Day Five in the Constantly Trying house.

Wey man it's day five in the Constantly Trying hoose and things are lookin' unstettled. Hubby is gan t' finish the shelves the day and Constance is gan t' try and keep oot the wey.

Lordy, yesterday was a wierd day. I knew mam was coming up yesterday, but he didn't. She made out that she'd just popped up the road to visit the butchers (seriously?) and that she wanted to go and get some honey (even more seriously?) but she came laden with meat and vegetables, and eggs so that was fine. Hubby was happy to plodder about and even sent me with mam to go and get some honey. "We'll have lunch at 2pm" said he, "I think you'll be back by then" and we were.

I came home to find a painting in the living room that should have been in the hall way. I asked him why and he bent over his work bench giggling. Sigh. The reason he'd moved it is because he'd pushed too hard on the drill and the screw came out on the living room wall. Bigger sigh. He was so giggly and laughy about it that I said nothing, but honestly, if I'd so much as scuff a skirting board with the hoover I get hell to pay.

I made lunch and he stopped what he was doing. It was a lovely day yesterday and because the kitchen was full of tools I suggested we went and sat in the garden and had a picnic lunch. I wasn't expecting him to come, but he did. Hubby and my mother have always had a rocky relationship, and I'm not sure why. Since the diagnosis they've gotten on better and better, and he sat and blethered away to her and it was like seeing old hubby. My mam has commented on how hubby is more like he was when we started going out together twenty years ago (wow), and that this is the best they've gotten on and she finds that staggering. I have no idea why it is, but I'm not knocking it because for a long time it was very difficult and hard work and took the pleasure out of little visits like yesterday.

Instead of hubby getting straight up to go back to the shelves he had another coffee, nattering away, and had a cookie I'd made earlier (chuffed with these because there's no butter in them, and they were delicious. I'm definitely going to make them again.) and he nattered some more, and another coffee and he enjoyed the sunshine and he just seemed to relax. Eventually he went back to the shelves, but he'd had a rest without realising that that's what he was doing.

Mam went, and he even commented on what a nice afternoon it had been, especially since she brought provisions lol. He went back to the shelves and I made tea. We stopped long enough for him to eat it, and you've guessed it, he went back to the shelves. I tidied the kitchen up, doing the dishes and putting them away and we were both allowed to sit down to watch Emmerdale.

He's decided that he wants a bit of marble to lay on the bottom of the cupboard beneath the shelves. That way I can store vegetables in the cupboard and it will keep them cold. Good idea, but where I lay my hands on a slab of marble is beyond me (research later). My cookery books are in the living room, waiting for their new home on the shelves inside the cupboard and he picked one up that was an engagement present. He started to read recipes, telling me what "looked handsome" and commenting on what expensive ingredients were needed for the recipes and how he'd make some Farmhouse Pate. He couldn't get all of the words out right and some of the mispronunciations made me smile (not laugh at him), but then he started to do a funny noise before saying things wrong. It's a funny one to try and explain, but it was like a clearing your throat with your mouth closed kind of noise. I thought he was pulling my leg but he did it a couple of times. I didn't mention it to him, because that would have put him on the defensive and upset and annoyed him, but he's never done that before.

Today we have the shelves to finish, but I'm not rushing him because I think he's had enough and if I don't push him it'll get finished. If he gets worked up it will either be left or it'll be with a paddy and God only knows what the end product would be like. The best of it is, when people see what he's done they'll all fawn over it (justifiably so) and go "see, there can't be anything wrong with him if he can do things like this". What they haven't seen is the stress and the arguments and the paddies and the bloody hard work it's taken to get it done. 

Today I'll have to research marble. Maybe Gumtree has some on... ;o)