Have to start by congratulating Scotland for the rugby win over England yesterday winning the Calcutta Cup 11-6. What a game, our team were amazing and they should be very proud!

Anyway, onto today, I love a Sunday in lockdown. There is no pressure for us to do anything at all.

Despite the FUR-EEEEEEE-ZIN’ temperatures out there today I can officially report that even up here in South West Scotland 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 spring is a-springing…. check out the carpet of snowdrops I found on the dog walk this morning with my neighbour Holly.

I also spotted about 3 inches of daffodil 🌼 stems coming through. I cannot wait for spring and summer. We walked up through the fields and had a great view over North Ayrshire but it never looks great in photos when the sun is nowhere to be seen!

Poor Calaidh had to have a full bath when I got home. She was filthy!!! We had got ourselves stuck in a field that had been re-fenced and Calaidh went right through the muddiest mud ever…. I even had to bath and shower my hiking boots!

Calaidh was a wee sorry soul but very good… then I had to wash the bathroom!!! Craig took Bhru and Freya out and they came back fine.

I’ve had a wee pamper to myself and painted my nails. This glittery stuff is a nightmare to work with (who do I think I am eh?!?) but it’s bright and cheery… and teal… which seems to be the attraction for anything these days. Toes are purple but pics are no sae braw….

So I’ve not much more to report today. There will definitely be a nap this afternoon. The fire is on and the football is nearly finished. I just heard a “YES…. YES…. YES…..” from the living room so sounds like that’s going well. I can publish the blog now as I’m fairly certain there is gonna be hee-haw else happening and it will make me feel like I have a “day off”!

Stay safe everyone 💜💜💜

Today I walked. A lot. The end.

Might be a weee bit tired. Had a lovely shower and got clean jammies on… Christmas ones… don’t judge. No one will ever know. 😬☺️

I woke up before 5am this morning thinking about a local incident we had in Kilmarnock on 4th February where a man stabbed his ex wife and eldest daughter in two separate incidents before killing himself by driving into a tree.

Craig is from Kilmarnock and we still own a house there which we rent out so it was pretty close to us. They were just in my head and I was thinking about what they all went through in the run up to it. So sad.

I fell back to sleep and was about 9 when I woke up due to a barking dog… by that time of the morning they were likely needing out.

So our firstborn, the OG puppy turns 6 today. Took a wee pic of her this morning. Ok I lie… I took hunners o’pics. 😁

That wee mash up has her at every age except 2 & 5… for some reason I didn’t take pics on her 2nd or 5th birthday…. not like me eh?!?

So after a lazy start to the day, Craig I both took the dogs out for a 3.5mile walk around Beith.

Then had lunch and back out for a 3.9 miles walk with Claire to Nosh in Barmill for a takeaway coffee and a wee wander round Barmill Community park.

Just had a wee surprise to the door. A scotch pie and a beer for Craig and an alcohol feee Erdinger for me. How lovely!!! It’s half time in the Scotland 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 England 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 rugby match and Holly from the pub has sent these in. We also have her takeaway booked and coming later. What a lovely surprise!

Scotland are currently winning…. 8 to 6. Fingers, toes and all puppy paws are crossed. Go Scotland 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

Stay safe everyone 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

I had THE best sleep. No dreams, no nothing, just sleep.

Today was always going to be an exciting day what with cake and Largs but I’ll explain that in a mo…. first of all, today would have been my lovely Gran’s 99th birthday.

I miss holding Grans hands. The feel of her thin skin. I was so lucky to have my Gran up until a few years ago. This is also her in Grans chair that I talk about a lot and was a huge support literally when I was off sick. Recline snooze, back up crochet. Perfect chair. Perfect Gran. Miss her 💜

So up shower, hair wash, jeans on and a weeeeee bit of eyeliner, oh and perfume….. someone’s going somewhere….. the dogs are sniffing about as they know these smells are not “about-to-go-dog-walking” smells. Calaidh looks sad.

I on the other hand am ecstatic. ♥️

First things first…. out into Abbie the camper (novelty as she’s been in the garage for 3 days) and pop up to

Ellly’s Custom Cakes 🍰🧁🥮

to get some of her takeaway cakes!!!

I ordered these the other day and decided on a morning pick up so we could just eat cake all day….. also thought it would be nice to have cake on Grans birthday!!

Then had to head straight out to Largs. My favourite place!!! I’d had to book an Opticians appointment as I’ve lost both pairs of glasses.

He weather was atrocious. Really heavy rain and sleet. it was like driving through a river heading over the moor.

The Clyde Murshiel Regional Park was covered in snow so it was a lovely drive. The sky was really dark and heavy with rain. The 2 reservoirs I drove past were really dark yet the surrounding hills were pure white. It was so lovely and so atmospheric. Couldn’t stop anywhere to take photos obviously. The road was like a river. The whole way over. It was really badly flooded. Just had to take my time and take it easy.

Opticians went well. Lots of plastic screens in place to stop people from being near each other. Any glasses you touch must be put in a wee basket…. even if you touch some by mistake. By the time I’d wandered round the shop I had about 20 pairs in my wee basket 🤓😎🥸🤓😎🤩🤓😎🤩

It has stopped raining by the time I came out so I thought I’d grab a Costa Coffee. Not so easy. Have to scan the QR code in the window, download the app… register the Costa before you can get in and choose and pay for a coffee. Five mins later you open up the front door and your coffee is on a shelf waiting for you marked Julie A.

Clever huh?! And it was absolutely bloody lovely. I had a vanilla and coconut latte. Way too cold outside to even think about taking a photo.

I’ve got a puppy call tonight at 7pm…. I mean who works on a Friday night at 7pm…. it seemed like a good idea at the time. I I’m feet up in front of the fire having a wee rest. Warm and dry again and we just s had a piece of the Rocky Road…. oh my…. it was out of this world!!!

Happy weekend! Plenty of cake still to go!

Stay safe everyone 💜💜💜

None of us signed up for lockdown in Winter…. certainly not lockdown in TORRENTIAL rain. Having said that none of us signed up for a global pandemic lockdown. I’m being flippant but you know what I mean. We are so lucky that all we are asked to do is stay home and not fight in the trenches like during the world wars.

I’ve had the busiest day today. It’s 6pm already and I’m only just starting the blog.

I had to go to collect Abbie the camper van today after her £513 worth of work that needed done…. because of this……

This wee thing was £20 but it cost £480 of labour to diagnose and then replace. On the plus side the van seems to run a bit better and it smells a lot better. This was the turbo gasket so exhaust fumes were leaking into the van. I’ve a new pollen filter too so if we even have sun again, I’ll be awright….

Sadly the garage couldn’t repair the reversing camera as they didn’t know how to?!? I was surprisingly upset at that… I mean how hard is it?! I even asked if they could fit a new one but they didn’t seem to know if that was possible?!? Must ask on some of the VW pages to ask for some advice. Someone will know.

Forgot to mention that Freya and I walked to the garage….. I may have mentioned that it was pouring!!!!! We got absolutely soaked and I could feel water running down my arms inside my jacket….

Back home just in time for a call that I had scheduled for 11am.

Craig and I then had a Pawsitive Solutions Zoom call and made a few decisions about social media moving forward and then I was straight onto my monthly tapping group Zoom call.

We discussed self fulfilment today and also laughter yoga. Honestly sit there and make yourself laugh even if it’s put on… it raises your spirits. You will feel a bit daft but honestly it ends up hysterical. 🤣🤣🤣

So I’m actually sick of the sound of my own voice now!

Not gonna lie I’m exhausted with all that. Need to go and sit in a quiet room now 😆

Stay safe everyone 💙🤍🧡

Thank goodness this version of me woke up today. Maybe I should start giving the various versions of me different names 🤦🏻‍♀️🤣🤣 jeez how bored am I?!?

We were late in bed last night as we’re watching The Man in the High Castle just now. The football had been on all night (women roll their eyes with me) so I wanted a few episodes under my belt before I went to bed. I’m a 10 o’clock bedtime girl…. I have been for as long as I can remember. Have no idea why really but even if I have nothing to do the following day I like to bethinking about bed at 10ish. Funny how we develop these habits. So midnight last night and I didn’t turn into a pumpkin.

So I need to start with some Covid announcements from yesterday.

So sad to hear of Captain Tom Moore’s death due to COVID-19. I was really surprised to hear he had been on holiday to Barbados over Christmas as that seems to go against everything we are meant to be doing just now and I hope that didn’t attribute to his catching COVID-19. Sad news though.

And boy did it rain today….. enough that it’s now coming in the roof that has already been repaired and the flat roof that really needs replacing. We are soaking up drips with dog blankets and tea towels. The roof has been our biggest single expense since we moved in to this house but it comes with the 250+ year old territory I guess. The roofer is coming out tomorrow to assess the damage…… 🤦🏻‍♀️😳

Left Calaidh at home as she has been limping since the big walk on Monday. We walked in very sleety snow. Super wet.

I got soaked through but I walked round the woods 3 times to get some extra steps in. Home and had a cold shower as the hot water hurt…. all clean and into comfies. Jammies if I’m honest. My comfies are all wearing thin 😆

I’ve done some work, sorted some bills, done my knee stretches, taken a belated birthday present along to my lovely neighbour who was 60 on Saturday! It’s only 3.30pm.

I plan to work on my latest crochet work in progress…. thinking this could be a cushion cover? Just need to find a good way of attaching it to the cushion without half-assing it and ruining both the cushion and the crochet….

Stay safe everyone 💜💚💙

Today started VERY early with a sneaky wee 4.30am alarm that hadn’t been changed. If you’re a regular reader you will know it wasn’t mine…. #justsaying

Then my mind kicks in and oh my god, if there was anything else I could have thought about, worried about, tried to solve then I’d be amazed. In fact if you can all just send me your problems I’ll ruminate them all for you and spit them back out in no resolved manner whatsoever. 🤷🏻‍♀️🤦🏻‍♀️

Then I read this……

I really tried to change my mindset. I instantly felt a weight lift.

I had been giving lots of good advice yesterday to people in the AFTER DRY JANUARY fb group. Telling them that they should take control of these difficult situations in their lives. Telling them that only they can make the difference. Telling them to make the change.

Yet here I am worrying about what order to do things in today… AGAIN…. do I dog walk first, what’s the weather gonna be? When will I get the van back? How much will it cost? Can’t believe I’ve lost both pairs of glasses… must arrange an eye test. How stupid am I? How fat do I feel? Ugh… disgusted with myself? Can’t believe I started exercise at the start of the year then after the kettlebells with a breadboard it all just went out the window….. I’m too tired to be bothered exercising. I can’t be bothered deciding what’s for dinner, let’s order takeaway or eat junk. How bad am I that I can’t enjoy every minute of this gift of being forced to stay home?!? Hey I probably manifested this for years when I was working… why can’t I ever just relax, switch off, be happy? What state is the kitchen in, bet the dishwasher needs loaded…. we have Pawsitive Solutions stuff we should do? When are we going to do that? I should do more crochet but I’m enjoying reading that book… wonder if I’ll make time for that? How can i when I have so many other things to do?!?

OH MY ACTUAL GOD….. WILL YOU JUST SHUT THE EFF UP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 🤯🤯🤯

So first things first…… coffee. Which actually doesn’t help anxiety but hey….. it’s the only vice I have left.

The Morrison’s food delivery arrived just before 9am and we got all that put away and then Claire suggested a walk at 9.30am as she’s on holiday. Magic. She solves the ‘what to do first?’ and I can stop thinking about all this noise as we chat.

It is not a particularly pleasant day… we were meant to have loads of snow but we have tiny pathetic little flurries in between rain.

Time spent with friends and a good giggle is remedy in itself.

I have to remember how much effort it takes to write this blog on a daily basis. Actually I don’t mean effort as it’s not a chore, it’s just become something that I am aware of all day, then start thinking about writing sometime in the afternoon. A good blog could take a couple of hours a day…. yet I am quick to say I did ‘nothing’….

So for the rest of the day I have contacted all Pawsitive Solutions enquiries that came in at the start of lockdown and asked if they are interested in Zoom call. I’ve also contacted today’s new enquiries.

I am at my desk, the candles are on, the sparkly lights are on as it’s dark outside. I have Freya at my feet. She moves around as I do so she always sleep on one foot or the other. I should say here that the other dogs still exist… it’s just been a Freya-centric day today!

I need to learn to accept that I am enough. I don’t need to have this whirring head that talks at me all the time, anything I do could have been better, should have been done differently…..

I started this early today as I knew I needed to clear my head and it’s done just that. I feel calm for the first time today. Truly relaxed.

In between writing I’ve read positive FB posts.

I’ve done a tapping grounding exercise online with Shelagh Cumming.

Balancing your energy system

That really helps me to breathe more slowly and usually gets me yawning like crazy as my energy changes.

I’ve also had the loveliest wee gift from Claire!

I have so much for be grateful for and I am enough.

Here endth the rant for today.

Stay safe everyone 💜💜💜

The 1st February is always a reflection for me. My boyfriend of only 4 months was killed in a car accident in 1992. He was only 21. Such a waste of such a young life.

I’d been very lucky until that point I’d only lost my Grandad so it was a huge slap of reality in my otherwise sheltered life.

I spoke to him half an hour before he died. He was on his way from Peterhead to Penicuik, to stay with us. He never arrived. His best mate called…. which was very strange (remember these days before mobile phones….) He hung up. He assumed I knew but didn’t. He called back after he’d found somewhere private to speak as all his friends were together and had to tell me what happened. The police arrived a few hours later.

I’d always been a tearful person but boy did I cry… I thought my life had ended.

I contacted University and they asked when I roughy I was likely to feel better enough to go back. Wtf. I had Uni friends who left Edinburgh and came all the way out to Penicuik to see me having no idea where they were even going. I learned then what true friendship should and should not be. I learned then that some people just don’t know how to handle grief so you don’t see them for dust. I learned then to always speak to people about their grief and loss as I knew what it meant to them.

I learned the true value of life. 4 months of a relationship was nothing. We could have split up the next week, I had no idea what life would have been but I also had any control of that taken away in a second.

To this day Craig and I ALWAYS say “drive carefully” when the other one leaves the house or is heading home. ALWAYS.

Anyway a somber start but all part of this journey….

Back to today then…. my anxiety took a wee wobble this morning. Let’s call it a wee bit of overwhelm. I had lots to do today and could not decide which order was be to do them…. you know what, none of it was a big deal but you will know by now that I like to make things harder then they need to be.

All of that was thrown up in the air when I realised that Abbie the camper van was booked in to the garage today to get the exhaust manifold kit replaced. 😱😱😱

Meltdown. A few tears, a chat to Craig and all was resolved. Some things on my list would have to wait. Priority was to get the van down to the garage and to kill two birds with one stone I took the dogs down so I could walk the back. Can’t really ask anyone’s for a lift in times of COVID… and shhhhh don’t tell anyone but the Jeep is still not home yet. 🤫😳

So despite my breathless anxiety I did manage to start breathing again on the walk home. After a good 10-15 minutes of just faffing with dogs and leads and leads and dogs… you get picture.

The highland cows were out and about in their field on the drive down… on the walk back they were all hiding. They new my camera was coming.

It always amazes me that two photos taken in the same spot in different directions can look so different.

We had to walk through Beith and the pavements were covered in thick grit which is not good for lil’ puppy paws…. so I had to try to keep them off it as much as possible. Managed to catch this shot by being on an ungritted pavement!

So I came home and sat down and made all my Pawsitive Solutions calls. No problems, no nerves, booked a puppy Zoom call for….. wait for it…. Friday night at 7pm. Yeah I know….. I know where are my boundaries?!?!? Every penny helps these days and it’s not like I’ve anything better to do!!!

So by the end of the day all is well… and breathe.

Stay safe everyone ♥️♥️♥️

I think this might be the first day that I’ve genuinely not really had a clue what to do with myself…. not bad going since we’ve been in lockdown since 4th January if memory serves me right.

I got up to let the dogs out and went back to bed so it was about 10am before we surfaced and it’s only 16.20 now. How many hours are in this day?!?

There have been no random Border Collie turning up at our door today to even break the monotony. Just the usual 3!!

Craig noticed that “I wasn’t quite right this morning” and he was right. I like to keep my Sunday at least as a day off but I’ve had a lot of days off…. what on earth do I do today?!?

My boredom was bored!!

Thankfully Craig was walking the dogs and I decided to go with him. If I did nothing else at all at least I’d have done that!

When we got back that sense of nothing kicked in again….. thankfully Claire suggested a cuppa up the ladder!

We had a good chat and out the world to rights and came to the conclusion that taking 1,200mgs a day of Ibuprofen was quite likely the the cause of my lethargy…. don’t know why I never thought of that before?!? I haven’t had a nap today but I could have….

I’m reading a book at the moment which kept me awake!

Hardly light reading but surprisingly interesting. The first two victims of Jack the Ripper seems to have been alcoholics. Women who came from good backgrounds who could not stop drinking due to issues in their earlier lives. They both lost good marriages and ended up trying to make enough money to drink and find a bed for the night, or end up sleeping in the streets. These women lost several children between them to alcohol related diseases, meningitis or other diseases of their time. One of them lost six siblings to early infant diseases. The hardships they endured were truly heartbreaking.

Here I am sitting feeling bored because of lockdown….. it really makes you realise how easy our lives are.

I stopped drinking because I didn’t like the loss of control and I didn’t seem able to stop when I started. That makes this book a wee bit of an uncomfortable read but at the same time, I’m so grateful that I don’t drink anymore.

The below really struck a chord with me…

I have enough anxiety of my own without the hangover anxiety. Not gonna lie that giving up drinking is one of the hardest things I’ve ever done. What if people think I’m boring? What if they try to make me drink…. what if… what if?!

I’ve come to terms with it now and as I sip my glass of Nosecco there’s no question of me ever going back to it. It would appear it will also make me less likely to fall victim to Jack the Ripper. (Poor joke but trying to bring it full circle!!)

Dinner is on, the tv is on. God knows what we will watch tonight but sure another few movies will pass the time.

And we cannot wait…..

Stay safe everyone ♥️♥️♥️

So I’ll leave that wee nugget to the end…. dogs eh?!?

Well the last few days have been nap centric. Another hour and a half yesterday after putting the blog out. Really out for the count. How can anyone need that much sleep?!?

Still sleeping all night too…. anyway we were up bright and breezy this morning and totally snuck up on the housework again…. in a pincer like movement. Craig was like a man possessed and between us we blitzed the place. Floors washed…. the full bhoona.

Craig then says right we should stop for lunch. Yip starving and it must be at least 2pm….. nope 11am!!! I ate my lunch at 11am without even realising. Life in Scottish covid lockdown 2.0. 🤷🏻‍♀️🤦🏻‍♀️

We kept going after lunch and Craig disappeared for a while and he was out cleaning the windows…. I couldn’t find him anywhere and would never have guessed. It feels great to be sitting tonight once everything is clean!! But a day of housework doth not an exciting blog make….

Neither does having another nap. The third in 3 days.

So I’m out for the count when the doorbell goes. I’m expecting my Amazon parcels from yesterday….

It is not Amazon. It’s one of our lovely neighbours who’s been followed home by a Red Merle Border Collie…. and where does she come?!? Yeah the house of Border Collies.

We got shoes on, picked up a lead and found some treats to try and entice it….. walked outside, round the corner of the side of the pub only to watch a Border Collie jump from the balcony of the pub down onto the ground. The house is above the pub and it ran up the steps then was spooked so jumped from there. The equivalent of jumping from a first floor window 😱

She seemed to stumble a bit but carried on moving and looked like nothing was broken. It’s got to have hurt though….

Craig managed to get her to come for some treats and then looped the lead around her neck to stop her running out onto the road. She had no collar.

It was freezing outside, Craig took her round into the back garden and by this time she was was much calmer and looking for food. She was also wolfing the natural treats we took out.

We got her into the office while the other dogs were in the sunroom. It was far too cold to be outside.

Managed to trace the owner from really close by and he came down to pick her up. She’s a farm dog and lives outside and he reckons it’s her first time off the farm. She’s 11 years old. Told him about her jump. There was blood on her lip which Craig was covered in but she seemed ok other than that. Her name is Keil.

He asked me on the phone if I wanted to keep her and said again when he came to pick her up. He breeds red Merles and has too many dogs just now. She sat down beside him and seemed more than happy to be heading home but it was lovely to be able to help her get home.

So that’s our excitement for the day. Another quiet one in front to the tv for us. So relieved that dog survived that jump. Hope to never see anything like that again. Ever.

Stay safe everyone ♥️♥️♥️

What is it with me and Fridays?!? Most people are winding down and I seem to buzz into action. Now I’ve not done a lot of exciting, “let’s blog about it”, kind of stuff so don’t get too excited!

After I published day 307 I fell asleep from 4.30pm to 7pm last night. Out for the count. Bet you are thinking what everyone said….. you must have needed it! 😆 That’s the stock phrase when you have a good nap in the day.

I still managed to go to bed at 11pm and sleep right through. Can’t get enough sleep some days.

Did a bit of COVID research this morning before I got up….. there’s a fourth vaccine almost ready to launch. Read about this on Sky News.

Found another interesting report from Sky News……

The start of COVID-19 in the UK….. one year on.

Can you reply believe we’ve had this for a year?! I know we were aware of it this time last year but kept saying it was just a bad flu…. little did we know. 😱

Yet Scotland are only in our second lockdown so far. I found that really interesting to look back on as I had no idea how it first came to the UK. I remember the poor guy dubbed the super spreader. Yet he had no idea he had it….

Our daily life has changed almost beyond recognition. You see footage of events in the past and forget that we used to move around in crowds and never batted and eyelid at it. Now we don’t see anyone.

So up and showered this morning and off out with the dogs to let Craig have a wee lie in. (note good wife will expect same in return sometime soon!)

It’s a lovely morning despite such heavy rain overnight and first thing. Yes I took a lot of photos but it really does brighten my mood. I headed off out with lead weight in my steps and headed home with a wee spring!

I let the dogs run in this field while I walked round the outside. Great to give them a run but I don’t get muddy. They did…… so very muddy.

They got all clean here but had to run back over the fields again…. had to hose them all down when I got back.

So I’ve done a lot of paperworky type things this afternoon and tidied up my to do lists but it feels good.

I’ve also done a wee bit of internet shopping….. some new slippers, a waterproof pack-a-Mac type jacket and some motivational wrist bands that a friend recommended. Was nice to have a wee covid style shopping trip!

So we have a Gateside Inn takeaway to look forward to tonight. It’s 4.20 pm and my feet are up. There may be a small nap….. I’ve got Freya cuddling in so it’s more than likely.

Happy Friday night and weekend!

Stay safe everyone ♥️♥️♥️

Up at 7.15 this morning, shower and hair wash ready for my busy morning.

I had the guy coming to buy the VW T5 rear seats just after 9am 💺💺💺 so that’s them away. We all had masks on and he gave me the money in an envelope so all very COVID aware which was good. His parents were born on Barra which is our favourite island in the Outer Hebrides so was lovely to have a quick chat about that and show him Abbie. He offered us the chance to camp on his land if we ever needed as they own a Croft up there. Hmmmmm might just bear that in mind then?!?! (As we get the ferry planner out……)

I then headed off to the Osteopath via the chemist to pick up my prescription for my shoulder pain. Ibuprofen and Omeprazole. The ibuprofen will reduce the tendon inflammation and the Omeprazole is to protect the stomach lining from the ibuprofen.

The Osteopath said this morning that we are winning!

My knee is doing well and the slight pain I feel is nothing compared to what it used to be. He did some work on it to ease a muscle that runs from the outside of the hip to the inside of the knee.

Then onto the shoulder and he was pleased the mobility is increasing and so doesn’t want to see me back for another fortnight. He did sneak two cheeky “manipulations” in there when I least expected it. I mean come on, tell someone we’re winning 5 mins before you crack something in their back and then in their neck. I thought we were done?!?!? I never saw that coming…..

Thinking about the above I’d never have thought I’d still be battling with my emotions all these years after I first went off sick. Yet I have achieved so much. It’s not where I expected to be AT all but it’s actually quite a lovely place to be on the good days.

Some more homemade lentil soup for lunch and off out with the dogs. As my lovely Gran would have said “it’s that fine rain that soaks you!”

I did one of those head bang movements here and the water just poured off my woolly hat. Sodden!!! (I re-read that…. a very random statement but also very true!)

A little bit of negativity in my otherwise positive post today but honestly…. in the middle of a pandemic…. why would our Prime Minister put so many people at risk to come to Scotland today? Such an utterly ridiculous and political act that is so unnecessary. I don’t believe for one second there is anyone up here who’s life is not complete because Boris Johnson has not visited. I suppose I stand to be corrected.

And here he is. There are a minimum of 7 people that he has put at risk just in this photo. (I assuming 2 pilots and one cabin crew and the 4 guys at the car). Stay at home, save lives, unless you are Boris Johnson. We can’t go anywhere yet he can come all the way to Glasgow?!?

I have to distance myself from politics and the news etc at times because it does get a bit overwhelming but I did promise to report on COVID.

My lovely wee 80 year old friend had her vaccine this morning and all is good. She was in and out in 6 minutes. Said she never felt a thing and she is still alive. she was actually really happy to have been able to get it and got all dressed up for the occasion!! Bless.

Funny how we do that now. Lots of people are making an effort when they have to go out for something as we don’t get a chance. My osteopath wouldn’t recognise me with the mop of messy hair that I walk about with all week….. He’s only ever seen it washed. It’s the only thing I go out for!

Thought important to share this….

I think battling with your own mind every day brings a deep seated exhaustion.

I am tired today. I have my feet up now and I’m gonna read my book and have a nap I reckon. That is ok.

I’ve had some amazing comments on my blog in the last few days and I just want you to know how much that means. Thank to everyone who read this far!

Stay safe everyone ♥️♥️♥️

Not quite such a dynamic day today…. Well it has been very dynamic but I’m not sure I’m feeling it…. I feel a bit…. how shall I put it…. hmmmm arse for elbow?!? ‘Scuse the French.

My anxiety is telling me today that I am not enough. I feel a bit confused and that confusion only makes me more confused. Fully understand if you’ve read this far and thought you can’t bear to read on. 🤦🏻‍♀️🤷🏻‍♀️😬😆😆 I felt a bit like that typing it.

These are funny times eh?! If someone had told me to stay at home for weeks on end a few years back I’d have bitten your right arm off to do that. Now it’s just a bit meh, samey and blandsville. How do you stay motivated to do anything when you have millions of things that could be done and all the time in the world to do it but you really can’t be bothered doing any of it?!?

I have been busy today. I took the dogs for a BIG walk earlier and did 4.6 miles AND we went to visit their Grampa at work! Doug is my father in law and works round the corner from us despite living about 45 minutes away. So good to see him and he even remembered to say happy new year! In true covid fashion we stayed over 2m apart and Doug wore his mask since he’s the North Ayrshire interloper. 😬

I took them through the burn to wash their paws!! That helped a lot.

When I came home I made some lentil soup. That’s a huge thing for me…. it’s super tasty as I had some for a late lunch. I then went out to the shed to clean the VW seats that I’ve sold and will be collected tomorrow. A job well done.

I’ve sat at the desk for the afternoon and made calls but done it all in a bit of a random way. I felt like I was going round in circles rather than doing it as efficiently as I could. However it’s still done. I just did one feel comfortable doing it. I spoke to one girl about a puppy call and she asked me if I could it at 3.30pm!!!!!

Why not… I had 50 minutes notice but better that than having to wait for days.

Well I think it’s fair to say I have that last one covered……. if only I could get to the beach. That would make it all ok.

Stay safe everyone ♥️♥️♥️

Hi everyone… normal service is resumed. Jeez I have no idea what that was yesterday… it’s such a relief to feel the weight has lifted and I can think straight again. (Should say here that THE actual weight obviously is still there…. just in case you thought I’d gone from a size 16 to size 10 overnight… nope. I wish. )

Before I regale you with my ramblings from today so far there were a few funnies yesterday that I thought I would mention….

You know those times where you think something and you actually make it happen right before your very eyes?

I’d lost my 4.5mm crochet hook in the middle of some wool maybe a month or so ago. Could not find it anywhere…. knew it had to be there somewhere. The Gateside Hookers will remember me messaging out WhatsApp group distraught because I’d lost a 4.5mm before and this was me now losing my replacement one. To calm the stress at the time I moved onto a 5mm hook, the crochet didn’t look any different and I ordered a 4.5mm from Amazon. Panic over. Anxiety quashed.

I’ve had the replacement 4.5mm for weeks and never used it as I’ve been working with the 5mm. (Yeah go figure eh?!) Yesterday I decided to take it out it’s wee packet and add it into my crochet hook stash….. you sooooo know what’s coming. Less than 5 minutes later I put my hand on the “lost” hook. I actually laughed. How is that even possible?!? 🤷🏻‍♀️😆

The second thing is that we have a dodgy microwave just now. It’s started to go a wee bit rusty inside and I figured that was not a good thing. Just haven’t got round to replacing it as we hardly ever use it. Last night was Rabbie Burns Night so we had haggis…. fastest cooked in the microwave. Craig had real haggis and I had veggie. So I had a microwave carousel thing going as I put one in the other in, then potatoes etc…

I thought to myself…. what would we do if we were relying on this for a meal and it stopped working. Craigs haggis cooked. Mine to go back in for 5 minutes. Nothing. Dead as a dodo. Wouldn’t switch on. I made that happen!!!! I actually laughed out loud at that. Despite my mood. Maybe it helped lift it?

I guess where I’m going with this is that these kind of things used to make me angry. Typical, can’t win, negative, negative….. Yesterday at my lowest ebb for a wee while, I saw the funny side and the fact that it was way too much of a coincidence. You get what you wish for. Your thoughts become things. I know that.

Ever since I was made redundant as a result of my mental health I have tried to focus on the fact that money comes from lots of different places and it’s not just from a job. Yesterday evening I thought my usual “money comes from everywhere” and a guy contacted me about the VW camper seats that I have for sale…. he’s picking them up Thursday. Boom. 💷

Had a great sleep last night. We’ve been binge watching Schitts Creek recently and I feel like they are part of the family but thankfully I didn’t dream about them last night. Binge watching messes with reality at times!

Alarm set for 7.30am, up, dressed and out to Morrison’s for Click and Collect food shopping. You click on a text link when you arrive, tell them what Bay you are in and the last 3 letters of your reference plate and they arrive with your shopping. They leave you to load it yourself and then I just waved to say that was me away. They came back to get the trolley as I drove off. Pretty well organised.

I stopped at the Little Coffee Caravan on the way home for an Oat Latte as it would just be plain rude not to! Got Craig a bacon roll. Keep him sweet…. or shut him up. 🤦🏻‍♀️🤣 had a lovely wee chat with Donna and her mum who were working.

By 9am I was off out a walk with Bhruic and Freya.

Back home and upstairs to make 4 Pawsitive Solutions calls. Spoke to some lovely people and then decided to call my lovely 80 year old friend and had a great wee chat with her. Says she’s missing me. ♥️💜 Told her I’ve started crocheting with wool she gave me ages ago so she was chuffed I’m making use of it.

I cannot tell you how much better I feel today than yesterday. It’s like night and day. I am focussed and able to face anything.

I then took Calaidh a walk in the pouring rain and even that didn’t put me off. It was VERY wet though…. but worth it to get me to 10,940 steps.

I got home at 1pm and it’s now 3pm and it is still pouring….

It’s now 4.40 and I’m not sure where the afternoon has gone… I’ve been writing this, coffee with Craig between jobs (he’s doing Zoom calls with clients now) a few more Pawsitive solutions calls… the afternoon just disappeared. It is actually dark already which sums up the weather today.

I’m very star stuck to say that I actually got a like from my comment on Glennon Doyle’s Twitter.

That made my day. We all have bad days. The important thing is how we pick ourselves up and keep moving forward one step at a time.

Oh and check Glennon Doyle out if you’ve never heard of her. Very motivational!

Stay safe everyone ♥️♥️♥️

What a rubbish nights sleep…. didn’t help that Mr tossy mcturney was lying next to me.

I was looking for covid updates this morning and was horrified to get more UK COVID-19 news from the New York Times. They are actually reporting how bad the UK stats are and that the UK has the highest death rate in Europe. Why is that not widely reported here? Why are the press hiding that. It’s shocking.

Was a relief to get up eventually. No idea why we slept so badly but I’ve certainly not got up in the best mood…. should avoid the news!!

Then to add to it all I decided to do some more work on the blanket…… I realised that all the recent work I’ve done yesterday was wasted as I’ve been using the wrong cream wool….

So moody baws here needs to cheer up. My neighbour Holly messaged about a dog walk at 10am me that was just the tonic as I’ve not seen her in ages and it’s a beautiful day. Cue the photos…..

Came in after 3pm and had a shower and am now super cosy in front of the fire wrapped in a warm blanket.

I plan on not moving. Maybe food… that’s all.

Stay safe everyone 🔆❄️🔆

Well it was a beautiful day today and I only saw it from the window!

After a lazy few hours I went upstairs to make some more Pawsitive Solutions calls and oor Craigie now has 7 calls booked for next week and 1 for the following. With a day and a half of work I have got a busy Craig for 3 full days next week…. win, win! Just shows you that people still need help. Was so lovely to talk to everyone today. I was on the phone to one of them for half an hour! She was just my kind of person!!

So yeah this is going to be a fairly boring blog as this afternoon I got my crochet out, sat on Grans chair and let the sun stream in on me…… was lovely.

One of the Gateside Hookers (my crochet group!) sent me a pattern for a dog bed that I am seriously tempted! The wool is £15 a skein and you need two or 3 per bed. With a 25mm hook!

So speaking of the pups, Craig was watching the football this afternoon and Calaidh was hiding in beside me as I crocheted. She’s a wee sensitive soul…

So by this point…. it’s just before 3 and I feel really tired. I could go for a a walk in the sun or I could do a Suzanne Robichaud hypnotherapy session. Open to receive /Law of Attraction Guided Meditation. I’ll post the link below!

Suzanne Robichaud guided meditation

Needless to say….. I woke up about an hour and a half later!!! I love the sound of her voice. A lovely nap upstairs on the spare bed with no interruptions. Just bliss. I have counted my blessings all day.

Stay safe everyone 🧶💤🧶

It’s always makes me laugh how the day after a big milestone comes… day 300 done and dusted and on we plod.

I’m a wee bit sad today. A bit teary.

And yet it’s a beautiful day. As I type that I feel the positivity. I feel the change of mood. Focus on nature today rather than reasons for low mood. It could still be the aftermath of the kinesiology toxic clear out this week or just the fact that I actually have to WORK today. Steps back in shock and horror. 😱😳

We have decided to contact our clients in waiting to see if any of them need a Zoom call to help set them on the correct path.

We cannot resolve the issues over the phone but we can maybe help buy them some peace in the short term. So calls it is for me today from the office with a view!

Had a lovely zoom call with the ladies from “Finding Calm Within the Storm” last night. There were 17 like-minded women in the call listening to a presentation on the Compound Effect which is positive changes made easily.

There was all sorts of advice to make time for yourself, consider meditation and yoga and walking in the fresh air as much as possible. We cannot give from an empty pot.

I think today I had big plans of all the new things I had to try and fit in…. and instead I actually did Pawsitive Solutions work all day and you know what…. I really enjoyed it. The chatting to people, trying to help them out. It felt good. I ended up working from 10 until 3pm and then took the dogs out just as the heavens opened and it started to snow. Wet and cold snow which didn’t come to anything.

It all brightened up into the most lovely sunset. We walked just over 3 miles so I got the exercise in too. Pretty pleased with that.

We have the Gateside Inn takeaway coming tonight so that’s something to look forward to and I’m guessing a lazy night in front of the tv in store for us. I’m ending the day much brighter than I was.

Stay safe everyone 🌅🌅🌅

300 days….. wow. This means I have been writing this blog for 292 days now. Every single day for 292 days. Imagine I had left this all up here in my head?!?! I may have self combusted….. 🤦🏻‍♀️🤯

So looking back 300 days I’m not sure any of us believed that here in Scotland 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 we’d be back in lockdown again. Albeit this one is very different… there are WAY more people working here than there were in the first lockdown. I suppose we know how to protect ourselves with masks, hand washing and hand gel and businesses have had time to prepare through the year so more businesses have stayed open.

This time there are shops that seem like they shouldn’t be open but hey… ours is not to question why.

We just have to stay home and save lives.

Sadly Coronavirus is still out of control with yesterday seeing THE highest recorded death rate so far.

Again while not pretending that I could do any better than the UK Government, you would like to think that we would have had this under control a bit more by now. 300 days after our first lockdown and we have the highest number of deaths.

How bad is this?!?! The whole of the UK is just riddled with new cases right now and I knew there was talk of a second wave but I guess personally I underestimated what that might mean.

So here we are again. All dog behaviourist and puppy training work has been postponed, we have no income and we are staying home. In February 2020 when I was made redundant through mental health, I would never have believed that I would still not be out working by now. But it’s ok. We can’t go anywhere or do anything so other than food shopping and random online shops there is nothing to spend money on anyway.

Thankfully while we know more people who caught COVID-19 this time around, we are still very lucky not to have had any serious illness or death in our family as a result… and dare I say, still to have not caught it ourselves.

Just to prove I am actually sitting out here. A change of scenery does you good.

So in today’s news I had to negotiate my way around a bad accident at the Beith Bypass/A737 junction… AGAIN… this morning on the way to the Osteopath. The again being the accident and not my negotiation around it. It’s a dreadful junction. A driver doing a u-turn in the junction (I mean why would you?!) was immediately charged with dangerous driving as he sent another van careering onto the grass, through a fence and into the trees at the side of the road. No one at the scene had masks on as that’s not our first thought yet. Obviously the police did but a prime example of why we shouldn’t be on the roads. She says…. out on the road…

Back to the Osteopath…. I was lucky enough that he managed to achieve the manipulation in my neck and back that wouldn’t budge last week and I’m pleased to say he snuck them up on me…. all of a sudden I’m in a funny position and then crack…. didn’t see that coming?!?! He’s recommended a course of Ibuprofen for my shoulder as he reckons the tendon is inflamed. It feels like he is working on muscles that have been crying out for attention for years. I have more exercises to do to help strengthen this week.

On another note (and reason for osteopath in the first place) my knee is coming along fine and the doctors called yesterday to say the X-ray was clear so good to hear there’s no damage.

And then…. the fuel light came on and is there a petrol station anywhere near?! Only Tesco in Kilbirnie so had to head there and had a wee wander round the store.

So it’s 5pm already. I came inside as it was surprisingly cold even with the heater on. I have a zoom call with a lovely bunch of ladies today. A group called finding calm within the storm. I’m looking forward to it. Support in difficult times.

So I guess we only have 65 days until the next milestone and I’m sure that will pass quickly. I wonder where we will find ourselves then?

Stay safe everyone ♥️♥️♥️

It’s funny I have visions of us back in the middle of the war gathering round the wireless as we all rush to social media to find out what the latest announcement is. The Scottish government seem to love a Tuesday about 2.30pm. So yeah lockdown has continued until the middle of February and I can’t say I’m surprised.

Up until now people could fly into the UK and walk straight out the airport and never look back. It’s no small wonder we have higher numbers. Also the desperation of the UK Government to “give us” Christmas.

And there’s the dark coloured UK. We’re even less than the States?!?! I watch my Fb friends living their lives. My friends in Melbourne at a cricket or tennis match, side by side, extended family and I wonder how we could have got it so wrong. I don’t envy the job of our Government in the slightest and I’m not saying I could have done any better than them. I feel very ashamed that we are top of the list. I’m feeling lockdown now….. I want to see family and friends and I want to travel in my van. Instead I have to stay here because other people keep mixing and spreading it. So as sad as it is I understand the need for the extended lockdown, doesn’t mean I have to like it.

I miss hugs. 💔

So anyway, little miss misery guts has been ok today. Ish. I was in bed for 9 last night, clean sheets and shower before bed. Lovely! I slept right through until after 8am and I mean properly out for the count. If I could bottle this I’m sure there’s people that would pay!!! Would help me start to generate an income… just realised puppy training delayed again. Hey ho.

I had Kinesiology online at 10am. Was a deep rooted clear out of toxins etc this morning…. I’m not even gonna try and explain it but I needed it and the chat with Shelagh always helps to ground me. She says I’ll be tired today but not sure I’m any more tired than I always am these days and I might fee a bit yucky in the coming days as my system gets rid of all the stuff that was stuck. How many men are reading this and wondering what on earth I’m babbling on about?!?!

For anyone intrigued about Kinesiology…. Shelagh is available for online appointments and believe me… it works as much online as it does face to face. I cannot recommend her highly enough. Don’t think I would be where I am without her support in my journey.

Enhanced Wellbeing

I’ve included the link for anyone who might be interested. Go and have a look! 👀

I then went out for a walk WITHOUT dogs….. met my neighbour without his dog too?!? Made me laugh as our dogs would have a go at each other normally. Was nice to pass calmly! Novelty without dogs and yes seems a waste but Craig had them out a big walk just before I went out. I needed some air.

So this afternoon as a glutton for punishment I sorted out loads of paperwork and have loads to burn. I’m looking at my pension paperwork and clearing out what’s not needed and trying to determine what is. Check me, 48 going on 65…. it doesn’t hurt to be prepared. I have just realised that I don’t have a pension just now while I’m not working so that’s something to look into maybe. Another day when I need something equally riveting to do. 🙄🤦🏻‍♀️😬😆

So I hear myself. A bit meh. It could be worse I guess.

Stay safe everyone ♥️♥️♥️