2011 - New Beginnings?

Happy New Year!

2011 already - It doesn't seem 5 minutes since the last new year started.

So a new year - time for a new start?

I promised myself I would keep this blog going and what do you know? Yep I stopped doing it - story of my life! I kept a diary for about 12 years, faithfully every night. You would think it was even easier with a pc to record everything with ease but in typical Karen style I stopped bothering - although life did get a little frantic for a while........

It's a long one!

Jan 2010
My lovely cousin Ian, who was only 4 years older than me and was one of my best friends phoned to say goodbye. His illness had taken it's toll and he was near the end. The phonecall was one of the most emotional of my life. We laughed, we cried, we said our I love you's and our final goodbyes. He was going into hospital and wouldn't be coming out and didn't want visitors or phonecalls - he just wanted to go - he had suffered enough.

Sadly things didn't turn out like he planned. Because of the bad weather his quick trip to hospital ended up being a much longer stay and where in their wisdom and against Ian's wishes, the doctors decided to fight the 'big C' even though the battle had already been fought and won by this awful killer.

Mar 2010
My lovely cousin was still struggling, by now he was very ill and was being looked after in a Hospice - it was his birthday the day before mine but I couldn't send a 'Happy Birthday' card so instead I sent a 'Just a note' card and a long letter. He always loved my letters - he said I wrote like I spoke - probably a load of old rubbish - and perhaps he was right!

Apr - May 2010
Ian finally slipped away, 4 months after our goodbyes. Even knowing all that time that he was going to die didn't make it any easier. Because he died at the end of the month it was May when we went home for the funeral. Ian's mum, my Auntie Naggy, asked me to speak at the funeral. I wrote that eulogy at least 5 times but eventually I was sort of happy with it. I was proud of the start of it...... although on reading it to my mum I was asked to change it slightly, so instead of it saying "I was volunteered by my mum who said I have a big gob" I had to change it to "I was actually volunteered by my mum because as she would say, I certainly can talk, a statement which I am sure Ian would agree with!" I preferred the first version because the Ian I remember would have wet himself laughing AND agreed whole-heartedly! The vicar at St Leonards was lovely and we had a chat the day before the funeral so I knew where I would stand etc. I know the Church anyway as I lived in the town for the first 21 years of my life and it was the Church I had my 1st wedding in - and went to nearly all the family funerals, including my dads! In fact I think the last time I was in the Church was for that reason. The funeral went well and I did manage to speak clearly - ok there was a lot of sniffing and I really wish I had taken another tissue to the stand because there was snot and lots of it!

On the day of the funeral my lovely hubby Tommy said he wasn't feeling well. We were too busy that day to think about it much and the next day we were off to Stranraer to catch the ferry back home to Belfast so we didn't really think about him being ill. We got the 8pm ferry home and by the time we were less than halfway home we realised that Tommy was more sick than we first thought. He rang the out of hours doctor and made an appointment to go to the clinic as soon as we got off the ferry.

We got the the clinic and the Dr said it was a chest infection, it was bad, Tommy had to go on a nebuliser twice before his breathing improved but it was his blood pressure the Dr was worried about. Anyway Tommy refused hospital and was sent away with antibiotics and was told to see his own GP.

On the Monday Tommy contacted his own GP and his antibiotics were changed. On the Wednesday evening we were sat watching TV and Tommy said his eyesight had gone all blurred and like a fog had covered his eye, so next day he phoned the GP who gave him another appointment and said he would ring him back. I arranged to leave work and come home to get him to his appointment. In the meantime the GP rang back and told Tommy to get to the Royal Hospital eye casualty immediately! Luckily I was already on my way home so it was a quick turn around back to the hospital where 2 hours later we were still sat. Eventually the consultant saw Tommy and suddenly things started happening. Basically his blood pressure was so high he could have had a massive stroke at any moment. He was admitted to the hospital straight away. The problem with his eye was bad - it was probably permanent but only time would tell. In subsequent appointments his eyesight has almost returned to normal and there is a hopefully final appointment next week.

Basically Tommy has a condition known as 'Super Hypertension' - it is now controlled with medication he will probably have to take for the rest of his life - but he is alive and doing great so that is all that counts.

All in all Tommy was in hospital for 8 days and on sick leave for 4 months before going back to work in September.

Since then he has started being an official IFA football referee and has a match most weekends - apart from the last few weeks with the weather being so bad. We also booked our holiday to Florida as we thought we needed something good to look forward to!

So finally goodbye 2010 - to be honest I am praying this new year is going to be better.

So here we are up to date - you can see why I was a little preoccupied and forgot all about blogging.

Last night we went to a party at Tommy's mums and got a taxi home with his auntie and uncle at 1am - time for bed zzzzzzzzzzzz

New start 2011.

We had a lie in - as you do. I got up first and spent a while on the phone to family back home in England. I spoke to my sis-in -law, my brother, my nephew and my great niece in one phonecall. I spoke to my auntie Naggy in the next call, all the time looking for my mum! Eventually I phoned my brothers house again and found out where my mum was - she was there!! She hadn't been the first time, she was at her friends house collecting him to go to my brothers for dinner.

This time I spoke to my mum, Alan, both my nephews and Tia, my great niece, who ordered her birthday card for March.............. fairies, princesses and castles - I just hope I have a card big enough!

Got a phonecall to say our car was being driven back from the in-laws as we left it there last night.

We have had a lazy day. I took the Christmas Tree down - I need to make a list of Christmas cards because I always forget to send one to someone! I played Monopoly, Wonders of the World, with Jack and he thrashed me by buying a hotel on Angel Falls - an apt name to land on when it bankrupt me! Although it was fun, it has been ages since we played a game together.

Tommy and I watched Wall-e as we had never seen it then we prepared the rest of dinner. Had a lovely dinner of Turkey, roast spuds, loads of veg and gravy - yum yum!

As of next week Slimming World starts again! I have to say I am quite looking forward to it.

I intend to spend the rest of the evening doing as little as possible.

We may have no water from 8pm as over the last few days our water has been on a rotation system, ours gets turned off and others gets turned back on - honestly you would think its a third world country! So the bottles are full of water again and we await 8pm to see if it is us this time as the website says Castlereagh - when ours has been off this week it said Leven Drive..... Although Castlereagh Borough Council did bring us 3 bottles of water yesterday - after the water had been off for around 14 hours but had come back on again..............

So that is my life up to date....... still a secretary, still happy and still making cards - when I can get back into the spare room as I decided to sort out - and I am still sorting!!!!

Happy New Year and welcome to a snapshot of my life...... hopefully a blog about life and my obsession with making cards........