Happy Easter

Horsley Towers

Belated Happy Easter!  Hope you all had a lovely Easter weekend and enjoyed time with your families.    

We had a lovely day at Dave's Aunts house on Easter Sunday and then went away to Surrey for a couple of days break. We stayed at a lovely hotel near Guildford next to a historic mansion called Horsley Towers.  There were beautiful grounds to walk around and explore - although it was a bit too cold most of the time!!  Really nice to see that the sun has started to shine now and it feels more like Spring....just need a few more degrees!!

Healthwise I've been doing better since Saturday and have felt stronger & had more energy.  Just looking forward to enjoying the next few days until I need to go back for my next chemo on the 9th.

The Cloisters

Sitting by the lake in the Spring sunshine

Sunset over the lake

Grounds of Horsley Park

P.S.  It probably goes without saying but just wanted to clarify that practically all photos shown on my blog (including these amazing ones from this week) are courtesy of my talented photographer husband! 

Trip to Switzerland

We had a fabulous time away in Switzerland!!  Despite being very sick for the first 4 or 5 days, it was lovely to spend time with Paul, Pami, Alisha, Luana & Celina and we had some really good times together : )  I wasn't up to skiing but it was great to be up in the mountains anyway and enjoy the amazing scenery.....we even managed to sunbathe (in our ski gear)!!

Here are a few photos.....

Hello From Switzerland

No prizes for guessing that we made it to Switzerland and are delighted to be staying with Paul, Pämi, Alisha, Luana and Celina!

Healthwise, it hasn't been a memorable few days following Sharon's chemo on Tuesday, but it worked out that she was well enough on Wednesday to make the journey. Since then, things have been a struggle energy wise, and significantly more so than was the case last week. However, rest is the very much the order of the day and we have been very well looked after!

Right now, Sharon has woken up feeling much better than last night so is picking up.

Our plan is to all head away together to another part of Switzerland for the next few days. As we will be away from internet access, I don't expect the blog will get updated for a few days, but am hoping that we will have lots of photos to share next time.

December 11th

Today we made it all the way to Land's End!! It was freezing and very windy but very well worth the trip.  Dave's last visit was 38 years ago and he doesn't remember too much of it :)

We've been in Cornwall for a few days and really loved it - so many pretty fishing villages, amazing coastline and really friendly people.  It was lovely to have Ashley & Nicky with us for a couple of days as well :)  We got to see so many great places we'd never been to like Newquay, St Micheal's Mount, Land's End, the Eden Project.  My highlight was the fabulous Victorian Christmas markets in Truro and Dave's was definitely Fish and Chips at Rick Stein's restaurant in Padstow! 

I did have a cold & sore throat for a week but feeling much better now and really enjoying the break from treatment :)

November 21st

We were in Devon last week and really enjoyed getting out and about and having a slightly more active lifestyle. It's been great to have more energy back. We took walks along the amazing beaches, went swimming - in the pool, not the sea!! - and even hired bikes and went cycling for a day.  It's a beautiful place, the beaches are amazing, huge waves and great cliffs and the countryside is full of trees turning fabulous autumn colours :-)  

Back to London yesterday for chemo and a review with the consultant.  He was very happy with my progress and with the scan and blood results so he said he'll give be a break from chemo after next week.  I'll see him early in the new year to review my progress and determine what the next steps are.  In the meanwhile, I will still need to go in every 3 to 4 weeks to continue with my bone treatment and get the port flushed but I feel ok after yesterday's treatment (so far) so I'm very thankful for that :)

September 30th

We're just back from a fabulous holiday in Portugal :) The weather was great most of the time - only 1 day of rain in 2 weeks! - and the accommodation was lovely!! Duncan & Andrea joined us for the first week and we explored some of the local towns and villages, had some lovely meals out and went to the most South Westerly point of Europe, which was only a few kilometers from where we were staying. We also got to see Lisbon for the day when we dropped them to the airport. Apart from that we just relaxed by the pool and had a really amazing, restful time in the sun :) 

We flew back on Thursday and then headed up to London on Friday afternoon for my operation yesterday. The surgery went well and I'm now fitted with a portacath in my chest to allow them to take blood and administer chemo much more easily. The nurses have been finding it difficult to access my veins and the anaesthatist told me I had the world's smallest veins so I think everyone will be happier from now on - especially me!! It was good to see some of the nurses who looked after me when I was in hospital last year - they are so lovely & caring and it was really nice to catch up with them. Back to London tomorrow for an MRI and then chemo on Tuesday.

September 12th

We have just booked a last minute holiday to Portugal! We decided to take the opportunity of 2 weeks free from appointments and managed to get an amazing deal in Portugal so we are heading off tomorrow morning (5am!) and back on the 27th.

Healthwise, I have been doing much better although I was quite tired over the weekend. The doctors decided to wait until the next chemo session to see whether I need a transfusion as they have delayed it by a week to see if the bloods will recover on their own. If not I'll have the transfusion the day after chemo so we'll be coming back to a week of appointments; surgery to have the portacath fitted on the 29th, MRI for my brain on the 1st, chemo on the 2nd and possibly a transusion on the 3rd!

In the meanwhile, so looking forward to resting and relaxing and enjoying some lovely sunshine :)

August 8th

Everyone here is talking about Super Saturday but yesterday was Tremendous Tuesday!!

We went to London to see the consultant & get the results of the CT scan I had on Friday and the great news is that the chemotherapy is working!! He said that the nodules on my lung are reducing and also that the tumour markers in my blood are starting to come down. It was such amazing news to get as we had no guarantees that the treatment would be successful but they have recently linked it to the type of cancer that I have and have seen increasingly positive results.

We believe it is due in no small part to the many people that have been praying for us and we are very grateful to all of you! The next plan is to continue the chemotherapy for another 3 cycles and then assess how it's progressing.

To top it all off, Dave somehow managed to get us last minute tickets to the athletics yesterday evening and we got to celebrate in style in the Olympic stadium! What a fantastic atmosphere....the swimming last week was good but this was incredible! We saw high jump, long jump, discus, mens 1500m final, 200m womens heats & got to support Dervla O'Rourke in the womens 100m hurdles! The best bit was when the German guy won the discus, ripped off his shirt, did a lap of honour and then jumped the 100m hurdle course! It was such a privilege to be there and experience the Olympics first hand and we are amazed at how it all worked out.

We even got to meet up with Mark & Lynne who were in at the athletics in the morning and we spent a lovely afternoon with them in the Olympic Park :)

July 31st

What a fantastic day at the Olympics yesterday!! We got to see some amazing swimming finals and semi-finals last night and the atmosphere was incredible, especially when the Team GB swimmers got in the pool! Unfortunately I couldn't find any Irish swimmers to support but we brought the flag anyway!!

We were at the evening session but went in to the Olympic Park early and spent the day wandering around and taking it all in. It's a massive place and we did a lot of walking to get around & see everything - all the arenas were huge and the whole site was so well laid out with gardens, meadows, canals, eating areas, sitting areas etc...extremely impressive!

June 29th

We had a fabulous week in Scotland! It was a long drive and we got back to Swindon very late last night but it was great to get away and spend time with Steve and Ruth and see some more of Scotland.

The scenery there is amazing and we saw some stunning lakes, mountains, valleys & rivers... We walked around lakes, walked along Glen Nevis (Ben Nevis valley), went to Balmoral, had a trip on a steam train and had lots of time to relax and enjoy the time away.

We also got to catch up with some friends we don't get to see very often. We travelled via Edinburgh and spent Friday afternoon & evening with Mez & Miriam and the girls which was a real bonus :) We also got to spend a very special afternoon with Alasdair, Irene and their family in Lossiemouth on Sunday.

May 11th

 

We had a lovely time away in amazing Switzerland and a very special time with our friends - thank you Paul & Pami & the girls!  


While I was away, I started to get some bad headaches - especially in the mornings. We thought maybe it was pressure headaches or migraines but once we came back on Wednesday they still kept going. 


By Friday I called the hospital and they arranged some tests and scans for next week to see if they can get to the bottom of it.  In the meanwhile, the GP has put me on some painkillers and they are really wiping me out - I feel like I've just been completely spaced out! Hopefully I don't need to stay on them too long :) 

May 1st

We have been back in London for my monthly treatment today, staying overnight and then heading to Switzerland for a week with Paul & Pami and the girls - really looking forward to catching up with them, following up on our ski trip and enjoying Switzerland :) 

February 26th

We had an amazing week in Switzerland! The mountains were incredible, the views from the Alpentower were amazing and we had lots of fun! The weather was amazing and the sun came out nearly every day so I spend a lot of time sitting in deck chairs and drinking hot chocolates! I managed to ski towards the end of the week although I took things very easy.... I wish the same could be said for my husband who managed to fall over a crater and hurt his knee. He still skied for the rest of the week but was really hobbling by the time we got home. Still trying to convince him to see a doctor!

Thank you SO much to Paul, Pami, Alesha, Luana & Celina for making this time so special! Can't wait for our return trip to see you all really soon :)

February 17th

Tomorrow we are off to Switzerland for a week - friends of ours have invited us to join us in the Swiss mountains for their ski trip. We are SO looking forward to getting away and spending time with them. I'm not sure if I will ski but may do some gentle skiing if I feel up to it. Regardless it will be amazing to get away to the Swiss mountains and enjoy the snow and amazing scenery over there!

My back pain is much better than it was and I've now stopped taking morphine tablets. I still need to take oral morphine now and then but it's great not to need to really strong ones anymore.

June 3rd

I'm just back from a fabulous week on the Isle of Wight. Charis and Claire came over from Cork / Dublin last Wednesday and picked me up on their way to the Isle.

We stayed at Charis' uncle's house to mind the dog & cats while they were away. We had a great time visiting different parts of the island - incredible scenery, white cliffs and lovely little villages. We went for walks, went out for coffees, lunch & cream teas, shopped, relaxed & watched dvds and had lots of fun. It was so good to see both of them & to spend so much time with them - normaly we just meet for coffee or dinner so it was really lovely to have such a long time together.

Dave came home from Morocco last Wednesday so I saw him for a few minutes before I disappeared to the Isle of Wight and he came down to join us for a day last weekend. We're both back in Swindon now and looking forward to enjoying the amazing weather this weekend :)

May 24th

I'm back! Apologies for the lack of updates over the last 3 weeks but we had a longer than anticipated stay in Morocco and limited internet access. Dave has been working really hard over the last 3 weeks, meanwhile I had an extremely relaxing time!

It was just what I needed - the hotel was lovely and I had no choice except to do nothing! I didn't venture too far outside the hotel on my own during the daytime and spent most days resting up, reading a lot of books & sitting out in the beautiful hotel gardens or by the pool. The most I did was to swim a few lengths of the pool every day and walk down to the town centre for dinner in the evenings.

We did get to see the walled city of Rabat & amazing blue & white streets & visited the markets a couple of times. We also had an amazing evening at a Moroccan family's home, where we were invited to dinner. It was a real cultural experience and they were incredibly generous & welcoming - I've never eaten so much food....Cous cous, tagine, moroccan bread, homemade pastries - really delicious!!

Unfortunately I left my husband behind :( I rearranged my flights and travelled home on Sunday but we weren't sure when he'd be able to finish up work. Hopefully he'll make it back tomorrow, but praying that the ash cloud stays away & the airports stay open.

May 2nd

We're just back from 10 great days in Cork - feeling tired from an early start and long drive / ferry trip but it was a really lovely time with family & friends. We got to spend a lot of time with family and caught up with some friends as well.

The only problem was that time went too quickly and we didn't get to see everyone that we had hoped to see. We're really sorry to everyone that we didn't have an opportunity to meet up with & hope to see you next time instead. It's so difficult to see everyone and I did get quite tired towards the end of the week - as well as picking up a head cold & sore throat :(

Dave is travelling back to Morocco for work again tomorrow but rather than leaving me behind I'm able to tag along with him this time :) I will be forced to rest as Dave will be working all day but I plan on bringing lots of books to read and rest & relax.

April 21st

We are really looking forward to spending time with family & friends in Cork this Easter :)

Dave has been able to take 3 days off work next week so we can make the most of the two bank holiday weekends and have 10 days off together. We're travelling over by overnight ferry this evening and coming back on May 2nd. It's been a busy couple of days packing and getting everything together...but almost there now and ready to set off :)

Wishing you all a very Happy Easter!

January 31st

We're back! We had a great last 2 days in Sydney - went shopping, went to Bondi beach and even got to climb Sydney Harbour Bridge on our last day!! What an experience being able to climb a bridge, being so high up and seeing the amazing harbour views.

We left Sydney on the 28th and had a stop-over in Seoul for 1 night on the way home. It was quite a shock to the system going from 27 degrees to -5!! But at least it meant that it didn't seem that cold when we got back to the UK!

We have a couple of days off to catch up with jetlag and unfortunately we're back to work on Wednesday but what an amazing holiday!

January 27th

We've had a fabulous week in Melbourne. We got to see the Australian Open tennis on 3 days and saw some amazing games. We got to centre court on Australia Day and saw Kim Clijsters and Andy Murray play, in between canon fire and low flying planes to celebrate Australia Day!

On Tuesday we took a day trip on the great ocean road and saw the amazing 12 Apostles rock formations. They were really nice but the weather was pretty wet & miserable. And on Friday we took a tram trip out to St Kildas beach. It's a really different city to Sydney, lots of old buildings, trams and people from every nationality you could imagine.

On to Sydney next for a couple of days and then back home on the 30th :(