Photo A Day MAY with Fat Mum Slim

Well, being that I am supposed to rest lots, I thought I would give this Photo A Day challenge ago, been following along for a few months now. looks like fun!!! for more details on how to play click here

 so here is my day one photo, hopefully there is more peaceful days to come!!!

Don't Ignore IT!!!!

Oh Boy what a fortnight.....

Life has been crazy, why is it when us mums' feel a little off colour we just ignore it!!!

Yes I Ignored it!!! about the last time I posted I was suffering a niggling abdominal pain. which I put down to a little diverticulitis which I was diagnosed with last July. Although I have changed my diet since then I still get the occasional niggling crap. 

So Yes 2 weeks ago when it seemed to be constant I thought OK, I will take my self to the Dr's tomorrow if it is worse. Tomorrow, (Tuesday) came and I felt OK, so ignore it some more and work on the little quilted table runner gift for the upcoming Kitchen tea.

Wednesday came yeah it's gone no worries. Thursday came, ouch it hurts but got too much on this weekend to deal with it....just soldier on I told myself. Sorted the shopping lists for supplies for the baking and worked cutting and pasting and making 60 little cupcake toppers for the upcoming Kitchen tea.

Friday - baking for the kitchen tea, nope no time for the Dr's today I said, as I baked up a storm and cooked and decorated a double mix of Aunty Di's Marble Cake - with the addition of Orange Blossom Water. They were to die for cupcakes for Putri's Kitchen Tea.

After Baking it was creating the recipe cards to be stuck into a book at the Kitchen tea...have included them here for you to print if you would like. - You know right click the image and print blah blah!!!

Then it's Saturday and the Weekend - oh no point going, enjoy the weekend...up early and created some amazing chicken sandwiches 3 loaves of bread worth....they were good.

Then jumped in the car and drove to the Kitchen tea, all the while my cramps were getting worse, but yep I Ignored IT!!!!  The Kitchen tea was wonderful and Kate, Liz and Bianca did a wonderful job of creating lots of fun for the Bride to Be Putri.

Little jars of Lemon Butter as gifts, Yellow Champagne, Yellow Paper rosette flowers, and some stunning butterfly banners, lemon pom pom decorations.
Games were fun too...lots of amazing marital advise came from the Chinese whispers game - oh the beginning to end stories we wrote and drew, lots of laughs.

Then it was time to divide into two groups and dress the mother and mother in law to be of the bride to be in bridal attire made with only tape and newspaper - no scissors.....lots of fun again.

The Winning dress - yes it was the team I was on!!! :)

 

Then the long drive home.....yes I am still ignoring this ever increasing abdominal pain. Dropped in for a cuppa at a friends and yes she is telling me, sounds like a Hernia!! Keep telling myself nothing can be done just soldier on.

Sunday came and it was working on the finishing touches to Retreat #16 Classes, some sneaks of one of the classes for you here.

Monday rolls around and after a very bad night, the family are telling me to head to the Dr's but as they all had the day off of work, it was too good an opportunity to miss putting in another visit with my sister and brother - in - law, as we don't know how many more opportunities we will get. But seeing as Brian had worked a night shift, I decided to drive...oh my!!! Yep Ignore IT again I did. But after 2 and half hours in the car, ignoring was getting harder. My mum and a few of the other's were like go to the hospital now, no says I. wait till tomorrow and go to my GP!!

So, that brings us to a week ago now Last Tuesday. First Thing 7am off to the Dr's, he then sent me for abdominal ultrasound and CT Scan, yes pretty sure it's a Hernia. But tomorrow (Wednesday) Anzac Day public Holiday and at this point it's almost 3 in the afternoon. Panic he doesn't want me to wait another day, so it's off to Hospital, but it's choosing one that had a surgeon operating that afternoon. After a few phone calls he found a surgeon at the Sans @ Wahroonga, and managed to wangle me an appointment in emergency!!!

So before I could blink, I was whisked away to surgery - yes it was a strangulated umbilical hernia with an abscess from which they removed 6ml's of puss - so how ironic is my last post about being alive and kicking...oh boy!! Thanking my lucky stars for a great GP and amazing Surgeon.

I was a very sick mummy through Wednesday and with a birthday girl on Thursday. Thank goodness that Hubby and I squeezed in me telling him what to buy, while I sat in the car between scans and Dr's appointments on the Tuesday. But first time ever we weren't together for our morning traditions, but she was good and got up extra early and drove over to see me so we could give her our gifts together, but she didn't let on that she was feeling extra icky herself - with a lump under both armpits.

So I rested in hospital whilst they went home and too work. At the end of her very long day 10pm at night, hubby had to rush her off to emergency to have minor surgery to lance a blocked hair follicle the size of a golf ball from under her left armpit, to get home around 2am in the morning after a dose of intravenous antibiotics. Not the news I wished to be greeted with over the phone on the Friday morning when I awoke them at 6am to say the Dr had been and cleared me to come home. So typical mum tears started worrying over my baby, but still not really feeling 100% myself. 

So Friday, was spent creating a ward at home for both myself and Bianca with our two male nurses looking after us. They cheered us up by going out and spoiling us both with new toys - we are now iPhone owners!!

Saturday another resting day, with a few visits from friends and family.

Sunday - a little more work on the almost completed retreat classes and mailings had to be done with the help of my mum i did manage to get it done, but was totally exhausted after 3 hours at the computer.

Monday Bianca had a check in appointment with the GP after Thursday's Hospital visit at 9am, at around 9.30am Brian rang me to tell me he was taking her straight to emergency Dr's orders another cyst had formed in her opposite underarm. So whilst I was exhausted from Sunday's little bit of activity, I was stressed and worried about my baby girl going into hospital. By Midday, she had seen a surgeon and he did an ultrasound and scan and found the cyst to be 5cm but close enough to the surface to do it under a local anaesthetic - gel, gas, local anaesthetic and one small cut later he drained a whopping 10mls of pus from her armpit, before releasing her home with a repeat on the antibiotics she was given on Thursday.  

So my home is a bit of hospital resting spot at the moment. Both Bianca and I have rested and napped for the past two days.

So Alive and Kicking.... not quite kicking but definitely alive thankfully!!! But realising that life is precious and you should never ignore IT!!!!!

vintage flower frogs in cast iron or even iron

You know that old saying you always find it when your not looking......well, we often visit the second hand stores and vintage stores when we are traveling out and about.

And never in my wildest dreams last weekend, would I have thought to be hunting for some vintage flower frogs....but you will never guess that I found them.

Whilst enjoying the amazing weather that we had last Friday, with all 6 of us in the car. An amazing lunch was had in Palm Beach, but with Bianca due to visit the specialist again at Narrabeen at 5 we found that we had more time on our hands than we knew what to do with. So I remembered that Mum had mentioned that she wished to find some little knick knacks for a friend to pop on to some cute as peg bags for the hospital auxiliary stall. Not being the driver...yep the arm is still too sore to drive so in the navigator seat i directed Brian to the little junky shop in Narrabeen, and sure enough the only parking was outside St Vinnies....but with the mission of little thingys on my mind we didn't visit, then after everyone was back in the car, I decided I couldn't not have a peak....so meandering around...nope nothing is catching my eye...

When walking out the door what do I spy!!! yep something I have wanted for a couple of years the Cast Iron vintage flower frogs...not one but a set of three....oh you should have seen my excited face....

all rusty and perfect....Mum and Dad didn't understand neither did the Kids but lucky for me hubby with his trusty pocket of change understood....and at bargain prices too....only $5 each so for $15 these cute little rusty treasure came home with me....

I love rusty treasures!!!! Love these things, and love the new possibilities for them. This is very old, Australian made and has a lead base, iron spikes and says on the back " Stayput Products, Melbourne, Aust." I am not sure what I will display in them yet but I love that I have a collection to display.

Alive n Kicking

Yes I am alive n kicking still.....just not in the blogging zone is all, but trying hard to get there. I am hearing you on the emails and messages.....yes YOU i know you want to know what i have been up to so here is the rundown catchup just for YOU!!!

5 Weeks 4 Days till this view and I enjoy a glass of bubbles

Forever  Always Retreat #16 is only 5 weeks and 4 days away, I have been working hard on samples and projects, kits and goodie bags....so just another reason why my blog has not been so active lately.

We have been enjoying these on our deck most weekends

Life is still a take every day as a blessing kind of time. My BIL is still fighting hard, the doctors have said that due to his youth and initial healthy body he is really fighting the cancer, so each day he is here with us is a blessing. But we can't stop living, so we have been trying to enjoy life when we can and have been spending lots of time with family. This passed weekend my parents came and stayed but instead of working hard around the house which it needs....we took time out to smell the sea and enjoy a little of what we take for granted living on the beaches....

Panoramic view of Palm beach, where we enjoyed the best fish and chips and took in the view including Dolphins!!



 The big camera got a workout too...zoom lens and all, it's been a while since I dusted it off, sadly my phone takes most of my quick happy snaps now! But I loved playing with my settings and dials and zoom lens!!!

 Easter came and went with a lunch at my sisters with extended family another cherished day!!! Baking happened too....oh YUM!!!

  

 Some stitching and quilting has been getting done, but not much to share yet :)

Some scrapping was done with friends always a good thing....

In March a friend helped me to run away for some sanity time....we stayed in a wonderful little cottage in Berry NSW, it was just bliss the entire 3 days!!!

From beginging to end, I loved the visit to the Nan Tien Temple, it was the most peaceful place I have ever visited and I left there feeling like all the stresses that had been consuming me had been lifted. I definately reccommend visiting it, if like me you need a little bit of stress relief...LOL common you all know that you all need to visit!!!

Early March with the help of some amazing family friends (Thanks Deanne, Amber and Kate) we went to an amazing fund raiser night which raised $1350 this is a fantastic effort thanks to all who helped out THANKS AGAIN your generosity is just wonderful and the laughter we all shared during the movie

February we hosted a dinner party for friends, in an effort to make life a little normal again....something we need to do more often we all had a blast....laughed lots, cried a little, drank too much and well according to all that came I cooked up a storm....really it was simple as, so that I could enjoy the company too.

Hope this helps to catch you up!!!