Life goes on...

[londonronnie]

It's just over two weeks now since the family moved out, and JD and I are settling nicely into our new routine. The weirdest part is waving goodbye to Izzy when she gets picked up at 4.30 every afternoon. Having spent every day (with only a few exceptions) of her three-and-a-half years here in this house, it does seem very, very strange when she puts her little backpack on her back and goes off to her new home.

Once she's gone though, it's absolute bliss! Mealtimes always seemed very frantic here before and it got to the point where I would try to have my evening meal and get out of the kitchen before the others sat down to theirs (assuming, of course, that I'd been able to get to the cooker in the first place. It wasn't unknown for me to go to cook my dinner only to find both ovens and all four hobs already in use!). Now I can prepare and eat my meal in silence (JD usually being at work), read the paper if I want to, watch the news on tv and even - get this - watch Pros on ITV4!! Excellent planning on their part, putting Pros on at exactly the same time that I sit down to eat!

It's also dawned on me that our household bills are going to drop dramatically. The washer and dryer are getting about one-third of the use that they were previously; we've permanently turned off one freezer and one fridge-freezer that we no longer need; the cooker is being used about half as much as before; and we haven't used the dishwasher for well over a week. And when the winter comes we'll be ensconced in our cosy little attic room, complete with coal fire, and won't need to have the radiators turned up all over the house. The decorating of that room is already underway btw, and it'll hopefully be all ready for occupation after we get back from our week in London next month.

As far as mother-in-law (and the 'will-she, won't-she, move in with us' saga) goes, she's been diagnosed with a mild form of Parkinson's Disease and has been prescribed some medication which has made a big improvement to her mobility and her manual dexterity. Why on earth this wasn't picked up by her usual doctor I've no idea, especially as the two other doctors she's seen have both said that she was exhibiting classic symptoms of Parkinson's (and which, having looked up the symptoms myself online since, seem blatantly obvious to me now as well). At the moment, if she continues to improve, it's looking as though she might be able to manage living alone for some time yet, which is what she desperately wants to do. We're getting a panic alarm system installed in her house next week, and I think the next step is going to be investigating the possibility of having a stairlift put in for her. As long as she can continue to live alone safely then it's obviously the best option for all concerned. Oh, and our biggest immediate problem has been solved - daughter #1 and her husband have asked m-i-l to go and stay with them while we're in London, which is a huge load off our minds.

In other news...

My fannish life is ticking along nicely at the moment. My muse has so far continued to sit on my shoulder, and I'm managing to write a (little) bit most days. I've got some vidding projects to get started on too...

Haven't been watching much tv lately, apart from 'Rev' which I absolutely loved. I adore Tom Hollander - he is so, so good. Oh, and the show was filmed in my old neck of the woods (the church itself was the one in which my ancestors were hatched, matched and despatched for something like 200 years!). I've got all three eps of 'Sherlock' still to watch on the Sky+, and judging from the reaction of most of my flist they're definitely worth watching!

I really fancied seeing the new film 'Undertow' (aka 'Contracorriente') after hearing a really great review of it on the radio, so I was chuffed to see that it's on at our local indie cinema next week. Only problem is that the screening times are daft - 11am one day, 3.30pm the next, 1pm the next and so on throughout the week. Nothing that I can fit in with looking after Izzy or with m-i-l's medical appointments etc. Looks as though I'm going to have to wait for the dvd to be released at the end of September then. If anyone here gets to see the film I'd be interested to hear what you think of it!

Enough wittering...Time I put a sock in it, I think... *g*

Comments

[byslantedlight.livejournal.com]

Oh I am glad that they've found something to help m-i-l, especially as it means that she'll be happier for longer and you will be too - yeay! I wonder if family doctors are sometimes like friends though, so used to seeing us that they miss the obvious changes and signs because they subconsciously put them down to "that's m-i-l", and part of her character rather than a symptom of something medical... But just yeay for quiet dinners and Pros on telly and writing - go you!

[londonronnie.livejournal.com]

I think you've hit the nail on the head as far as the doctor's concerned. M-i-l always insists on seeing a particular doctor, because she likes her so much, and whilst the dr. always clucks sympathetically at m-i-l's problems she very rarely comes up with anything that might solve them. Hopefully things are going to improve a bit now.

But just yeay for quiet dinners and Pros on telly

Watched In The Public Interest tonight while I was having my dinner! *g*

[lukadreaming.livejournal.com]

All that peace and quiet sounds fab!

And thank gawd for a quack spotting the Parkinson's. Hope that means your m-i-l can stay independent for a bit longer . . .

[londonronnie.livejournal.com]

It is fab!

And thank gawd for a quack spotting the Parkinson's.

Yep, we're hoping that the diagnosis and treatment will make quite a difference.

[rosie55.livejournal.com]

Oh that all sounds lovely, you having some time to yourself and your cosy little room for the winter and time and inclination to write.It's great that the doc has sorted m-i-l out a bit and that your daughter has offered to have her to stay when you go away.
What a nice update!
Can I just say that it's worth researching a bit, apparently most people delay getting a stairlift till the last possible moment, don't use them for long and then need extra care and move. So second hand stairlifts can be good buys and often little used. I know there's a place here that does them but it might be worth you looking around there.

[londonronnie.livejournal.com]

Good point about the stairlift. I'll certainly have a look around and see if I can find anyone who supplies second-hand ones.

Thanks for the tip!

[sc-fossil.livejournal.com]

It sounds like your home life has settled down for a while. That's great news! It's nice to have some quiet time.

[londonronnie.livejournal.com]

Quiet time is wonderful!

Mind you, we've got Izzy all day and night tomorrow and all the family for lunch on Sunday, so no quiet time this weekend!

[probodie.livejournal.com]

OH YES!!! Result!! But like you, I too am wondering why it wasnt picked up on before...bloody medics *rolls eyes*

It all sounds rather nice and cosy and quite now at yours *g* Think you need a visitor to liven things up...*cough*...ROFL

[londonronnie.livejournal.com]

As soon as we've got something resembling a spare bed you'll be more than welcome!

*g*

[nakeisha.livejournal.com]

I'm glad all is going well and you're enjoying your peace and quiet.

It's really good news they seem to be able to help your M-i-L, but as you say why has it taken so long? I know you've said before she wants to remain in her own home as long as she can, so it's really good that she seems to be able to for a while to come.

[londonronnie.livejournal.com]

Things do seem to be going pretty well at the moment.

M-i-l has another hospital appt. in a month and they may decide to increase her medication, so hopefully that could improve things even more.

[nakeisha.livejournal.com]

Which is good.

Oh, fingers crossed. That's good news. I know she'll be happier the longer she can stay in her own home.