Hello you.... how the devil are you...?

Feeling good I hope.... 

Me ? 

oh I am fine.... 

thank you for asking .... 

I do so love all you caring, sharing, lovely people... 

a few things are still preying on my mind but life is too short to bore you with the daily grind and grief of living in the grey areas of this strange little thing called "life" and to delve too deeply into the question "what exactly is the point of it all" would open a can of worms that is, in my humble opinion, on a par with Pandora's box.... to be honest I think I am one Prozac short of a smile these days as it is... 

We have had a visit from the Pope, not personally I mean the country I live in... now I have no real religious beliefs and to be honest the Government have never asked me how I think they should spend our hard earned taxes so I have little opinion to share on that issue either... but I have a question for people that have religion in their lives... are your lives easier? do you have to deal with the everyday rubbish that seems to be filling up my life at the moment? or does God (whomever he/she might be) shelter you from these like a giant umbrella?

I don't know why I have no religion... could be that my parents were not that way inclined... I did go to Sunday school with my friend... I enjoyed the colouring in and the bible stories were good... I have always been brought up to consider others and mind my manners which a lady on the radio yesterday said was the root of Catholicism...  and I live my life in a considerate and community based manner... perhaps if I didn't analyse everything so much I might have religion in my life... I have no clue where I am going with this! lol

I almost watched a programme about the designing and building of a Malaysian garden that won a gold at Chelsea and the plants man went to Malaysia to research his designs.... he stayed in a small Malaysian village and everyone lived in a very tight knit community where the consequences of your actions and the repercussions they may cause to your friends and family were far more important than your own needs... it was a way of life that does not seem to exist in the bigger part of the modern world.... Unfortunately I didn't see the end of the programme as I was putting the kids to bed...

Well this week has been a tough one... Daniel was sick on Sunday afternoon... he was fine in himself but I followed the 48 hour rule for returning to school after vomiting and Daniel stayed home Monday and Tuesday... and as I was full of cold too Jamie stayed off school as I didn't feel well enough to drive... They are both back to school now and the commuting has begun again... I rang Somerset County Council today and after talking to 5 different departments I was informed the lady I need to speak to is off today and that she'll ring me back on Monday... knowing my luck I will be out driving when she rings... I think I will give them my mobile number in future ...lol and the ever growing pessimist taking up residence in my being thinks that the phone call will not come anyway... I shall ring again on Monday..

I think the half term "Halloween Holidays" will be the crunch time... I have to set myself a deadline to make a decision as I cannot keep going with no end in sight... at least if she moves school it will just mean a new tie as the rest of the uniform is the same... my only concern is that Jamie isn't good at making new friends, she's not the most sociable of girls and currently spends most of her time being moody and teenager - ee.... not a lot of fun... Daniel is loving school and now has lunch at school the week before half term he will start full days so I will be half an hour later picking up Jamie as I can't be in 2 places at the same time... but at least my day will be longer and I can get more stuff done... 

I still haven't sorted out hte chickens but my cousin has some hybrids available next week so I think I might take a look and see if they appeal... I think I will get 3 and if I don't get on and sort it out then it'll never happen! lol Mr P was worried about what would happen when we go on holiday... as we have never had a holiday I am not sure whether he was joking or promising me a holiday next year... lol

So much to do and not sure where to start... 

but at least its FRIDAY!

we are having a Chinese and a bottle of wine (or 2) as a treat perhaps that will ease the neck and shoulder pain that seems to have struck ... I think its just tense muscles but perhaps some hard labour in the garden clearing and sorting will loosen me up a bit... 

well I had better go and get on with the washing up...

wishing you all fantastic weekends and I hope the sun shines on you wherever you may be

take care

Alex

x

I could cry.... for all the wrong reasons!

This is not a reason to cry...
Maybe I am a hard hearted mother but I have no fears or concerns about my beautiful boy going to school... he's ready and it is the next step in him becoming a balanced self sufficient young man... there were no tears, no sobbing and clinging to each other ...
I said "bye, seeya later!"... he waved, smiled and blew me a kiss!

That was Thursday... Friday was the same and for a treat Saturday afternoon we went to the seaside for tea....

Still no real reason for tears I hear you say!

yep you'd be right!

So what possibly could be wrong?

Driving!

I have come to realise that driving is not my "thang"... this could explain why I never jumped at the chance of being a rep or long distance lorry driver...

The school run is officially killing me.... but I think the biggest downer is the fact that I cannot see a light at the end of the tunnel... Somerset County Council have basically told me its "not their problem" and that I chose for my daughter to go to a school outside the catchment area. They are not required to accommodate these children within the school transport system... she's welcome to a seat on the bus if there's one spare and they will kindly take the £550.00 a year but if there's no spare seats.... tough luck!

With this in mind there is little point Jamie (12 year old daughter) continuing at this smaller, much nicer, friendlier Secondary School as I can't afford the £70 a week in fuel to get her there and back.... and there is little point Daniel attending Queen Camel village school that is so much nicer than Yeovil's Infant schools....

It would appear that because we can't afford to live in the villages further away from Yeovil (we are in the first village out!) that my children do not qualify for assistance to get them to school... we don't claim benefits, tax credits and we don't expect free hand outs we don't even expect a free bus ride... we are happy to pay £550.00 for Jamie to go to school in an area where her friends go and where the school treats the children as individuals and not just one of the masses...

The kick in the teeth is when the powers that be quite frankly don't give a donkeys dick for the tax paying hard working population that live in the fringes of the "catchment" area of all those wonderful rules and regulations...

My mental health should not be suffering due to an issue over a school for my daughter, its ridiculous that this is causing me so much upset... there are people out there in much worse crisis than me... homeless, starving, abused and on and on.....

and the system abusers just keep going and take more and more, for example another family living purely on benefits neither parents have ever worked and as they now have 8 children the council are knocking 2 houses into one... last week it was a family of 12 that had 2 houses knocked into one...

trying to live by the rules is pointless and depressing!

Perhaps I should just cut back on something else (not sure what though, we have never had a holiday) and pay the £2,700 in fuel this year to get Jamie to school after all her education and future is worth it... maybe I will eventually get use to driving 50 miles a day...

isn't that what we do?

keep plugging away and live with the bureaucratic bull sh*t... what with that and our amazing talent at queuing that's what makes us fabulously English!

Well if you have made it this far I commend you
and I apologise for having a rant

I am just tired

on a more cheerful note...
would you like to see the downside of having a stainless steel worktop?

The culprit of course is!

The kitchen is almost done and I shall reveal it to you all soon...

well its 11 O'clock and I have half an hour before I have to go and pick up Daniel... next week he'll be having lunch at school so it will be a 1pm pick up... after Halloween Daniel will start full days at school... so at least the school run will be 6 miles less a day... lol

big hugs to you all and I hope you are all well
take care
Alex
x

Versatile? aw shucks... do you think so?

I have received an award from the lovely Jacey at Coffee n Crochet thank you ! I love her blog and the crochet creations , charity shop finds, hedgerow foraging and scrummy cakes..... a real mixed bag of a blog....

now I have to do 3 things...

thank the award giver...... check!
tell you 7 interesting things about myself.... oh crumbs!
and give the award to 15 fellow blogger's..... okaly dokaly!

now let me see!

1.
even though I have always stated "team player" on all my CV's I really much prefer to get on and do a job by myself... firm believer in " if you want something done properly.... do it yourself!"

2.
Having 3 older brothers I have always veered away from being a "girly girl" but I have in the past year or 2 I have accepted that I love pretty things... and am starting to be the real me... pleasing myself rather than anyone else....

3.
I use to be totally ambidextrous and could write perfectly with both hands... when I was little my teachers told me to only write with my right hand but I still do most things with either hand...

4.
I have a fear of heights but would love to go up in a hot air balloon

5.
I can roller skate, ski, trampoline, ballroom dance, ride a bicycle and swim
(not all at the same time though!)

6.
I cannot stand Marmite... but I love Mr P enough to make him a Marmite sandwich

7.
I love Reese's Nutrageous bars, if I find them in a shop I buy 3 or 4 and hide them at home...

now for the 15 lucky award winners.... let me see!

1. Ratbag
This lady has had her share of ups and downs and her blog is a mixture of what is going on in this amazing ladies life...and random funny thoughts and happenings... love you Taz, hope your feeling better soon....


2. Sweet Locus Lane Farm
I love this blog for its recipes, its full of real life in a Country I would love to visit and/or live in one day...

3. Cally's Cottage
Such a lovely blog and she loves the same things as me... especially the house in Practical Magic...

4. Menopausal musing
Cathy is a wonderful lady always a supportive word and her posts are amusing sometimes obscure but always wonderful

5. Somerset Seasons
Such a love of nature and the world around us, she helps to keep me grounded and connected with the world around me, sharpening my eyes to notice the un-noticed...

6. Down East Doing Stuff
an amazing artist and posts about the most hilarious goings on at times yet also shares the real stuff... I am loving getting to know this lady and her "birdman" husband

7. Gambits View
This Lady is such a star... through thick and thin and through pain and poorly health she still keeps smiling and crochet and knits her way through life... and she makes me think outside the box and I love her for it! big hugs to you, hope your feeling better today!

8. Marigold Jam
A lovely lady living in my neck of the woods, we will have to meet up one day soon! lol
with amazing childhood memories and a varied content blog ... superb!

9. A Bun Can dance
Denise is a wonderful lady who also opens my eyes to seeing things from a different perspective... and I appreciate this especially when my eyes are a little foggy

10. One day at a time
now this lady is definitely keeping it real... there's no beating around the bush with this gal... lol
I love stopping by for a visit and checking out what she up to on the other side of the pond...

11. Serendipity, Raindrops and Roses
I love this blog and back reading about her visit to England while accompanying a friend was so exciting to read about a visitors view of the place where you live... so many differing creative talents and a lovely lady to boot!

12.Dollytub Cottage
what a hoot this mad cap lady is... she's started an agony aunt service too! lol love her to bits!

13. Itch2Stitch
Do you remember the illustrations in the old Enid Blyton or Milly Molly Mandy books? this wonderful lady paints pictures just like those and she embroiders them too and the antics of her and George are hilarious at times... big hugs to you Susie and happy holidays in London...

14. Smilernpb
Nicola has become a good friend since we did a swap many moons ago... and her blog covers the trials and tribulations of being a mum of 3, when she has any spare time she makes some fantastic felt and cross stitch pieces too! I have a beautiful owl and a flowery button badge (that's on my bag!) and seaside cross stitch picture... Hi Nicola!

15. Roman Sock
Now this blog is fairly new to me I came across it when I was searching for a tortoise crochet pattern and her amigurumi patterns are amazing and I love how she brushes the yarn to make the animals fluffy and cute.... so much talent....

16. Snippity Gibbet
this lady is amazing and her creations with a piece of paper and a pair of scissors are so beautiful... I dearly wish she were teaching art to my children such creativeness is a joy to behold..

17. Mary Poppins
Now I don't know how she does it but this lady is "connected!" and she hosts the most amazing giveaways... and she's a fabulous crafty lady too making wonderful creations... I am currently working on a swap parcel for her and I hope to have it posted very soon... trouble is I have fallen out of love with the creation I have made her .. do you ever do that? and I think tomorrow morning I will make something different! lol

18. Lisa Ridgeon Originals
I love Lisa's creations I have many items that she has made from cakes to Halloween creations... a very friendly person who I promise I will meet up with one day... lol

19. Contented
Rachel is fabulous blogger and I love her little felt birdie brooches that she makes (I have just bought 2 more... lol) and her blog is full of scrummy fabric and creations... today I am wearing an orange birdie brooch... and I always get comments about them... the others adorn my bag... be a shame to leave them at home! lol

20. oh my goodness I was only suppose to do 15! lol

I love all of my fellow bloggers for a whole host of different reasons... I always follow people who follow me and I always add you to my side bar... I may not always comment but I try to as often as I can...

take care all you lovely scrummy people
and have a wonderful weekend where ever you may be!

I will be back next week with the comings and goings of Daniels first days at school and the final reveal on the kitchen