snowed in...and a change of plan

A conundrum for you:


The christmas tree is is the garden and we want to bring it inside.  However...
The wellies and spade are in the garden shed.
The shed is at the far end of the garden.
The only way into the garden is through the french doors in the kitchen, which open outwards.
There is rather a lot of snow lying right outside the kitchen doors stopping them open.


Mmmmmmm!  I think we are snowed in....


Had things gone to plan, by now we should have been on our way to Bristol for the Wride family festive gathering, where sons and daughters-in-law, grand children and partners and great-grand children all descend on Steve's mum bearing presents and food for a wonderful meal. After hasty round of phone calls last night, the consensus view was that we should postpone the gathering until weather and travel conditions improve. Better to have it late, than someone get stuck in the snow or involved in an accident trying to get there today. 


I don't think we would have been able to move our car anyway. Even if we could dig away the snow behind and in front, there's nowhere to put it without blocking the footpath or the bit of road we would need to drive over to get out of the cul-de-sac where we live.


Nevertheless, our daughter Katie and partner George are determined to travel south today from Yorkshire where they are based, to spend some time with us.  So now it's an anxious wait*, hoping that they have a safe journey to Oxford, albeit one that will be very much slower than usual. 


At least we have plenty of food in the house which had been destined for the Bristol gathering! And a bit more time to work out how to get the tree inside, finish wrapping presents and put up the decorations...


I have now finished one course of antibiotics and the other course will finish tomorrow. It's taken the best part of a week for my swollen face to subside to something approaching normal, although I still feel shattered.  Thank goodness Steve's cold didn't come to anything.  The supplements he takes to help boost his immune system must be having an effect!  Perhaps I should try some.....


* It's teatime and the Christmas tree is now inside, drying off from the melting snow.  Katie and George are home safely.  We can decorate the tree together!