I didn’t have the best nights sleep.

I’m not scared, I’m not over anxious, I just know I have a lot to mentally co-ordinate through the day which keeps my mind a bit active.

That and the Cherry Pepsi Max that I thought was a good idea at 3pm yesterday…. It’s never a good idea.

The caffeine pumped through my veins.

We also had Calaidh in with us overnight, as Freya kept coughing and that sends Calaidh into a tailspin. She just didn’t know where to hide, she’s a sensitive wee soul!! She was literally shaking like a leaf when I went to bed, so I took her with me. I sometimes think Freya does it for the kicks. 😆

We did a wee Her Travel Circle photo shoot before I left.

It’s a beautiful day but was very cold.

No show without dogs!

I left the house at 9.50am and got stuck in traffic lights less than a few miles from the house! It’s ok… I am always early, in case of any eventuality. 😆

I used FastPark car parking for the first time, which let me park right in front of the Edinburgh airport sign. The staff could not have been more helpful. Both guys I spoke to were so nice and showed me what to do. It was a really good experience.

Of of them told me the car park was on special offer as it looked quite empty… then filled up immediately. I took advantage!!

Off up to departures. I arrived at the airport just under 2 hours before my flight.

I sat in Pret for lunch, spent £15 but had this lovely view over the runway. It’s such a lovely day.

With hardly any time to spare, we are boarding. I can’t fault Ryanair for punctuality.

We took off 5 minutes after our scheduled time and the flight time is 2 hours and 35 minutes.

What a beautiful flight, honestly you could see almost everything all the way. I paid for a window seat and I really think it’s worth the upgrade when you’re on your own. It passes the time.

I even managed a wee half hour nap which is a first on a plane for a while.

It always fascinates me when you see planes flying right underneath you!

Claire sent me this again and I laughed out loud when I landed!!

And I am back in Italy!!

It’s beginning to feel like home. It’s not hot but it’s warmer than home.

I walk straight out to bus stop number 1 and jump on the Terravision bus. I booked it directly this time. Cheaper than through Ryanair and it left 15 minutes earlier than I expected!

So now I make my way to Melanie’s apartment. The bus will take me into the centre of Rome. Then I will use the CityMapper app to find the best way to her home.

I am still not quite sure how Her Travel Circle sits with The Rambling Sloth at the moment as I don’t want to spend all weekend going double updates but maybe that will become clear to me over the coming days.

I am so calm, so relaxed, I do miss Craig already but I’m very happy to be here.

One random shots from the bus.

Not gonna lie I’ve had a bit of difficulty buying a bus ticket. The ticket office is closed and there is nothing to tell you what to do in the event of closure.

I tried to ask, the driver indicated to get on… I tried to pay on the bus but got ❌❌❌ so I’m currently illegally on the bus. It’s the one thing I can’t seem to figure out and it’s not geared up for tourists to be honest.

I handled it all calmly. It’s the bit that got me the last time too. I knew exactly where to go to get the tickets and they have totally changed the bus station since November! 😆

And I am here. I can’t even count how long it is since I left the house and I’m not posting a pic of Melanie as she’s just showered and got in jammies 😆

I’m too tired to shower!

Stay safe everyone ♥️♥️♥️

What a cheesy photo I sent to Auntie Jac at 5.45am!

I feel so much better and was actually looking forward to my run this morning.

I really enjoyed the run with Rachel… it was a lovely morning and the rain that was forecast, was yet to hit.

I spotted my first daffodil of the year on the way out. So stopped to take photos of it on the way back.

So pretty in the dark.

Bright even in the pitch black.

This was the sky at the time. It turned really red laster on but I didn’t get photos.

So 5.45kms done by 6.30am. It felt really good to be back.

Work was crazy busy again today and despite planning to leave early, to make up all the time I’d been late this week, I ended up being even later. Just one of those weeks where everything seemed to happen at once. Also I’m trying to cram 4 days work into 3 so that didn’t help.

So this time on Friday I will be here!!!

Not sure who to credit for this photo…. It’s not mine obviously…

Isn’t it pretty?!

I fly to Rome at 13.05 from Edinburgh tomorrow. I need to leave the house about 10am which is way more civilised than my usual 2.30am starts.

I feel a wee bit of anticipation that I have to be on point tomorrow, to allow everything to happen on time. That’s nothing compared to the fear of previous trips.

So I drive to Edinburgh Airport, fly to Rome Ciampino, bus to Rome Termini and tram or bus out to Melanie’s.

Then on Friday morning we’ll both get the train to Florence!

Usual applies…. If there’s no blog there’s no signal. 😆

Next blog from Rome!

Stay safe everyone 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿✈️🇮🇹

This week is flying by….. work is so busy that I was late for lunch today and ended up staying on a bit tonight. This is she who used to work overtime every morning and night back in the olden days….. thinking she works late when she’s there 15 minutes after finishing time. How times have changed 😆

There were lots of people dropping in as well as lots of questions throughout the day.

At least time passes very quickly.

It poured with rain today, interspersed (ooh very big word!) with pure blue sky and warm sunshine.

The portacabin was cold and then it was roasting hot and then it was cold again. I’ve had hoodie on, hoodie off, body warmer on, body warmer off, just one of those days where the weather can’t make up its mind.

I did some of my counselling homework before work this morning. It’s nothing I don’t already know but a great refresher.

I LOVE counselling.

I LOVE trying to make sense of myself and my reactions.

Obviously I love all of this while my head is in a good place. Not so much when I feel very down and sad.

Here’s Calaidh ready for bed last night. I sent this to Craig’s mum saying “Gran, help me” 😆

So this evening is packing!!

I have changed my mind for the last few hours but finally set on what clothes to take in my teeny tiny Ryanair bag!

Finally packed and ready to go so can chill out a bit tomorrow night. Had to take some things out but just have to make the most of what I can actually take!!

I feel so invigorated to do stuff this evening. For weeks now all I’ve wanted to do is sleep, and try not to cry.

It’s lovely to feel more driven. More awake.

Stay safe everyone ♥️♥️♥️

What a beautiful drive to work this morning. The sky was getting light as I dried my hair…. It caught my eye and I wondered what I was looking at!!

Sky.

Not just dark.

I love the lighter mornings.

By the time I got down to Irvine the sun was a perfect, giant, yellow ball on the horizon. Of course I wanted to stop and take photos. Iod course I couldn’t.

I went into work early today as I wanted to get away for my counselling session with Better Help Therapy tonight.

Of course that did not happen.

It’s been full on. Super busy all day. The office was like Grand Central Station!!

So I needed up having to lock the doors of the office at 4pm and have my counselling session at work. Not ideal. It such a shame that Better Help don’t ask what times you are available for an appointment. 4pm is the latest I can get.

Anyway, it is what it is…. It went well. It’s more about me talking through things and her listening at this stage. I’ve got LOTS of homework though. So I’m hoping that it helps control my overwhelm.

I’m still feeling good. it’s such a relief after that down spell. I feel the positivity coming back.

This is the most calm I’ve been about a trip on my own…. Ever.

It shows I’m evolving.

I am very lucky that I get to go to Melanie’s…. And that she seems to have been able to take Friday off work, so we get to go to Florence for lunchtime rather than early evening!!

Woop woop! 🙌🏼

Have a great Monday night!

Stay safe everyone ♥️♥️♥️

Thank goodness I seem to finally be coming out of that exhausted brain fog.

I’m still very tired but it’s not like it was yesterday.

I can focus through the tiredness. At least for a short while anyway!!

I woke at 6 but stayed in bed until just after 8. I have gotten into the habit of doing a Rambling Sloth and a Her Travel Circle post first thing, which usually takes me about half an hour.

I’m trying to gain more followers for both, in the hope that more people know about Her Travel Circle when we finally get to go live.

I’ve been very committed to both social media accounts today.

It’s not been hard. The weather was wild, wet and windy again!

I have packed my small, Ryanair sized, cabin bag and organised my toiletries, for my trip to Rome & Florence later in the week.

I have checked the weather a million times and reckon that the jacket that I bought on Vinted, will be too warm! I got Vans jacket this for £16.

So back to the denim jacket and hoody underneath, I think. That worked at the end of November.

I’ve done some Instagram and FB videos about my bag, packing and what I take as toiletries. All to have some content on the page when we are ready to go live. We still need to do way more marketing but that will come when we have the website and business pages up and running.

In other news I fasted for 26 hours and 27 minutes.

The longest fast I have ever done and quite honestly, it happened so easily.

I was so full after brunch yesterday. I didn’t eat anything afterwards and was still full by dinner.

Craig made lasagne this morning and we ate at 2pm. it was sooooo good.

I feel so much better for the fast and the rest. Obviously the progesterone is coming out of my system too.

I have my first period in over a year. That will shift the progesterone too #overshare 😆

It’s such a relief to feel a bit more normal.

I’ve had a lovely rest of day crocheting and watching tv.

Watched my this beauty.

This week coming, I have use all my COURAGE and step right back out of my new cosy, comfort zone and go off and see the world.

I will love every minute of it but, in true Julie fashion, I am wondering why I put myself through it all.

“I haven’t been everywhere, but it’s on my list” – Susan Sontag

Stay safe everyone ♥️♥️♥️

I woke at 5.10am….. I think I did eventually fall back to sleep but not for long. The Scottish Dog Behaviourist was getting up at 7am for a job in Glasgow.

He asked if I’d like to go with him and we could go for brunch afterwards.

It’s 10.06am and Khaleesi and I are sitting in the car. Khaleesi is not interested in me. 😆 She is just watching for Craig.

So first things first, I took the Borders into the field for a good run about before we came here.

Today was all about the fallen branches!!

Quick shower and off into the city…. It is very busy. I don’t come into Glasgow very often and I’ve forgotten what it’s like living with a million neighbours….. and dogs 😆

We’ve had a lovely walk….

We are so used to the countryside now that I forget how busy a city is. This park was really busy with dog walkers, baby strollers and runners! I tried to keep them all out my photos!

It was a lovely morning. Chilly but so lovely to see the blue sky and feel the sun.

This swab kept checking us out!!

We headed back to the car and, of course, bumped in to Craig with his clients. It’s easy to ignore him but when I’m with a dog they always know he is there so we went to say hello.

We sat back in the car and I crocheted.

We went to Kilmurry & Co for brunch.

Khaleesi came too…. Here they are making eyes at each other 🥰

It’s a really lovely place. Very rustically decorated. The food was good although I only opted for a veggie breakfast as I didn’t fancy eggs. There were a lot of lovely meals with eggs

On the drive home we passed this beautiful tree. It’s always been fenced off as it was linked to Mary Queen of Scots, and is considered one of Scotland’s most important trees. it was badly damaged in Storm Éowyn at the end of January. So sad.

Khaleesi is done with the photos!

I went to bed as soon as we got home and slept for 2 hours.

I need to get this progesterone out of my system. I’m on the lower dose of HRT now but still zonked.

I feel like I could just sleep all day.

I got up and went to the shop for a quick mini food shop then back home for a poo pick and a kick about the garden with the dogs… all of a sudden it’s 5.30pm.

I have 3 sleeping dogs…

And relax.

Life in the fast lane!

Have a great Saturday night.

Stay safe everyone ♥️♥️♥️

What a storm to wake up to….

There are days when 61mph winds would have freaked us out, but after that storm at the end of January, we’re a lot more laid back.

Craig had secured the fence through the week when it was windy so we have to hope the broken panels continue to hold.

I was a bit nervous driving past an all the fallen trees on my diversion to work! I just hope the ones round about them stay where they are!!

I had a lovely wee catch up with Gayle in the little gift shop last night. I did feel particularly exhausted and sad… no slight on Gayle at all, obviously!!

So I was in Tartan today….. buffeted about by a few really strong gusts and torrential rain all day.

When I woke this morning I feel really drained. Like everything is a huge effort and I just want to sleep.

I googled my increase in HRT… I have NO idea why I hadn’t thought to do that before now.

Far too quick to blame myself for being a bad person….. sometimes my inner critic relishes in the wallow of self loathing…. Gosh there’s a statement and a half!! Sometimes these words just pour out of me and I’ve no idea where they come from. Love that.

I mean I can live without the migraines and the acne, which are yet to appear… but this ticks all the boxes.

I feel as tired as I did when I was on a high dose of Setraline antidepressants. Everything is a struggle. I’m so teary and could just cry at anything. I just feel so damn sorry for myself.

But I have a google diagnosis. 🥴😆

I had a call with the Doctor to discuss and we agree to reduce the oestrogen, which, in turn allows me to decrease the progesterone.

I could carry on with this dosage in the hope it settles but it’s not sustainable. I’m not going back to the girl who cried at everything and is so drugged up she can hardly move off the couch.

So…. Start of the next chapter. Will change down to the smaller patches and only take 1 progesterone pill, instead of 2.

I’m sorry I’ve been a moaning Minnie to anyone who will listen and even those who didn’t want to!! At least you all know when I’m hurting, no chance of missing that……

I have zero plans for the weekend. I’m going to get ready for Rome and Florence but I also plan to chill out and relax and have some extra sleep until this passes.

I forgot to say on Wednesday night, these are all the crochet blankets that my friend Evelyn is giving to the maternity hospital. I have made all the small ones since Christmas.

This big one is a mishmash of wool and I started it in Covid.

Hope they all get to a good home!!

I’ve just told the running girls that I need the morning off for the first time ever and it made me cry…. This can’t go on.

So a whole weekend to rest and recuperate.

It’s 4pm and I finally have a smile as I’m in clean, favourite jammies.

Rock and roll weekend for me!!

Stay safe everyone ♥️♥️♥️

I’m still really tired today.

I had a great sleep last night but still feel exhausted.

I made the mistake of sitting down as soon as I came home from work and I could just sleep!

I have to be honest and say my head is really empty today.

It’s not all bad honestly, I think I’m just recovering from feeling low.

I’ve had the munchies all day…. I’m probably in a food coma!!

That vicious circle of craving carbs and sugar which just makes you crash a whole afterwards.

I’m actually working at Tartan tomorrow as I’m banking day for next week so I can go to Florence on Thursday! So this is not my weekend yet.

Donna Ashworth asked what our inner critic was saying to us just now…. Mine is still being pretty nasty. She is silent just now and genuinely just wanted to go to bed and sleep.

I have been much brighter at work and had a few laughs today which has been good.

It was so windy today… our wee portacabin was rocking about! We have 60mph winds forecast tomorrow too. Nothing like the storm at the end of January thankfully, though 60mph is high!

I’m going to go down to the little gift shop this evening as Gayle says she left it in a mess today and needs to fix it. We were going to go out for hot chocolate but if I can help her get the shop sorted then that will be good for her for tomorrow.

So yeah, not much else to report.

Sorry I’m boring and tired.

Normal service will be resumed soon…. I hope!

Stay safe everyone ♥️♥️♥️

I slept ALL night and woke at the 5.25am alarm. I hadn’t moved.

I still feel incredibly tired and heavy. I must remind myself that I’ve changed up my hormones and this whole downward spiral could be a result of that.

I couldn’t find half of my run gear this morning. I wasn’t switched on enough to have it ready last night. That’s never crossed my mind….

I had to wake a sleepy Khaleesi up to rummage through the clean washing.

My legs felt heavy and I was full of sadness.

We ran and the girls chatted and I couldn’t speak, I couldn’t join in. I was there but I couldn’t trust myself to open my mouth.

When Lynsey asked how I was…. I gulped and tears formed as I said I was hanging in there and left it at that

I don’t want to be the misery.

I want to be the light.

I want to be the joy.

But right now I’m a little bit sad and heavy.

Tired and sluggish.

I still ran 5.4kms but I was slow.

But I still ran.

I came in to the house and sat down and had a wee cry.

I felt so tired I couldn’t be bothered having my shower (I did as my hair was manky!!) but I had to get into work early.

This was the sky as I left.

We had a very busy day at work today. 3 vans coming in and customers to be entertained or driven to the train station.

The day passed quickly and I’m fine.

Just dog tired.

Awwww we had a lovely wee dog in work today… I got seriously sniffed when I got home tonight!!

Claire sent me this today…. Isn’t this so lovely 🥰

So I’m off into the pub for an alcohol free pink gin and to meet the Crochet Hookers tonight.

I hope they are braced for the joy and light I’ll be spreading tonight…. She says slightly tongue in cheek. 😆

Every day is a new day.

Let’s keep putting one foot in front of the other. It might surprise you and add up to 5.4kms 😆😘

Stay safe everyone ♥️♥️♥️

I do feel a bit more alert today. I think that last night’s blog really helped me to make sense of everything that’s whirling around in my head.

I woke at 5am…. Not quite as early.

It’s Mum’s birthday today! I shared these pics on my FB post. Huge happy birthday mum!!

I look forward to more adventures together in 2025.

I was planning to get up early today as Craig is off to Newton Stewart for a job today…. It’s almost a 2 hour drive just to get there.

I was at the blue dot and I stalked him away down there!!

Our lovely neighbour Holly is letting them out the back through the day but I wanted to walk them first thing.

It was dark….. 🫣

Really dark at 6.15am.

I set off up the hill with my headtorch on… they had their lights on. All good.

It was all going really well…. Until this point when my head-torch picked up eyes 👀 in the field!!!!

I got a wee bit spooked and decided to stick to the main road… that was better!

They were sniffing at everything…. A whole lot of sniffing going on. There was also a small hail storm which they didn’t like, any more than I did!

I thought this looked really pretty. The sky is getting lighter.

I chickened out a second time when I thought I heard a car door slam down a dark road so instead of walking the loop, we went back the way we came. They got a good walk with all the to-ing and fro-ing!!

Surprisingly dirty considering this was just a walk on pavements….. look at the floor and wall…. I love Bhru’s innocent face.

So then I had to clean all that up before I could get to work.

I’m sorry we made this mess mum she says… 😆

I have a diversion, on the way to work, for a few weeks as there is a road closure! The sat nav took me a completely different way again today. It feels like a million different roads in Irvine!!

So I’ve been a bit brighter today. A little less doom and gloom. I’ve stopped wallowing in my own disgust at not being 100% perfect.

I am exhausted though. It’s a tiredness that sleep doesn’t necessarily help at the moment.

That’s to lovely Kelsie for sharing this on her page. I love that we all share things like this.

So fun fact to end with….. did you know today was called Pluto day?

Mum, my friend Ruth and Mum’s cousins Dave all have birthdays today and I have never known that on 18th February 1930, the 9th planet in our solar system was spotted for the first time.

I mean honestly, how did this never come up before now?!?

Sadly for Pluto, in 2006 the International Astronomical Union reduced Pluto to a dwarf planet and said that there were other masses in our solar system, similar in size or even larger. I didn’t know it was no longer classed as a planet!!! You learn something new every day.

Donna Ashworth’s Words to live by post today was all about finding the magic. If I was in a better frame of mind I would have loved this question, but I think it went a long way to dragging me out of myself.

How amazing is our world?! If you really stop to think about how small we are in compassions to the universe, it’s absolutely fascinating. Donna said everything I ground is starting to grow and life is springing up everywhere and we should look for the magic.

I’ve used my courage to try and step out of my slump.

Now I need to look for the light and find the magic again.

I know it will come.

And finally the Ps Waverley bookings are open for 2025 and I can HIGHLY RECOMMEND the following trip.

I got a bit spooked by a Waverley trip to Arran, August last year in bad weather but I still think I’m going to book one!! I won’t do this particular one again but it was honestly just out of this world. Even sailing through the Correyvreckan whirlpool….. a bucket list trip for me, definitely!!

I loved every minute of it!!!!

There is so much in life to be grateful for.

I need to lift myself up and not make myself small.

Find that smile again.

Search for the magic.

Stay safe everyone ♥️♥️♥️

I woke at 3.25am and lay awake, on and off, until the alarm.

My mind was all over the place, going over everything that’s happened to me over the last few days.

Wondering where the positive, happy go lucky girl has disappeared to. Hey at 52 I’m still calling myself a girl! 🤷🏻‍♀️

I’m not fine at that moment.

I don’t really know why but I’m not good with the present situation. I don’t make peace with my sad. I fight it all the way and want to know who, when, why, what and where.

This year I’ve spotted a cycle where every 4 weeks I seem to feel quite low mood. I’ve not been quite as aware of it before now.

I feel tired, struggle to concentrate, yet my mind is flitting from pillar to post . Guess that’s why I can’t focus.

The present moment, the focus on joy and the light, is out the window. My mind is a hive of activity trying to fix the sad.

I overthink everything and overreact incredibly quickly.

I am irritable.

I get defensive.

I maybe respond to things that I would maybe normally let go.

I am not a saint in my new world.

I still get irritated constantly cleaning up, always picking up the bath mats, cleaning the bathroom, cleaning up dog hair… you all know how it is. That list sounded fairly pathetic…

I pick my battles. I try not to complain or moan most of the time but maybe at times it overflows.

Why do we always show the ones closest to us, the worst of our ugly?

The wrong words can hurt and then bring hurt right back on you.

I’ve changed so much.

I’m hardly recognisable to the person I was 6 years ago and yet I still have some of the same flaws.

They still come out and spoil everything.

I know I’m being hard on myself but I’m so disappointed.

I’m better than that.

It’s been really good to find words to write this out and let it go.

I could so easily have stayed home today. I wanted to hide and cuddle into my sadness.

I knew I wouldn’t. It was just a nice thought.

I had a wobble at work today…. There were a few tears….. and a walk in a field to take some deep breaths.

I heard someone say I was flapping. Harsh. But understandable in the circumstances. I’m only struggling to hold it all together.

Then I saw this at lunch.

I contacted Better Help Online Therapy and made an appointment with a counsellor.

It’s £45 for 30-45 minutes but I’m sure it will help. You’re allocated a counsellor based on the questionnaire you fill in at the start.

It’s not till next Monday and I need to be away from work 10 minutes early but that was the first one I could get.

Ok and now I’ll shut up… I needed to get that out. Craig is working and I am surrounded by sleeping dogs, candle and firelight.

And calm.

Stay safe everyone ♥️♥️♥️

It’s a cold day today. A real chil in the breeze.

Had a nice lie in… well until just before 8am and headed up the hill with the 3 amigos.

They were good girls today and I smiles at Bhruic moving between Calaidh and Freya 😆 she’s quite comical.

They had a good run around!

I then took Khaleesi out.

She just loves exploring!! Look at the spring in her step!

So we were heading over to Mum and Dad’s today, for Mum’s birthday lunch, with my brother, sister in law and nephew.

We took Khaleesi for a wee day out too.

Would you believe I never even touched my phone when I was there and got no photos?!?!

Not like me I know.

We had a lovely pot luck lunch and Craig made his famous lasagne, which was really good.

I drove over and back so the day has just flown by. I grew up 12 miles south of Edinburgh and mum and dad are still there.

I am shattered today. I’ve not had the best, cheery mood weekend. I’m toying with the idea of looking at some counselling again to see if I can talk out of this low mood.

To be fair, I have just changed all of my hormones, with an increase in HRT so I could just be that but I’ve been snapping again, which does not make for a lovely place to be.

I also think that it’s happening almost exactly 4 weeks apart. I can’t live my life with 3 weeks happy and 1 week a moody cow. Not to put too fine a point on it.

Acht sorry for the moan.

Hope normal, cheery and positive service will be resumed soon!

How important is this…..

Stay safe everyone ♥️♥️♥️

I was meeting Rachel two doors down to run at 8am this morning.

We were like very slow Forrest Gumps and we just kept on a-running!!!

It was very grey and overcast today. It got colder as we ran and was a wind chill factor of -2°C.

One of the fields had hundreds of geese taking a rest from their flight north. There have been lots of them flying over us these last few days.

Hey we’re all walking in a line as if they were conducting some kind of murder scene investigation…. That’s where my head went!

And we were done!

Now we were definitely not gaining any land speed records this morning, but we did the longest distance I’ve ever recorded on Strava which is pretty cool!

My face matched my jacket!! Also check the condensation on my headband!

We literally didn’t stop after the run and took Calaidh and Khaleesi up the hill with Rachel’s Nacho.

Check Nacho and Calaidh with their big sticks…. Sadly Rachel had just used one of them to remove some dog poo from her trainers but Nacho seemed oblivious. 😆

Then I was back out with Bhru and Freya. This time I put a big coat and a hat on as it was actually snowing!!

The sun was desperately trying to shine through but it failed for most of the day!

I had a very much needed and well deserved hot shower.

I’ve done 21,380 steps so far and burned 1,199 calories. I’m also up at 21 hours fasting just now as I’ve put on so much weight upping the oestrogen recently. I say that and then back track and say it’s nothing to do with the crisps and chocolate I’ve been serious overloading on. 🫣😆😘

So into my favourite jammies… and have had a productive day setting up social media for Her Travel Circle!

Her Travel Circle You Tube

On Instagram we’re Her.Travel.Circle as sadly hertravelcircle was already taken. It’s not been posted on since April 2022z

Also TikTok.

So it’s 4pm and now I am exhausted. I’m going to get this out and read a book for a while to get off the screen.

I won’t looked at Donna Ashworth’s questions for a couple of days so I will do that too.

I have lit the stove, will light the candles and relax. I’ve felt really good today as a result of all the exercise but now I’ve hit a wall.

I hope you’re all having a lovely weekend.

Stay safe everyone ♥️♥️♥️

I don’t want to my blog to be a trigger for people who do not need to see all things hearts and flowers.

I think it’s important to remember that not every day is hearts and flowers and yet, when you’re single, I imagine you feel the most alone. I know I did when I was.

These days I even forget to buy a card, isn’t that awful.

I was very lucky to get an Irish Oak Tree for Valentine’s Day today.

It’s to be planted in the garden so that we can watch it grow.

I should only reach 2m high over the next 5-10 years but what a lovely gift. Craig should start up a gift advice service as he’s really good at gifts!!

This is our valentines…. Under our matching crochet blankets!

Check Calaidh after my shower this morning… mum throw my tennis ball.

I saw my first crocuses today! Spring is springing!!

Valentines Day was spent in the little gift shop today….. so pretty. lots of lovely chat and catch up for Gayle’s birthday!

The shop was 6 years old on Tuesday past.

I was the very first customer!!

So I’m rushing this so I can enjoy my lovely dinner.

Hope you all have a great weekend!

Stay safe everyone ♥️🌹♥️

Did you know there’s a town in Australia called 1770?!?

I’ve been there. 🇦🇺

I have to say l, from memory, the town sign said 1770 and not Seventeen Seventy… 😆

I was with a tour, and we did a sunset photo shoot, where we made the shape of 1770 against the sunset.

It was pretty cool. Of course the days before mobile phone photography so goodness only knows where that photo went!

I’ve been awake since 4.45am this morning and I feel really tired tonight.

I ran with Rachel two doors down at 5.45am and it was really cold but dry and crisp. It was a really nice run and I prattled the whole way around!! I’m a bit moany at the moment…

I text Rachel to apologise afterwards and she said she was grateful besides it meant she could breathe!!

It was her first run back from injury, so I’d said we could walk back if she needed to but she did fine and didn’t seem to hurt too much.

I didn’t even take a photo this morning but we stopped short of 5kms.

I still feel a bit flat if I’m honest.

I’m so tired that I could shut my eyes as I type.

It was a really busy day at work today and I did actually get a bit overwhelmed when 4 people were trying to ask me questions all at once, as I was trying to do something on the system that I’m not used to doing.

I can feel my overwhelm building inside of me. I get a bit breathless and antsy and I can’t really listen properly to what people are saying.

Now to be fair, I’ve not felt like that at work for a good while now so it’s not the end of the world. I think I’m just a bit hormonal.

I’m not as bright, bubbly or driven as I have been the last few weeks. I just want to crawl into bed and read a few lines of a book, then sleep!

Come to think of it, I had a low spell in January at almost exactly the same time.

I’ve turned my blog into such a positive tool that I hate writing it on days I feel a bit lower than normal.

Ups and downs are just a part of life and we have to let the down days pass…. As I know they will.

Oh I got my new Donna Ashworth book which was released today, To The Women. Please click the link to buy a copy!!

I’ve a signed copy and she picks a page for you to read. I got page 13 on 13th February.

Apart from not having hatchlings, that have flown, I fought the rest of it was pretty special.

She loves to travel……

She sure does.

But first of all she’s gonna get some rest and get through this grumpy spell. 😆

Stay safe everyone ♥️♥️♥️

I woke at 2.54am…. Wide awake for a while…. Tossing and turning.

Then the 6.10am alarm… I was dead to the world. Out for the count. 😆

I didn’t run this morning as the girls were meeting at 5am and running for an hour and I just knew deep down, that I wasn’t up to that.

My increased HRT comes at a price. Running for an hour carrying two giant watermelons, didn’t appeal! 😆😆😘 love me and overshare 😆

Instead I went into work early and helped Ellison tidy up upholstery, after the damage caused by Storm Éowyn. The roof has been fixed so we’re no longer leaking. We had most of it done by 8am!

Work was really busy and passed quickly.

If I’m honest I’m feeling a little bit flat tonight. The blog has been bombing and my ego is trying to question why I bother putting so much effort into it.

That feels so very self indulgent that I don’t want to say it ….. but it is true and I always promised this would be a true reflection of my feelings.

I have written this every day for almost 5 years… I guess it’s ok to question it once in a while.

Come to think of it, the old ego has been having a bit of a go at me all day. I’m ok… maybe just tired.

I’m gonna to sit with my Donna Ashworth books tonight and refocus and listen to what’s it’s telling me.

Stay safe everyone ♥️♥️♥️

😆 I have actually just booked a trip to Florence in Italy for the end of the month.

It started with a post on Her Travel Circle FB page this morning.

I talked about my trip, with Melanie, to Milan last October.

I messaged Melanie to tell her I’d posted but couldn’t tag her.

I asked her when she fancied going to Florence and we have literally just booked to go at the end of February!!!

All in the interests of Her Travel Circle exploration, of course.

Now Melanie’s house won’t be able to become a HOST house, as she doesn’t have a spare room but it shows what’s possible when you make connections with people. (I spoke for her there……. she may want to rent out a side of the bed 😆😆)

I am a nervous, people pleasing Scotswummin and she’s a New Yorker Italian. She’s not backwards at coming forwards… that made me smile…. I can say things like that without offending her. We just clicked.

It’s all about the connection and I want everyone to experience that!

I plan to run around Italy asking any woman i see if they fancy becoming a Host for Her Travel Circle guests 😆😆😆

Wow.

Honestly, no one is more surprised than me.

Florence here we come. 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿✈️🇮🇹

I went through the usual Ryanair debacle…. are you sure you want to travel with the teeny, tiny bag we let you travel with? Are you sure you want to risk the middle seat (I booked a window!) are you sure you want to travel UNINSURED…. It’s so ridiculous! It takes ages just to book the basic flights!

So now it’s done I have that feeling of dread, that I am stepping out of my comfort zone in a big way that weekend. But I know I will love it.

Travelling is my dream but that doesn’t mean it comes easy to me. I go into planning overdrive. I’m already counting the days I get to rest before I go!! 😆 jeez I’m hard work at times.

One more thing I’ve been meaning to talk about for a while now.

Facebook….. first of all The Rambling Sloth page is still suffering from my being hacked a while back…. It’s not recommended to any new readers so can I ask, if you like what you read, can you share it or tell people about it as that’s the only way to grow the page.

Not that I need to grow the page but I’m sad that I can’t seem to get around this suspension at all.

I have tried.

Also my posts keep getting spammed and I thought I should tell you all how I deal with it.

If you ever see a message where someone asks you to contact them….

Do this…… I block 2 or 3 people every day.

Don’t be scared to do it if you see it anywhere… always block any new profiles they may create. Most of the time they pretend to be in the US Military but today it’s been women…

Block!!

You maybe know that already… just thought I’d share!

Nd would you believe I just got this on my WhatsApp!!

BLOCK!!!

I cooked dinner tonight too… work, holiday bookings and cooking all in one day. I’m off to collapse in a heap now!

This was 10 Minute Chickpea Curry with rocket instead of spinach!

Very tasty.

Over and out!

Stay safe everyone ♥️♥️♥️

What an AMAZING sleep. 8 hours and 36 minutes without moving. Wow. I was really tired yesterday so I’m so grateful for that wonderful sleep.

I’m writing this at 6.13am while I still feel half zonked!!

It’s now 7.33pm and I’m still tired. I have yawned on and off all day.

Craig’s out at work and I have the candles lit and twinkly lights are a-twinkling and I’m just sitting here, in silence, cuddled up with Freya.

And relax.

Donna Ashworth’s post today was about dealing with overwhelm.

How do you handle it?

My go to is probably the SNAP.

I snap at someone for asking me something when there are a lot of other things going on.

Picture the scene.

I’m walking the dogs. I’m also on the phone to Craig. He’s done some great work on Her Travel Circle website and he’s asking my advice on something. My reality though…. We have just walked on to a pavement covered in clumps of grit… by grit I mean the orange stuff that we put down in Scotland to stop you slipping on ice…. Bhruic starts to limp. Big time limp. Craig is still talking. I tell him about the limp, I’m worried about the limp, I should have spotted the grit on the pavement, should have gone another way. Craig’s just asked me an important question… he’s looking for an answer… for my advice… there’s a reason I’m typing this all in one paragraph….. then a man walks around the corner with a Belgian Malinois… a Khaleesi but without the injuries…. A fully fledge Mali…. He starts to cross the road in front of us… limping Bhru goes into stealth mode… I tell Craig about the man with the Malinois… what man with the Mali he says….. he then says every time he asks me something important I change the subject and talk about something else. Like I’m not interested.

I share my ugly…. My ugliest ugly.

I hang up the phone as I cannot deal with it all.

I take a deep breath and reflect.

That escalated so quickly and out of nowhere a catalogue of events had me overwhelmed.

The SNAP is a release for me. Instantly I have snapped I feel better. Sadly, the person on the receiving end of said snap, not so much.

Donna says sharing our ugly is a form of love. When we allow ourselves to be vulnerable to other people, then we may show them the way too. No-one is perfect. We all have ugly inside of us that spills out at times.

When I was sick with anxiety and then depression, my overwhelm showed itself in deep seated exhaustion. That doesn’t happen often these days. It’s more the irritation.

How interesting to be able to understand how and why you respond to certain situations. I love learning about myself.

You’ll be pleased to know…. I explained all of that to Craig the other day, when this all happened, and he let it go. If we make the snap a big thing then it drags on for the rest of the day, and that’s never a good thing.

I love the peace of an empty house with sleeping dogs. Men like to have noise on all the time, tv, podcasts, music. I like the silence, listening to the hum of the fridge freezer in the kitchen. Sensory reset.

So please try and get a listen to Donna Ashworth on Fearne Cotton’s Happy Place podcast this week. It was a great episode.

We had this lovely big guy in work today.

I swear he seemed bigger than my 4 put together. such a cuddle monster. I got seriously sniffed when I came home tonight.

I woke at 4.17 am and was awake for ages before finally falling back to sleep. I woke with a jolt at 8 as Bhruic barked and it was daylight outside. That’s left me feeling sleepy for the rest of the day!

Lazy morning catching up on Sloth 🦥 and Circle ⭕️ posts as my groups are now affectionately called.

I walked Calaidh, Bhru and Freya around lunchtime. It was sooooo cold. I had 4 layers on!

I came back and swept up more of the garden, shedding layers as I went. 😆 it was nice to spend time out in the fresh air.

I am currently sat in the sunroom, with the fire on and all 4 dogs and I’m half asleep. I’ve finished a book I was reading and the heat of the fire is just so lovely. I think I’m just going to relax for the rest of the day.

I’ve done hardly any…. Oh wait…. Zero housework this weekend, which I may regret, but I’ve had a really lovely couple of days.

My life feels different just now. Everything feels like it’s changing, more fluid, less stagnant and I love it. Despite being half asleep I feel so much lighter and brighter.

I have a new favourite song…. Jason Mraz… Living in the Moment.

Click this Link to Spotify have a listen! Can’t believe I’ve never heard it before…. I’m signing away as I write this. Multitasking much!!

Yesterday’s day out with Gayle was so lovely. It was just a bit different for us. I couldn’t tell you the last time I’d been in Glasgow on a Saturday night.

So I definitely rushed that part of the blog.

I’ll share a few more pics just now but check out my Instagram for video clips. It was so stunning. It’s helps that Vivaldi’s Four Seasons was one of my favourite classical pieces.

We went for a walk around after dinner. This is George Square.

There are so many lovely lights. This the Gallery of Modern Art.

People make Glasgow! The Duke of Wellington with his traffic cone.

So that’s all for Sunday.!

Hope you’ve all had a great weekend and Monday is just another day to enjoy this wonderful life.

It’s ok I hear myself, but I do really mean that.

Stay safe everyone ♥️♥️♥️

Check me… I am heading into the city this afternoon… the big smoke. It’s been a while that I haven’t just been passing through on the train!

I’m going to see Enlightenment Glasgow which is a half hour “immersive light show” set to Vivaldi’s Four Seasons, which I love…. But LIGHT is my Donna Ashworth word for the year, so I really wan to go and see it. Gayle is coming with me!!

It’s held in Merchant House in West George Street.

So….. my plan is, train back of 3, hot chocolate in Hotel Chocolat followed by the show at 5pm. Then we will try to find somewhere for a bite to eat.

Check us. City girls. 😆😆

Quick recap on my morning so far.

When I woke about 6.45, the house felt really cold. It was getting light and there was a frost outside. I was running with Lynsey at 8.30am this morning, almost a civilised hour. We were running from her house for a change so I had to let the car defrost.

What a lovely morning. It’s bitterly cold and there was low hanging cloud in the sky.

Now the upside to a run from Lynsey’s house is that it is way more beautiful than a run around the streets of Beith! She is right out in the country.

The downside. Hills. Mountains. 😆

I ran up this and didn’t stop. I felt sick but I didn’t stop! (Note pic is from the top!!)

How beautiful is this?!?! Not a breath…

What a view from the top of the next hill. Did I mention there were hills!!?!?

This was where we were standing. Looks flat… it wasn’t 😆 yeah I know I should have said 😆

Ahhh that shows it a bit better maybe.

There is no filter on any of my photos but look at this…. The colours are just amazing. I literally just point and press.

And we’re off again! Downhill is gonna be so much easier.

All of a sudden I spotted this bench next to one of the reservoirs or dams as we call them.

We took a slight detour and took some photos.

It’s a memorial bench to one of our neighbours, Rab Clements who died back in 2020, I think before Covid hit.

Check the beautiful view and Lynsey’s pink hat!

You can’t help but smile when you think of Rab. He was a lovable rogue! He used to leave us vegetables at our front door when we moved in… of course you’d then buy him a dram in the pub to thank him…. Even if you didn’t need or use the veggies. Rumour has it that they weren’t always even out of his garden!!!

One day, when I was off sick, he came in with his accordion 🪗 asked for a dram and sat and played badly and drank our whisky for well over an hour. Bless him.

What a beautiful place!

Back down the big hill. It still doesn’t look that steep.

This dam is at Lynsey’s house. Such a calm spot.

Funny how the light changes so much on a low sun winters day.

Twinning trees!

And a beautiful bunch of snowdrops!

And we are done. slow one today due to all the hills and photos but the hills made me breathe deeper than I have in a long time, and I felt the muscles in the backs of my legs.

Then it’s time for dog walks…. Missing it up a bit today with Bhru and Calaidh first!

Bhru the usual…. Rocking her Donald Trump look.

Then Khaleesi and Freya. Love how Khaleesi bobs up and down sometime to try to see over the dry stane dykes.

I even let her off lead for about 2 minutes precisely.

I was literally chittering after all that so I’ve had my shower and now I’m trying to heat up…. Still trying to figure what on earth to wear without heading into town, looking like a country bumpkin!!

We start off in Hotel Chocolat in Buchanan Street. Wow!!!

So that was an expensive hot chocolate at £15.50 for the two but it was a meal in itself. I broke my fast with this!!!

It was sooooo good. I had dark mint and Gayle had Hazelnut Praline.

This Enlightenment show was honestly out of this world. I’ll be sharing video clips tomorrow. If you love Vivaldi’s Four Seasons this is an absolute must!!!

TGI Fridays for dinner!

What a lovely , lovely day with great company!!!

Stay safe everyone ♥️♥️♥️