Maltesers

How do you eat your?
Suck?
Or bite straight into them?
;-)

Midwife

I found myself watching " call the midwife " this morning that my mother had recorded last night on bbc.
Wow! What a brilliant bit of television. To see how they lived all those years ago was quite fascinating.
Sometimes we don't realise how lucky we are with all the modern medical equipment of our time.
We are lucky to have contraception that prevents us having pregnancy after pregnancy if we didn't wish to have them.
A brilliant in depth programme, that really captured my heart actually.

My old dog Rip.

My beautiful sheep dog was put to rest today. His name was Rip.
He was the kindest, loyalist dog i have ever had the pleasure of working with.
Living on a farm is the nicest place to live, the open,beautiful fresh air.
Being part of a hill farming family, dogs play a massive part in the day to day running of a farm.
Rip has had a long battle with a foot growth, with nothing more the vets could do for him, the decision was made this morning to put him to sleep, and end his long term battle with pain.
Once again my heart aches at the loss of a loyal friend. A friend, no matter what the weather, was by your side to help.
I know he is in a better place now, running through the open meadows in heaven.
I'll never forget my old dog Rip.

Age makes the heart hurt.

And i don't mean just in a physical sense, although we all know that it can be usual in old age.
My nan celebrated her 77th birthday today.
On most accounts she is as fit as a fiddle, but as each year goes by I'm starting to notice subtle changes.
Now, i work in a nursing home for the elderly, I Started off in the kitchen, but quickly developed an interest in the caring side. So some months ago i followed my heart and took on a care assistants job. I am fully aware of the reputation that some carers, and the care homes them selves can carry, but honestly I'm part of one of the good ones. I see everyday how age affects our most vulnerable part of the population, but when its creeping up on your own flesh and blood, it cuts that little bit deeper... in my opinion anyway!
Every year her eye sight gets that little bit worse, becoming more apparent when i receive cards off her, and find it a little harder to read her hand writing. Of course i keep these facts to myself, as i very much doubt she needs me to point it out to her. She used to teach me how to sow, knit and cross stitch, and continued to help me over many, many years ( as i was never much good at it!), but now its me who helps her.
Seeing my once energetic, lively nan bounding around the place, running rings round those many years younger than herself, starting to slow right down, is why age makes my heart hurt.
Seeing a small knock or graze turn her limbs black and blue, having to repeat words and phrases a number of times until she hears me, hearing her gentle bones creek and crack, more reasons why age makes my heart hurt. But I'm thankful, thankful that i still have my nan in my life, and i think she will continue to run circles round me for a few more years to come!

Ginger!

Decided today would be as good a day as any for a little change!
Digs out a Dye kit for hair, blow off the dust, yeah this looks OK.
30 minutes later, and my locks are now a strange shade of ginger.... hmmm.
Perhaps auburn doesn't mean brown after all?!?

Ambition as a child

From as early as i can remember i had the feeling deep inside of me that when i grew up, i wanted to be making a difference to peoples lives. Caring for them, making them better when they felt sick, and putting plasters on peoples sores. As i entered teenage years, i buried those feelings when i stuck years of being bullied, and out casted, my mind set completely changed. Why would i want to look after people, make people feel good, when nobody appreciated me enough to make me feel good, or to look after me? I left school at the age of 17, having been told by a teacher, that although i was a "nice" person, i wasn't the strongest pupil in the school, and my departure would be neither here nor there. I left school feeling pretty dull. Funny how the way people treat you can almost change your perception of every body in life. I went to work in a well known shop, but there was a yearning in side of me for something more, i didn't feel complete, but as id had pointed out to me, i wasn't the brightest bulb in the box, so how could i do something more tasking with my life? After three years enough was enough, and i decided to take on a new job. A kitchen assistant in a nursing home for the elderly. It was then, with the respect off people older than me, that i finally found my feet in life again. Being around these people, clients and staff, made me realise that i could be what ever i wanted to be if i put my mind to it, they believed in me.I just to forget about the people in my past, who were maybe that self conscious with how their own lives where, that put me down. I could live my ambition.. i just had to try.