glass successfully off the puppy.
Oh heck! I’d be miffed too if someone drove my quadbike into a fence… and I don’t even have one! The Keto fudge sounds interesting but I’m not a fan of coconut so may give that a miss. I do have a stock of coconut flour that I have used and appreciate it as I cannot taste the coconut. I am all ready to start making chaffles now though so am looking forward to getting started!
I’m with you on worrying about the lack of formal education and my daughter falling behind. I only have one pair of hands, that need to do every chore going, so patience and energy to keep home schooling is waning. No word from our school at all, even with Liv being a Year 6! I’ve given up with them and cannot wait to ‘officially’ leave! Sim x
Wow, that’s bad from the school. Ours do communicate quiet well, although N’s teacher is laid back. Hope you get some info soon. I had to make my chaffles baked int he oven because I don’t have a waffle maker. They needed a bit more cooking so I need a bit more practice with them.
Blogging in the garden looks very relaxing. I’ve not tried that before. That sounds like a worry about your blood, I hope all is. It sounds like N has had a busy, but fun week. x
Interesting on your INR, not something I have ever given much thought to, I bruise very easily and take ages to stop bleeding with the simplest of cuts.
Ouch to the lemon curd tart, glad there was a tap handy.
School is going to be weird for a long while yet, possibly after Christmas to get back to normal
My brother’s the other way, his clots really fast. I find blood differences fascinating now
Quite a tough situation for N. Woah do keep an eye out and take care of yourself; too quick and too slow clotting are very dangerous. Have plenty of Vitamin K, protein and calcium. true, dogs never leave you will a clean, fragrant hand
Blogging in the garden looks very relaxing! That sounds like a worry about your blood. How typical that you then had to clear up glass, it was lucky you didn’t cut yourself.
It sounds like N has had a busy and fun week. I’m glad I don’t have to take the decision about whether my kids will go back to school.
Wow your garden looks massive, what a great space. Shame the fudge didn’t turn out how you hoped. I want to try and eat better, but not sure I could cope with keto, I am just going to try and cut back on snacks and stick to just my meals, fingers crossed that will do the trick!
I know a lot of people who aren’t sending their kids back to school until September as they can either work from home or aren’t working. i hope you can get your INR levels back to normal and fingers crossed it was just a blip with the medication
Hope you manage to sort your blood clotting out. You just said you needed to be careful of cutting yourself, then you were busy clearing up broken glass ! *sigh* lol. Hope the quad bike can be mended. The dancing and karaoke sound fun. I’m back to work next week and, as far as I know, it’s half a class at a time – not sure yet if it’s two days on, two days off (like my son at primary school) or (I think) one week on, one week off. It’s the end of term in just over a month anyway, so no real time to get much done.
The karaoke sounds like a lot of fun!
Good luck with getting back on track with your diet.
That looks a lovely a lovely spot to do some blogging. x