This weeks antics

Last weekend I painted - some walls in the utility room... and then a little canvas for the new bathroom. I was going between the two, waiting on coats to dry in between :-) I started off wearing my painting coat and a shower cap for the utility room painting, in an attempt to keep the paint out of my hair, but somehow I did end up with white stripes regardless!

Big eyed owl

Tuesday was a busy day! In the morning I had the talk with primary 7's on organ donation. I thought it went well :-) I tried to make it interactive and hopefully they have all taken something away from the session. I gave them leaflets to take home so hopefully they can chat it over with their parents too.

On Tuesday night we had our first dancing class. The first hurdle was finding the place - we walked past it twice after Victoria had us heading in the wrong direction and I had the wrong street number. Once we located the building we got ready for class - Victoria then realises she has two left jazz shoes hahaha! Eventually we get into the class and start the warm up and learning a dance routine. By the end of the class we were fairly convinced we were in the wrong class!! We were meant to be in a Music Video class and turns out this was 'chick flicks'...oops! We had to tell the teacher then find the correct class to say we would be there next week. Hopefully it will go a little smoother this week :-)

I started my next painting project on Friday. I ordered a massive 4ft x 4ft canvas for the extension and have been working on my creation....of a Giant Panda. Yes, you heard correctly. Hopefully it will be finished soon (I have taken over the whole study at the moment)and fingers crossed it looks cool, not totally ridiculous, once in situ :)

It's back to reality!

So the end of another week back at work- Christmas seems a long time ago now!  It wasn't too busy back at work so I have got back into the swing of things now.  There is a bit of unrest at work because there has been a freeze on staff grade posts (budgets!) but not all the resource centres are currently covered in our area, so people are going to be shuffled around.  I really don't want to move as I am settled in, have my case load and know people at work now.  We have a big meeting in a couple of weeks so I will find out more then.

Last week I met up with Kirsty and Victoria for a drink, which was lovely.  I chickened out of going clubbing because a) I am getting very old b) It was snowing heavily and I was very paranoid about getting back home!  We are planning to join a dance class (seriously!) for some exercise.  I am a bit nervous because the last time I went to any type of dance class I was about 7 years old and too young to care if I was rubbish, and too young for the teacher to say if I was rubbish :-)  Will be good to get some exercise though as there are not really any sports I am interested in.

Last weekend was an Ikea nightmare.  I truly hate the Ikea shopping experience!  You get onto that wee path round the shop and there is no going back - people are coming up behind you, buggys are barging you out the way and at this point you haven't even got to the warehouse bit where you find they don't have what you needed anyway ;-)   We were going for book cases for the study (which used to be the dining room) to at least make some effort to get the piles of books and DVDs etc off the floor.   We had to go back the following day though because we could only get half in the car at one time.  Andrew however worked hard and built them all on Sunday.  He is getting rather good at building Ikea furniture!  So now they look all tidy and organised.  I spent my day off on Tuesday sorting all my art stuff into boxes that go on the shelf and all my card making things into tiny plastic drawers I bought.  It will never stay this organised.

Today I have been working on some ideas for explaining organ donation to a Primary 7 class.  My friends sister in law is a teacher and her class were reading a book about xenotransplants, therefore sparking their interest in organ donation.   I was going to try and add some fun elements like a wee quiz with some interesting facts about organs  e.g  if you laid out the lungs flat, including the airways, what area would it take up?  The size of a tennis court!  No kidding.  Anyway, that's on Tuesday so hopefully it will go well.

Seb has been a little bit mopy since we came home because he now doesn't have someone with him 24 hours a day!  Since his vaccinations, where we realised he had put on some weight (although still is good weight for his breed) we decided to make sure nothing was added to his dry food - he, for example, is rather partial to some dry parmesan sprinkled on the top!!  Anyway he also used to get a bit hot water mixed in, which invariably meant the food needed stirred when he got round to eating it.  So although there is now nothing added, not even the water, he sits and scrapes the bowl, sticks his paw in it and sighs loudly until someone stirs the food - then he immediately eats it!  He clearly thinks something magical happens when it is stirred and refuses to eat until this is done.  I have such a diva of a dog.


This weekend will probably involve some more home DIY type things - still a lot to do but trying to pace it :-)

Holidays nearly over!

Well, I am all packed and ready to head back tonight and then work on Thursday.   The holidays never last quite long enough!!  I have had a lovely time at home - I wouldn't say relaxing as we are busy busy over the holiday period, but they say a change is as good as a holiday.

Anne and John were up for New Year.  We started celebrations on the 30th with Carol Ann's 60th party, which was a great night and a chance to see some relatives and friends.  I wore the new dress mum gave me and fortunately had brought home a pair of shoes that went...spooky.

Cutting some moves with mum on the dancefloor...

On Hogmonay we had a lovely meal, with more of my home made crackers, and then had a fairly relaxing evening.    Seb was up to his usual antics and half way through dinner we realised he was missing.  Andrew found he had managed to get down the steep stairs to the basement (which takes him about 20 minutes, one paw at a time) but couldn't get back up.  We got him back up and ten minutes later he had disappeared again. This time mum found him lying in the shower tray in her en suite.  I have no explanation for this, other than it being his typical attention seeking behaviour.  He refused to come out and I had to shut him in the shower when I used the bathroom - too freaky having him sitting staring!!!

Dad indulges Seb's need to sit at the table with everyone..

 Anne and Mum

Seb in the shower tray

We brought in the bells with a glass of champagne, being with the people who matter most.  Again, I felt it was not a time for looking back, but for looking forward.  The only resolution I make now is to try and enjoy each day as it comes :-)

 John and Anne

On the 2nd we headed through to Uncle Hugh's for the last family celebration.  We had a lovely afternoon with a nice meal and some games afterwards.   Yesterday was the first day we really just chilled out and now I feel more tired than before!  Back to reality now but there is also something nice about getting back into a routine.  Lot's of friends I need to catch up with soon, so I have plenty to keep me going :-)