Good morning… and it really does feel like a proper Sunday morning today. It’s a slow start here, not just for me but for the weather too. At the moment it’s cloudy and the sun can’t quite decide whether it wants to make an appearance or stay tucked away behind the clouds. Whatever it chooses, I really don’t mind.
A little update on Mum, as many of you know she has Alzheimer’s as well as vascular dementia. Dad takes such amazing care of her and does an incredible job. More recently she’s also had to start insulin injections as she is diabetic too. She doesn’t get out much now as she can no longer walk, and sadly her confusion is steadily becoming worse.
Even so, it’s always lovely to see her and spend time chatting, regardless of whether what she says makes complete sense or turns into a little gobbledegook. One of the loveliest moments recently was receiving my birthday card from her. It’s been such a long time since I saw her handwriting. It has changed, of course, but she wrote it herself and that made it so very special. It’s definitely become one of those cards that will stay safely tucked away in my treasure box. I’m sure I’m not the only one with a little box full of precious memories and things too special to throw away.
Youngest daughter is slowly recovering from her gallbladder removal and she’s making good progress. Yesterday she needed fewer painkillers and was up and walking around more, so that all feels very positive. She’ll see the doctor towards the end of next week and then return later to have her stitches removed. The little one clearly knows something isn’t quite right, but he’s been so wonderfully behaved with us that it’s been an absolute pleasure keeping him occupied. We’ll be heading back over again this afternoon. Although I must admit I’m secretly hoping there are still a couple of her delicious Thermomix blueberry muffins left waiting for us!
I also recently finished off a few more cards — some with sentiments added to the front and some left blank, ready and waiting for just the right occasion. They all now have inserts and have been safely added to my card box. I always feel so much better when I haven’t got half-finished projects sitting in the craft room waiting for me.
A few more jobs were ticked off the ever-growing complex list yesterday and I do mean a few. Sometimes it feels like one job gets crossed off and three more mysteriously appear overnight. I’m convinced there’s a secret list fairy adding extras while we sleep.
Rising damp had made itself at home in both toilet/shower rooms around the pool, which is something quite common here with the age of the buildings. Back in those days damp proofing clearly wasn’t on anyone’s priority list. Thankfully, we had a lovely chappie come in who worked his magic, replacing tiles, repainting, treating the affected areas and generally making everything look much happier. He’s done a smashing job and hopefully bought us another year before the damp decides to make a return appearance.
While he was at it, he also tackled some uneven paving around the pool and sorted out ironwork peeping through around the inspection hatches, not exactly the sort of feature anyone wants on a poolside! He even repaired a step with broken tiles. So all in all, quite a few satisfying ticks off the list.
Paul and I had a lovely wander around afterwards to inspect everything and of course, no walk around the complex is complete without another little mission. Yesterday’s task involved popping up a few notices about feeding the feral cats.
Now before anyone thinks I’m anti-cat, I’m really not. Cyprus has thousands upon thousands of stray cats and they can be absolutely lovely to look at. Many enjoy a fuss and a little petting too. But they aren’t domestic pets and unfortunately they come with their own set of challenges. They can scratch and bite, they haven’t had vaccinations and often arrive with a few unwanted hitchhikers of the furry bug variety.
The bigger issue is that if food appears in the complex, word clearly spreads through the animal kingdom faster than village gossip! Feed one cat and suddenly we have extra visitors. Cats bring back their hunting trophies (which nobody wants to discover first thing in the morning!), then along come ants and insects, and if food and water are left out, the pigeons see it as an all-inclusive holiday resort invitation. Before long we have pigeons nesting on windowsills and balconies, creating an unbelievable racket, endless mess and a smell that definitely won’t be bottled as a perfume anytime soon. So, lovely to admire from afar… but on the complex? No cats thank you.
Well, I think it is coffee time. Thank you so much for having a read and I do hope you have a smashing Sunday, Tracey x
Stampin' Up! Promotions
Here is the May - August 2026 Catalogue that you can click on and have a browse but better still, why not pop into the Craft Room, Derby and grab a copy of your own.
There are 5 brand new design (magnetic close) 2026-2028 In Colors.
The Last Chance List has lots of beautifully colour co-ordinated favourites, all with that signature Stampin' Up! quality we know and love, but only whilst stock lasts. If you click on the image below, a new page will open up and your can have a browse.
Paper Pumpkin is now available in the UK I did write a whole post on all I know about this and we can subscribe in the UK. Subcriptions are now for the June kit. To find out a little more, click on the image below and a new window will open. But please, do get in touch if I can help in anyway, I am always happy to help.
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