Eggs

Despite the harsh weather of late, the hens are still providing us with a couple of eggs a day. We expected the short days, snow and wet to slow them down, especially as they have been unable to properly scratch at the ground since before Christmas. The ground has either been covered in several inches of snow or rock solid so the poor things haven't been able to access grubs and all the other exciting things they usually root about for. None-the-less they come out of their house every morning happy to see us and bustle about best they can. Happy little souls.
Phone calls, texts and emails have all but filled the last two days trying to get information about mum and trying to get care put in place for when she goes home. 
She had the oxygen removed on Friday to see how she got on and she was absolutely fine without it for a woman of her age. There was then talk of her going home today, Saturday. There was no way I wanted her to return home without a proper care package, she cannot cope on her own anymore. Even she will now admit that, and believe me that has to mean she needs it! It appears that because she is able to walk herself, with the aid of a frame, to the bathroom in hospital, they think she will be fine on her own at home. She neglected to tell them she has a carer to wash and dress her at home and so no-one has washed her since she's been there! She also pays a cleaner who not only cleans but takes her washing for her too! Even before the Covid hit her she had been struggling to stand in the kitchen to make food or wash up. Finally today she admitted to me that she is worried about going home unless she has more help. I had already been trying desperately to contact social services to make this happen, but getting her to say it is a real help for when they visit her. 
She had to have a stomach scan today as she had been awake since 3am in pain. She called me early in the morning because she was in pain and had been awake several hours. She said she hadn't rung the buzzer "because there are people here worse than me." At least that gave me sometime to bash on with the phone calls! I did finally get a call from social services. The result is that they are liaising with the hospital team and I will hear from them before mum is discharged. This is a big stride forward and I'm keeping my fingers crossed the need for extra care will give her more points to move across the road at some point, which can't be quick enough for me.
Late afternoon I indulged myself by making some comfort food, spicy digestive biscuits. Extra photo.  It is a new recipe to me and I reduced the amount of black pepper. I'm pleased I did or there would have been no comfort!! The next batch I will add ginger to the other spices in exchange for the pepper. Not bad though!
I just slouched in front of the TV for the evening, wondering what tomorrow will bring!