Monday was Valentine's day. I had got a couple of little things for the girls.
Mark had got me a lovely card.
And I had got a few things for him including a plant for his desk.
I went for my walk after dropping the girls off.
Logging on for work I noticed I had been quoted in a
publication.
The external renderers turned up mid morning. First off it was a delivery of quite a bit of stuff.
Then they got to work attaching the insultation to the house. The noise of the drill was maddening, particularly when they were working right next to my window. My head was rattling by the end of the day, but they got on with it, and finished that stage.
On Tuesday, they were back again for the next stage, which was a render coat. A lot quieter...
Random memory picture, my little cuties....
Again, the workmen were very quick. Storms were moving in, so we were told it was unlikely they would be back until next week to finish off.
On Wednesday storm Dudley was passing through. He was affecting the north more severely, but still managed to blow one of the panels out of the greenhouse and into Nancy and Peter's garden. They passed it back through the badger hole. I went out to stow it in the greenhouse and noticed a beautiful Pelargonium bloom and that our olive tree actually had a black olive on it.
Netball was called off due to Dudley. Bunnykins had still got on the bus, so I went out to pick her up. When we got home she decided to make brownies.
They were yummy.
On Thursday I went out for my walk and it was another lovely sunrise. It was a calmer day before storm Eunice came through on Friday.
Passport photo for Mark...
At lunch we walked out to the charity shops to drop off some donations. They were all games including Busytown. I did feel nostalgic about letting it go. It is a game where you pick a card that says bins, or bananas, or umbrellas or something, and then you have to search the board to find the objects and there are little magnifying glasses you put on them. It is a game where you all work cooperatively and try to get to the end with your picnic intact. We all used to love it. I know someone else will enjoy it, and it is all lovely memory - I don't need to keep the game to keep the memory. I guess it is about those times passing and being past.
It was a really busy day, but I was keeping my eye on the weather. Eunice was threatening to be bad. A red weather warning was issued for our region with winds of 70mph + predicted for us.
Ben came across in the evening, and I was really glad to get to the end of the working day and just sit back and chat with a beer. I had been trying to get a large proposal in, I had someone else working with me which had taken some of the stress off, but it was still another full-on day.
We heard from the school that pupils were to stay at home due to the red warning. Some work would be set online, but it could be completed any time over the half term, so that was the girls in party mood!
Friday started off quite calm relatively speaking. The wind was up but it didn't feel like the forecast.
The skies were even clear as I got ready. I still didn't dare to go for my run.
I got dressed and decided to move the rocking chair from the back room into the front. We have a long wait for the wingback and I wanted to be able to sit in that place and look out of the window, especially today. I thought it looked rather nice with the old Welsh blanket on the back.
And the view was great.
I decided to have a go at fixing the cushion that broke. The shop sent a new one, so if I mended this one I would have 2. It wasn't an easy fix given the style of pillow, so I went for hand-sewing and then I put an iron on backing over the mend inside.
When that was done, I settled down to finish my book and also watch the weather.
It was getting wilder.
After lunch, I decided to do a bit more painting. I tried to correct the eyes and lowered the eyebrows.
I also slimmed down the cheek.
It is a tough one. I think one eye is 1mm higher than the other which I still need to correct.
Also, I think the chin is wrong. I find it interesting when you zoom in or exclude a problem part - does the thing look more like what it is supposed to. I think zoomed in as below it looks more like Woo (i.e. without the chin it looks better). So next time I will work on that, along with lowering the eye, and possibly a bit more correction to the lip.
On Saturday Mark and I nipped out to pick up our framed pictures.
Then we set about organising and figuring out how to hang them.
I was really pleased with how they had turned out.
A delivery came which was surf hats. Mark and the girls will probably go surfing in the half term so we had ordered hats. I'm not happy with the fit of mine, but then I am not going with them so it isn't so urgent.
We got the pictures hung, and I was really pleased with how all the frames looked. Because we are hanging them from the rail they are buggers to level up. In the end I had to step away and leave it.
Some Wes Anderson style posing from Woo....
She is a funny bean! 😄😍
So now we just wait for the chaise and the wingback, but the room is done!
Mark did a bit of baking and then he and I had a go at tidying up the utility and the shelves and sides in the kitchen.
We have a lot of stuff that is sitting in cupboards in the back which we don't use, and then so much stuff spreading out over the sides.
It was a good result, we ended up with 2 boxes of old cups and glassware that we will send to charity shop. Again, I did feel nostalgic. We have kept some of the girl's things - cups from when they were little, but I can't keep them all. Some of them are ugly, but I still struggle with getting rid of them.
In the evening we watched the second film of the Maze Runner series. We had watched the first the night before. Bunnykins has been enjoying the books. But she did get really upset with the second film in how far it deviated from the books and how her favourite characters weren't in it. I went to bed feeling a bit frazzled with the effects of the storm, the nostalgia, and trying to understand Bunnykin's upset. I do really feel for her and am glad that she feels she can show us, because I know how much she holds inside, it is just difficult when I struggle to understand it and it is hard for her to explain.
On Sunday we got up with the intent to get out of the house, even if it still was 40mph winds. I suggested we walk out to Emmerson's Green for brunch. It was damp and blustery, but it was good to be out. Mark navigated us a good winding and often off-road route.
We tried the Avenue Café, but that was full, so we went to Sainsbury's café which was fine. It was just nice to be out together. We had a good chat and a laugh. And then took the shorter route home.
I did notice that this was 100 weeks. That feels like a milestone. I had considered calling this entry "the end" and finishing it here. "100 weeks of covid-19...". Most restrictions are now removed, so there is no requirement to wear masks (though Mark and I still often do). In a couple of weeks time, we are expecting an announcement about living with covid-19, so it becomes endemic rather than pandemic (I think I have the right terminology but I am not sure). So I thought I would hang on until then, even if it is a less satisfying "102 weeks of covid"!
We got the pictures hung, and I was really pleased with how all the frames looked. Because we are hanging them from the rail they are buggers to level up. In the end I had to step away and leave it.
She is a funny bean! 😄😍
So now we just wait for the chaise and the wingback, but the room is done!
Mark did a bit of baking and then he and I had a go at tidying up the utility and the shelves and sides in the kitchen. 
It was a good result, we ended up with 2 boxes of old cups and glassware that we will send to charity shop. Again, I did feel nostalgic. We have kept some of the girl's things - cups from when they were little, but I can't keep them all. Some of them are ugly, but I still struggle with getting rid of them. 
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