Sunday 4th November Christchurch

Today Mum decided that after she had finished her cup of tea in bed and had a brief look at the paper she would join us for breakfast at the table.
It was just like old times as we sat there and chatted whilst we ate our cereals and toast.
We were waiting for the arrival of Sue who was coming down to help Mum sort out some of her clothes that she would be taking to Primrose Lodge.
We decided that Sue and I would take mums suitcase, some photos, pictures and other personal items to her new home so we could have it all in place for when she walked into the room, to give it a more homely feel and also placing Dads photo and watch by the bed, in the usual spot.

The fridge was almost empty as most of the perishable food had already been eaten, however Beatrice was able to put together a great baked potato with a mushroom filling and a green salad, which we all sat down at the dining room table to eat with a little wine to help ease it down.
The time inevitably arrived for us to load the car with the last few items and make our way to Mums new adventure.
Making sure the power and heating had all been turned off we closed the front door and walked down the stairs and out to the car.

10 minutes later we drove into the forecourt and parked the car. It was great welcome that Mum received from the staff who remembered her from the time she had a previous spell there recuperating for a few weeks.
Walking into the room it felt so better as many of Mums personal items were in place as she was helped to her chair and offered a welcome cup of tea which she eagerly accepted.
We chatted and discussed where the computer could go and which chair she would have Michael and Richard bring from the flat when they visited later in the week.

It was a very emotional time as I said my goodbyes to Mum, not knowing when I might be able to visit her again. However it was a very good feeling knowing that she would be well looked after with all her meals prepared for her and plenty of company when ever she felt like it along with one of her oldest friends in the room next door to her.

With the knowledge that when the spring comes and if Mum is feeling a lot stronger she has the option to return to her flat for the summer if she wishes to.

We returned to the flat once again to pick up Beatrice and collected our bags and making one more check that everything was OK before we locked the door again.

The three of us set off for London as we wanted to cover most of the trip before it became dark as Sue prefers not to drive then.

As we sped up the motor way we were chatted about how we thought Mum was going to settle down in her new home. However we were all happy with the fact that Mum had made the decision that she felt she should be somewhere she could get some help, with her meals all provided and help at hand if she needed it. She will also have other people around her so she shouldn't feel so lonely during the winter months.
Sue remarked on how light the traffic was as we passed through the countryside. The leaves on the trees were all turning a beautiful golden colour as the Autumn sets in. The light of dusk gave it all a magical appearance.
Stopping of at Kate's apartment to see how she was getting on after she and Stuart had spent the day moving her things back in after the damaged roof had been repaired.
We then went back to Nos 61 to have dinner and enjoy a good whisky and a bottle of red wine ,or two.
It had been a long and emotional day and now it was time to say goodbye to Stuart as he was leaving early in the morning and we wouldn't be seeing him again before we left.
We ordered the taxi for 7.30 in the morning to take us to Heathrow said goodnight to Sue and went upstairs to finish our packing and try to get some sleep.