Lazy Days Off and Busy Days at Work

Since returning to work last week, I haven't been particularly productive at home. My days off tend to be quite lazy and if I get a few things done I'm happy. As a consequence, the decorating isn't really progressing, but that's okay. I'm just enjoying the lead in to Christmas.

On Sunday, I had a very lazy day. I bought an online Tap/Lindy Hop course and did that in the kitchen, which was fun. I did have a zoom call with my sister in the evening, which was great. It was nice to catch up with her, as I haven't seen her all year, which is pretty shocking when I think about it. She is well though, as is her family, which is the main thing. 

I won't be seeing her or her family this Christmas, as we have decided to stay in London. Adding another household to the mix, just adds complications, so we're having a guilt free Christmas and New Year at home. We'll probably go up north some time next year, when the worst of the virus is over.

On Monday, I was slightly more productive and did a weekly food shop in the morning. In the afternoon, I managed to write and send off most of our Christmas cards. We seem to send less and less each year, which as far as I'm concerned is a good thing. I always feel a great sense of relief when Christmas cards have been sent off. At least this year, it's been nice to receive cards and know that family members and friends that I haven't seen this year are all well, so they have been very useful in this respect.

Later on Monday, I got caught up with ironing the large pile of clothes in the ironing basket, which was another job done. I watched a few episodes that I'd recorded of Escape to the Chateau DIY whilst doing so.  Now the new series has started and I'm back at work, I'm struggling to keep on top of watching it.  Fortunately, I've got a series link which records every episode, so I can watch them at my leisure.

I was a bit disappointed on Monday night, when a delivery arrived, to find that the bag was slit and one of the items was missing. I managed to catch the delivery driver, who checked his van for me, but the item wasn't in it, so must have dropped out or been taken out at some earlier point on it's journey.  I then had to go through the rigmarole of contacting the company and explaining the situation.  Thankfully, they are in the process of replacing the item, which I'd bought as a present for OH. It's rare that I have a problem, but it is very annoying when I do.

Tuesday, I was back at work and the Shop Manager was back, which was a relief as we need as many staff and volunteers as possible in the lead up to Christmas. The shop was busier too, which was good.  We also had a visit from our Area Manager. It was nice to see him and have a bit of a catch up, as he hasn't visited the shop since before the first lockdown.

Today, Wednesday, I'm on a day off again. I've done a few small jobs, one of which was to pot on a few indoor house plants.  I've gone a bit mad buying indoor plants in recent months, and some of them were outgrowing their pots and looking a bit worse for wear, so I put them in bigger pots, which will hopefully help them.

I'm having varying degrees of success at looking after the different plants I've bought. I think I might have over watered some a little. They all seem to have different requirements in the winter, so I get a bit confused. Some may not survive, but at least it will help me to identify those plants that are hardest to look after. It's definitely a learning curve. I like having them in the house though, as they make it feel cosy and homely.

At the moment, they are scattered all over the house, as the Christmas tree is taking up most of the space in the living room. In January, they will all be back in the front bay and I'll take a picture then to show you what they look like.

This afternoon, I did a bit of gift wrapping, so that I'm not faced with a whole heap of it, immediately before Christmas. I figure if I do a bit each week, it won't feel quite so onerous. I do enjoy wrapping presents, I find it quite relaxing. Besides, it's good to see just how much you've bought, to stop you continuing to the point of overbuying in the last few weeks before Xmas.

Every evening for the past week, I've been working on the dog quilt. I love winter evenings watching TV and sewing, it's so therapeutic after a busy day at work. It's slowly coming together and I'm now attaching the binding, so it will soon be finished. With the left over fabric, I'm also making a cushion cover for the dog kennel in the car, as the old one, despite being washed regularly, is looking dirty and needs replacing. I should get the quilt done by Christmas and will post the finished results in another post.

I love this time of year, especially if I've done most of my shopping, as I don't have to get frazzled rushing around the shops and can just enjoy soaking up the atmosphere when out and about or at work. I hope you are enjoying December and managing to get everything done that you need to.