Nature is Cool

Slow start to the week really had to get the weekly shop done which ate into the time I had left to do my "stuff". I managed to get out on my bike and clocked up a route for a 4 mile run! I past Cola in his paddock and he recognised me and came over to say hi!

I picked some blackberries! My intention is to make some yummy Blackberry Brandy for Christmas but I will probably use some for muffins too. I will get some more tomorrow. I made some Apple Muffins this afternoon, I need to get down to my mums to get my hands on some of her apples before the frost sets in.

Just made some gluten/wheat free bread, the first time I have made this type of bread so I will let you know the results (if I remember) in my next posting.

Training is coming on well, I am almost up to 5K and working on doubling it in time for the race. I am cross training with my cycling and horse riding. I find that riding Cola stretches out my leg muscles after a long run.

If you are reading this and haven't sponsored me yet, please consider visiting my Just Giving page and making a donation. I am nearly at the £300 mark, it would be great to exceed that!

Up on the Hill

After many weeks of being unable to communicate with our best friends up on the hill, it is with great joy that I can confirm that not only do they have telephonic access but internet too!

We went up there today and boy was it cold! You can take the temperature here and knock more than a few degrees off it! Luckily I did go prepared with my fleece but forgot my boots. Thank you Eleri for letting my borrow your pom pom boots again!

It was so nice to see my friends again. I enjoyed long reigning Robbie with Llinos up the hill even though it nearly killed me! Those hills are steep. I cant believe that I am fit but get puffed when I walk up that hill with her!

It makes the world of difference having good friends in our lives. I feel as though in this last year I have had a coming together of friends. I have met people who I feel I have known all of my life. Really weird to say this but I feel like this is "my time".

So Llinos and Alvin thank you so much for your company today. Relaxed and informal as always. Sorry about the cake!

Fast Start!

Cola for Company

Phew!

What a busy start to the day!

First off was a whistle stop visit to Cola before 7am. His stable was quite wet so I ended up removing the shavings and swilling down his rubber matting. Mental note to self: must remember to take the discinfectant to the yard with me...... He was pleased to see me this early, I think he has clicked that if I am that early he doesn't get ridden just put straight out to grass.

Once that mission was complete it was off to the hospital with Harry for his eye test. He was being tested for Irlen Syndrome, an eye disfunction which can go hand in hand with dyslexia. Sadly, the test was kind of inconclusive because it had to be done using numbers rather than words due to Harry's poor reading standard. Result: he took away a magenta over lay with him for school and at home and they will re-assess him in 3 months time.

Harry

I am now up to date with my paperwork for the boys! Its lucky I have the time and capacity to do these things! I have had to follow up Harry's ADHD assessment in writing..... why do all of these tests take so long? I am also waiting for input from the Education Psychologist with the possibility of investigating dyslexia.

Anyway, I am still suffering the effects of Chemo and when I do too much mental work which I have over the last two days, I suffer with "chemo brain" which is what has hit me this afternoon. I have the luxury of being able to rest when these episodes hit me and that is what I have done today.

Maybe tomorrow I will take some more shots of Killing for Company's infamous "stickers" - where will the next one appear?????

Training

My training for the Tatton Yule Yomp is going well. I am up to 2 1/2 miles in a single run and hoping to increase it little by little each week. I am using my bike to warm up and check out the route and distance for the run then using it for a gentle cool down. All in all I am getting a pretty good work out.

My running time isn't good at all, I am currently running a 13 minute mile but at the end of the day, for me, the race isn't about getting a personal best or by crossing the finish line first. Its about getting back to where I started from before cancer, getting fit and raising a lot of money for the Love Hope Strength Cancer Foundation.

At the moment, the total raised online and offline stands at approximately £260. If you are reading this and would like to support me you can do so by visiting my Just Giving page. I have had some little business cards made with my details on so over the next few weeks I am hoping to distribute them and put a splurge in our village magazine, possibly even in the newspaper - we shall see!

My weight is peeling off me at a painfully slow rate but I am not a quitter, once I have set myself a challenge I will get there! I have at least 14lbs to lose but 20 would take me back to my old weight.

I am enjoying being active again, its something you take for granted when you are fit and well but when illness strikes it knocks your body for six. I have always lived my life at 100mph but now I dont want to lose a second because it is so precious to me.

I am a bit fed up with schools and paediatricians at the moment!

Some incidents in my sons mainstream school have left me frustrated. Not being a person to let any injustice be done, I have expidited the matter and can let you know that I will become public enemy number 1. I am fed up with having to wait around for assessments and tests, it seems to take forever. At the end of the day my son is in year 5 and has the level of a reception/year 1 pupil when it comes to reading and writing, it is such a worry.

My older son is plagued with allergies. Last week he had a serious allergic reaction to something which left him covered in a painful and itchy rash. This spread to his face and airways so we spent a few hours in A&E making sure he was safe. I have had two appointments now with the paediatric team and I feel as though they are putting me on some sort of "holding" process. I need to know what my son is allergic to so that I can make his life more comfortable but they are not willing to do the tests.

Sorry about all of the moaning when my blog started off so positively!

Cola Has to Lose Weight

The vet visited on Wednesday to administer Cola's vaccinations and to check and rasp his teeth. He was fine with the injection and the rasping to be honest with you. The vet put a special bridle on him which opens his mouth and keeps it open, he can then have a good feel and check that there are no ulcers or sharp teeth. Cola's teeth were in good condition and only a bit of rasping was needed.

However, the vet has advised me that Cola does need to lose weight. He is a "good doer" so can put weight on with thin air. I have decided to bring him in at night now so that his grazing is restricted and rinse his hay to remove the dust and sugars.

I am near the end of my treatment for breast cancer now. Only two more infusions of herceptin to go and then hopefully I will be able to wear my wedding ring and the weight loss will become easier to achieve.

I had a bone scan a week ago and no news so far so that is good. I think that my aches and stiffness are nothing more than hormonal reactions to the drugs I have been taken. My poor body has been through so much.

My hands still hurt but at least I know that eventually they will get better as my veins heal. I still have digestive problems for which I take medication and my shoulder hurts if I over do things.

Oooh, this all sounds so negative but it isnt, really it isnt!

I am running 2 miles now and three times a week as part of my training for my first 10K race, the Tatton Yule Yomp on 12th December. I am raising money for Love Hope Strength Foundation, a global cancer charity.

I ride my pony and cycle to the livery yard. I muck out, groom and poo pick - all exercise related activities and with each passing week I can feel my body getting stronger and back to how I used to be before cancer.

I read today that the government are cutting back their funding for research. At a time when cancer seems to be hitting epidemic preportions, I think that its sad that they are cutting back on research. I have benefited from research with the sentinal node biopsy and herceptin, relatively new drugs and procedures.

My hair is growing back thick and strong and I look forward to the day when it hits my shoulders once again.

I am a survivor and cancer is in my past.

Where to Start?

Where to start really?

I haven't posted a blog since 19th August and so much has happened in that time.

My eldest son Joe has started Darland High School, he is pictured above in the smart green blazer. My youngest son Harry has entered year 5 of primary school. I have to keep pinching myself.... where did all of those years go? It doesn't help that psychologically I have "lost" a year in my life. Yesterday we took Joe's hamster "Blossom" to the vet and I presented a 6 month old hamster, Joe reminded me that it was her first birthday LAST May so she was 18 months old! Sadly, Blossom had to be put to sleep because she had a growth in her tummy which was making her very sore and unhappy.

I had an appointment with the breast surgeon, I think I must have been called in by accident. I was expecting to see the oncologist but saw the surgeon instead. I was glad I saw him though because he was able to answer my questions more clearly. It turns out that I only had 3 lymph nodes removed which is why (touch wood) I haven't had lymphodema, the aches in my hands are due to the countless canulas I have had over the last 2 years, in his words "your veins are knackered" but eventually they should heal, the swelling to my fingers is most likely down to the herceptin so hopefully by 2011 I will be able to wear my wedding ring again (yipee!) and when I mentioned my bad back for which my GP had given me pain killers, he sent me for a bone scan immediately just to make sure everything was ok. I went for that almost a week ago and am waiting for the results but I am certain that they are good.

This week is the first full week that the children have been back at school and I am on a high with all of the physical exercise I am getting through running, riding Cola and walking the dogs.

On 18th September, my friend and I are going on a road trip down to Swansea to see friends and to watch an amazing band called Killing for Company. I am so excited!

At the moment, life is good and I am aiming to keep it that way. I am busy preparing for my 10K race in December so if you are reading this, please consider following my just giving link and sponsoring me, every pound or dollar helps and will certainly help me get through that 10K!!!