Gingerbread Haus - Juni 2020

We have been so lucky during lockdown to have had the chance to be in our own home.  Thinking about the houses/places we lived in together I am glad we are here.  We have lots of room to have space on our home, we have access to a front garden and a back garden.  We have used this time improving and tweaking the kitchen cupboards, dining room, garden and have started to refurb the big room. We had picked up a couple of beds on Facebook just after we moved in but the room took on a musty odour. GO said it was the house I was convinced it was either the beds or the mattress his mother had given us.  We decided to sell the beds, we made £50 profit which we used to get the gutters professionally cleared. Once they had gone it was obvious that smell was due to mattress.  We are waiting to find out if we get approved to foster before we make any big purchases.   It all depends on the age range. 

Gingerbread Travel - Juni 2020

Back to work for me so we haven’t really travelled.  The daily commute has been halved because everyone else is at home in lockdown.  The press has really gone for teachers calling us lazy.  What really annoys me is that most of those are tucked up safe either furloughed or working from home.  Once society reopens let’s see how quickly they return to their workplaces.

Gingerbread Life - Juni 2020

Well it was with great trepidation that I headed back in to school.  I had been sent home in March to shield, as an asthmatic, but had found out that I wasn’t asthmatic enough.

I have to say I was so happy to be working for the trust that I do.  Their priority the whole time has been the health, safety and well being of staff and pupils.  Everything that was put into place made me feel so safe and at ease and that meant the children and parents also felt safe and at ease. It was a bit strange but I was initially only on a two on three day off rota until some of “my” children came back in.  I enjoyed lunch with my colleagues watching Batgain Hunt and Antiques Road Trio. Then we only had a couple before they had to self isolate and didn’t return.  I was then placed in lifting and shifting duty, which I honestly didn’t mind, until I realised that no one would be helping as I emptied two reception classroom and a huge nursery.  After three weeks my back gave out at 2.30 on the last day!  

Gingerbread Familia - Juni 2020

We were watching the news when the host mentioned that during lockdown it had become more obvious that there was a worrying lack of foster carers.  Children weren’t getting the help they needed or deserved.  “That’s so sad isn’t it?”  I asked GO, his reply shocked me, “It is, so sad, that’s why I have applied to become a foster career.”  In some marriages that fact that one spouse has applied to become a foster carer without discussing it with the other could be a problem, for us though it was such a pleasant surprise.  Fostering has been something we have discussed, we applied to adopt which didn’t work out for us, we wanted to help children.  We want to make a difference, selfishly, fostering is a way to have a big family.  All the joy spread out (I know I’m a dreamer).  We don’t know what is ahead of us just yet, will our previous attempt to adopt be held against us?  Do we come across well on video?  COVID has made a difference to how the process proceeds most of our meetings will be on Zoom.   All that aside, for now, we are excited for our future.