28th February - 2nd March 2025 Post Comment Love

Welcome back to #PoCoLo with Stephanie from Bosworth.Life and I.

Post Comment Love #PoCoLo is a friendly weekly linky where you can link up any blog post you've written this week. If you're new or a regular visitor we're sure you'll find something of interest.

I'm loving all the signs of spring in the garden and the lighter mornings and evenings, but not so much the rain we've had this week. Sudden down pours that have left me soaked to the skin as I've walked around the school site.

Although I did enjoy the rainbow at the end of the day.

I received some disappointing news this week, that my contract at the school is unlikely to be renewed in September. Working there has been my one constant since we relocated back to the UK, but rather than waiting till the last minute to see if I'll get a reprieve like I did last last year, I'm being proactive and starting a job search asap.

We'd also appreciate your help spreading the #PoCoLo word on Twitter, tag us and we'll RT. You can find us on twitter here: Stephanie - @BosworthLife and Suzanne - @ChickenRuby 

I'll be catching up with reading your posts, sharing and commenting over the next few days. 

Want to find out more about Post Comment Love #PoCoLo? 

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Mount Stewart - National Trust. My favourite bits.

We took our grandson for a visit last week and whilst he was very well behaved, he was shorter than the ropes and would just wander into the rooms to take a look, so I had to keep a very close eye on him, while Peter talked to the guides.

Our grandson was well entertained though and I got some time to wander round freely while he explored with grandad and look at parts of the house I was interested in.

Mount Stewart is a National Trust Property in County Down on the shores of Strangford Lough. It underwent a three year £8 million restoration. Sadly after Storm Eowyn in January 2025, the gardens and grounds suffered extensive damage, so we didn't get to explore all of it.

I loved the openness of the rooms. You could only walk around the outside, but you felt you were actually in the room rather than just stood in the doorway peering in.

These panels really caught my attention.

I do love a good bit of colourful pottery.

I love a decorated table, sadly our cat just swipes things off.

It did feel like some of the rooms were a bit packed. I'd hate all the dusting.

The ceiling roses and the chandeliers were beautiful, again though, all that dusting.

Although our modern triple glazed windows don't call for shutters, I'd love to have some in our house.

Love the warm colours in this room. I used to rent a room in a former stately home with a sink in the corner and high ceilings, loved the huge windows, but it was bloody cold in the winter and most of the year.

You could have hours of fun playing hide and seek.

More dusting.

I love writing and having a writing desk, we're moving our under the window next week.

Tea corner in the bedroom. I have a bright green tea set, I think I'm going to use it in the dining room.

Huge bathroom, can imagine this room would have been cold, although it does look like there was a fire place. The toilet is hidden in a large chest far right.

The house was full of family portraits, this one caught my attention.

We'll visit again on our next trip and hopefully get to explore the grounds a bit more.

Week 8 2025 - One Daily Positive and Project 365. A week of Freddie.

We were over in Northern Ireland this week visiting our 3 yo grandson. He is such a joy to be around, but he just doesn't stop. He was quiet for 15 seconds the other day and I thought I'd lost him, we were still in the van. 

We had the cutest video call with our granddaughter and her baby brother at Freddie's request and for 20 minutes or so with me holding the camera, they did an alphabet jigsaw puzzle together.

I've had a migraine all week. I've had respite with medication and sleep. It's day 9 of it and I'm fed up now. I'll contact the GP on Monday.

It's easy to find a One Daily Positive in life, but what is hard is finding more than one. Every time I go to blog I find it's all about Stephanie, it's always so sad. Every single day there is something that triggers me. From a sound and turning round to see a couple with their disabled young son, knowing the struggles they are facing, the problems ahead, the finance battles, taking 2nd place as their son becomes an adult, will they be fortunate to secure funding for adult care? or do they think they won't need it and will cope? Then there's the blanket in the car, I straighten it, I smell it, it's lost the smell of Stephanie. We visit a National Trust site, it has a changing room toilet, a lift and offers special cutlery and plates, we'll never get to use it.

A man at the bus station was preaching about The King James Bible to me the other day, saying how God will punish me if I don't declare this to be the only version. He was old, deranged, smelt like he hadn't washed for a week. Me, being me, I was kind for a while, then I thought NO. I got up and waited elsewhere, he followed me. I told him, not so politely the third time to leave me alone.

Day 48

Lunch at soft play after walking the dogs and tag teaming each other to get ready whilst supervising a very busy 3yo. Popped into B&M at grandsons request, home to tidy up the toy box and cook dinner. 7 stories read for bedtime.

Day 49

Woken at 7 by an excited boy before nursery. Peter headed down to Dublin to see a friend and I spent the day in Lisburn. Back on the bus at 2pm to do some cleaning. Dinner and the outlaws came round to say hello. 9 bedtime stories tonight and I had to stay till he fell asleep.

Day 50

 I had a day to myself. A lazy morning. Took a walk for breakfast and coffee. Finished reading my first book of the year. Then I took the two dogs out for an hour. Spent the rest of the clean sorting out grandsons bedroom and cleaning upstairs. Peter back from Dublin around 3pm. Walk to the local shops to buy dinner. Put grandson to bed with 5 story books. Caught up with Eastenders and an early night.

Day 51

A day out at Mount Stewart, National Trust. Lunch, walks, play park in the woods, I had to be rescued from a tree and we all got muddy. Home via a food shop, dinner, bath time and 7 story books.

Day 52 

After a morning at soft play, we baked cakes and had our last cuddles before heading home. Ferry delayed till midnight due to the weather, but comfy in the van having a snooze and watching tv at the port.

Day 53

We docked in Birkenhead at 7.15am. I slept all night. Stopped at Attingham Park, nr Shrewsbury, National Trust for lunch and a look round on our way home. Called in for a food shop, unpacked, greeted by a cross cat, hoovered, 3 loads of washing on, rugby watched, dinner, bath and an early night.

Day 54

A slow day of getting the house back to normal after a week a way. House was clean and tidy before we left. Yet we managed to make a mess just from unpacking the van and doing the washing. I popped out at 4pm for a coffee after a second dose of migraine meds. 9th day now. Rest of the evening spent in the bath, then tv and an early night.

Something to make you smile?

I had to be rescued from a children's play adventure area after I climbed up a wooden structure then realised I couldn't turn round to go back down the ramp and didn't fancy the slippery plank in front of me. Peter found it funny and grandson told everyone I got stuck in a tree.

Things that made me happy this week:

Having video calls between the grandchildren and helping them play together to complete a jigsaw puzzle. They've actually only met 4 times face to face. Getting out and about. Coming home to Pushkins who was very well looked after by my friend.

Books read this week: 

29 Children's stories.

Lies to Tell - Marion Todd

Julius Caesar - William Shakespeare

On the blog this week:

A day out with National Trust at Mount Stewart.

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21st - 23rd February 2025 Post Comment Love

Welcome back to #PoCoLo with Stephanie from Bosworth.Life and I.

Post Comment Love #PoCoLo is a friendly weekly linky where you can link up any blog post you've written this week. If you're new or a regular visitor we're sure you'll find something of interest.

We're in Northern Ireland this week looking after our 3 year old grandson. Good job we're both here. He's not stopped all week, we're exhausted. It didn't help I arrived with a migraine. Even when he's sitting still he doesn't stop talking and every other toy is noisy or he makes it noisy, but we're loving it. These days don't last forever. He's got a baby brother due the end of April. 

We're heading home this evening on the ferry and will be spending Sunday with our Granddaughter who is 5 and our grandson who will be 2 weeks old on Monday. We've already had cuddles with him, but you can never have too many cuddles, can you?

We'd also appreciate your help spreading the #PoCoLo word on Twitter, tag us and we'll RT. You can find us on twitter here: Stephanie - @BosworthLife and Suzanne - @ChickenRuby 

I'll be catching up with reading your posts, sharing and commenting over the next few days. 

Want to find out more about Post Comment Love #PoCoLo? 

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter

Mount Stewart - National Trust. A day out with our Grandson

We've had both English Heritage and National Trust memberships over the years, but this is the first time we've had both at the same time. Where we live we have a couple of both organisations running places near us. English Heritage suited us better when the children were smaller and we used it a lot when we were on holiday. National Trust has suited us better since we moved back to the UK what with having a dog, but now we find that with having a camper van and travelling a bit further, that we're actually using both some membership of the two was a logical decision and we're in credit with both within a couple of months of joining having visited numerous places far and wide already.

We're currently in Northern Ireland visiting family and took our Grandson out for the day. An hours drive away on the edge of Strangford Loch is Mount Stewart, a 19th century house and gardens in County Down.

There was so much to see and do at the house. Our 3 yo grandson was fully entertained for the entire visit from the tea rooms where he could do some colouring in where he was able to eat his packed lunch while we had coffee, sandwiches and cakes to exploring the house and being given little challenges by the staff to find certain objects in each room, and found the hidden toilet hysterical, to running around the grounds, watching the swans on the lake, hands on experience in the look out by the car park before we even entered the grounds, the nature woodland play area to buying new bed time books in the second hand book store. He even got to see his favourite tele handler outside the main house and was fascinated with the number of fallen trees after storm Éowyn. 

I'll do a follow up next week of the rest of the house and grounds and the things I go to look at when Peter wasn't reading all the information boards and I got a chance to take photos without worrying about a 3 yo slipping under the ropes and touching things.

Week 7 2025 - One Daily Positive and Project 365

The anxiety, panic attacks, not sleeping and not eating peaked again over the past two weeks. At first I thought it was due to Stephanie's birthday last week, but that passed with some happy memories of her childhood and the anxiety got worse, peaking on Monday evening with what should have been good news causing me to over think the worse that something was going to go very wrong with the birth of our new grandchild. Thankfully all was good, but I really struggle to shake the feeling of impending doom I carry with me on a daily basis. It's tiring, I'm sure everyone is fed up of hearing about it. I'm fed up of saying it, writing it and feeling it. It's draining.

Our 3rd Grandchild was born on Monday, a boy, we had 2 visits with him and our granddaughter who is so excited to be a big sister. I ended the week with a migraine, but we're in Northern Ireland now for a week visiting our other grandson, so I can't fail to be happy and get on with things. it does me good to get away.

Day 41

Peter dropped me off near a students house so I could walk with them to work. He then collected me and we went to the cinema to watch September 5 only 2 other people there. Good movie. Had some really good news this evening. Off to bed happy.

Day 42

Popped into Morrisons on the way to work. Peter walked down to meet me and after the longest day in work ever, what could be better than cuddles with our new grandchild? We got home late, had a bath, then off to bed.

Day 43

Slept through my alarm, collected a student on the way to work, a full on day, lots of drama, but handled well. Coffee after work, collected my new glasses from Specsavers, had some photos developed. Video call with grandson. Watched TV, bath and an early night. Thought I might give this a go and see if I can get back into reading a book a week.

Day 44

It never seems to stop in work, I blunder through one lesson to the next. Currently reading Julius Caesar and trying to catch up with the English department so I can deliver lessons to my students. Another text to learn, I'd hoped for another year of Macbeth. Met Peter at the retail park, home to bake cakes for work in the morning and sort out my handbag and get some dairy dates written down.

Day 45

Van dropped for MOT, all good. Quiet day in work, had 1:1 and small group teaching. B12 jab after work. Drive to visit grandchildren, home late for tea and toast, tv, bath and bed.

Day 46

We had a lie in, washing on, a tidy up, coffee with friend, key dropped to cat sitter, car fuelled, bags packed. Drive to the ferry via Cheshire Oaks for dinner. A rough crossing but managed some sleep.

Day 47

We arrived at 7.30am and this one has been non stop chattering and bouncing. We’ve done colouring in, baked cakes, been out shopping, had bath time and read a gazzilion books. I’m exhausted. But happy.

Something to make you smile?

The service in the coffee shop was slow and half way through making my coffee the server disappeared to sort out a complaint at the counter, another customer decided to air her complaint via me and was loudly talking to the thin air about how long I was having to wait and how my coffee was getting cold while I was waiting for the other one to be made. 

Not sure I really wanted to celebrate with Specsavers my eye sight deteriorating. 

Things that made me happy this week:

A new grandchild.

A letter from the Neurologist who says that even though my migraines have been reduced greatly on Topirimate, that from 15 a month to 5 a month is still impacting on my quality of life and I'm entitled to a new drug trial to start in April.

I love where we live and having proper corner shops within a 5 minute walk when we run out of things.

Valentine's for Pushkins, tempted in Mulberry but refrained.

On the blog this week:

The good bits of January

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