Stuff I did in the UK…..

Warning if this post seems weird, it is because it was a letter originally, and it was easier to edit than re-write. If there are any strangesses, and any questions you would like to ask, please let me know. Ta muchly. xxxx
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Katie my sister and I went to the museum in West End, then to the cemetery – the Titanic sailed from Southampton, the ship that helped the survivors Carpathia - her captain is buried there. We walked through the lovely park and got a bit lost, so we just followed our noses back to West End.

Sunday the 19th, we went on the walk of Southampton walls. That was really interesting. That should be teamed up with a pub crawl! There are so many pubs in and near the walls of Southampton. The Mayflower sailed from Southampton, so there is a memorial thingy there, they popped into Plymouth for repairs to one of the other ships, that is why it is said they left from Plymouth.

I had my hair cut by the most gentle hairdresser I have ever been to. He cuts the old ladies hair at the scheme. We went to Hobbycraft (love that shop) and over to see Auntie Jean (mum’s sister). She is fine, John is a pain, he sits with a sad look on his face. Jean is so funny, she does not remember a lot, and says so. Too funny. She does not remember their house and did not remember John when she came around from the coma. Jess, their granddaughter was there, she is so vibrant. And beautiful!

We got fabric at Hobbycraft so K could make a quilt for Jorja. It was very quick and very pretty.

Katie made Jorja’s quilt, it was mostly done by the end of the morning. We went shopping in Southampton, Matalan and Primark. K bought herself some shoes – in Clarkes. She said that shoes in Aus are really expensive. I bought about 6 bras, and had already ordered from Avon. You can get lovely bras for 3 and 4 pounds – about R30 to R40. And 2 sleepshirts. Oh, and a raspberry pink tee shirt. Edible!

We had a few drinks in the pub that night.

Tuesday, we went to Milton Abbey and Milton Abbess. It is a place we used to go to when we were kids, it was very peaceful then, not so much now. There is a school run at the abbey (not in the abbey) and the kids seemed big and noisy (they were very quiet and well behaved before). It seems the whole area does not want the tourists there like they did. It used to be really visitor friendly. The village is not as pristine as it was, the old school house was for sale and we said k and I should move in and make quilts there!. The price was 850 000 pounds, and had some mad idea of bedrooms too! Like 5 and 3 bathrooms.

Katie paid for lunch at the local pub, the meal was very good.

Wed the 23rd was the best! We went to Pear Tree Church (where Mum and Dad where married), and saw the graveyard, there is a memorial to a kid who was cannibalised by his ship mates in the graveyard. – nice! Not! We saw inside the church briefly – lucky us. We went on to the old houses that we lived in and K knocked on the door of Obelisk Rd, and the same people who bought from Dad still live there; 37 years later! They let us in and we went all over the house, it looks so much more lighter than I remember. They have knocked down the workshop, that used to be stables and have built a flat for their son who lives there now. That house used to be a school. We got home and dad said not to say anything to mum (she didn’t go with us) until we got to the pub. We had such a time telling her the stories of our day.

Thursday we went to Kirtlington to see David’s grave (my uncle who died when he was 7, either 1945 or 1943), it looks in pretty good nick, but will need some attention soon. The folks have been looking after it so well, but it is starting to come apart. Dad clipped the grass and mum replaced the flowers. It was freezing cold I had on my thick jacket, the only time I needed it, and wanted a scarf too. We popped into the church and the one lady said she always wondered who David was that his grave was still tended after all these years. We went though some of the prettiest villages then on our way to Blue’s. They were really gorgeous. We had a great meal there and a superb pudding, Uncle Ian is not doing well he has Parkinson’s, so he is very unsteady on his feet and can barely talk sometimes.

On the 25th I saw my old school friend Andrea in the evening (Andy Sheppard on my FB), she is such fun. We had such a good time, we went to the Jolly Sailor in Hamble. Lots of steps down, and the same getting back to the road – wow! She has an Audi TT – shame! :-))

Sunday we had lunch at the pub.

27th shopping with Sue at Gun Warf in Portsmouth, I got myself a lovely cardigan. It was expensive, about 20 pounds. And got Ian a very nice book on the Lancaster plane. He is really chuffed with it.

Tuesday we went to Netley Abbey, it is a ruin of an Abbey that King Henry 8th destroyed. He gave it on to someone else, who used it as a home, then it has been ‘restored’ back to the abbey brickwork only. We were there way over an hour. My tackies were soaked with dew when we got home, I left them under the radiator at mum’s for 2 days to dry! Mum did not go, she does not understand ‘piles of bricks’.

29th was quiet we went to Bitterne, and went to the Sainsbury’s and picked up my Avon.

On the 30th K went out to lunch with a school friend, and George ( Dad’s army buddy) and Margaret arrived from Yorkshire. We were moved to Mat’s for 4 nights. Those kids are so funny!

1st October the 50th wedding anniversary. K bought the newspaper early and put it through mum and dad’s door. We put ina big ad for their 50th. Sue went over and decorated the door and put a handful of those glittery 50’s and ‘happy anniversary’ thingy’s and balloons! K and me went to the harvest festival at the church, it was the school thing, Geesh, how disorganised. Sue had to leave to get her hair done, I left with her. I got back to the folks place and hair dried my jeans! It was pouring with rain.

The party was a real success. Lots and lots of laughter. Lots of relatives, all great.

Next day we had breakfast at Mat & Sue’s. Eleven of us, and Sue does not even worry. She is so organised.

In the afternoon I went shopping with Sue and bought a pair of jeans at Sainsburys.

3rd, we went shopping at Marks and Spencer and I had roast lunch at Andreas’ – her hubby is so handsome! She has two teenage daughter’s one at university and the other is 16 and so grown up in a nice way. They have a dog that wanted to eat me – yeah another one! I think these dogs are turning me into a cat person!

The 4th was another good day. We said farewell to George and Margaret and they left back to Wallace and Grommit land. Dad, K & me went to the other walls of Southampton that we missed in the tour, and went to the Titanic museum. That was pretty cool. Dad’s brother George booked for us to go to out for supper. He so enjoyed our company at the party. It was a great evening, and we all had so many laughs. There was George and Carole, dad and mum, Mat & Sue and me and K. Quite a party. The Baby McRae’s were baby sat.

The 5th, we visited A Jean again.

6th, return home – small delays everywhere in the airport for me. And I brought back a pair of Cat safety boots for Sean, I had to wear them as they were so heavy, my ankles were raw by Jnb!

Obligatory crying baby, and home!

Ian took off work and I had a lovely day with him on Thursday, and he worked the weekend, but I think that was good to give me more time to re-adjust to being home. Sean came for supper Thursday, sounds like he has a girlfriend in Warmbaths. But I was so tired, anything could have been said.

brief news

Tim's bmt is a definate bust.

The dr's will treat any infections / conditions as they present themselves, as he is too weak to go through another bmt currently.

maybe my last update before I leave.

Whew, had a busy morning, and the last thing I did was to clean the patio, I am now too warm! But the patio looks great, as does the furniture.

Sean is invited for supper - fillet steak on the bbq. With my choice of veg.

Yesterday we had a gardener dig holes to put the pot plants in - they were big pots, so therefore big holes were dug. Now the plants look quite small on the ground. But they will grow better, and bigger.

My flight is confirmed, I fly tomorrow as per the plan. Hold thumbs for the upgrade, everyone! If lucky I may land up in biz class!

chat soon, be good till I get back!
xxxxx

try again

I am trying to keep a zen like quiet mind. It is not working too well. Every now and again I reach panic status.

I can't do anything about Tim, the Drs are in charge. Coralie says his tummy is swelling - already - and he is losing weight. I hope they do some conclusive tests this week.

I am going to the UK on the 15th September. My parents 50th wedding anniversary is on the 1st Oct. 50 years - amazing. Congratulations, it is a big milestone!

I have sorted out a cross stitch to take with me - see, I have my priorities right!

over and out!

small update

crap, wrote you some stuff and it has gone.
later!

Bad news

Bad news this morning, I am afraid. Tim is not cancer free. The Drs
are using a wait and see approach.

I am devastated.

not much to say

But we are having the best weather this weekend. Last week was pretty cool, and this weekend is great. We have been gardening (me not too much - I have a project underway) and repotted the 'yesterday, today and tomorrow's - they were utterly pot bound. Maybe they might grow a bit bigger now. Ian has bought two more red bottle brushes this morning, and more potting soil. We need to top up some pots with potting soil. My tomatoes are growing at a rate of knots. they are 'orphan' ones from last year that have just come up. Brilliant! (I love a bargain)!

My hands are healed from the dog bites, apart from the purple nail - so unattractive! Never mind.

photos!

long update, get coffee!

Tim, is adorable, he has a fan club of note. People who know him adore him. He is handsome and has the most expressive eyes. He smiles readily, and his eyes light up. He has an amazing way of smiling and his eyes crinkle up too. He is, as we already know a bit regressed physically and still now cannot sit up on his own, although I did spot him trying to get up on Tuesday morning on his own. He has started to try to reach and push his body a bit more, and may start getting to the crouch prior to the crawl stage soon. His teeth are coming through in a really crazy fashion. He has an eye tooth, a front top tooth, a bottom tooth and a molar. Very odd. The other two front teeth are so close to breaking through the gum, they are peaking up nearly the same size as the other teeth. He also has a molar that is close to the surface. He broke a tooth on Tuesday and on Wednesday at the hospital the molar / gum area started to bleed. So they gave him platelets – to start the clotting. And he calls me Geh!

Hospital Whilst we were in the hospital they explained they had done a particular test which ascertained how high the bone marrow of the donor was compared to Tim’s own. It came back 90 % to 10 %, but the problem is that they are not sure who’s is the high one. They did say that it is possible that the chemo wiped out the leukaemia and that the bone marrow has rejuvenated and that the 90% is Tim’s or that the 90% is the donor. But as the donor was male, they cannot separate the two conclusively. So it is a wait and see game again. But the Drs are very happy with the progress and also love Tim to bits! The last patient that had JMML at Red Cross has his own bone marrow active and has healed with no re-occurrence (so far). The other patients, parents and nursing staff all are so fond of Tim, he goes into the day room and is greeted by calls of Hello Tim, by so many. Coralie has met so many fantastic moms and dads at Red Cross. They are all so fond of each other and are so supportive of each other. Special people are Sue, Razia, Jeannine, Cathy and Karen. Karen met us through bringing J&J products for Tim and Robin. She and her husband are expecting a baby March 2011. So she has fallen pregnant since meeting us. They are incredible people and have an amazing bunch of friends who have also taken Coralie, Tim and Robin into their lives.

Robin is the cutest baby ever. He is chubby, happy and chats away. He is easy going, he just has a bit of a problem getting to sleep at night, 4 or 5 tries is normal. But he is easy to feed, no real reflux problems; in fact as a baby he is great. Teamed with Tim, there is a bit of baby tag team happening with them sometimes – nicely – taking it in turns to be difficult, but some times, both screeching at the same time. So, life is a bit difficult then. Tim is about 9.5 kgs, and Robin 6.5. So they are in very similar sized clothing already. How many times did I try to dress one or the other in the wrong clothes? Lots! When I took Tim to the Red Cross on my own I took one baby grow that was in his clothes pile to wear, and it was Robin’s – he left with the top bit on and a blanket covering the bottom bits!

Coralie looks exhausted. When I got there I was horrified how tired she looks. Tim wakes up in the night thirsty, he only drinks out of a glass, no bottles for this baby! So he has at least one night wake up, Robin seems to be calming down to one wake up a night at about 4am. The nanny Florinda, is great with the babies, but has such an attitude. Last week I noticed she didn’t bath the kids every day, when I asked her about it, she said because I had already changed the kids – Robin had been wet through – and she wasn’t going to! She tells me the biggest lies, she said they had moved with no washing at all, and that the 15 loads had accumulated since they had moved in the house ( in a week), now seeing as there was only Henk’s and Robins washing, um, yeah!! I did tell her that was not possible. She tells the most amazing stories about how she does so much around the house – and blows that story out of the water by not doing anything. She didn’t realise that Florence comes in on Saturdays to do housework, Coralie cannot manage with the two boys. And suggested to me that one of her friends come in and help out during the week. She is full of it, Coralie is thinking about getting an agency nanny.


Dog Jet is an idiot and cooked his goose when he escaped whilst I was there. It was all my fault, I had wanted to shake out a towel the cat had pooed on out in the garden – the kitchen door leads to the garage and the door into the garden is the one I am referring to. I closed the door as the dog was right there and I was not in the mood to argue with him, he just does not listen at all. The garage main door was open and the garden door opened – I am not sure if Jet opened it himself as he can slide the heavy security gate with his nose. So he was out on the road. After catching him, and he is a bugger! He decided to try to strangle himself with the choke chain, and then started biting me. I bleed quite a bit, but after a hospital visit for a tetanus inj and cleaning up, they were mostly scratches and a lot of bruising. I have a black nail – lovely! At one point I shoved my fist into his mouth as I could see him eyeing for a better place to bite. Henk was so upset, he said he cannot trust the dog, Jet has bitten him before, but with the babies…. So it will be tickets for Jet soon.

Cat Coralie’s cat is still so lovely, he sat with Tim and I on the couch we were cuddled up with hot water bottles and blankets. That was Sunday evening – we were so cosy and warm. He has mange, I think, he has massive hair loss on the inside of his back legs and on his sides. I have no idea what to do about that. And not having a car was a bit painful as I would have popped into the pet shop to ask about it.

House Their new house is lovely, a bit small, and no BIC as yet, but clean and brand new. And a built in stove! It would fit inside our downstairs easily, but is great for the boys. Sunny as it is north facing and a tiny garden, they do not need any more.

Interview I am going for an interview tomorrow – Friday at 10am. Light those candles please and some positive thoughts beaming! I feel this is the one! I was in the oncology ward when I got the call, and the company has some oncology drugs, it sounds just right! ;-))

long update, get coffee!

Tim, is adorable, he has a fan club of note. People who know him adore him. He is handsome and has the most expressive eyes. He smiles readily, and his eyes light up. He has an amazing way of smiling and his eyes crinkle up too. He is, as we already know a bit regressed physically and still now cannot sit up on his own, although I did spot him trying to get up on Tuesday morning on his own. He has started to try to reach and push his body a bit more, and may start getting to the crouch prior to the crawl stage soon. His teeth are coming through in a really crazy fashion. He has an eye tooth, a front top tooth, a bottom tooth and a molar. Very odd. The other two front teeth are so close to breaking through the gum, they are peaking up nearly the same size as the other teeth. He also has a molar that is close to the surface. He broke a tooth on Tuesday and on Wednesday at the hospital the molar / gum area started to bleed. So they gave him platelets – to start the clotting. And he calls me Geh!

Hospital Whilst we were in the hospital they explained they had done a particular test which ascertained how high the bone marrow of the donor was compared to Tim’s own. It came back 90 % to 10 %, but the problem is that they are not sure who’s is the high one. They did say that it is possible that the chemo wiped out the leukaemia and that the bone marrow has rejuvenated and that the 90% is Tim’s or that the 90% is the donor. But as the donor was male, they cannot separate the two conclusively. So it is a wait and see game again. But the Drs are very happy with the progress and also love Tim to bits! The last patient that had JMML at Red Cross has his own bone marrow active and has healed with no re-occurrence (so far). The other patients, parents and nursing staff all are so fond of Tim, he goes into the day room and is greeted by calls of Hello Tim, by so many. Coralie has met so many fantastic moms and dads at Red Cross. They are all so fond of each other and are so supportive of each other. Special people are Sue, Razia, Jeannine, Cathy and Karen. Karen met us through bringing J&J products for Tim and Robin. She and her husband are expecting a baby March 2011. So she has fallen pregnant since meeting us. They are incredible people and have an amazing bunch of friends who have also taken Coralie, Tim and Robin into their lives.

Robin is the cutest baby ever. He is chubby, happy and chats away. He is easy going, he just has a bit of a problem getting to sleep at night, 4 or 5 tries is normal. But he is easy to feed, no real reflux problems; in fact as a baby he is great. Teamed with Tim, there is a bit of baby tag team happening with them sometimes – nicely – taking it in turns to be difficult, but some times, both screeching at the same time. So, life is a bit difficult then. Tim is about 9.5 kgs, and Robin 6.5. So they are in very similar sized clothing already. How many times did I try to dress one or the other in the wrong clothes? Lots! When I took Tim to the Red Cross on my own I took one baby grow that was in his clothes pile to wear, and it was Robin’s – he left with the top bit on and a blanket covering the bottom bits!

Coralie looks exhausted. When I got there I was horrified how tired she looks. Tim wakes up in the night thirsty, he only drinks out of a glass, no bottles for this baby! So he has at least one night wake up, Robin seems to be calming down to one wake up a night at about 4am. The nanny Florinda, is great with the babies, but has such an attitude. Last week I noticed she didn’t bath the kids every day, when I asked her about it, she said because I had already changed the kids – Robin had been wet through – and she wasn’t going to! She tells me the biggest lies, she said they had moved with no washing at all, and that the 15 loads had accumulated since they had moved in the house ( in a week), now seeing as there was only Henk’s and Robins washing, um, yeah!! I did tell her that was not possible. She tells the most amazing stories about how she does so much around the house – and blows that story out of the water by not doing anything. She didn’t realise that Florence comes in on Saturdays to do housework, Coralie cannot manage with the two boys. And suggested to me that one of her friends come in and help out during the week. She is full of it, Coralie is thinking about getting an agency nanny.


Dog Jet is an idiot and cooked his goose when he escaped whilst I was there. It was all my fault, I had wanted to shake out a towel the cat had pooed on out in the garden – the kitchen door leads to the garage and the door into the garden is the one I am referring to. I closed the door as the dog was right there and I was not in the mood to argue with him, he just does not listen at all. The garage main door was open and the garden door opened – I am not sure if Jet opened it himself as he can slide the heavy security gate with his nose. So he was out on the road. After catching him, and he is a bugger! He decided to try to strangle himself with the choke chain, and then started biting me. I bleed quite a bit, but after a hospital visit for a tetanus inj and cleaning up, they were mostly scratches and a lot of bruising. I have a black nail – lovely! At one point I shoved my fist into his mouth as I could see him eyeing for a better place to bite. Henk was so upset, he said he cannot trust the dog, Jet has bitten him before, but with the babies…. So it will be tickets for Jet soon.

Cat Coralie’s cat is still so lovely, he sat with Tim and I on the couch we were cuddled up with hot water bottles and blankets. That was Sunday evening – we were so cosy and warm. He has mange, I think, he has massive hair loss on the inside of his back legs and on his sides. I have no idea what to do about that. And not having a car was a bit painful as I would have popped into the pet shop to ask about it.

House Their new house is lovely, a bit small, and no BIC as yet, but clean and brand new. And a built in stove! It would fit inside our downstairs easily, but is great for the boys. Sunny as it is north facing and a tiny garden, they do not need any more.

Interview I am going for an interview tomorrow – Friday at 10am. Light those candles please and some positive thoughts beaming! I feel this is the one! I was in the oncology ward when I got the call, and the company has some oncology drugs, it sounds just right! ;-))

stupid update points

Tim still in hospital, now it is an allergic rash - it looks like he is allergic to perfumes. This is now going on 5 months (with a 5 day break).

I am to go to CT on the 27th July till the 11 Aug. This is to try get the boys into some routine that will not kill the nanny.

My phone is in hospital - upgrade to software, hell's teeth, it is only 7 months old. Therefore no facebook, so I will have to update anything here.

I have been quilting my life away, I have finished 4 in the last week - not all big, 2 small, 2 big. I will recharge those stoopid batteries if I think about it. Oh, and my latest is almost done.

I am pretty boring apart from the above!

thanks for reading - from a cold Coral - geesh my hands are freezing, first time this winter.

as some of you know

I was away late last week, we went to visit Ian's parents. So of course I was out of range, so as to speak.

We left Thursday morning, and Wednesday night Tim took a turn for the worse and landed up in ICU with pnuemonia. Of course we all had a worried time thinking bad stuff, the Drs said at one point a 50/50 chance of survival.

He is getting better now, he is still in ICU, but there are small improvements every day.

Poor baby, if it is not one thing, it is another!

What to say?

Well, I am at home, and my sewing room has had a few coats of paint. Not much else happened at home, apart from me finding out that a store Game - burnt down whilst I was away. So you see, nothing happens without my participation!

Ian is fantastic whilst I am away. There was one load of washing - most of which was mine, and I had so little come back with me. The floors need a clean and some dusting needs to be done, but otherwise nothing of note. The best partner ever!

I have tidied up the ironing, put the washing racks away, mopped the floors upstairs. Many loads of washing, yeah, I got it in my head to just keep going.

A jar of jam burst - in spectacular fashion in my rucksack - there was splintered glass everywhere. Very annoying. It took me a while to realise how to deal with it all. I used a spoon and small plastic bag to scrape out the jam/glass mix, and now have a few items to put through the washer, after I finish up with a rug that I have impulsively put in. Yeah, I am like that, if I get an idea I just do it! like Nike.

Tim is doing well with Rachel, he gave her a hard time the first night - um, yup, he did that to me too!

Football World Cup starts on Friday; I am so ambivalent, if you are into it, good for you, I couldn't care less. Footer does not do it for me.

I should take my phone into the shop for a 'technical problem', but I do not want to be without it, what to do, what to do.

Tim was on TV on Sunday night, when I get the program on disk I will be asking for help to get it on the net so my firends all over the world can view it. It is 90% Afrikaans, but at least you can see pictures of Tim and Co.

First pics of Robin!

done!!!

Finally I have sorted out Coralie's Paypal account. I am totally exhausted, by it all. If you (nb, this is for family only), want to deposit go ahead, it will work now.

I do not want to count how many hours I have spent on this, really and truly, hundreds.

goin' to bed now.....

thoughts from a very cluttered mind.

I am internalising all my worries and thoughts, which on one hand means I am coping with them, but on the other hand, I am out of comms.

Sorry everyone!

I have the builders here, they are nearly finished, I am pretty ambivelent about them, if I get annoyed I have to think at least it is one day down, they should be finished by the weekend. Best bit? I get my own sewing room - very exciting!

Things have happened in a badly timed way. Building quote accepted, work started, building quote wrong, roof needs to be totally re-worked. Wrestle with figures, Coral loses job, building work continues. Coralie needs mom earlier (I have already changed my return flight at a big cost already), I have to refuse. She was to ask MIL. Not sure what has happened there. I guess nothing or else I would hear.

Tim may be in hospital until after Robin is born. This could be crunch time.

Thought pattern - I go to CT on the 25th, I move into RCCH with Tim, Coralie goes to Paarl to have Robin. I stay with Tim until not needed, but I am returning on the 7th June. Rachel, the babies Godmother, arrives on the 6th June. She can take over with Tim if needed, but I am sure Coralie will be out of hospital by then. But will Robin? The RCCH has nurses quarters that the sometimes rent out for R24 a night. The thought pattern is - Coralie stay with Tim, and when she wants to swap and see Robin, just do it, we (me and Rachel tag team) will be 100 m away. Now the problem is if Tim is still in hospital when Rachel leaves - what then? My only thought is that Robin returns here to JHB, I can take care of him here and return him when he is ready for school, not really!

Oh, hell - now I am overthinking it all.

going home - well, not really.

Tim leaves hospital tomorrow, after a TV interview. Famous before he can even sit up by himself!

He transfers to Red Cross from tomorrow, I have no idea for how long. He has to start eating properly, he is not eating a large amount yet.

I am starting to feel more relaxed, and I feel so different, I didn't realise how tense I was.

I am knitting, another bear, my 4th; cross stitching a Christmas card; and sorting out fabric to start a 'scrap bag' quilt. So I may still be a stitcher yet.

Sean is here today, he popped in, I have fed him breakfast, and he is supposed to be doing a final clean on his rom, but is watching Jeremy Clarkson on TV instead. He will get to it...

quicky

Tim may leave hospital Monday - great news.

I have finished a quilt top today - picture to follow. In a few mins.

Whew - home again

Yesterday was a public holiday, I took it VERY easy. I can honestly say I did nothing constructive, oh, I knitted two teddy bears legs - that is two legs, not four!

The weather in Jhb is pretty chill, it was wonderful in CT. Here it is chill, raining and generally miz. In CT most of the time I had just a tee shirt on, yesterday I had a long sleeved tee, a track suit top, and a thick track suit weight jacket on all day. And my sheep skin slippers - cute!

Tim will be leaving the hospital next week. A sucess story of note! He has barely any hair, he has the burnt looking fluff you often see on cancer patients. He has to start eating properly and then it is home!

I am relieved, like you have no idea, but I am still so tense, I feel that it will take a while to move that 'expecting bad stuff' tension to leave.

Now, remind me, what did I blog about before Tim??? ;-))

some people are so spoilt - 2 birthday cakes!

Happy Birthday Tim!

Well today has been a long time coming, Tim, you have really stressed us out BIG TIME.

Have a great day, baby!

I can't wait for photos. Apparently the hospital will be having a celebration for him.

I wish I was there, but it does cost money to be there (even with my fabulous sponsorships), and I am only now starting to feel normal. (And that does not say a lot - ha!)

Have a great weekend with a soppy expression, because the transplant has been successful, news as at last night - you can do it!

xxxx

please remember

Tomorrow is the BMT, this is it folks, the real thing.

Chemo stops today and BMT infused tomorrow.

Keep those positive thoughts flowing please!

I never realised (this post is a mess, like my emotions)

Feeling very sorry for his self, like he should do. Note Angel Quilt Project quilt donated to him.


Coralie is NOT giving me the evil eye, she was looking past me at the TV. Do note how pale she is too. A lack of sleep, and really bad hospital food, read boiled potates and boiled pumpkin with just about everything. She says the best food they make is oatmeal porridge!

I never realised how bad this would be, the physical, bad sleep pattern, the puking, the bed changing over and over, is nothing compared to the emotional strain and the sadness I feel when I look at my most beloved grandson. Pictures of him, he is fine in the first ones, then you can see the effects of the continual vomiting, the clamminess and the chills, Tim was so cold, even the nursing staff were concerned. He has his good moments and his bad ones. It is not all bad, some of it is laughable. The hospital he is in is enormous, I got lost for about half an hour one day. You have to track your way in and out very carefully and do not deviate from the mental map.

Feeling a bit nauseous here

First day , this toy malfunctioned the night Henk stayed at the hospital, it was a bit of a giggle in retrospect!

I had an idea for his birthday, people can send / bring him a balloon to brighten up his room, and a party later, that one will be a two-some party, a first birthday party and a celebration party.

I am tired out and totally exhausted. I fly back on Wed morning.

Tim photos March 2010

With my Quilt from James!
Henk always looks like that in photos - totally fed up!


I just woke up! And that camera has given me a fright!



With Mommy and Daddy

With my nana (nanny), Florinda. She adores him!

He is so hard to get a smiling photo of, he gets such a fright as the camera starts to pre-flash, it is pretty funny.

Back from CT

Tim is doing well, he is teething, and has a bit of a runny nose, and is a bit miz. But seems healthy otherwise. The Hickman line goes in about 2 cm to the right of his right nipple, the line runs up to his neck, and doubles back to go down to near his heart. The outer bit is a double line, I am not sure why there is two ends. He has them all rolled up and packaged on his chest with surgical dressings. He was so good yesterday when they were working on him, they irrigated it and he was squirmy, but not shrieking.

He is a pretty happy child now, but to get a smiley photo is near impossible - he gets a puzzled look on his face when the camera pre-flashes!

I will put up some photos soon, like in a few hours.

xxxx

stuff I have done

Bread - I will only use one or two cups of Krackly Wheat flour next time - too crunchy. Like eating popcorn kernels - ha ha!
But otherwise it turned out well.

Teresa Wentzler's Jeanne Love Angel

The Bug Collecter

This is how far I am with Coralie's quilt top, yes that is sushi you can see! Yes that is nearly the whole of my sewing room floor!

Off to have a late lunch - Fillet steak, salad, potatoes and more of my bread!

Update

I am feeling like I would like to find a cave and hide. Mostly
because I do not want to think about Tim’s illness and the possible
outcomes. And people keep asking. They are concerned for Tim, Coralie
and Henk, and me. But I would be happy not discussing anything right
now. The uncertainties are pretty worrying. And I am tired of ‘faking’
it – trying so hard to be positive that my face aches with the smile.

Tim is not well at the moment and I am scared the BMT will be
cancelled. He is miserable. His meds have been increased 3x.

On the positive side I have lost a little bit of weight, I have not
weighed myself, but my clothes are fitting a bit better. I have
stopped drinking alcohol during the week, and over the weekends
limiting myself. I have started walking, only in the complex driveway
at the moment, which is 200m long; so one lap is 400 m. I am up to 4
laps, nearly 2km! Maybe by next week I will get up to 2kms. This is
the most exercise I have done in years, and now my Achilles Tendon is
reminding me why I stopped!

We are watching the DFL IPL 20/20 Cricket at the moment, it is a great
game and very exciting. Shane Warne is back from Aus, he and Gillcrest
are worth watching, they are the older players that have nothing to
lose, and go out to smash sixes off the ball. Feel jealous if you do
not have access to the games!

I have another trip booked for CT. 30 to 4th April. Boy, I am going to
be getting my voyager miles again.


love and hugs

Hamster girl - grateful

Most of you know already that Tim's BMT is to happen soon, admission to hospital has been moved to the 29th March, with the BMT on 31st.

I have been promised cheaper tickets from 1Time - a local carrier here in SA. They are sponsoring my tickets to such an extent I am getting a return ticket for R200 - an absolute steal. (US$27.00, UK pounds 18.07, Aus$29.46)

I have also been offered a hire car for free from Hertz! Holy Moly, I really am astounded!

So all I have to do is tell news as it happens. Now my phone does not connect to this site, so I cannot blog it. But I can Facebook it. So, if you are getting my Tim news by blog only, and want updated news, Facebook is the answer. You do not have to offer any personal details, unless you want to. So it is as secure as you want it to be. If you have the right phone and the right cell phone provider you can have updates sent directly to your phone.

I have a hamster in my brain - you know - hamster syndrome, there he is running on his wheel and too much is going on to stop. I have so much to think about and so much planning to do.

I have my first trip on the 23 March and back on 26 March. Yes I know this is early, but remember the dates were changed!

I am so grateful for 1Time and Hertz, they have helped a complete stranger in a tight spot.

and again, long time since we spoke!

I gave been busy this week, 4 days I have been at work for the month end / year end stock take. I personally am not happy with it, but we can go no further.

I have however trimmed all the log cabin squares to a set square, and started to sew them together this morning, then unpicked them all (ho hum).

I have Ian at home for the weekend and will enjoy that.

Have a great weekend all

xxxxx

Long time no speaks!

It has been a long time since I have blogged, so no-one knows what is going on in my life.

Firstly, my home computer is giving my gip - it will not connect to the internet, so I think I will have to haul it off to the computer shop again. gah!! More money!

Apart from that things are pretty quiet.

Sean appears to have found a girl who is keen on him, finally, poor chap was losing hope! She the same age as him with two kids, I really don't care, just as long as he has someone who appreciates him and loves him. I said to him the other day I was going to stop remembering their names, they are all so fast in and out of his life.

I have made myself a new handbag, finished a cross stitch and am finishing off a quilt that was cut out over ten years ago. It is a log cabin, with the thinest strips, clearly I had no idea what I was doing; what a labour intensive project! I have the tidy-uppers and finish-offers at the moment, so cupboards ae being cleaned out and projects are being finished off. It really is satisfying. And I only have to put in about 50% effort for a finish! (ha ha - lazy me showing her head again)!

We are still waiting for a date for Tim's BMT, as you remember that date is dependent on the donor. The Medical Aid has paid out R75 000 for Tim's registery to the Bone Marrow Registry - holy moly! Hooray for Discovery Medical Aid.

I am busy at work today doing the weekly work prior to the stock take capture which will be done on Monday. This is why I have internet connection.

Have a great weekend!

xxxxx

What I am doing tomorrow

I am going to a memorial service tomorrow for a friend of mine that died last week. Barbara Farmer was 71 and died of lung cancer. I met her through my fav stitching shop at Uncle Tim's Cabin. This was about 15 months ago. We got along so well and cheered each other up when we needed a shoulder to cry on. She was the most amazing stitcher, she taught at the shop and taught me how to do the Edelweiss stitch in hardanger work. During the time I knew her she met Coralie whilst Tim was still 'cooking'. I will take a photo tomorrow to show you the type of stitching she did, mostly Jacobean. I realised that I was not interested in her type of embroidery and took along my cross stitch when she had a class (I also realised I would not have the benefit of her as a teacher for the full project). So I have been going to visit her on Thursday afternoons for a while now.

Barbara was clearly failing the last time I saw her. She was in pain and irritable and had very bad memory problems. That was her last class. Her students have not quite finished that project, they have to put gold work into it still.

She was the MOST talented person, she designed so many projects, and was still talking about what she wanted to do next - never say die! She fought until the very end, she did not give up, she did not believe that this was the end. Barbara said she was not ready and was talking about needing more stash in her last weeks.

I am sad she has passed on, and I feel her memorial will be a most joyful remembrance of a fantastic person who left too early. It is to be held in the garden of the Deli at Uncle Tim's Cabin - a fitting place as she loved to stitch outside.

This does not cover my regard for Barbara and all her future plans - I so admired her bravery.

Rest in Peace, Barbara. You will not be forgotten easily.

Tim pics!

With mommy


With Nicole



A bit of a smile

Tired baby, see Robin in mommy's tummy?

Handsome little chap, hmm?

He is so clever - you can't hide anything from him. I reckon although he is still in 3-6 month clothing, he is has a pretty high IQ! (sigh, takes after his granny)!

Letter to all

I am not ignoring you all, I just have so much buzzing around in my mind that to put it in some semblance of sensibility that anyone could understand – or even try to follow – is impossible.

Stuff in my head;

Missing Katie, I would like to take 2 months off and just visit for a while – and that is not happening, that would be running away as my life is about to hot up.

Tim’s BMT has a tentative date of March – I am both scared and looking forward to it. It could be the end of this journey that we are traveling, he will be healed and we will be a normal family again. My plan is that I will go to Cape Town every week and stay at the hospital with him for about half the week. That bit still has to be planned, it will be scheduled as soon as I have firm dates.

Coralie & Henk have chosen the name Robin for their second son, sweet!

It has not stopped raining in about 3 weeks, and yesterday we finally had a day of sunshine. I washed my car, I did not realize how dirty it was! (What a great colour it is)!

I am not sleeping well at all, I am too worried to take a sleeping pill in case I get out of bed and knock myself out – see bruise still on bum to attest to the flooring capabilities of sleeping pills. So I feel a bit hazy all the time.

Menopause sucks! Just so you know! Menograine definitely helps, but like my Dr said “Don’t take it twice a day, take it three times a day, as it wears off and you will notice.” She said she took it 3 times a day – sometimes I think I should take it 6 times a day. Dear, dear.

What’s happening your end?

back from outer space!!!

We had a good weekend, and the wedding was lovely! I was actually dreading it, thinking it would be boring – it was great fun! A non-dancing wedding, we had a superb lunch, and lots to drink. It turns out the grooms dad is a Reverend – good thing I was on my best behaviour. Ha ha! His family are lovely gentle people and we did enjoy their company. (Oops, when asked how long we had been married his sister almost fell off of her chair that we were living together – the black sheep of the family)!

We were to pop to Ian’s parent’s new cottage and see it for ourselves, but we ran out of time. We got home and changed immediately into comfy clothes.

Funny how the weather service said it was to pour with rain the whole weekend – and it didn’t! I didn’t even take a pair of sandals of any type with me. Mooi River is known to have changeable weather – I have to learn! Pack for all types of weather all the time. Once I was there with only sandals and it was freezing cold! I am twice Ian’s sister’s size, so there is no hope of borrowing anything!

Ian’s parents were great as usual and we had some fun together. Ian’s parents have moved and are closer to Jeannine and co. So we will be seeing more of them as they are closer now.

Quick update

1. On our way to Ian's sister's wedding in Mooi River

2. Coralie and Henk get a grant from the JMML Foundation - yay!

3. I get a gift from 1Time air to have discounted fares for R200
return whilst Tim is in hospital with the transplant! Big yay!!

Overwhelmed and so grateful!

love you all!

dearie me!

I chatted to Coralie for a while yesterday; she has so much on her mind.

Firstly the cat is sick, he is skin and bone and not coping with the heat. I asked if he had been de-wormed lately and she says she has tried, but he keeps puking up the pills. She should take him to the vet, but she had no car yesterday.

Tim’s BMT is causing stress, the first thing that is upsetting is that we all know the side effects of the procedure, but there is no way that the procedure cannot be done. Coralie’s work has said she must take unpaid leave, she cannot afford to do that, so she is panicked that they will have even more financial problems. She will probably go on maternity leave pretty soon after that anyway. She has to be with Tim in the hospital, all the time as she cannot leave him as the staff will not look after him. The Dr’s are the best in the country, the nursing staff, mostly dreadful. Henk’s work say one thing, and do another. They cannot rely on them for some relief. I did say I could go down, and I am willing, but I do not have enough money for the flights, it would be a weekly flight, and I can barely afford the one I have already paid for in February, let alone one a week. That to me is the best idea, but not possible – isn’t is so stupid that all you need is money to throw at the problem, and you do not have it?

She was pretty tearful saying that she is barely noticing her pregnancy, which I told her was normal the second one is more ‘ho-hum’ than your first. But she is upset that she barely notices that she is pregnant. But Newbie – is doing somersaults and letting her know that he is around, and she says she is enormous! We all think that with our second, hmm?

Stress, not a good thing!

and for today's update

So, how’s this for an interesting day?

Last night I hear a friend’s husband is to have a triple heart bypass today. So I offer to stay with her in the hospital whilst this is happening, should she need me. She accepts, but as I know she has had a bad time recently with depression, I wondered if she would actually phone me a the time when she needed me, so I went to the hospital at about 9h00. I phoned her, I sms (texted) her and eventually thought she was either in the hospital in a place where she had turned off her phone, or her daughters had taken her shopping to take her mind off of things. Her husband was in surgery from before I got there and transferred to ICU at about 14h00. I still had not heard from her.

I had met his surgeon, who was annoyed, as she could not get hold of my friend, and I said I could not either, and was waiting for her. I expected her to walk in at anytime, so I stayed on. And cross-stitched (Teresa Wentzler Jeanne Love’s Angel, now I remember I hate wings..).

I phoned her employer to ask her did she know of either the daughters’ phone number as she was not at the hospital, and not available. She phoned me back to say the eldest daughter said my friend was at home (!!). (You have no idea what I was thinking at this moment – the kids –all three at work and the hubby in ICU and mom at home)!!

The eldest daughter phones the hospital and tells them more or less what is going on, and they will visit tonight! It works out that my friend for the third time in three months has tried to commit suicide – on the day her hubby has a triple heart bypass!! She is in that hospital over there, and he is here!

I give up! How can we get my friend to see that this is not the answer and that her family needs her? The poor man has none of his family by his side, and he was really in a bad way. I have only met him once; he will not remember me! So I left and came home feeling totally sad for him.

hello it's me!

I have been around but it is easier to F/B than update here on my phone - I am so in love with that phone, I can do budgets and all kinds of things as it has excel as well as all other clever stuff. The photos are not great, but you win some you lose some.

Hope your new year is going swimmingly, I feel on the cusp of something exciting - just a gut feel!

Tim has two teeth - cute! His blood counts are up and he is looking very positive presently