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And so it continues...

Izzy's attempt to sort her room - she gave up at this point!
Well we've survived the first week back at work (and school) and live to see another day / week / month - quite frankly they are all the same these days. It was always going to be a busy start to the working year - we run straight into year end and a run of Board committees amongst other things, but then add in the chore of doing it all online, plus balancing against the kids being back into home schooling and by Friday I'd definitely had enough. Thank goodness for a house move to take our minds off things, even if it just gives us something else to have sleepless night over. 

Yesterday was Saturday and despite the restrictions we are allowed to do things associated with a house move so we went to Taunton again to measure up for wardrobes, sort out flooring and check some details / hand over more oodles of cash for a house we haven't yet bought...I still have daily nightmares that it is a lot smaller than our house and we'll never fit all our stuff in, but the kids are theoretically sorting through their rooms and putting the stuff they don't need to one side, and we are doing the same so hopefully by the time we get to moving we will have less rubbish to take with us!

Obviously the rules for Covid are pretty strict, but that didn't stop (for valid reasons) us ending up with
there being us, the builder, the man from Sharps and Mum & Dad (measuring for curtains) all there at the same time - its the biggest group of people I've been with for months! We did have all the doors and windows open to air the new wood-burner which was smoking like a train as we burnt off the wax coating they'd seen fit to put on the capping stone - why on earth that was a good idea I have no clue. This time it was Izzy's turn to come with us so Abi reluctantly stayed at home to keep the dogs company, while Izzy got to hang out in the van (there isn't much else to do there at the moment) while we measured the walls. It's amazing what one will do these days for excitement!  I did ask her if she really wanted to come, but it's understandable she wanted to get out - it's the only time she's left the house in over a week.

Home schooling kicked off again on Tuesday and by Wednesday it was clear the kids were already freestyling it. At one point Abi started cooking, and when I queries it saying I didn't think she had Home Ed this term she replied "I don't, but it's more interesting than drama..." true, but I'm not sure that's the way the timetable is supposed to work! By the end of the week they had settled into things a bit more and were mainly working downstairs at the kitchen table rather than slumped over their beds - progress I think. The biggest complaint they have (other than the teachers with rubbish microphones) is that they are still being given homework! I did point out to them that lockdown is just BAU now and they would have had homework had they been in school so why not at home. Their view is that it's all homework at the moment so don't add insult to injury by adding more on top. They have a point I guess. We have to find some happy balance - we are probably in this for the long run now. GCSEs and A-Levels have been cancelled for the summer but they have still got to learn something. 

In the meantime it's Monday again tomorrow and another day which will feel just like the last - when do we get a holiday?!?


Nothing like a good tussle with your bed!



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