And just like that, I’m coming to the end of almost three weeks of annual leave.

It’s been an incredibly busy three weeks. In fact, I feel like I’m going back to work for a break!!

As I sit here trying to think about everything I’ve been up to, I am struggling.
I know I’ve done a lot, but, because I’ve been doing it at my own pace and not working it around normal working days, I am finding it difficult to actually put down in writing.

So let’s see….
The first week was a blur.
A 12 yard skip was delivered on the first day and we filled it with lots of household rubbish after clearing out bedrooms and garage and we also had a good hack back of all the shrubs and bushes in the front and the back gardens.

We also invested in a new car, a new 4 piece suite for the living room and a new bed base for our room after the divan base decided it had had enough of two heavy weights using it for the last 10 years.

The second week was more of a sort out and tidy up week.
The garage has had yet another sort out.
The dining room has been reorganised and is now more of a hobby snug.
The living room has been prepared to receive the new suite when it arrives in around 8 weeks time.
Dharma’s room has been ‘gutted’ and moved around and our room has been reorganised to accommodate Ian’s modelling/gaming hobby and set him up for working from home on a long term basis.
It’s also designed to ‘hide’ it all from view so that I can actually relax in my own bedroom.

The third week has been a tidying week.
Getting back on top of all the washing and ironing and I’ve fine tuned the back garden and even put up lots of solar lights so it looks like a little grotto at night.

In fact, the only thing left to do is fine tune the front garden, and to be honest, that can wait. It’s not horrendous. The worst part has been done with the hacking back in week one.

All of this has been interspersed with a few nights out.
An afternoon at our local pub over the road. First time since lockdown. It’s good to see them so busy and good to see how people have been respecting their new COVID rules. I hope we don’t get forced into a local lockdown and lose this bit of freedom again.
We also went into town to see how some of our favourite pubs have been doing.
Compared to the nightclubs or ‘youngsters’ pubs that have been ‘heaving’ and in no way social distancing, our favourites have been much more sensible and are following strict social distancing measures. It was lovely to get out and meet up with a few friends.

Me and Ian went out for our first meal together since lockdown.
It was our 26th wedding anniversary and we decided to go to Miller and Carter for something a little more special than our usual choice of places.
Made even more special by our waitress recognising me as one of the nurses who have looked after her child a few times and giving us an NHS discount and a big thank you that I hadn’t expected.

I’ve had weekly visits from an old friend for a cuppa and a movie.
I’ve generally just done normal things at a leisurely pace. Things that normally feel like more of a chore because you are ‘having’ to do them on days off and fitting them between shifts.

This annual leave was booked for a completely different reason originally.
I had originally intended to sit and binge the Olympics, but due to the Pandemic, that has been postponed until next year (hopefully).
I have already requested my annual leave to do it again and fingers crossed it actually happens next year. They can’t put it off again because the Commonwealth Games are due in 2022. If the Olympics don’t happen next year, I can see it being completely cancelled until 2024.

So, what should have been a very relaxing 3 weeks, turned into 3 of the busiest weeks I’ve had outside of work in a long time!
However, the house has been kicked into shape and I’m feeling really chilled.
Now I have to think about getting ready for work tomorrow.
Got to cut my nails, get my uniform out, set my alarm for 05:30.
I’m going to enjoy a few glasses of gin and maybe a final takeout this evening.

Fingers crossed for a relatively calm day tomorrow. I think it’s going to take me a while to get my head back in the game!!!