Friday 24 May 2024

Friday's Fave Five - 24/5/24


Well it is 3 weeks since I posted a blog and 4 weeks since I did a Friday Five!

It's been busy here - my son and his family moved in with us on 1st May in preparation for their move to Vermont.  There are things that need doing in the flat that meant it was easier for them to just move out and stay here for a bit.

But of course they wanted to keep some normality for the 2 children which meant Rory going to school and Vinny to nursery every day - a trek!  We've tried to help out as much as possible so I've been taking them to a bus stop in the morning leaving the house at 7 am each day.  This saved them one bus journey and made the remainder of the journey a little easier.  I've also been helping out at the flat and doing some pick ups. 

Thankfully our house is big enough to accommodate them but it has meant more planning for meals etc and a change to our lifestyle, albeit temporarily.

On Wednesday my DIL flew to Vermont with Rory.  There were a lot of tears.  They have arrived safely and will be getting the house there ready for the family and, hopefully, securing a job for my DIL.  She's a teacher so hopefully there will be a job for her although it sounds like she will have to jump through hoops to prove her experience of teaching in the UK qualifies her to resume teaching in the US.  Why do things have to be so complicated?

My son and Vinny are still here.  My son is still working for another couple of weeks and completing the things that need doing in the flat so that it's ready to rent out.  Vinny is still going to nursery.  Packing up a home to move is hard but packing up to move abroad is harder still.  And of course Vinny is sad that Mummy and Rory are not here.  Bedtime has become a bit of a challenge.

But there are still things to be grateful for:

1)  A fun day at the park on Sunday - it was a Spring Festival with lots going on and the weather was lovely - if anything slightly too warm.  I'd volunteered to help set up in the morning and then I also helped out for a bit on the stall the Foodbank had.  They had a couple of fun games they were using as fundraisers plus donation buckets and raised an amazing £800 pounds.  With more people signing up to the Foodbank we need all the funds and donations of goods we can get right now.

2)  A house that is big enough to accommodate my son and his family - we all have our own bedrooms and we're managing to cope with the extra people for meals, washing etc.

3)  Safe travels for family members that flew to far away places this week.  My daughter and her family are currently in Boston for a holiday break.

4)  A husband that cooks - with all the extra things I've been doing it's definitely a blessing to know that dinner will appear without me having to do anything.  (Well apart from a bit of planning and organising the shopping delivery lol)

5)  Resilience.  Today has been very stressful.  I won't go into details but I had to deal with a situation that was unexpected, didn't go exactly to plan and involved a lot of driving around.  But my mission is accomplished.  I'm back home and I might even pour myself a glass of wine!

Have a good weekend all - we have an extra day as Monday is a Bank holiday but of course when you're retired all days are holidays!  Hopefully I'll get a lie in but with Vinny here I might not.  He came in for a snuggle one morning this week and his feet were like blocks of ice! One way to get woken up.

See more Friday Fave Five posts here.  Thanks to our host Susanne.


15 comments:

  1. So sorry about your stressful situation. I hope all works out well. Enjoy your glass of wine!
    I imagine it was hard to have your son and family moving so far away from you. Vermont is a beauiful state. Maybe you will visit them one day.

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  2. We have a holiday on Monday, as well. Memorial Day for us. I will be working my four hours in the morning. Being part time, I don't get paid time off so am blessed that I am allowed to go ahead and work. You are so busy and I know you are sad to see the kids moving to Vermont. I hope and pray it all goes well for them. Hoping you get to sleep a little later!!

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    1. Thanks Terri. Yes it has been a sad week and I'm not looking forward to Michael and Vinny going.

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  3. That is nice that you are helping your family out. We have housed all our grown children at one point in time. Like you said, thankful to have the room to do so. It can be a bit stressful, but that is what families do. Retirement is a blessing and I hope you have a restful weekend!

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  4. I am glad all is fine in London. I was getting concerned that you weren't posting. The silence is understandable... having a house full of extra people keeps one very busy. And I agree with Susan...it's what families do.
    I do understand the craziness of moving internationally. Been there, done that.
    Maybe you will pop across the pond for a visit.
    Glad today's issue was resolved.
    Have a good long weekend!

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    1. Thanks Linda. Yes it is all a bit stressful. We will definitely be popping across the pond.

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  5. Hi Wendy. Sounds like you have been very busy - but it's good that you can help your family out. It's a blessing that you are able to be in your grandchildren's lives. I hope you get an opportunity to rest and relax again this weekend! See you again soon.

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  6. You must have so many mixed feelings. Excitement that your son and dil are going to experience a new life but sadness that they will.be so far away. I never thought that being a grandparent I would be so involved in my grandkids lives but here I am gazing at my latest granddaughter (born 2 days ago)whilst looking after her 2yr old brother. I am looking forward to a rest when I return to London but in the meantime I am enjoying every minute as I am sure you cherish the moments with your family no matter how much extra work it involves.

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  7. Wow, that's a lot of change--particularly hard on the little ones. Once they are all back together, I imagine it won't seem as long. I know what you mean about being glad for a house that can accommodate everyone. I thought we'd have to downsize when my husband retired, but the housing prices have gone up so much, we'd be paying the same as what we do now for a smaller place. I'm glad we get to keep the house we have, so we have room for everyone. I'm sorry for the stressful situation--hope it's resolved now.

    I'm glad the fundraising went so well and the travelers were all safe.

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  8. Keeping you and your family in prayer during these challenging times. Have a beautiful rest of the weekend.

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  9. Don't you already have a son in Vermont?? Did i miss something? Maybe i have the wrong blogger! hahah

    Anyways, YEs she will need to make sure she has a masters degree in the area of teaching she intends to do. She will also need to obtain permanent certification for the state of Vermont. I have mine for NYS which is hte most rigorous and accepted in just about every state. We have very high standards here which is why it seems you need to jump through hoops. the good news is though that VT is always looking for good teachers (depending on your field...special ed (mine) is HUGE and always has openings). My brother in law was a special ed admin for VT area until 2 yrs ago when he took one closer to home. they will LOVE living in VT. My niece goes to UVM and will be doing her student teaching in el ed 2nd grade starting the end of August (yes, they go back earlier than us here in NY...we go back 3 days after Labor Day).

    I hope that glass of wine helped you to relax!!

    BOSTON is a wonderful city. It's actually where my oldest girl went to college (Gordon) and our youngest applied to BU and BC and got in but chose UNH instead. Boston is our fave city in the Northeast right behind Portland Maine.

    I hope you have a good weekend.

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  10. Oh I feel all of this. It's hard to have kids across the ocean, grandkids especially. I'm sure your DIL family is happy to have them near but it will certainly be an adjustment for you. I hope all goes smoothly and you have a visit already on the books. At least they're going to a pretty part of the country. It's also a lot to have extras living with you, no matter how much you love and enjoy them. We're all used to our routines. I will be thinking of you and praying everyone adjusts well, including the grandparents.

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