at the end of a busy week

It has been a odd kind of week with a part time work retreat for me (driving there and back on two days, 45 min one way) and a full time work retreat for Richard (staying over). We were relying heavily on the two older children to help with the littler ones and Jack had to go out with his dog walker more than usual. He didn't mind. Talking of Jack, we are looking for a good kennel for the October holiday, our usually go to dog minder is on holiday, too. Any suggestions are appreciated, if you are local.

The retreat was ok, at least the scientific sessions. I am not so keen on team building exercises, I find shaking hands and introducing myself to people I know excruciating. I missed the social events, which I have been told were fun.

We drove out to a quarry to choose granite cobble stones for our gabion steps. They are a little bit sparkly, which appeals to my girly inner self. They are also reclaimed. The wall in the garden has been annihilated and this weekend, we carried large amounts of spoil out to the skip. Actually, I was filling buckets and loosening clay with the sledge hammer rather than carrying spoil. I am now quite confident that we'll actually manage to finish. My body is utterly exhausted. Just one week to go until the builders arrive.

My quince tree is now wood. There was a single tiny quince hidden amongst the foliage. I was expecting to be more sad about loosing it but it was a poor cropper and not ideal for the climate. I have found a website that lists suitable trees for the exposed West of Scotland weather that we have and unfortunately, quince trees are not among them. We'll choose a new tree after Christmas, one that is happy in our climate.

I had a podiatry appointment and was told there was 'something functionally wrong' with my foot. I call that a vague diagnosis. I got a referral for a biomechanics assessment for the fitting of bespoke insoles. Bye bye pretty summer sandals! I have of the shelf insoles which seem to help a little.

I read in the news that corn on the cob is a major cause for emergency surgery in dogs, the cob causes blockages and distress. Upon reading this I wondered what happened to the cob that Jack was chewing on. He loves it but I have never seen him eat the cob so there is hope.

Clubs are all back on and evenings have become busy once more. Homework is back on the table and I still don't like it.

I started watching Stranger Things. Not sure if I like it as much as everyone else. I was expecting more glorious 1980s music I think, and less creepiness. I also watched the first series of Zoo, which is completely ridiculous but kind of fun to watch. Then I started to watch The Killing. I am late to catch on but I am making the best of my free Netflix month. I am saving the last few episodes of The Walking Dead up for when the free month is up.

I haven't worked on my crochet blanket for over a week. I was too tired to lift a crochet hook. On the other hand, I made two soaps, both of which failed aesthetically but otherwise fine. I was trying to make some Christmas soap before the kitchen goes. Ah well.

We had a camping planning meeting with a delicious meal and good company. We still don't know where we will be camping. It is difficult to find a campsite where open fires are allowed and where children can be loud, boisterous and largely unsupervised.

What has been happening in your parts of the world? I haven't had a chance to catch up with my favourite blogs unfortunately. I am hoping to pop in next week.

Wishing you all a good week. x