Sometimes, life gets in the way ........

There have been a few changes over the past couple of years - bereavement, surgery - and you could say the latest has turned my world upside down. In March, my son-in-law was made a job offer that was too good to pass up and he has taken Jen and our four grandchildren to Melbourne, Aus.  Of course, I didn't want them to go but I couldn't say so.  It's such a good opportunity for all of them for all sorts of reasons.

The one and only silver lining I could find was that the grandchildren would be older when and if they returned, so now we could safely contemplate replacing the carpets and the sofas. Then they fostered - or rather foisted - Ned on us. It was absolutely the last thing we wanted, but he was eight years old and too old to go. They were coming to realise that they would probably be saying a last goodbye to him. What else could we do? Don't get me wrong. He's a lovely, friendly, affectionate and agreeable little dog. He is family and the children miss him. Not one of them can remember when he wasn't there.

BUT...............

Oh this dog!

I've just cleaned up after him yet again. His fine hairs are impossible to vacuum up. He wipes his face on the furniture and the door frames. I am constantly on the alert with the antibacterial spray to deal with smears, smudges and worse at Ned height. He brings in cut grass from the garden and rabbit “currants” from his walks on the Downs. Oh, those walks on the Downs! Sometimes twice a day. Lovely in fine weather, but not so good when it is cold, wet and windy. Ned's wet, hairy feet leave stains on the carpet when we get home. He's making an excavation in the garden to hide his chew sticks. Piles of soil get scooped up and deposited on the patio and a trail of muddy pawprints follow him as he runs excitedly indoors to tell us all about it. He goes in and out all evening, guarding his hidden chew stick from seagulls and foxes. Seagulls, hedgehogs and foxes are not allowed in or near the garden. They are summarily dismissed with much growling, snarling, barking and leaping about. He smells. Not bad, just like a dog. He likes to curl up on the cushions at the end of The Boss's sofa when he's not using it. The cushions smell of Ned, and sometimes so does The Boss. He sneaks upstairs to the bedroom whenever he gets the chance and his favourite place to curl up is against The Boss's pillow. He waits outside the door when I'm in the toilet or the bathroom? He picks out all the meat that I mix in with his dog food and leaves the rest. He would rather eat doggy treats than proper dog food anytime. He objects to The Boss 's bad language and slinks off upstairs in a huff. We no longer get up and decide to go out for the day at the drop of a hat because Ned needs his walk and cannot be left on his own for too long.

On the other hand..................

Ned is always pleased to see us when we come home. He loves to go out with us, even if it's only for a quick trip in the car. He shares The Boss's sofa in the evenings and during the day he catches forty winks at the same time. He lets us know if anyone comes to the door. We get lots of fresh air and exercise - we have to leave the house every single day! His funny mannerisms and his naughtiness make us laugh. He is friendly and affectionate and he likes us. We like him too. As Stanley said “Although he's not living with me just now, he's still part of my family”. And so he is................

As a consequence of all this, I've been either too busy or too sorry for myself to keep up with my embroidery for a while. 

Anyway, I've finally picked up what has become a REALLY SLOW CLOTH. I haven't done much to it yet, just a couple of TAST stitches, but I do feel more like getting on with things now!


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And just to show that I am getting back into the swing of things, I've marked out some more of the cloth ready to catch up with the TAST challenge stitches.



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