Shame about yesterday’s connections but you did very well with the others.
Waffle was a good 4* again today. My average is now 2.76. So heading up towarss three but not quite as close as you.
#waffle1465 4/5
streak: 28
#wafflesilverteam
Wordle was another 5.
Wordle 1,681 5/6
Connections went smoothly again today.
Connections
Puzzle #959
My scores today were the same as yesterday. De ja vu 
Well done on the puzzles Ann.
I had another mental block with the puzzles and just couldn’t relax enough despite putting it on the overnight burner.
The others went OK.
Connections
Puzzle #959
Wordle 1,681 4/6*
#waffle1465 4/5
streak: 17 - Hoping to join you on the silverstream 
Connections
Puzzle #960
Made the connections, but luck was needed. Disappointed that I didn’t pick up on the Actresses connection given we had the Actors the other day!!! And of course in the politically correct word, strictly speaking there are no actresses, only actors - bonkers if you as me!!
Wordle 1,682 5/6*
- This nearly FREAKed me out!!
#waffle1466 5/5
streak: 18 - Cor blimey, Guv’Nor!
I am going for it (The 150 which I missed out on through some foolish moves). The 3* average is definitely happening and sooner than I expected.
Hoping you’re having as much success and fun as what I is
Happy Monday. Hope you had a good weekend and that you week will be a good one too.
This week is going to be a busy one for me. I have to go into the office twice this week for some difficult work (well difficult for me due to my stroke). I also have a dentist and a hospital appointment to fit in too. Lots of resting in the evenings I think so I can get through the week.
I have started the waffle week well with a lovely 5s. Still behind you on the average but a few more 5s will see me get there.
#waffle1466 5/5
streak: 29
#wafflesilverteam
No opportunity to look at Deluxe Waffle yet.
The rest of the puzzles weren’t quite so good. It was another 5 moves for Wordle. I had been having a run of 4s but seem to have lost it a little bit.
Wordle 1,682 5/6
Connections had a few mistakes along the way but I did eventually get them.
Connections
Puzzle #960
I’m hoping for a better attempt tomorrow 
Hope your week is going well.
All good here.
Just quickly posting the results - a bit of a muxed bag, but that happens
Connections
Puzzle #961
- Getting used to the “Americanisms” but still get caught out especially when you are having one of those days
Wordle 1,683 5/6*
- Nice to finish with a spare guess !
#waffle1467 3/5
streak: 19 - Happy to keep above the average
Deluxe - A lot more work required, but not a blow out
#deluxewaffle192 0/5
#wafflebronzeteam
I think I will have to play a few of the archive Deluxe Waffle games to train my brain
Have a lovely evening/day
Hope you had a good night/day and things with your mum are still going well.
Todays puzzles went ok with exception of connections which took a bit of sorting today.
Waffle was 4*s today. All helping to improve my average and my streak is now 30 again.
#waffle1467 4/5
streak: 30
#wafflesilverteam
I completed deluxe waffle with 4*s last night too. Very happy with that as usually only just manage to scrape it if I get it at all.
#deluxewaffle192 4/5
#wafflesilverteam
Wordle was a good 3 moves today. Better than it has been for a while.
Wordle 1,683 3/6
Connections left me a bit baffled as they were unusual and there were a lot of lucky guesses in there. I did get there in the end though.
Connections
Puzzle #961
It is very wet and windy here today and I’ve got a soggy left foot from not being able to pick it up off the floor. The heat in the office mind will soon dry it out I’m sure.
Have a great rest of the day and here’s to more puzzle success tomorrow.
Excellent effort on the Deluxe Waffle - four stars is very impressive. I can only dream of such a result as I often blow out or complete with zero stars. I think the most I ever got was 2 *.
Weather here is been miserable but it has settled now and is not too bad.
Mum seems to be much happier and also sleeping better at night.
I have started her on peppermint tea to see if that helps her with bloating which is one of the last major hurdles.
Communications are fine inasmuch we seem to understand each other and she gets the care she requires/asks for and to be fair, being the considerate soul she is, she really doesn’t ask for much.
I was very surprised with my Deluxe waffle result. I usually get it on the last move or not at all in the moves allowed.
Good to hear your mum is doing better & that she’s sleeping better. That, in turn, must make things a bit easier for you & your sister. Peppermint tea is meant to be good for settling tums so fingers crossed it works.
Well today’s puzzles weren’t too bad.
Waffle was just 3*s today but happy enough with that. An average of 2.78 now.
#waffle1468 3/5
streak: 31
#wafflesilverteam
Wordle was better today as I got it in 4 moves.
Wordle 1,684 4/6
Connections were ok once I got started.
Connections
Puzzle #962
Much sunnier here today. Makes everything seem brighter.
Have a good Wednesday.
It’s early days yet, but peppermint is natural and so should agree with Mum.
Another OK day today, though we have noticed frothing mouth and runny nose during meals.
Could be more internal changes going on.
Strange start soon after midnight with connections so I had to put it on the backburner. It didn’t get much better, but did manage to stumble through it.
Connections
Puzzle #962
Wordle 1,684 3/6*
- I must say I do feel comfortable doing this and it holds little fear due to no penalties.
#waffle1468 5/5
streak: 20
#wafflebronzeteam
Now if I’m not mistaken, 723 stars from 241 games gives me a 3 * average
And it’s an exact 3 and 241 is one of my favourite supermarket transactions I love the 2 for 1 as well as the BOGOFs!!!
I never thought of it before, but it occurs to me that 2 for 1 and BOGOF has to be the same !!
Buy two cartons of yoghurt at 50p each.
BOGOF - Get two cartons and pay 50p
2 for 1 - Get two cartons and pay 50p
Yes, it seems like the same to me. I wonder why there are two terms for this deal.
Btw, I never get these deals on yoghurts or other healthy foods. It tends to be the junk foods where these offers are prominent, but I still get sucked into them
Until the next time.
Hope you get to the bottom of what is causing the mouth frothing for your mum. Once you have sorted one thing another always comes along to challenge you doesn’t it. She does do remarkably well though. I am humbled by her tenacity and you are all a complete inspiration. I always get a runny nose when I eat. My dad used to too. Who knows 
Todays puzzles went ok.
Connections went very smoothly today and all successfully achieved.
Connections
Puzzle #963
Waffle was another 4*s and that will help with my average so very happy with that. Well done on hitting an average of 3.
#waffle1469 4/5
streak: 32
#wafflesilverteam
Wordle was another 4 moves. Seems to be my preferred amount of moves
Wordle 1,685 4/6
Work has been another busy one today. It makes the days fly by. I have a few days off from next Weds which I am looking forward to.
I agree with your 2 4 1 analogy. All the same to me too.
Hope your day has been a good one.
Glad your days are passing quickly. Always a good sign.
We look for “new” symptoms and behaviour and use the pre-stroke Mum as our benchmark. And then we look at things that have changed which will likely either directly or indirectly be the cause of the new symptoms and/or behaviour.
Mum never used to froth and she never had a runny nose whilst eating.
This is almost certainly due to the anti-seizure meds and the famotidine.
The Peppermint tea seems to be agreeing with her though that is also a new introduction to her system and so might need to watch that too. Pre-stroke she had a strict and fairly bland diet.
The last few days have been fantastic as she is less troubled and more animated and talkative and back to her old cheeky self. My only slight reservation is that I have read or heard that people nearing the end of life behave in this manner. I actually witnessed such behaviour whilst Mum was in the Acute stroke ward six years ago. One of the other patients in Mum’s ward who was very quiet and unresponsive, suddenly perked up and then she wanted to see her son. It seems Mother and Son had a particularly nice time together and the son was very excited at what he saw was a significant improvement in his mum’s condition. Next day when I saw him he told me his Mum had passed away and it was her way of saying “Goodbye” to her loved ones.
I don’t think we’re there with Mum but sometimes this image comes back to me and I do start to wonder. I guess in some ways this means I may be prepared for the inevitable.
But right now, it’s as I keep saying, Mum is stronger than she has ever been. It’s almost freaking me out.
Well done again on the puzzles.
#waffle1469 4/5
streak: 21 - four more and I join you on silver?
Connections
Puzzle #963
- Similar to you. A straight run, sligtly different order.
Wordle 1,685 4/6*
- Again similar to yours.
The weekend is nearly upon us and then for you, time to look forward to your forthcoming days off. I thought I had seen weather forecast saying lots of snow and we should stock up on milk? Maybe I dreamt it?
I think you do a remarkable job of looking after your mum and seem to have worked out really well what might be causing her symptoms. I am sure some of it is guess work (an educated guess) but you always seem to get her settled again. Her new symptoms could be due to her meds and hopefully now she is off them they will start to settle on their own. Glad the peppermint is agreeing with her. I do like a cup of peppermint tea from time to time.
It’s pleasing to hear your mum is more animated, talkative and back to her cheeky self. I wouldn’t think too much into it as you never can tell what will happen next. I am sure you do think about her passing away from time to time as it is a natural part of someone’s life especially at the age of your mum. She does sound to me like someone that you think will go on forever.
We had fun in the office today. We were evacuated for a suspected gas leak. Thankfully it wasn’t but it was rather chilly standing outside whilst it was investigated. It certainly makes for an interesting day.
Todays puzzles weren’t quite as good.
Waffle was a poor 1* but happy that I didn’t blow it.
#waffle1470 1/5
streak: 33
#wafflesilverteam
Not long & you’ll join me in the silver team.
Wordle was another 4 moves. I thought I wasn’t going to find a word to fit but did eventually come up with a large word tgat fitted.
Wordle 1,686 4/6
Connections had one slip in the middle but managed ok otherwise.
Connections
Puzzle #964
There has been talk of snow but by us, at the moment, it is lookjng like a lot of rain instead.
Hope the weekend is a good one for you.
Hello Ann - Puzzles were tough this tie round and I have just made the connections.
Connections
Puzzle #964
Wordle 1,686 6/6*
- Struggled with this, but just made it.
#waffle1470 2/5
streak: 22
Your fun day at the office reminded me of the fire drills we used to have at work and also when I was a student living in a hall of residence. I always found it funny how people always managed to get their coats and handbags etc. when they are supposed to go straight out 
I guess we’ve been lucky with Mum as she really isn’t a demanding person and her care needs are so basic. Every now and then there is a bit of stress and distress but these are almost always followed by periods of calm and joy. Just had one of those actually. The carers left her having done their routine, but one of the shortcomings with carers is they never check with Mum is she is OK or happy with what they’ve done and if there is anything else they can do before they go. Never! I have spoken to them about this many times, but because they don’t “understand” Mum they don’t actually talk to her as they might with other people they care for. So on this occasion, Mum needed de-winding or burping. It’s simple enough to do and they could have done it, but no, they left her in the chair and so when I went in she went off. As I didn’t know the precursor to this, I started the troubleshooting steps to rule out the usual suspects. In the end I had to transfer her back to bed to check her pad and ended up changing it just in case (it was only slightly solid but sometimes she gets sensitive and won’t relax).
And then it happened - the trapped wind dislodged and was dispersed. Hey presto! But Mum being Mum, she had got herself worked up and now had to be calmed down. All this faff took a full hour which is the hour during which her feed would have started and so now everything is running late. But she is now totally relaxed and hopefully will sleep well when put to bad later on.
I didn’t need this as tomorrow she is going to be assessed by a Rehab Therapist to see what if anything they can do to help. It is a private thing to replace the private physio I sacked. I hope this lot will be better. I won’t make the same mistake this time and will only engage them after I hear what they have to say. These sessions are not cheap and it’s not money we can afford to “squander”.
Let’s see how things go. Mum is doing remarkably well and I think she is back on track for her recovery and it’s just so amazing to witness how and what is happening
Have a lovely weekend.
Such a shame th4 carrrs don’t check if your mum needs anything before they leave. It would have saved you a that work afterwards. Glad you got her sorted though and I hope she had a settled night..
Hope the rehab therapist appointment goes well. You are right not to engage them unless you are sure they can provide the right thing for your mum.
Today’s puzzles went as usual.
4 moves again for wordle.
Wordle 1,687 4/6
Waffle was 4*s today. Better than yesterdsy..
#waffle1471 4/5
streak: 34
#wafflesilverteam
Connections went smoothly enough. It did take me a while to get started but then it all came together.
Connections
Puzzle #965
Hope today went as hoped..
Unfortunately, in general for us Carers don’t really work. I’ve probably mentioned this in previous posts, but due to the severity of Mum’s condition and her communication issues, it requires specialist carers and what we have is generic carers and even some of these have minimal training. Added to that, this is a double-up call and requires team work and perhaps you might appreciate that teams have to work as a team and in the case of these carers this is another skill they lack. But they give us some respite from the 24/7 care we provide and for that we are grateful even when they create more work for us than the help they provide.
Rehab therapists - what a shambles 
They have yet again confirmed my beliefs that you really don’t get what you pay for. I am not kidding Ann, but at £120 per hour (50 minutes actually) you would expect some sort of expertise, professionalism etc. But no, once gain, they claimed they can help and they have this experience and that experience and they have worked in or are working in XYZ hospital. I am afraid all of that means nothing when you can’t even keep an appointment!!!
I fear this might be yet another “chancer” trying to make fast buck and why not if you can charge £120 an hour and get away with it. Fools, I say you do not know …
I discussed the requirement with the boss /owner and got all the sales spiel, all of which I have heard before, but I have to keep trying and so I offered them a chance. All they had to do was come and spend an hour with Mum to assess where she’s at and what they can do to help. But no, can they organise a piss up in a brewery? No ! Can they even run a tap? No!
The guy must have booked his therapist in without checking with them and when the therapist found they had a job they weren’t expecting, of course they couldn’t make it and so tried to reschedule at the 11th hour - sorry, too late!
In the end they didn’t turn up because I couldn’t agree to their new time. They allegedly had an unforeseen event happen - call me a cynic, but I find that too convenient. Btw, if I cancel at less than 24 hours notice I can expect to pay for the session!!
So as at noe, we still await the chance to work with some knowledgeable and dedicated rehab therapist
I guess it’s back to square one!
Puzzles, again connections had me worried but I have only just solved them . Others were a “breeze”
Connections
Puzzle #965
Wordle 1,687 5/6*
- quite challenging but completed with a guess to spare
#waffle1471 5/5
streak: 23 - 2 more for the silver streak and the healthy 3 average restored after that blip the other day when I only got 2 stars causing my average to fall below 3.
Still, it’s only a game
Sadly the care industry is very much like that. We had some excellent carers for my dad but I know we were one of the lucky ones. You often hear stories of how bad things are. As a minimum though you would expect the 2 carers that turn up to work together as required. It is one of those occupations that struggle to keep staff due to low pay / unsocial hours / bad employers & therefore often resort to agency staff who don’t have the same loyalty as regular carers would. Of course there are some excellent staff put there too.
You must be very frustrated about the rehab therapist not turning up. I often wonder what they would do if we sent them a bill for our time when they cancel last minute. Of course, things can & do happen which can’t be avoided & I would hope they would waive a bill if it was you having to cancel last minute in those circumstances.
Well done on yesterday’s puzzles. Even if connections took a while.
I did ok today. A solid 4*s on Waffle
#waffle1472 4/5
streak: 35
#wafflesilverteam
My average is now 2.79.
Wordle was my preferred 4 moves again. A new month so changed my starter word today. Will see what success this one brings.
Wordle 1,688 4/6
Connections went ok too. A big blip on my 1st attempt but then all done ok.
Connections
Puzzle #966
The excitement of Friday has caught up withme today so a quiet resting day for me as off to the office again tomorrow. Only working Monday & Tuesday this week though so lots of opportunity for rest later in the week hopefully.
Hope today is less frustrating for you.
Hi Ann - Hope you are well rested and hope your two days on the office fly by.
Things not too bad here.
Struggled with the connections [again] but did ok on the others.
Connections
Puzzle #966
- strangely I seem to get the purple ones more often than not and they are supposed to be hard. I seem to have a blid spot for the “easier” green
Wordle 1,688 5/6*
- Tricky but just made it
#waffle1472 4/5
streak: 24 - One more and back to silver again
Ok, so it’s Monday already but nothing’s changed.
As I write, you are half way through your two days in the office before your break
Here are today’s puzzles. Nice start to the week including a rather nice Deluxe result
Connections
Puzzle #967
- Where did they come from!
Wordle 1,689 4/6*
- Started with a CLOSE and ended with a CIGAR!!
A jumpin’ jellysticks 5* performance!
And a 3* Deluxe to boot
#deluxewaffle193 3/5
#wafflesilverteam
And now a silver member.
Yay welcome to the silver team.
Today’s puzzles were a bit hit and miss.
Waffle was an ok 3*s. I did make a wrong move so wasn’t sure if I would get it but thankfully it worked out ok.
#waffle1473 3/5
streak: 36
#wafflesilverteam
And an ok 2*s on deluxe waffle.
#deluxewaffle193 2/5
#wafflesilverteam
Wordle took 5 moves.
Wordle 1,689 5/6
Connections was a phew today and achieved on the last attempt. I’ll take it though as it was still successfully completed.
Connections
Puzzle #967
[Today’s trip to the office was a lot less eventful than Friday thankfully. Only 1 more working day this week.
Hope your day has been good and that things are still going well with your mum.
Just an average day on the puzzles front today.
Waffle was a slightly disappointing 2*s but happy to continue my streak.
#waffle1474 2/5
streak: 37
#wafflesilverteam
Wordle was better with it being solved in 3 moves. Very happy with that.
Wordle 1,690 3/6
Connections solved ok with 2 blips along the way. They do have some strange options in their connections sometimes.
Connections
Puzzle #968
My working week is now done and I can look forward to a couple of restful days.
Hope all going ok with you.
I guess my day was average too as yet again I got stumped by Connections. Having seen the answers, I must admit I am annoyed I didn’t try harder!
Hope you have a few restful days.
Connections
Puzzle #968
- A miserable attempt. Just unable to think in the required mode for this puzzle
Wordle 1,690 4/6*
- This on the other hand is now almost second nature
#waffle1474 4/5
streak: 26 - Also fairly consistent. Deluxe needs to improve.
Today’s puzzles were ok again. Did better at Waffle with a good 4*s today.
#waffle1475 4/5
streak: 38
#wafflesilverteam
12 more to join the gold team.
Wordle was my standard 4 too. I did think it was going to be one of those that had many options.
Wordle 1,691 4/6
Connections went relatively smoothly. One hiccup along the way but happy enough.
Connections
Puzzle #969
Hope you had a successful puzzling day & that everything is going ok with your mum.
