Townies

I'm aware that no one reads my blog regularly - maybe one or two friends check in occasionally - and it means that I can easily step away and forget about it while I get on with life. So I do apologise if I have any ghost followers out there who were hanging out for an update, haha.

In these past few months, while the world has been in turmoil with COVID, we experienced a number of changes. Yes, my menopause journey, as per my previous blog post. But also, our two older children managed to find jobs that they both love. After quite a long period out of work for them both, I am proud of the work ethic they have and the confidence they've gained. They have really impressed me with their attitudes and how grown up they've become, after all the dramas of those turbulent teenage years.

Our youngest, meanwhile, is really coming into his own as a teenager - the moodiness has definitely arrived, although the sweetness of my "not so little" boy (he's nearly 6 feet tall now) still shows through at times. He was more pleased than we expected to get back to normal school when it opened up again and his report card for last term was definitely an improvement on previous ones. Of course, now he's just excited to be on Christmas holidays.

The biggest news for us - as shown by the picture above - is that we have moved house. We were in the old house for nearly 7 years and, while we loved living there, as renters we are at the mercy of the landlords. They needed to get the place ready to sell, so we had to go. It's not as nasty as that might sound - they were great to us but we knew for a while that this was on the cards. The rental market is terrible just now, so it's a scary time to be looking for another house. There are very few houses available and the ones that are usually get dozens of applications from potential tenants. We were very concerned about how we might go finding another place.

Luckily, we were offered a house by a friend. So we have left our 'semi rural' house to move back into town, closer to everything. We miss having all that country space around us (and that view!) but we're also enjoying the convenience that comes with being 'townies' again; easier access to shops, school and other facilities. The house backs onto a park, so that gives us a little more breathing room, and the home has a lovely feel to it. The owners are doing some renovations around us (painting, new bathroom, etc), so settling in has been a slow process, but the house is coming along nicely and we love living here so far.

Our plans to move completely away from the area are currently on hold, but that comes down to other factors too - the Caveman being off work at the moment with a back problem, the kids all wanting to stay here for now, a lack of funds available for moving further away to a more expensive area. It's not off the table for the future, but this is where we'll stay for the time being. We are honestly just grateful to have somewhere to live and incredibly thankful that things have fallen into place up to this point.

So that's our crazy family update. There always seems to be something going on with us ... but we manage to find a way through and our first priority is always each other x

It's the Change!

We've had a bit going on ... for a number of months now! I'll try to ignore that my last blog post was in May (!) and just focus on catching up on all our recent events over the next few posts.

First of all, the joys of growing (just a little) older. It seems I've hit a new stage in my life ... one that all women go through between the ages of 45 and 55, on average. Yes, I'm apparently experiencing "the menopause". Or showing pre-menopausal symptoms, at least.

I realised what was happening back in August and, due to living in a COVID-affected world, I had to book a phone appointment with my doctor. When he rang, I was able to tell him exactly what I had. It was a simple call; I listed my symptoms and he said, "Yes, that sounds like menopause." I mean, obviously he asked questions to rule out other possible causes - but that was the outcome.

On a side note: I discovered that not being face-to-face with the doctor meant I was more comfortable going into personal details than I would normally be. I wonder if this is the case for other people? Are doctors hearing more about their patients now than they ever have before? It must have been quite an adjustment for them too.

I announced to my family that I was embarking on the roller coaster known as menopause, as you do. Well, as I do. (Thanks Mum, again. I was raised to not keep this stuff to myself!).

I like for the kids to be informed so they know what to expect. The eldest son said, "Oh no, I had hoped to be moved out before you hit this stage."
Well, thank you son. I know who I'm taking my unpredictable moods out on first.

The youngest said, "Haha, you're old".
Yes, he's on the list too.

My husband, usually a man of reasonable intelligence, chuckled at me taking my jacket off, putting it back on, taking it off again (damn these hot flushes!).

My list of people I'm allowed to growl at is growing.

The only person with the good sense to not make fun of me was my daughter - perhaps because she knows it will be her one day.

In seriousness though, so far I feel I'm coping well. I've had a few women share their experiences with me, so I know how different it can be for each of us. I feel like my attitude is generally positive, although my fuse can be a little shorter (just ask my family!). I was worried about having hot flushes in Summer - back in August they were pretty easy to deal with - but when we had a heatwave last weekend, I felt it was manageable (enough). I kept asking everyone "Is it just me? Or is everyone feeling this?". I'm keeping up with my exercise and a healthy diet. We've had a lot of things going on, so I've learned to be better at taking "me" time when I feel a bit overwhelmed.

It doesn't bother me to be getting older - I know I'm still young at heart, where it really counts. And the Caveman, who hates a breeze of any kind in the bedroom while he's sleeping, is learning to live with open windows and a fan on!