Malcolm family get-togethers - The Moseleys

It was great to again spend a week with sister Mary & Ivan in west London at their Chiswick house. It's a block or two from the Thames near scenic Strand on the Green, great for walks and three good pubs. The cormorants and herons (and lots of ducks and geese) are testament to the clarity of the Thames again. After a lengthy lunch one day, we had to duck down an alley to avoid the fast tide rising over the footpath home. A day at Kew Gardens with Mary's 2.5 year old grandson Frank and Mary was a delight - hear the birds and see the spring blanket of bluebells in the video. (I guess it would not load so you will have to enjoy the photo.)
Outside Mary & Ivan's city house with Hannah and Frank - just joking - this is Chiswick House.
Below, left (Little) Hannah and James, middle: Nacho and (Big) Hannah.

Foster reunions

It was great to be able to spend a week in Ewell (Epsom) with Ted's mum - at almost 88 a going concern and happy to host the family for our visit. It was lovely to meet prospective new family members and significant others - namely Jo and Jono. Drives a different direction each day to enjoy country pub lunches and walks in Richmond and Nonsuch Park, the Downs and for Ted the neighborhood were lovely. Notices in Richmond warned to be careful of baby Roe deer, we saw plenty of adults but no young yet. We were a bit early for the rhodedendrun show in the Isabella Plantation but lucky enough to get a view of St. Paul's cathedral dome from Harry's Mount (about 10 miles away.) Look carefully!

Between their trips to the west country and Turkey, we managed to catch up with Ted's brother David and Shelagh and fit in another country pub lunch near their home in Great Bookham.










Richmond Park looking
towards
Windsor Castle and
Heathrow airport



Sarah and Jono. Neil and Jo

April - spring weddings - so romantic

After spending the previous day talking and sitting on the big white telephone, I was grateful to shake off the bug I'd picked up in England. Fortunately, the wedding was at 2pm so I was able to keep some breakfast down, get my glad rags on, and put on a decent show until 9:30pm. It was great to see friends we've known for 40 years and meet many of the lovely Torr family again. It was a splendid wedding and a fit sendoff to Jo and Stuart. Flanked by all their handsome and gorgeous cousins and family, they surely looked like the happiest couple of earth. Apart from us in the picture frame at the wedding reception of course!

APRIL 7 2008 - FINISHED!!!

Today is like Magic Flute Day - I have walked through the fire and survived the ordeal. At 11:30am today I walked out of Tom Baker Cancer Centre - cured! It was an uneventful last session, I got my $2500-worth of liquid fire and hopefully closed my port for the last time. I will need to schedule minor surgery to remove it some time soon, otherwise I have to have have it swished out with heparin blood thinner every 3 weeks. All the staff were happy for me of course. I still have to see my oncologist for sign off Apr 25.
After I got home my dear friend Jackie ("Master of Silly Walks") arrived with my Graduation Certificate! I have received full honours summa cum laude! No more treatment. Yippee.
Now for FUN stuff. We leave on the 6:40pm plane to London. I hope they have champagne on board! I'm ready to celebrate big time.

April 1 - approaching the finish line...

It's April 1 and my Herceptin treatment will finish April 7 not the end of April after all. I celebrate by flying to London that night. No doubt I'll be fingerprinted next morning in delightful Heathrow but that will be the least of my ordeals. The real ordeals are over and there is nowhere to go but up now!
At a wine society dinner last Wednesday, I look almost like my old self again.

Oh to be in England now that April's there.....

I'm so pleased to discover my last treatment will be Apr 7 not the end of April as originally thought. So as a reward for my shitty year, we fly to London that night for two weeks. A fitting reward I think, for what I've put up with since January 2007. I hope I'm up to a big trip again. We'll attend a wedding April 12 so I have time to get over jet lag before then (I hope.) We'll spend a week with Ted's 88-year-old mum who is overjoyed. Then a week in Chiswick (west London) with my sister. From there we'll be able to see both families. I have my final oncology appt Apr 25 so we have to be back by then.
As you can see I did get out skiing ten times this year. Ted is still waiting to see a surgeon about his knee so ramped up another ski-less season.
I can't say how much I'm looking forward to NOT driving up to Tom Baker Cancer Centre every 3 weeks (or oftener.) Still get very tired - like today I am going out this evening, so have to have a little nap in the afternoon! The allergic reactions to the immunotherapy seem to be resulting in hay-fever-like symptoms but I hope, like the cough, they will go away eventually. I'm still losing finger and toe nails due to the toxic chemo drugs, and the mouth sores still stop me from really enjoying a range of foods and, more especially, wines! The good news - I can drink champagne and icewine and eat salmon caviar! And this week, I've consumed a fair number of chocolate eggs and bunnies...

Accolades...

Not blogging much - must be a good sign.
Realized my blog was pretty out of date and that's good, I'm too busy to write! Some interesting news:
A nice night out with friend Don Druery recently to Calgary Philharmonic's Night at the Opera. A great performance by budding opera tenor Roger Honeywell. Don's tickets were almost on stage, so every time the tenor and the gorgeous Brazilian soprano came on and off stage, they smiled or acknowledged our bravos. Imagine my surprise when at the end of the performance he handed me his bouquet! Honeywell all right! As we left the hall, I asked people how they had enjoyed my singing and they all agreed I was terrific. Note: HAIR! Not a lot, but, hey, an improvement on bald!