A cupboard full of fun

With Family and Friends

With Arran,2 and Jacob, 4. The gang!


With Daddy and Nanna


With Mum


With Auntie Dawn

Just woken up

Range of Facial Expressions

Shaken and Stirred

This morning I got up and had my usual two cups of tea then I went back to bed. I was very glad I had had that tea because just then after a roar of sorts my bed began shaking and I was jiggled around in it like a piece of popcorn in a hot pot!

The power went off. I got dressed, put clean water in buckets in case the water was going to be contaminated, and packed a bag in case we were evacuated. I put in cat food, medicine, clean clothes, a small towel, a good book, toilet paper, toothbrush, hairbrush etc plus the charger for my scooter. Then I went outside to find all the neighbours milling around. Nobody knew what was happening.

Michelle was at work and she phoned to ask if I was OK. Her Manager said it was a gas explosion in Black Bull Rd. Later we heard it was an earthquake measuring 4.7 on the Richter Scale and was 6.2 miles underground and 14 miles south of Canterbury. Kate and Nigel are fine too. My Spice cat had huge eyes and a bottle-brush tail for about an hour afterwards. My power has just come back on so I'm going to have another cup of tea and go back to bed for a while. Too much excitement doesn't do me any good.

I'm just thankful I wasn't asked to go through an earthquake before I had had my cup of tea and cigarette!

The snooze that wasn't

Then a game with mum's hair. Kate was hoping Woozle would go to sleep, but no chance of that! They have gone home and I need to go to bed too so Night Night everyone.

Chasing Mummy

Here is Woozle, chasing her Mummy with great delight.


That girl has only been walking for a couple of weeks and here she is RUNNING!! And having a lot of fun too, I might add. You should have heard the shrieks and giggles.

Surgery

It happened at last! Steve Wright had sent the part to repair the Beastie a while ago, but Nigel hasn't been well. The whole family have had this grotty 'flu-like illness that I still have.
Today though, when Nigel was here, he felt OK and Steve was available to talk him through 'the Surgery' so here he is, fixing it. Steve asked me to try it out for a week and see if that has fixed it and then he will send me a returns bag to post back to him.

I could hear Steve and Sylvie's baby in the background and Woozle 'spoke' to him. I swear those two will end up married one day!

Updates

I took this photo in Kingsnorth Gardens yesterday. The dog had Cabin Fever and I really HAD to take him out but I'm not allowed to mix with crowds yet so he and I went to the gardens to photograph the beautiful spring blossoms.
I have played around with the picture in my photo editing program and I decided that my cat Jack should visit the place so I put him in there too. The original photo of Jack was taken a few weeks ago in my lounge.



I can't believe how unwell I still feel. My sinuses are slightly less blocked and my temperature isn't going above 38 at the moment but I am very deaf and now have earache in the ear that isn't deaf. The virus is moving down onto my chest. I got this bug at the end of March! It just isn't clearing. If I did not have my scooter I would be completely housebound because I feel weak all over and my legs feel like jelly. I can't go out on it much because I get too tired but it makes it possible for me to take the dog out. I went to the Leas the other day and we both enjoyed it before coming home and crawling back into bed.

Michelle
Michelle is staying at my mother's house to look after her cat Jenny. Jenny has been outdoors a lot, apparently. When Sean comes tomorrow I will ask him to take me up there to check up on her as Michelle says she is coming in to Folkestone tomorrow because there is something she has to do. She is cross because she was paid less than she was expecting, but it sounds like they have put her on Emergency Tax. So she is going to look for her P45 to take in to Personnel. It should get sorted out OK.

Kate and Nigel
Wendy's hair was hanging in her eyes and as soon as Kate puts it up, Wendy pulls the elastic out so the hair goes straight back in her eyes, so Kate has cut it. I hope it looks OK. I used to cut Kate and Michelle's hair when they were doing that at that age and it always looked absolutely awful. It was never my destiny to be a hairdresser!

They have been looking at College courses that start in September. Kate wants to do hairdressing but that might involve too many hours away from Woozle so she is starting off with a part time Nail Technician's course. Having two different qualifications in Beauty will be no bad thing. Anyway, she is looking into it because she feels the need to improve her prospects. I think that a lot of it is due to Nigel's influence. He has enjoyed his motor mechanics course and has done very well in it so I think it has inspired Kate. I 'pushed' Nigel into doing his course because I had enjoyed my computer courses at Adult Education so much. I think that Kate has realised that there is nothing to fear and that studying and achieving are great morale boosters as well as a form of insurance. As long as your hands are skilled to do what people want, you won't starve.

How could I be so stupid?

I may have mentioned that about a month before Easter the whole family had a virus. Mine didn't clear up and just before Easter I went deaf in the right ear overnight so I went to see the Dr because we were going to Downside for Easter and I thought that if the infection got worse, it would be a nightmare trying to track down a Dr in Stratton-on-the-Fosse.

I didn't think anything of it because we with ME are so used to feeling grotty. I joined in as much and as many of the Easter services as I could.

I saw a locum GP today because I have had fever, sore throat, swollen glands, aching body from before Easter. I'm still deaf, nauseous and have had diarrhoea. I thought he would give me some antibiotics and all would be well within a few days.

Turns out he knows quite a lot about ME. He says my immune system isn't working properly and things have turned out like this because I pushed myself into going to Downside while I was not recovered from the virus. This is a relapse and I have to rest up for 24hr after my temperature has returned to normal and I must avoid crowds (eg on a train) and children and go back to a much lower baseline of function with much more rest until I gradually build up again.

Its OK to get up, bath, sit in an armchair for a while or sit in the garden if the weather is good. That still counts as 'rest'. I don't want or need total bedrest as deconditioning would soon set in. I worry about the poor dog though. He tries so hard to be good but he gets bored and full of Cabin Fever when I can't take him out.

I feel so stupid. What the Dr said makes sense, but none of it had occurred to me. I should have known better. After all these years of having ME, you would think I would have thought of that. But I didn't, and now the consequences are with me. I will take lots of extra care now so I will be OK for Melanie's wedding. They arrive on 8 May and get married in Exeter on 2 June - not long now.

I will need to sleep in Michelle's room and I have asked her twice to clean it. If she hasn't done so by next week, Kate will bring some boxes and we will pack it up for her. At the moment, it isn't possible to walk on the floor because it is piled up with clothes, papers, shopping, sweet wrappers and God knows what else.

I am still sick

Before Easter I suddenly got earache and went deaf in my right ear. The Dr gave me a course of antibiotics and I took them but the situation is worse now. I have fever and my neck glands are so swollen I look like a hamster. I'm seeing the GP on call at 11.30 today and I hope it isn't the girl I saw last time because she made it blatantly clear that she didn't believe me. She was mostly interested in trying to send me to a smoking cessation clinic!!!

Well, this time the temp is up, my throat is red and swollen, and even a blind person in the dark would spot the swollen hamster-like neck, so I really hope the right course of treatment will be started today as I have been sick for weeks and I am fed up with it. If they don't do something today, I'll think about seeing the blasted Vet!! I've been sick, toxic, deaf and sore since before Easter and I have had enough.

Picture of Innocence

Doesn't she look the picture of innocence?

Her poor Mum told me that yesterday she had gone for a quick visit to the loo and when she got back, Woozle has pushed her pram to the window, climbed up on it and was on the windowsill looking at passers-by. She couldn't fall out the window because it is double glazed but she could have fallen back and landed on the wooden floor. She is dreadful - you can't take your eyes off her for a moment. The downstairs loo is in the kitchen/utility area which is protected by a baby gate. There are things in the kitchen Caelyn doesn't want Woozle to get hold of and the loo space is too tiny for Kate to take Woozle in with her. They are constantly having to manage safety problems. HOW does such small person find so much mischief? And when you rush up and rescue her from the danger she smiles and laughs as if to say 'Aren't I clever'?

Have been better

I feel dreadful.

I haven’t fully recovered from the virus the whole family had a few weeks before Easter. It left me deaf in my right ear so I asked for an urgent doctor’s appointment because I knew if things got bad there would be no way of tracking a doctor down in Stratton-on-the-Fosse. The Dr said she couldn’t see anything wrong but gave me a course of doxycycline. It didn’t help.

My right ear is still deaf, the left has loud buzzes and whistles. I still feel viral. The glands in my neck and groin are swollen and it feels as if I should have a temperature but I haven’t. I feel teeth-chattery-achy, frozen, in a winter nightie and jersey, with an electric blanket, two duvets, a quilt and a blanket and the temperature taken in my ear is always below 35. My sinuses are blocked and burning and I have no strength. My eyeballs ache; my head aches and I can feel two abscesses brewing.

I felt ill all day but at 4pm started with diarrhoea with violent gut spasms. I was too weak to keep going from the bedroom to the bathroom that I took a blanket in there and stayed for as long as I could remain upright. I left my mobile in there too as I felt I was going to pass out and wanted to be able to get in touch with someone if I had to.

The diarrhoea has stopped but I feel drained, very drained. What worries me is that we are almost out of cat food and there is no way I could go and get some. Everything is running low and there isn’t anything I can do about it. Michelle is staying at my mother’s house while she is away in SA, Caelyn is broke and won’t be able to come until payday and Terrie is not able to cope with shops and even if she was, I don’t feel well enough to maintain a conversation. Caelyn has kidney stones again, and whatever this bug is, we don’t want baby Wendy to get it. That would be the worst possible thing.

Family Group

Caelyn, Nigel and Wendy relaxing on my sofa.

They had come over because Caelyn had gone to an informal class at the mothers and babies centre. She always takes Wendy with her and she is happy to play quietly. Caelyn slipped out to go to the bathroom and when she got back, they had taken Wendy to the creche where she was very distressed and crying her heart out. Caelyn was discouraged from going to her "because she has to learn that she can't have her own way all the time" and "she's got to learn to be independant"

What poppycock!!! Wendy is only 13 months old! There will be plenty of time for her to learn to be independant at the developmentally appropriate time. It can damage a baby to be forced in to a developmental stage before they are ready. This sort of idea comes from the sort of person who tries to give a baby solid food and chocolate before they are a month old and who tries to potty train from 6 weeks. Its bizarre. cannot work and makes both mother and baby unnecessarily unhappy, so why do it? Babyhood is so brief, and the cares of adult life come soon enough.

Caelyn still breastfeeds Wendy so they still have a biological connection. Nature has programmed into her to be distressed when her baby is distressed and this mechanism probably came about for the survival of the species. Trying to stop these natural and primitve drives makes about as much sense as King Canute sitting on the beach commanding the sea to do what he wanted it to do.

Caelyn is an excellent mother and her baby is healthy and happy. Why mess with success? If it ain't broke, don't fix it.

Caelyn says she isn't going back to those classes.

Michelle

This is Michelle with Wendy, who was stuffing Michelle's necklace in her mouth. Michelle was trying to get her dressed after her bath, but they got distracted by the beads!


Michelle and her new boyfriend Richard.

Look at this beautiful building

I'm not sure whether this is the Hagia Sophia or the Blue Mosque (I will ask Sean this weekend) but the building itself is magnificent.

He showed me postcards of the inside of the Hagia Sophia (which is a museum now) and it is very high and very beautiful. I thought of those ancient craftsmen doing their best to create a dwelling place fit for their God. No power tools, cranes or bulldozers or indeed any standard measuring tool. Yet everything was so perfect, so exquisite. Imagine the sort of mind the Master Architect had, to conceive of something so awesome. And the craftsmen and their families working to realise the architects vision.

It was constructed in five years, from 532 to 537, at the orders of Emperor Justinian I and designed by Isidore of Miletus. An achievement even more remarkable when you consider Britain's Millenium Dome!!

I would be interested to know whether it was completed on time and within the Budget.

He's back, and he had a Wonderful time!

Sean loved Istanbul. He had dreamed of seeing the Hagia Sophia for many years.



The place is so full of history that it fired his historian's imagination.



He found the people friendly and relaxed.



The whole venture was much more wonderful than he had dared dream.

Prof Liviu Librescu RIP

Since hearing how Prof Livriu Librescu gave up his life to buy his students a few precious seconds to escape the shooting at Virginia University, I have been looking for more about him.

He was a Holocaust Survivor who gave up his life on Holocaust Remembrance Day. A hero. I feel very moved by what he did.

I'd like to quote from Meryl Yourish's Blog, because I couldn't say it better

But I found myself thinking: If Librescu is one of the Jews that Hitler missed, just imagine the kinds of men and women we lost. Just imagine the leaps in science and medicine and technology we didn’t make, because of Europe’s Jew-hatred. And today, I think, there are a few parents out there who are thanking God that Hitler missed Liviu Librescu. So should we all.

As a Catholic, I believe that the Jewish Jesus gave up his life to save us.
Another Jew has just given up his life to save a bunch of people.

His name should be remembered with pride and his story told and retold down the generations.

Saw Caelyn, Nigel and Woozle

I went to see Caelyn, Nigel and Woozle last night. Caelyn gave us a really yummy dinner.

She says she wants to try a couple of short courses at Noah's Ark because she feels the need for some adult conversation. If the short courses work and Wendy copes with her mum leaving her for a bit, she wants to start a hairdressing apprenticeship in September and has asked me is I would be willing to look after Wendy for her. I said I would because I'm a firm believer in education and if she wants to take the time and trouble to improve her lot in life, I'm only too willing to do what I can to help make it happen.

Sean is due back from Istanbul this evening and hopefully I will see him.

My own Lateral Thinking

When my kids were little, I didn't want to fight with them. I reasoned that as I was older, there were loads of ways I could outsmart them.

When it came to getting dressed in the morning, we didn't have to argue about them wanting to wear summer clothes in winter or anything of that sort, so I chose two suitable outfits and let them choose which they wanted to wear. They felt they were choosing and I was happy that they were wearing something suitable.

They both love vegetables and can't get enough of them. How did that come about? Well, we planted a vegetable garden and told them they must not go there while the veggies were growing. Being kids, that was the first thing they did - made a bee line for the veggie patch. We had lots of marvellous veggies but we never got any as far as the dinner table because the kids ate them as they picked them. Michelle used to go round stealing broccoli off people's plates and it is still her favourite vegetable to this day. Stolen food is always better so if you want them to eat something, tell them they mustn't eat it because it is special - and leave it where they can 'steal' it.

I have a mentally ill friend. She can't go into shops because of her anxiety levels. She needed summer clothes because she had none and her carers and her mum had been telling her to get some because it is too hot to be going around in long sleeved track suits. She needs clothes but can't go into a shop, so how do we get around that? She came to town with me and looked after the scooter and the dog while I went inside. I chose a selection and asked the manageress if she could come outside with me to show my friend the clothes, explaining that she had trouble with her nerves and was too scared to come into the shop herself. The manageress was pleased to help and we went outside to let my friend look over the selection and decide what she wanted. I went back in and paid for it and we went home. We were told we could return any of the clothes within 28 days if they still had the labels on them so she can try them on at home and if any need to be returned, there will be no difficulty about that.

A lot of life's problems can be managed if you use your imagination and think outside the box.

Lateral Thinking

Sometimes, it helps if you can think outside the box. I've done it for years and now my daughter Michelle is doing it too. She cares for a group of mentally retarded adults, most of whom also suffer diabetes and epilepsy. She looked after them on her own yesterday and she was worried about getting them bathed, medicated and in bed at the right time because this group is known to play up at bedtime. Michelle is a resourceful and imaginative girl so she came up with a plan. During supper she told them that as a Special Treat, they were going to have a Pyjama Party. They thought that was a great idea and she had absolutely no problem getting them bathed and ready for bed. No tears, no threats, no tantrums - just a happy bunch of people. Result!!

Another time, she was babysitting a friend's hyper little boy. Apparently, he never went to bed early and it was a fight to settle him down. This wasn't helped by the fact that he had unlimited access to Coca Cola and crisps. Michelle was willing to babysit but wasn't up for an evening of an overtired hyped-up kid with too many E numbers zinging around his system. It was before Christmas, so she sat him down and told him stories then suggested that they play Father Christmas. He was calm by this time because of the stories (Michelle had turned the TV off) and he thought playing Father Christmas would be a great idea so they put out milk and biscuits in the kitchen and they left them there while he bathed. Then he had the milk and ate the biscuits then crept into bed very quietly to practice for when Santa would really come, because everyone knows that Santa only comes when the children are asleep in bed. His mother was very surprised when she came home - he hadn't ever settled that early before. Result!!

Woozle

Woozle is an IMP! Look at that naughty face!


Woozle went for her immunisations today. I hope Kate made an appointment with the Dr for her as there is a particular health problem that has got us all a bit concerned. Its not easy taking a baby to a Dr when there is nothing to see. In England, you have to be rather brave to do that in case you get accused of Munchausens-by-Proxy which basically means that a parent pretends their child is ill to get attention for themselves. There are social workers attached to surgeries these days and if a suggestion is made that Munchausens-by-Proxy could be at work, there is a real possibility of the child being taken "into Care" and subsequently adopted by someone else against the will of the parents. In fact, no one has proved that M-b-Proxy even exists. On the other hand, if a parent doesn't seek medical attention if they suspect a child is ill, they could lose their child for that too. How do you judge these things? Its OK going to a Dr if there is something obvious like chickenpox or bronchitis. But if you know something is wrong but you can't see it and the Dr probably won't see it immediately either, it is a gamble.



She is adorable though, isn't she? A little IMP!

Sean

Sean is off to Istanbul next week. He has had a lifelong ambition to see the Hagia Sophia, the most famous Byzantine church in Christendom.

He asked me to set up two Blogs for the Catholic Writers Guild and I did. He is so technophobic that I was dreading trying to teach him how to post and how to edit posts so I took screenshots and wrote instructions down for each step. To my amazement, he logged on successfully and even managed to edit the posts! Then he asked if his secretary Gabrielle could work on the Blog and I said NO. He has to learn to do it himself. He was planning to surprise her with his new skills today.

He is very "soft" on Wendy and enjoyed a good ribbing from Kate. Whenever Kate has news, she phones Sean to tell him all about it. He also met Michelle's new boyfriend. I suspect he was tired in the office today after the barrage he got last night.

Michelle

Michelle has settled in to her new job in the care home and she loves it. It seems she left her old job just in time because the company is up for sale.

Her chest still isn't right. She had to be taken to the William Harvey Hospital the other night with breathing difficulties but she is back at work now. Her chest has sent her to hospital at least once a year since we have been in England.

She has a new boyfriend now and although it is early days yet, she has cheered up. My Mum goes to South Africa on 22 April and Michelle will be staying in her cottage to look after the cat and it is near the care home she works in. My sister is coming from New Zealand to get married and I'm hoping Michelle will make her room habitable so I can use it while Melanie is here. I wouldn't feel right about sharing my bedroom if Peter is going to be in it. Its OK with Nigel when he Caelyn and Wendy sleep in the big bed. I don't mind sleeping in the single bed (which is partly kept private by a cupboard) but I know Nigel well and have never met Peter. Anyway, I'm not well enough at the moment to tackle Michelle's room. I'm struggling to do my own.

Caelyn and Nigel

Nigel
Nigel went for an interview for a part time job today and he got it! This pic is of Caelyn on the phone to Sean telling him the happy news. As it is part time, he will be able to carry on doing his Motor Mechanics course in College.



Caelyn is happy because so much seems to be going well for them all of a sudden. The new house is warmer and near their friends. The neighbours are nice. They were given a cooker/oven that is in great condition because it belonged to a single person who hardly ever used it. Also, they were given a comfortable lounge suite which is also in good condition. With Nigel getting this job it seems they are on a roll.



It is easier to get another job when you are already employed. Nigel should be able to cope with a part time job until his Crohns Disease gets sorted out. When it is, he could look for a full time job with a better chance of getting it. Plus, he will have gathered a few college certificates by then so this part time job is very good news for them.

Been Away

Hi Everyone

I've been away for Easter, to Downside in Somerset. It was wonderful but very tiring, which is why I haven't done anything to the Blog for a while. I'll try to catch up with myself before next week, as there is lots of news. At the moment though, I feel 'tired but wired' and unable to rest properly. The slightest bit of stimulus sends jolts of adrenaline surging through my system, and it isn't comfortable.

Well Done, Nigel

Nigel has been doing a course in car mechanics and he has done very well. In his last exam, he was the only one in the class to get 100%. There were 10 people who passed, but Nigel came first.

Well Done, Nigel. The best sort of son-in-law to have. I'm proud of you, son, and would like to suggest you sign up for the follow-on course as you are clearly very talented in this area.

Michelle

Michelle starts her new job in the morning. I'm typing this at 2am because I can't sleep when I am expecting her home. She is still out and I'm achingly tired but if I expect her home, my mind won't settle until she is back.

Other fun and games

Riding her Winnie the Pooh toy


Hello Granny


The Peg game. She was asked to get a red peg, a blue one, a green one etc and I pegged them onto Kate. Wendy really joined in and made a great game of it. Here she has some in her hair, with the help of her Mum.
She certainly seems to be settling in to her new home. Perhaps it is because she has been breastfed for so long and the bond with her parents is deep so her security is in people rather than a 'thing' such as a soft toy or cot or any other 'thing'. In the 70s we were told that a child's best educational toy was its mother. Kate plays with her a lot and Nigel reads to her and talks to her. She is lucky in her parents.

She loves 'hiding' games

This is the funny face she pulls when she makes us laugh


Here I am!!


Where are you hiding, granny?


Boo!

Her First Doll

My Mum realised that although Wendy has loads of toys, she didn't have a doll, so when she saw this one, she bought it for her and as you can see, it is a great success.


She walks around with it, rocks it, kisses it and just enjoys playing with it. I'm glad she has a new toy she likes so much while she is settling in to her new home.


I went to Dover today to keep Wendy occupied while her parents carried on unpacking. They still have a fair bit to do, but they have accomplished a great deal already.


I love this photo