digression pt 8 (Accommodation)

This is just a short digression about our accommodation.
Due to covid and the restrictions we were unable to stay at the Ronald McDonald charity home, as this was shut.
The impact I can only imagine for other parents would be the same as what we felt, and that was, well how are we going to be able to see our child.
Traveling everyday to and from London wasn't pheasable, neither was it cost effective.
Besides from petrol there was other charges so this made us anxious about how we would see our son.
Luckily for us we were fortunate enough to be aloud to stay in the nurses quarters, gassiot house. This was situated just outside of the main entrance of St Thomas's. This was only temporary, this again gave us the worry we shouldn't have had. We was already worried about our son and to have to worry about accommodation just to see him was unbearable.

While we was at gassiot house, they aloud us to be put on the waiting list for Ronald mcdonald house.

Other worries were, can we stay there together, can I travel back home to work, and can we travel back to resupply.
The answer to these was yes, but they came at a price.
Not knowing that Ronald mcdonald was going to open again, we went home to resupply. Unfortunately we got a call from Ronald mcdonald and said we can stay there but because we hadn't isolated for 14 days we no longer could. Disheartened and already discouraged, this felt like a kick in the teeth. I mean we had been either at the hospital or at home, and for me at work.
So how could we isolate, surely we was, really.

Anyway living in gassiot house, well it was hot 🔥 like really hot, the weather was scorching and there was no air. The windows only opend a slight amount and the little fan we did get was better of as a door stop, but i would have taken a cardboard box if it meant I could go and see my son daily.

Good news is Ronald mcdonald house called us back a few weeks later and said restrictions have changed, this meant we could stay there.
Only condition was, is that you had to stay there for 5 consecutive days and only then could you go home.

It was good enough for mum, this meant she could see our son and still go home to resupply.
Unfortunately for me this didn't help, I had to work as I was a key worker. I didn't get to have 5 days off this meant mum had to stay in london on her own most of the time, and I only got to see my son when I could get up there
This involved alot of switching shifts round at work and rearranging times to see my daughter.
This played a major part in me feeling the way I felt as I just felt as if I wasn't good enough. I couldn't be there to see my boy as much as I wanted and I couldn't be there to support frances, she also couldn't be there for me. 
As you will soon read this had implications for myself and fran.
And I just felt I was letting my little girl down, not only was I around less, I was so accepted with all this worry, she must have picked up on it. 

We continued to stay at Ronald mcdonald untill our journey was over.


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