Cough, cough

Izzy - can't do a photo without
rude finger gestures

It's fair to say that the last couple of weeks have been rough. I managed to get the cough Mum had a while back and it has been horrible! Both Dad and Glenn seemed to get a very mild version of it but Mum and I got the full dose and I can safely say that it has been a stark reminder of just how bad a viral infection can be. It also illustrates the whole Covid experience - some get it worse than others. For me it has meant that for over 2 weeks I have had the worst cough which has left me unable to sleep properly. I still can't sleep lying down fully, and have to be propped up on pillows on my back which is not my favoured sleeping position! It has also meant that Glenn has spent the last 10 days in the spare room because I have been coughing so badly he is unable to sleep in the same room. Thank goodness we didn't all have it - we'd have shaken the house to its foundations! It has also meant that I have been exhausted due to so little sleep, which has made work pretty difficult. I finally admitted defeat this week and cancelled going anywhere near the office, and also took Friday off to try and recover. It was the right idea as I managed to have quite a quiet day and as a result then slept better on Friday evening. I also managed to only wake 2 or 3 times last night (albeit still sleeping on the mountain of pillows), so today decided I was well enough to venture back to yoga. Clearly I'm not there yet though. I managed about 10 minutes before having the most violent coughing fit and having to leave the studio. How embarrassing. Oh well, at least the rest of the class didn't have to listen to me for a whole hour - that wouldn't have helped their sense of wellbeing! 

The nice thing about trying to go more slowly is that I have had a nice long weekend. On Friday Dad and I mooched over to Glastonbury Reclamation where I did very well not getting my purse out and buying a lot of random purchases that looked great there but wouldn't necessarily have hung together in our garden. I'm beginning to build some ideas in my head about what we will do, but I want to get our patio sorted first (it's my most hated feature of our house currently) before I start on the rest of it. On Friday afternoon we had someone come out to measure up and discuss the grand patio replacement project. He pointed out immediately that the reason our block paving looks a bit rubbish is because it is a bit rubbish - quell surprise! Block pavers come in different depths, the minimum of which is 50mm. While these can suffice on a flat surface with minimal traffic, if you are on a slope with cars pulling away daily, you definitely need something more robust. Of course we were expecting it to be something like this - the Muppet would never have gone for a suitable product if there was a cheaper one available. So that will need replacing, albeit it will last for a while before its critical. The patio itself we will take up and probably reuse when we build the barn, so we are discussing options which are more in keeping with the property and the location - Somerset mud, dogs and hard to clean slabs are not the best combo (of course!). Thank goodness the person who came out had lots of great ideas and appeared to have some integrity to him so he left us both feeling very optimistic. 

This week Glenn has been planting all the plants I bought pre-Christmas that then took a lot longer to turn up than planned. He's had to dig in (to hard clay) 30m of native hedging, which when put in looked like nothing, as well as 100 laurels which we have planted inside the fence line to eventually provide some wind protection as well as to soften the edges of the garden. Although it will take a while to have an impact, it looks great and makes a difference already, Unfortunately the dogs think its great as well and so we have now have to put a protective fence all the way around as they thought it was a great game to dive in and out of these plants, breaking the leaves off and scattering bark everywhere. No respect!

Izzy and Laney post match
(trying to keep warm!)

Saturday afternoon I watched Izzy play netball in the freezing cold where I was wrapped up in 3 layers plus a hat and she was in a tiny netball dress. They were playing a team of giants - each of their defenders had about a foot in height on our girls, and so it felt like a bit of an unfair match. Izzy played brilliantly and, despite losing their match, was deservedly voted player of the match by the other team. Never mind, win or lose there are still school brownies so she was happy. While Izzy was at netball Abi was at the yard trying to brave the wind and rain to get Nula out. We've managed to find her a spot at a yard closer to home which we are all very pleased with. Its a 6 minute drive or (in better weather) a flat 2 mile bike ride. It also means she can start to get her head around the riding closer to home with riders from Netherclay who have local knowledge. We keep saying this is the final stretch - it's getting lighter in the evenings, half term is nearly here and there should be no reason why come next winter Nula is at home in our own barn. It may mean I have to work another few years but at least we won't have to do that drive back and forward from Bickenhall anymore!

Back to work tomorrow, last week before the kids break up for half term and so a bit of a rest for them - it does feel like this has been a long half and of course it's always the most challenging when the weather is rubbish, the schools have still been hit and miss on Covid absenteeism and there's little to look forward to. It's Valentine's Day tomorrow, then only a month to my birthday and then the year always just takes off - it will be summer before we know it! Eekk!