I have been a busy bee since we last met for coffee two weeks ago.
Grandkids: We have just returned to Portugal after a week in the UK to spend time with family and enjoy the grandkids. We stayed with our son, Ian, and daughter-in-law, and it was great to enjoy quality time with them. Their little ones (3 and 5 years old) proved to be a bundle of energy. The only time they were quiet and still was when they were watching TV or playing on their Switch. Phew, I get it. We helped (aka watched) with bathtime (a boisterous challenge), tagged along for the school/playschool run, read bedtime stories and generally observed the daily routine of busy working parents trying to juggle their time. It was tough. It was also tough on the heartstrings because we are like strangers to our grandkids.
Like me Ian is also a keen gardener (when time allows) so it was great to see the improvements he had made to the garden since our last visit.
The two other UK-based grandkids are older: 10 and 13 and independent. They popped over, but sadly only for fleeting visits.
I’m sure the little ones think we live in the cellphone and only pop up on the screen when summoned by WhatsApp. It is tough being long-distance grandparents. Anyone else out there in the same situation?
I also met up with an old friend I’ve known for nearly forty years. It’s a shame we lost touch, and I’ve only met her once since. Although we only had an hour together, we made up for lost time, and the years fell away, and we continued where we left off.
Diet: Despite my best efforts, my 80/20 diet became 20/80 as I struggled to resist temptation. On a positive note, at least I was good 20% of the time. I also kept up my daily dose of apple cider vinegar with no alcohol.
Exercise: I confess … blows a sigh. I paused my exercise routine of 5000+ steps a day. BUT I did manage to negotiate walking up and down stairs with more agility and less vertigo than before. By the end of our stay, I was no longer hanging on to the bannisters for grim death or sliding down the stairs on my butt. Going forward, to try and maintain the hard-won progress, I have contrived a daily exercise routine to help maintain the newly acquired skill. It’s tough when your property is all on one level.
In fact, I am reviewing my daily exercise routine to include using elastic exercise bands to improve muscle. Anyone else use resistance bands?
Talking of exercise, I saw this sign on one of my local walks and it made me laugh out loud!
Shopping: One of the things I love about visiting England, besides family, is clothes shopping. I’ve been trying to buy some black trousers (thanks to my size) for nigh on a year in Portugal without success. I went into one shop (NEXT) and bought two pairs in different styles and a pair of beige trousers which I have been looking for forever!
Oh, and I can understand what people say and I can ask for what I want and understand the reply without using sign language and playing charades as we do in Portugal.
Speaking of language, we also managed to keep our Zoom Portuguese lesson … which I think is going well. Lessons by Zoom is a great idea!
Wildfires in Portugal: While we were away, I followed the horrors of the wildfires in Northern Portugal. My God. It’s been horrendous. It’s heartbreaking to look at photographs and watch the news videos and reels. At one point, it was reported there were over one hundred fires. People have lost their homes and lives, and firefighters (Bomberios) have also suffered mortalities. These guys and gals are heroes.
I can’t even begin to imagine what these poor people are suffering.
Image from FB Group Bombeiros Portugueses
They said they needed an act of God to contain the fires. Their prayers were finally answered, and it rained, which helped to quench the fires’ thirst.
In the South, I can’t remember the last time we had rain; the place is like a tinderbox.
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That’s it for this week, folks. Now I need a week’s holiday to recover.
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Piglet in Portugal 
How wonderful that you had a week with your children and grandchildren. I have been using resistance bands for a while, especially when I travel and don’t have access to hand weights. I hope Portugal wildfires are under control soon. Thank you for your weekend coffee share.
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Hi Natalie, do you follow any particular YouTube videos on using bands? Yes, a good idea for travel. The wildfires, thanks to the torrential rain, are now out … thank goodness.
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Since I’ve been using resistance bands for a while, I don’t follow any video atm. However, there are two sources that I like: 1) yes2next dot com and 2) seniorfitnesswithmeredith dot com. Both have many videos on Youtube, from beginner to more advanced level, and different duration. The first source usually shows April (the personal trainer) and her mom do the exercises together. I like that they show how you can do the exercises in standing or seated position and two generations can do them. The second source, Meredith also has video workouts in standing or seated positions. I hope you find something you like from these two trainers.
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That’s great, NAtalie.Thank you! I’ll check them both out.
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I live close to my grandchildren and absolutely love it. We didn’t have that with our kids, and it’s a pleasure to be able to help our kids and bond with our grands. Keep walking, resume good dietary choices, and “fall back on the wagon.” It’s hard but you can do it!
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I remember my grans. One lived with us and died when I was about six and the other lived in the next town. Again she passed away when I was very young. I’d love to live closer to ours but I accept it’s just not feasible.
Since I’ve been home I have hauled myself back on the wagon …
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Wonderful that you had the time with your grandkids, Carole! Our grandchildren are 24 and 18 and besides living a 4 hour drive away, they’re busy with their own lives, so if we see them once or twice a year, we feel fortunate. It’s tough to diet when traveling, so good on you for the 20%! Our body maintains exercise memory, so I’m sure you’ll ease back into your 5,000 steps in no time.
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I have a little while. Our eldest grandchild, who lives in France, is 13years going on 16. and the youngest 3 years. I love them all to bits. Even at this age they are busy with their own activities and friends.
Yep, the diet was tough and on the last day I completely gave up. As you can imagine I’m already back on the treadmill both for exercise and diet. I am determined I am not going to regain the pounds …
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Good for you!
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How wonderful to visit your children and grandchildren! When on vacation, it is very hard to stick to a diet and exercise regime. I would say nigh on to impossible. I have never used bands to exercise, but I know someone who is a big fan of them, and she is in terrific shape.
Those fires sound terrible! I hope it soon rains and the fires are put out.
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Yep, I was sad to leave them. Loved reading the bedtime stories.
As for the diet I ate way to much bread and chips. BUT on the exercise front I think I’ve more or less mastered stairs … so I did get some exercise of a different sort.
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