I’m aware that I’ve been away since the middle of July (or thereabouts), so that’s nearly four months which must be the longest I’ve ever been away from my blog for. A lot has happened in my life during that time.
Ten-and-a-half months have passed since I lost my beautiful Mum. That time hasn’t been like I would have expected it to be. I haven’t been able to grieve. Strangely, and somewhat disconcertingly, I haven’t been able to cry either. I still cannot look at my Mum in any of the photos that I have. This isn’t how I expected grief to be. However, I am aware that everybody grieves in their own way and in their own time. Maybe, the time isn’t right for me yet.
As for other goings-on in my life, they have been more positive. Some of you may remember that my care regime was about change drastically with new carers coming into place and old ones going. I’m pleased to say that it has all worked out far better than I could have imagined.
I was also at the beginning of having a lot of work done on my house too. This has been a prolonged process, but I am getting there gradually. My bedroom is finished and is now a haven of peace and calm in which to sleep. The new shed has been built in the garden, that is, after being ripped-off by builders who I, eventually, sent packing, and consequently, employed new ones who have done a great job.) The shed is painted a delightful shade of forget-me-not blue (at least, I think it’s delightful – I can’t speak for the neighbours).
The next and most significant project is adapting and renewing my twenty-five-year-old kitchen. This, I’m most excited about. It’s going to have lowered worktops, a new lower hob and a sink, all of which will be accessible to me in my manual wheelchair. The work is due to start in about two weeks. I’m currently at the stage where I and my carers are frantically sorting through cupboards and drawers with the intention of clearing out everything we haven’t used in the last two years, (that includes packaged food in the units that are well past their sell-by date!) I can’t wait for the new kitchen to be installed, although I’m not eager to face all the mess and disruption. However, as they say, “you can’t make an omelette without breaking eggs”)
Well, I think that’s just about a relatively accurate round-up of what’s going on in my life at the moment. I promise I’ll try to catch up on some of your blogs as soon as I can, and I really will try not to leave it another four months until I pop into WordPress again. Thanks for sticking with me through my absence.
Essentially Ellie 
Welcome back! We missed you girl! Glad your ok. Grief is a funny thing, in your own time, it will happen. Glad you have a nice new adaptive home now. xxx
Aww … thanks for the nice welcome back, Carolanne. It’s good to be here again. I can’t wait for the kitchen to be finished. The builder rang me this evening and said they’re starting on Saturday, so that’s sooner than I thought and I have so much more clearing out to do! It will all be worth it in the end, though 🙂 Love Ellie xxx
Glad you’re still here, Ellie, and that all of your projects are (slowly) coming to fruition. Unfortunately, it seems to be par for the course to get one set of rubbish builders somewhere along the line – hopefully that was your share, and all the others will be great. And the blue is certainly delightful!
Thanks, Mick. It’s good to be back and thanks for your kind compliment on my choice of shed colour 🙂 Unfortunately, I got ripped off for quite a lot of money with the ratbag builder! I won’t fall for that again. The new builder has been recommended by someone I know and seems very friendly, and genuine. Fingers crossed this time. This new builder rang this evening to let me know they would be starting work on Saturday, so it’s all systems go. Exciting and scary all rolled into one! I’ve still got lots of clearing out to do. I keep telling myself that I must be ruthless! It’ll all be worth it in the end. Watch this space for updates … Ellie x
Ruthless is good, Ellie. Do not use even a single gram of ruth.
Sorry to hear about Ratbag and Sons – other than recommendations by friends, it’s worth using Check-A-Trade if you’re not sure. I’ve not used it myself, but it’s meant to be a reliable way of checking.
Take care.
Thanks, Mick. That’s useful advice, although never use ‘Trust-a-Trader’ as that’s where I got Ratbag and Sons from. Apparently, tradesmen can write their own reviews or get their family and friends to write reviews for them. Big mistake.
Ah. That’s not good. Perhaps you could write your own review for them on Fling-A-Trader-In-The-River?
What a great idea! 😀
I think you are right that everyone grieves differently, and there’s nothing wrong with not being able to cry just yet. There is no right or wrong way to grieve. I’m glad the house projects are going so well, and I really like the color of your new shed!
Thank you, Ann. It does seem somewhat coldhearted not to have shed a tear, but as you say, there is no right or wrong way to grieve, and I’m sure my Mum would have understood completely too. I’m glad you like the shed. The next week, while the kitchen goes in, will be total chaos, I think. I’m not looking forward to the mess, but it will all be worth it as it’s been a long time since I’ve been able to cook. Even washing up will be a novelty at first!
Hi Ellie! I was delighted to find this post, and then somewhat embarrassed when I realized I was more than a month late in responding to it! I’m sorry I’ve taken so long. Like you, I’ve been away from the blogging world for rather longer than I’d intended.
It was great to hear about your new shed and also the kitchen alterations, which I’m sure must be complete by now. I imagine the lowered cooking and food preparation surfaces must be a tremendous improvement.
I hope you’ve had an enjoyable and relaxing time over the festive period. Let me wish you a wonderful 2018!
Oh! Hi Bun – I popped into WordPress this evening just on the off-chance of trying to stimulate some creative productivity in the brain cell department! However, I was really delighted to see you back after all this time. What a lovely surprise! 🙂 I hope you are well. Thank you for your kind comments, and I’m glad you like my shed. The before-mentioned brain cells are, at last, almost in the process of being able to write a post about my now finished kitchen. I’m thrilled to bits with it, and it’s been well worth all the mess and chaos. Ellie x
Edit to my previous comment: I do apologise, Bun – I forgot to wish you and your family a very happy and healthy New Year also. Love Elle x
I’m very happy to hear your new kitchen is finished and has worked out so well, Ellie. I must admit to being a little envious since there isn’t enough room to swing a cat in ours. At least, I believe this to be true. Strictly speaking, it’s merely an assertion on my part rather than a finding supported by a program of rigorous experimentation.
According to my best back-of-the-envelope calculations, taking into account average body size and variation in tail length, the swinging of cats, dogs, kangaroos and spider monkeys in our kitchen is completely impossible. Stoat, gerbil and field mouse swinging, on the other hand, is much more feasible. Unfortunately, I haven’t been able to confirm these preliminary speculations since my application for grant funding is yet to go through. (I’m sure it will be accepted any year now, though.)
Still, I shouldn’t exaggerate the hardship involved in using our kitchen. Yes, it’s small, but it’s also completely functional. It is, for example, perfectly possible to open the refrigerator door at any time, just as long as I first close the dishwasher door and then hold in my tummy.