(Tuesday, 14 April 2020)
Good grief!! Day 30?? It would appear that we have now been locked down in the house for a full month! And you poor souls have had to put up with my inane waffling for the same amount of time… yikes! 😱 Are any of you even still sane?? Maybe I should stop now? Is it all getting a bit same-same and boring now? I do wonder sometimes if I should keep subjecting you all to it.. 🤔
Anyway, the weather did indeed turn after the storm, temperatures dropped well below zero over night and when we woke this morning snow had settled on the higher peaks and was actually falling from the sky. Thankfully it didn’t actually settle in the garden but we did have a little giggle to ourselves about having been out getting sunburnt in shorts and t-shirts a mere 24 hours ago and then having a very abrupt return to winter. Oh, we do love this country, it’s never boring! 😂
People often ask us if we miss the UK and yes, there are some things we do miss. Without a shadow of a doubt, topping the list is our family and friends – that is by far the hardest part. It’s made the fact that we have now had a total of 5 sets of visits cancelled, including both Mums and close friends.
Other than that, there’s not much really… initially it was things like bacon, crumpets etc, but by and large we’ve found alternatives, some are equally good and some you just have to make yourself. One of the big eye-openers of living here is the lack of convenience food, there is some but not much. For the most part, if you want something, you have to make it yourself. It’s better for you, there’s none of the rubbish stuff in it and it tastes better (barring the odd disasters!) I hadn’t realised just how reliant we had become on taking the ‘easy’ option and put simply, just how much better we feel for it. Our salt tolerances are so much lower now than they used to be. For example, one Chinese meal and we feel the effects for days now! Consequently, we don’t bother having it any more.
I’ve been loving seeing so many photos of spring that are being posted, the blossom and the flowers coming out in everyone’s gardens etc and best of all, the bluebells! Oh how I miss those carpets of blue in the woods! If I had to name the one thing that I miss from the UK (other than people), it would be that! A couple of days ago, I actually asked my Mum if she would go and take some photos for me so I could see it, but luckily for her, she had only walked there a day or so before, so she could send me some pictures from the comfort of her sofa and therefore walk wherever she liked that day, instead of having to accommodate my choice of route! 😂
Following on from a theme of yesterday, we really did do virtually nothing today. Lounging around indoors reading, relaxing and being complete and utter couch potatoes. And very nice it was too! 😇 😁
Little flakes of snow continued to float down on and off during the day and when it eventually cleared much later in the afternoon, we took the opportunity to take the boys out up into the forest. Just a short walk, back and forth along the forest track and they loved it. Jack managed to find the only muddy puddle in the entire forest (ok, maybe not the ‘only’ exactly, but it was a corker! 😉) and his newly fresh shiny white socks instantly disappeared. Revenge was exacted by encouraging him to go for a paddle in a conveniently located stream. He came out like a classic before and after picture, so job done! Although I completely failed to take any photos… sorry about that 🙄 😂
Stay safe everyone xx
