“Grandpa Can’t Get Off The Sofa”

This morning’s dull but dry day’s weather developed after lunch into steady rain and intermittent fierce gusts of wind.

The smack of one of the wooden patio chairs smashing onto the paving sent me out in order to lay down the others and two large pedestals formed of ecclesiastical candlesticks standing in the rose Garden.

Poor light on the sitting room floor did not prevent Ellie from demonstrating her alert vision and control of her neck as she followed Jackie’s twizzling ladybird stick backwards and forwards.

Her acute ears led her to turn towards the clicking camera.

While Jackie walked her around the room she remained focussed on the light source of wonder above her,

and battled to avoid sleep as her great-Grannie sat with her on the sofa,

until handing her to her mother to carry her upstairs. Here Flo demonstrates a foolproof holding technique that has been demonstrated to calm any crying baby – not that Ellie was crying.

I have not been able to turn my neck quite so much since a rugby injury 62 years ago – and now very little. Neither can I prise myself up from the sofa without the use of my hands which had been cradling my sleeping great-granddaughter for an hour yesterday evening.

When it was time for me to go to bed Jackie had to call upstairs to Flo, informing her that “Grandpa can’t get off the sofa”. My hands were soon freed.

This evening we dined on flavoursome pork and chives sausages; crisp Yorkshire pudding; creamy mashed potato; crunchy carrots; and tender cabbage and green beans, with tasty gravy. Jackie drank Hoegaarden, I drank Valle Central prima reserva 2019, and Flo and Dillon abstained.

104 comments

  1. Our injuries come back to haunt us. In my case it is lower back pain caused from carrying rucksacks that were far too heavy whilst hiking in the Drakensberg most weekends. Your hands still manage to take fine photographs however 🙂

    Reply

  2. She continues to prove that she is more alert than her age peers. Glad the Grampa was rescued form a night on the couch. Eventually nature would have called and you would have had to get of the couch or else…. I’m hungry and your dinner sounds delightful. I will have 3rd day leftovers of a dish I really like so it is not as bad as it sounds.

    Reply

  7. Ellie is so adorable, God bless her family! 🙏🏻☺️ I injured my back in 2013, three lower lumbar were damaged. That injury still gives me grief every day, Derrick, you are not alone my friend! ☹️

    Reply

  8. Little Ellie is quite alert! I am sorry to hear of your neck injury. Those old injuries do seem to settle in over time. I have a few of those myself, mainly from my horseback riding days.

    Reply

  10. How wonderful! 🙂 And I love what Jackie said! 🙂 ❤️ And, yes, someone please help Grandpa! ❤️
    ‘Tis a joy that Ellie has you and Jackie in her life…and you are both so fortunate to have Ellie!!! 🙂
    Yes, our well-seasoned, well-used, had-great-fun-in-life bodies, are in need of some pampering these days. 😉 ❤️
    (((HUGS))) 🙂

    Reply

  12. Ellie is really adorable. That’s an interesting hold Flo has for calming a baby. I’ll try to remember it in case I ever get a great grandchild. Always good to have a party trick up one’s sleeve. I’m also glad you didn’t have to spend the night on the sofa.

    Reply

  17. How lovely to see Ellie so alert.
    As for you and those knees and maybe even hips, May I suggest buying an electric adjustable chair. I have a smaller lady’s chair in my kitchen/ living room, and it is such a help. Mine doesn’t assist in getting you out of the chair and upright, but plenty do

    I have intermittent days where my joints ache and the chair helps to relieve the aches; the chairs are a little higher than normal chairs and therefore help with my knees too. Sitting with your feet up is really relaxing. I’m even contemplating getting rid of one of my sofas in the upstairs sitting room and replacing it with an adjustable chair, or even two! Joshua at thirty two uses the chair more than I do (when at home) because it’s so comfortable! Just a thought. 🙂

    Reply

    1. Certainly an idea for when I can no longer get off the sofa using my hands which were occupied at the time 🙂 We do both have high chairs in the sitting room. That particular sofa is a Chesterfield and therefore manageable for now. Thank you so much, Sue.

      Reply

      1. My knees hurt every time I get off my sofa. I cannot imagine being without my chair in the kitchen it’s so comfortable. It’s not a disability type chair, I think it’s an Ercol that I purchased from an ordinary furniture shop.

        Reply

    1. Thanks very much, Lakshmi. At 80 with dodgy joints, having had surgery and exercises I consider I am lucky to be otherwise well and accept that I have limitations.

      Reply

  22. Ellie is amazing! Babies are good for lifting our spirits, especially when there’s plenty of help from the whole family. I hope your neck feels better soon. Maybe some heat would help.

    Reply

  32. What an adorable child! Sorry about your neck limitations, Derrick. But it doesn’t seem to hamper your lifestyle too much. And that hands to push you up off the sofa thing? Well, welcome to the club!!

    Reply

  39. Thanks to Jackie for the great title. First, it had me worried for your health. Then it had me laughing. Thanks to all of you for sharing the wonderful photos. Ellie is a charmer – and SO alert! And Flo is lovely. I have a new niece who I will be trying that hold on. xo

    Reply
  41. Pingback: September 22 Picture Recoveries – derrickjknight

    1. Thank you very much, Gary. If anyone had told me I probably wouldn’t have stopped me 🙂

      Reply

Leave a Reply