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My desk on Tuesday night.

I have been continuing to work on my Infusions samples and the desk shows the end of the evening’s session. You can see the blank sheets on top of the toilet paper roll on the left, my bubble wrap stamp under the tape rack, and then two piles of completed samples. My Versamark pad and a piece of Cut-n-Dry foam, a failed sample, and at the front, a sample created by stamping with Versamark and then applying Infusions which are then lightly spritzed with water. There’s a small sheet of notes of ideas to try, and the usual detritus of a busy desk!

Here are the latest samples I’ve completed.

Ones of particular interest are the stamped ones at the front, for example:

and the ones using texture – firstly, textured gesso:

and then textured gel mediums, for instance glass bead gel medium.

I also tried the woodgrain technique, painting on the Infusions that have first been mixed with a little water.

This was quite an interesting one as it incorporates some Golden crackle paste which I had fun experimenting with.

I also created some interesting textures by pressing into Polyfilla and applying other materials:

You can read about all these by scrolling back through previous posts.

Dry Rot in the Kitchen

Last Thursday the damp expert came round (I mean, the expert in damp – he didn’t arrive in a rainstorm!) and had a look at our problem in the kitchen cupboard. He confirmed at first glance that we have dry rot. He explained what will need to be done, but cannot tell us the extent until he takes the floor up in the corner of the kitchen. Best case scenario is that it is confined to that corner only, but he will have to cut back the timbers well into the healthy part to make sure it won’t spread again, but it means the fitted double oven has got to be moved. Worst case scenario is that it has spread under the sitting room. I am not allowing myself to worry too much till we know what we are dealing with. He sent us his estimate which was more or less what he told us verbally, and today he rang to say he hopes to start the work a week on Thursday (6th April).

We are fortunate in that we have Mum’s kitchen to decamp into while this is going on, and her sitting room if he has to work in ours. Over the past few days I’ve gradually been clearing the old cupboard in the kitchen and moving stuff into Mum’s kitchen, so I won’t have to do it all at once and in a rush.

I’ve been doing some research into walk-in pantries and am quite excited now about what we might end up with! Hopefully the kitchen fitter will be able to start work as soon as the damp expert has finished.

Health Update

On Monday, Kermit, my stoma, celebrated his second birthday! I cannot believe that it is two whole years since I went into hospital for my bowel cancer surgery which left me minus my entire colon and with a permanent ileostomy. Unfortunately, having been so poorly recently and in hospital, I’ve had a lot of catching up to do since I’ve turned the corner with my recovery, and haven’t had time to do any baking, so this year he didn’t have a birthday cake or a party – last year the Allerton Three got together and pigged out on cake – we all met on Allerton Ward having our bowel cancer surgeries and have remained firm friends ever since.

Apart from the usual problems in the early days, and recent problems caused by the hernia (recently repaired, and requiring further surgery), I have had no problems with Kermit and am very happy to have him. Life is much better with an ileostomy than with miserable ulcerative colitis, I can tell you, and having him has saved my life into the bargain!

Phoebe

Last week I reported that the vet had said she thought Phoebe had bowel cancer. Over the following days she picked up and started eating again, and has seemed quite well again, so after the weekend my hubby took her back to the vet to see if she’d been wrong and it was a blockage that had got shifted by all the palpations she did, but she confirmed that there is still a mass there. She said that as long as she seems well and is managing to eat, we don’t need to worry, but obviously we are to keep an eye on her. If she doesn’t eat for a day or two, she does tend to lose weight rapidly. The vet weighed her again and she had regained some weight which is good news.

Beatrice is getting quite wobbly on her legs (at 16 1/2) and so we’ve put a stool under her radiator hammock to give her a bit of a leg-up! Her balance isn’t as good as it was and she’s got a lot less spring in her legs. I think she needs a granny frame. The trouble is she thinks she can still do all the things she did when she was young! Just like humans do…

Two sunbathing kitties.

Phoebe at the front, Beatrice at the back. They love the flat sitting room that gets all the sun.

Finally – we were in a rush to get to church on Sunday and when we arrived we could hear them singing, so we crept in, only to find they were singing the final hymn! Yes, you’ve guessed it… we BOTH completely forgot to change the clocks!! Duh. We arrived just in time for coffee!

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For details of how to join in, please click on the WOYWW logo in my sidebar, which will take you to our hostess Julia’s blog, where all will be revealed.

My first WOYWW of 2015! Sorry not to have been around, but despite my hopes to the contrary, 2015 has kicked off with a whole raft of problems, starting with difficulties with my very elderly mum, and there’s been a lot of stress in the house. My hubby has managed to set up a care package for her now, and we have a team of simply wonderful carers coming in each morning to help her get up, and they are such a great support to us, too. We have had the doctor and the district nurse, and at last the pressure is somewhat off, but in his own wonderful way of trying to shield me from stress, my hubby has taken on much more of the caring role, and now that Mum is more vulnerable, is finding it hard to find sufficient time away from home to enjoy his own pursuits.

As if we haven’t had quite enough going on over the past year, to cap it all, I had my regular two-yearly colonoscopy yesterday (part of the management of my ulcerative colitis) and we were presented with the devastating news that it is almost definite that I have bowel cancer. They have sent the biopsies they took during the examination for pathological analysis, and ordered a CT scan to take place in the next fortnight, and these tests will confirm by science what they know to be true by experience.

I have written a full blog post about this, giving all the details, so I won’t repeat it all again here.

I feel very, very sorry for my wonderful hubby. He could do without this extra burden – will he never be able fully to enjoy his retirement after so many years of hard work in the service of others? He has been thrown willy-nilly into a full-time carer’s role and it seems so unfair – especially after this latest news.

However, no point moaning – together we have to face this, and get through all the various things they throw at us, and I am determined to be a Good Girl and do as I am told, and take all the treatments and examinations and surgeries they deem necessary, and above all to try not to get ratty and difficult with my hubby when the going gets tough – he has enough of that from Mum!! I pray for a thankful heart at all times.

As a result of all this, my mojo has taken a bit of a bashing. Here is my desk this week.

Nothing very exciting on it, is there! You can see the alcohol ink and embossed backgrounds I made a while ago, ready to make into cards for my stash (still not made up) and a doyley and some paper napkins ready to be put away, and the rest is general detritus and my usual regular-use inks and other materials. I simply must organise a better system for the heaps of partially used pieces of kitchen paper on the left (mostly just out of shot – I wouldn’t inflict it on you!) – it’s a horrible mess that irritates me every time I work in there!

Just so you don’t feel totally deprived, I have managed to do a bit more on my embroidered pieces for the bed decorations, which I’ve already posted about, but here’s an example:

Hopefully I’ll feel like working on these a bit more this week.

I have also acquired some more RUBs (Really Useful Boxes) and have been having fun doing some reorganisation of storage in my ARTHaven. It’s a great improvement on the messy piles of workshop tools, where I’d never be able to find anything.

Not too much time or inclination to be in my ARTHaven over the past few days. Over the weekend I was going through the dreadful preparation for the colonoscopy, and I have been very busy on the computer since yesterday afternoon, contacting various people to tell them my news, and filling in my various forum friends. I am overwhelmed by the amazing and wonderful support I am already receiving from so many lovely friends around the world.

With your prayers and support, I am sure my hubby and I will beat this. Today I am in fighting mood, but am realistic enough to know that this won’t necessarily last. I have decided to clamp down on my imagination to prevent it running riot and leading me into worst-case-scenario situations – that way leads to despair, and that is NOT Shoshi’s way!!

I have been in contact with our own wonderful Shaz, and she agrees that it will help me a lot, as it has helped her on her ongoing journey, to create a diary of my experiences, not just to help others going through the same thing, but also to help keep my own thoughts in order, and keep abreast of the various events which will take place. With my M.E. brainfog, this is a very good idea because I’m quite likely to get totally confused by it all! I have therefore begun a new page (see tabs along the top of my blog) entitled “My Cancer Diary.”

Today my hubby took me out for lunch, as a special treat after my colonoscopy, planned in advance. To see where we went, have a look at this blog post from the summer, when we went with friends, and I took loads of photos – it’s such a fascinating, quirky old place, full of intriguing things, with fine old beams and crooked walls. We had a lovely meal – a real treat, especially as I haven’t been out of the house properly for several weeks, except to visit the hospital.

Have a great week, everybody, and may our mojos never die or go on holiday.

The Result of my Colonoscopy

This morning I went in for my colonoscopy. I had my first one in August 2013, as a result of a call-back from a positive test result on my first bowel cancer screening test – this is a test undergone by everyone in the UK when they reach the age of 60, and at regular intervals thereafter. My first one revealed blood in the stool, which totally freaked me out, and I was told I had to have a colonoscopy so that they could establish the cause.

What they discovered was that the whole of my large bowel was affected by ulcerative colitis, an inflammatory bowel disease. Many years ago I had suffered from IBS, which cleared up when I moved to get married, but which returned with the onset of M.E. (or so I thought) – the condition is very common with M.E. and I simply treated it with Immodium and tried to get on with my life. I was suffering from chronic diarrhoea, with on average 10 visits to the loo daily, and while this was unpleasant, I managed it the best I could.

After my colonoscopy, I began seeing a gastro-enterologist regularly at the hospital, and was put on colitis medication (Pentasa), and told that I would have to have a colonoscopy every two years, not just to check on the state of my colitis and how well the medication was working, but also to check for bowel cancer which is more common in sufferers from inflammatory bowel disease.

This regular colonoscopy came due today, and as usual I had to go through the dreaded bowel preparation over several days, with two days of low fibre diet, followed by a day of clear fluids only, and the taking of powerful laxatives to clear the bowel, resulting in visits to the loo every 10 or 15 minutes, and a very sore bottom, despite gentle hypoallergenic moist toilet paper and Vaseline (petroleum jelly)! Yesterday was a very exhausting day and I alternately drank lots, watched DVDs, ran to the loo, and slept, spending the day in bed, a few steps from the en-suite bathroom.

My appointment was at 10.45 this morning and I went in early as they were running ahead of schedule. I was soon under sedation and not too aware of what was going on. It did take me a while to wake properly, and they kept trying, and giving me oxygen, and taking my blood pressure. Eventually I was fit enough to get dressed, and was taken into a room and offered sandwiches and tea – quite delicious, and making me feel quickly a lot more human!

My hubby came back to collect me, and we were taken to another room where a specialist nurse came in to discuss what they had found during the procedure.

As a result of taking the medication for 18 months, the areas of inflammation have been significantly reduced, now to only one area, with the rest of the bowel looking normal. This is an ongoing, lifetime treatment which does not cure the disease, but treats the symptoms. This is a good result.

However, the main news was not good. They found a patch that they didn’t like the look of at all, which was causing some constriction in the bowel, and a bit further round, a polyp. Normally they remove polyps during the procedure (they can be pre-cancerous) but because of the problem area, they left it alone for now. They want me to go back for a CT scan, and in the meantime they will be sending the biopsies they took to the lab for analysis. Also, I have to see an anaesthetist to assess my fitness for surgery – this is usually done in the form of a cardiac stress test on a treadmill or exercise bike, but in view of my M.E. this is not feasible, but no doubt he will think of some way of testing me!

I asked if it was possible that the tumour was benign, but the nurse would not answer in the affirmative. She would only repeat that they didn’t like the look of it. They have seen many, and know from the initial appearance what they are likely to be, and further tests are performed to confirm this initial suspicion, so I think it is pretty well certain to be malignant. She wouldn’t have said as much as she did had they not been pretty certain, and she said as much as she could under the circumstances, with sensitivity and honesty.

I asked her about my chronic mild anaemia, which I had always put down to bleeding from the bowel as a result of my colitis. She said that anaemia can be a symptom of bowel cancer.

I have certain things in my favour. One is the location of the problem area. The nurse said that this was the best position for it, because the affected section could most likely be removed, and the cut ends sewn together, without the need for a colostomy. Secondly, it may well be possible to remove it with keyhole surgery, which is a lot less traumatic and would involve a much shorter stay in hospital. Early diagnosis is also in my favour, of course, and it is likely that they will be able to remove it and I shall be fine. Only after the results of the forthcoming tests will they be able to decide on what treatment regimen will be necessary, and they will discuss this with us when the time comes.

Knowing all these positive things in my favour is a great help, of course, but this news is nonetheless a great shock. I need time to process it. I don’t know why one tends to think one is immune to such things, thinking it’s something other people get, but not me… we know that cancer is a very common disease and is no respecter of persons, so why should I be especially favoured and not get it? I think of all the people I know who live happy, prosperous and healthy lives and never have anything wrong with them, and here’s me with all these health problems, and putting up with Mum as well and it seems so unfair… But I am NOT going down that road, because everybody knows that at the average Pity Party there is only one guest – yourself!! I do feel very sorry for my poor darling hubby though – he’s had so much on his plate this past year, and this seems to be adding insult to injury, and I am the last person to want to add to his burdens. The poor man has only just retired, and has had hardly any opportunity to enjoy his new status, and now this…

I will keep you up to date with developments.

Decorations for Half-Tester, New RUBs and a Health Update

I haven’t been blogging much lately because we’ve had major problems at home with Mum and I’ve had a bit of a reaction and felt very poorly, and the stress has made my creative mojo take a walk! However, I’m feeling a bit better now, and now I’ve started the embroidery on my bed decoration pieces, this is something I can do while in the sitting room, and I am making slow but steady progress, and really enjoying it.

Embroidery

I have completed the embroidery on a few more pieces – one or two I had worked on before, but felt they needed a bit more, and some starting from scratch on the machine applique. Here are the four latest pieces:

and here are the detail shots of each one.

I added a lot of French knots on this one! Love the bobbly texture.

It’s very disappointing how photos never show up sparkly stuff – the metallic threads look quite lost in these photos, looking more like raffia! The top one has red and gold lurex thread, the second two gold, and the bottom one has copper. The little shi-sha mirrors don’t show up that well, either, but they really twinkle in the light.

If you look closely at them, you can see that the shi-sha stitch encases the edge of the little mirror, like the setting of a cabachon jewel. The stitch is a variation of chain stitch with two parts to it – you stitch alternately around the four-sided scaffold you work initially to hold the mirror in place, and into the background fabric. I love doing this stitch. You can use it to attach other things too, and I’ve done experimental pieces in the past, attaching shells and flat pebbles. I’ll have to dig out the piece sometime and photograph it, because I don’t seem to have any photos. I did a talk on shi-sha at the embroidery group I used to belong to in Plymouth and this was one of my demo pieces. I also made this purple bodice with a mount-board frame as an example:

Here is a little box I made, using the technique. To open the box, you squeeze the ends together. There is a shi-sha mirror on each of the three sides.

Looking back at this work, it makes me think I really should be getting back into embroidery again – I love it!!

Hopefully I’ll have some more photos of the bed decorations to show you soon. I’ve got a lot of work to do before I can start making them up, and then I shall make tassels to go on the end of each one – something I am really looking forward to doing, and I am already collecting images on Pinterest for my inspiration.

ARTHaven Organisation – RUBs

I have started adding to my existing collection of Really Useful Boxes (RUBs) again. Eventually nearly everything in my ARTHaven will be stored in these, and I am also collecting them for the shelves under the counter in my en-suite bathroom. I am delighted that after doing a lot of research and endless measuring and comparing, I have discovered that there are boxes that fit exactly in the various spaces I have! The effect is so much tidier than my endless scruffy cardboard boxes; they also keep the stuff better, and you can see through the box to see what’s in it. They have a nice uniformity of appearance whatever their size, and are starting to make my ARTHaven look really good! As the pennies allow, I shall add more in time.

On the RUB website, the prices are quite reasonable, but you have to pay postage if your order is less than £500 (and I certainly can’t afford to pay £500 all at once for boxes!). I have discovered a lot on Ebay, and you can sometimes buy multiple packs (2, 3, 5, 10 etc.) of a particular size, and many of them have free postage. Even when the price per individual box is a bit more than on the RUB website, in the long run it saves money because the postage on the RUB website bumps the price of each box up quite a lot, and also, you don’t have to buy a whole lot at once, and there are some good deals to be found.

In this photo of the floor units under the window, you can see I’ve supplemented my 9-litre collection, and also got some of the 9-litre XL boxes, which have tall lids. These are very good for storing bottles and jars, and anything that sticks up above the top edge of the box. The capacity of the box itself is the same as the regular box. The shelves in the floor units are just right for both these sizes. On the left, this large pull-out unit on casters had been a complete mess since we moved, full of a mixture of Dad’s old workshop tools, some of my tools, brackets and fixings, and my decorating stuff. This has now gone into the RUBs and once I manage to spend some time organising the contents properly, I should be able to lay my hands on what I want with ease.

I love how the blue handles clip in place, locking the lids.

Moving over to the storage area on the other side of the room, I have the free-standing cabinet that the previous owner of the house left in my bathroom. I am delighted that each of the open shelves in the centre exactly accommodates one 19-litre RUB. I had a couple of these, and have now completed the set.

Unfortunately, because the doors occupy some space, I cannot get them in the cupboards, but that doesn’t matter because when closed, the contents don’t show anyway. The cupboards are full of fabrics, picture frames and Ikea mirrors for altering, amongst other things.

On the wall opposite the window is the large wall unit, and in this picture you can see the progress I am making. On the left, the shelves are filled with plastic containers that I got years ago from our local supermarket – they had contained things like coleslaw for the deli counter, and I asked them to save them for me, and some of them had margarine in them – I used to buy large quantities for baking, and saved all the boxes which have been incredibly useful over the years – in their first incarnation they were kitchen storage boxes, and like many of my kitchen things, eventually found their home in my ARTHaven! These containers will remain, and not be replaced by RUBs. They contain haberdashery. The centre shelves now house two 9-litre RUBs end-to-end, and one of several of the long 22-litre boxes I have, which are useful for storing rolls of paper. Not all the RUBs stack with each other, but I have found that I can stack two 9-litre boxes end to end on top of a 22-litre box. The contents won’t necessarily stay as they are – the whole thing is still in a state of flux.

I am so looking forward to replacing the untidy cardboard boxes! I shall be getting some 25-litre boxes to go on top of this wall unit, and on top of my mixed media wall unit over the other side of the room as well. The shelves on the right of the large wall unit will continue to be used for drawing stuff (my Zentangle stuff is there) and I shall keep the pretty box on the top shelf, which houses my metallic embroidery threads and embroidery sequins and beads. It all just needs tidying up and organising a bit better.

The bottom shelf in the middle at the moment holds all my soap making stuff. The brown plastic box on the left has essential oils and other liquids for soap, beauty and cleaning products I am going to make. The rest of the soap stuff will go in RUBs once I get them.

Once I get the large black shelf unit in the storage area better organised, I will show you photos of that. I am very thrilled that this unit, which is all that remains of a much larger unit which came out of a shop that was closing down, is exactly the right size for some under-bed storage boxes I had (not RUBs), and also accommodate the 22-litre RUBs end-wise, and the 9-litre and 19-litre boxes.

Health Update (Not TMI, I hope!! No need for the more squeamish among you to read on…)

I am now in the throes of preparation for my regular two-yearly colonoscopy which is taking place on Monday morning. On Wednesday I stopped taking my colitis medication and also my iron, and yesterday was the first day of the special low-fibre diet you have to go on. Today is the second day. During these two days I am not allowed any fruit or vegetables, and can’t have my lovely breakfast porridge (oatmeal) and have to have cornflakes instead – I always say there’s more nourishment in the packet than in the actual cornflakes! They are soooo boring… I can have white bread (I am eating French bread which I love) and butter and other dairy stuff (milk, yoghurt, rice pudding etc.). I can have potatoes with no skins, and white rice but no whole grains or nuts. I can have protein such as chicken and fish, and I can drink apple juice, tea, coffee and plenty of water.

On the final day (tomorrow) I cannot eat any solid food except jelly, for 24 hours before the procedure, but if I have my breakfast at a reasonable time that will be OK. For the rest of the day it will just be clear soup, apple juice, water, tea or coffee without milk (which I don’t like so will avoid, apart from green tea with honey). I am allowed jelly, and jelly babies for energy! I am encouraged to drink plenty of fluids right up to the time of the examination.

Tomorrow the worst part will be taking the powerful laxatives to purge my system. I have to take a bottle of senna, and then twice during the day, a sachet of Picolax dissolved in water. The effect of this is severe and acute diarrhoea, so I intend camping out in the bedroom so I can make frequent quick dashes into my en-suite bathroom! Previous experience has shown that my rear end gets very sore, and they recommend the application of Vaseline (petroleum jelly) to soothe the skin, and I am also prepared with two packs of unperfumed moist toilet tissue. The whole business is most unpleasant, and to make it easier, I am planning on surrounding myself with my laptop, a collection of DVDs that I’ve been saving for the purpose, my embroidery, books and my iPod!! Also containers of jelly, jelly babies, a Thermos of my best Jewish chicken soup (of which I could drink gallons, no problem!) made in advance, and jugs of water and apple juice!! With the kitties for warmth and company, I should be fine.

On Monday morning my hubby will drop me off at the hospital, and they will give me a sedative before inserting the camera into my bowel. They usually need to pump you up with CO2 (they used to use air, but with the muscle relaxant drug they give you, this caused an unacceptable amount or discomfort from wind retention afterwards – the CO2 is absorbed painlessly into the body). Because people who suffer from ulcerative colitis are at higher risk than the normal population of developing bowel cancer, they will look for pre-cancerous polyps and remove any they find, and will probably take a biopsy as well. The procedure really isn’t too bad, and afterwards, because of the sedative, one remembers very little about it. There is a recovery period, and then they will give me some food. Last time I asked for brown bread egg sandwiches and a cup of tea (I had two large cups) and it tasted like a king’s banquet – even the disgusting hospital tea!! Once I am home, I can start eating normally again, and go back on my medication.

I’ll let you know how I get on…

2014–What a Year

WOYWW visitors – please scroll down to the first post for today.

The second of three posts for today, and the first of two “update” posts – I realised there was going to be too much for a single post, because such a lot has gone on this year. I have therefore decided to devote this first one to personal and health issues and other miscellaneous things, and to make a new post about my creative endeavours during the year, of which there have been many!

I can’t believe it’s that time of year yet again when I look back on the months that have passed and take stock, and look forward, hopefully always with optimism, to the year ahead. This is the fifth annual review post I have made – have I really been blogging this long???

We have celebrated our first year living in our new house, and reaped the benefit of so many months of upheaval, anxiety, stress, joy and fun that took place during the previous year, during the renovations, and this year we have been able to enjoy to the full all the carefully planned alterations which have made life easier for everybody.

One of the things which has been the most fun was finally to be able to move into my beautiful new ARTHaven and get it up and running and planned exactly how I wanted, so that it at last became my favourite room in the house, where I can immerse myself in art and creativity and shed the stresses of the day, in an environment carefully designed and planned by me, and brought to fruition by our wonderful builders, to enable the creative process to take place with the minimum of difficulty.

Heath Issues

The year 2014 has been characterised by a series of health crises for us all – myself, my hubby and my mum, who lives in a flat occupying half the downstairs of the house. Just when we seemed to be entering a more stable period, something else happened, until I got to the stage when I wondered, “What next?” I know that compared with some people, our trials have been light, but nevertheless sometimes they have seemed hard to bear.

At the beginning of the year, now that we were really settled in, my hubby went up country to pick up my buggy (mobility scooter) which had belonged to my uncle, and this was installed in the garage with its own power supply, and enables me to trundle forth at the magnificent heartstopping rate of 4 mph to do my local errands – church, shopping, visiting etc. This is liberating!

In February I caught a nasty throat infection which left me coughing for months, and eventually in the summer I saw the doctor about it, and it became clear that the cough was a result of GORD (Gastro-oesophageal reflux disorder) and I was put on medication for this (Omeprazole) and referred to an ENT surgeon at the hospital for a proper examination, which revealed that there was still evidence of inflammation so I was put on revolting Gaviscon which is a sore trial to take!!

In the summer I also had problems with an extremely dry mouth, but after seeing another hospital consultant, a disease cause was ruled out, and we came to the conclusion that it was just another recurring M.E. symptom raising its ugly head again. I was given some good advice, though, about nasal decongestion which has helped a lot.

I suffered very badly this summer with swollen ankles and again sought medical advice. Several pieces of advice bore good fruit, and I also invested in a Circulation Booster which helped a lot. The cooler weather helped considerably, later on.

Since our return from holiday when I was shocked at how much weight I’d gained, I decided to embark on the famous 5:2 diet, and am happy to report that having hit another plateau recently, with my weight remaining constant for several weeks, I have lost a total of 2 stone 3 lb (31 lb) in six months. I have another 2 stone to lose until I am at the optimum weight for my height, but it is great knowing that I am now officially “overweight” and no longer “obese”!

In the summer also, I was diagnosed with mild anaemia, probably as a result of my ongoing ulcerative colitis, and have been on ferrous sulphate ever since, although now on a reduced dose, with my Hg levels being checked monthly.

In August I had my regular gastro-enterology appointment at the hospital to check on the state of my ulcerative colitis, and I have a colonoscopy coming up in January 2015 (something that has to happen every 2 years). He is pleased with my progress and how I am responding to the medication (Pentasa (mesazaline)).

However, my main health event of the year was a coronary artery spasm causing severe chest pain at the end of July, landing me in hospital for a couple of days. I’ve had no recurrence since, apart from a few periods of much less severe chest pain, all of which have been brought on by stress. I have a nitro-glycerine spray for such events. Coming out of hospital I became a soggy emotional heap, and when that passed, I moved into a period of several months’ mild depression, feeling generally “out of sorts” with myself, which is apparently a very common reaction to any cardiac event.

My M.E. continues much the same. The condition appears to have “bottomed out” and while I am not improving, neither am I continuing to go downhill as I did at the beginning. I have many days when I am pretty well unable to function and need to rest, which can be frustrating at times, but there’s nothing to be done about it and one just has to go with the flow and try and be as sensible as possible. Having a new adjustable bed is giving me more comfort and better nights and I no longer hanker after my wonderful hospital bed that I wanted to take home with me! This is also helping a lot with the reflux. Life is certainly easier with the renovations we had done in the house to suit my needs and also that my hubby isn’t having to run around after me quite so much as in the past.

A few weeks ago my hubby had an accident on his motorcycle and broke his wrist. He was in plaster for several weeks, and is now wearing a wrist splint after the latest X-ray revealed that the bone had knit. He will have another X-ray in a couple of weeks’ time and hopefully then will be back to normal. It feels painful now the rigid support of the cast is gone, and it will take time for it to regain its full strength. The worst part of it from our point of view was that he was not allowed to drive with a cast, and with all the running around he has to do on our behalf, this added to the already considerable inconvenience for him.

Mum’s health has presented us with several crises this year – firstly the common occurrence of minor injuries to her paper-thin skin necessitating hospital visits and the regular and frequent re-application of dressings. She is now very deaf and also needs her ears syringing regularly. She has also started suffering a series of TIAs (mini-strokes) and has been diagnosed with AF (atrial fibrillation) and is now on warfarin, which necessitates weekly visits to the surgery for her blood to be tested to determine the dose. Her short term memory is poor, and since her most recent bout of TIAs she has become more difficult, which is stressful for me, and my dear hubby is trying to shield me as much as possible, by taking on most of the contacts with her. We both experience ongoing low-level stress, interspersed by the high-octane version brought on by frequent confrontations with Mum on various issues. How true it is that whatever one’s personality, this tends to be exaggerated in old age.

It wasn’t just us humans in the family who had health issues this year. Our senior kitty, Beatrice (aged 14), after being registered with our new vet, had four teeth extracted, and was discovered to have a growth in the back of her neck that had to be removed, which proved to be quite major surgery, but was fortunately proved to be non-malignant. In order to protect the wound, she wore a premature babygro!

Then followed a series of urinary tract infections which have become ever more frequent so that she is more or less constantly on antibiotics now, but keeping pretty well, and with a good appetite. She is too thin, and with her delicate stomach has to be on a prescription diet, and requires frequent small meals in order to prevent vomiting. She continues to be a great character and much loved by us all, and she and “Granny” have developed a strong mutual affection and she enjoys spending time with Mum in her flat. The vet, “Uncle Luke,” is extremely fond of her, and everyone down at the vets’ has a huge soft spot for this very unusual kitty who is bursting with character and a bit too intelligent for her own good sometimes!!

All these health pressures have definitely been helped by having my hair permed again in the summer! Luuurve the curls. Thank goodness for good hair days, fragrant baths, kitties, art, and my wonderful hubby.

Technology

I was devastated this year that my faithful old sewing machine (21st birthday present) bit the dust, but delighted to get a new Brother machine, which, as things have turned out, I haven’t had a lot of time to get up and running – just a few boring household jobs to be done, and I still have to look up in the book how to thread it!!

At the beginning of the year I invested in an iMac and after an initial trial period trying to run both the Mac OS and Windows on it via a system called Parallels, eventually came to the conclusion that Windows didn’t work well enough on this for me, and I would continue with my two (now fairly elderly but excellent) laptops for Windows, and use the Mac pretty well exclusively for video. I had a brief experience with an upgrade to the latest version of Pinnacle video editing software on Windows but as with earlier versions, was frustrated by its instability, and decided to bite the bullet and move to Final Cut Pro for Mac which has proved to be a very successful move indeed. With my new video camera setup I can now produce good quality HD videos and the program is a total dream to operate – makes me wonder why I didn’t stop messing about years ago and spend the money and get serious – I’d have saved a great deal in the long run! I have not had as much time to create videos this year as I would have liked – it is a highly time-consuming process but also very creative and enjoyable.

The House

Finishing touches to the renovations included the installation of solar panels in the summer. We had been at a bit of a loss to know which company to approach, but our visit to the County Show was very fruitful, as we were able to speak one-to-one with several companies and come home armed with fliers. It was not hard to make our final choice, and the work went ahead very smoothly.

Personal

The major event of this year was my hubby’s retirement in the summer. He continues to be quite overwhelmed by the tremendous send-off he received, and all the gifts, cards, letters, emails etc. etc. I was a bit worried that he might feel the loss of role quite badly but he has had an incredibly busy time since, being carer for both Mum and myself, and various other commitments, but I am glad that he has been able to fit in quite a few days out doing the things he enjoys the most, and spending time with his friends. In the summer, for the first time he was able to volunteer on the local annual archaeological dig on a full-time basis. Knowing how precious these times are for him, I guard them jealously and try not to add to his commitments by asking that he drive me to things that aren’t strictly necessary, but we have had some nice outings together, and had a wonderful holiday (our first for 4 years) in the summer, coinciding with my school reunion, and the opportunity to immerse myself in some fabulous art. Our major and best day outing was to Bristol to view the Kaffe Fassett exhibition (click on the link at the top of my sidebar for pictures).

Since moving here, I have found an excellent church to join, and was admitted to full membership in the summer. I am thrilled that is is right on the doorstep and takes only a few minutes on the buggy to get there. I have made new friends there and the quality of worship and teaching is excellent.

Health Update–September 2014

Following my last health update, I have been taking the Omeprazole for some time now, and it definitely seems to be helping with the reflux, although I am still aware of something at the back of my throat. I am not coughing as much, and haven’t been disturbed at night by acid in my throat, but the GP said I should definitely see the ENT surgeon just to make sure everything was OK.

I had my hospital appointment today, and after a brief consultation he shone a light in my mouth, and palpated my neck. I thought that was going to be it, but no… he then sprayed some local anaesthetic up my nostril and proceeded to poke a light up my nose!! It was very small, on the end of a flexible tube, but despite the local anaesthetic, it felt like a lamp-post! It was pretty unpleasant. My nasal passages are apparently very narrow (which would explain why my nose is so often blocked). He said he needed to examine my vocal cords and the back of my throat in general, and said that there was still evidence of reflux there.

He prescribed Gaviscon Advance for six weeks, and said to continue with the Omeprazole, and then see my GP. The Gaviscon puts a blanket layer over the top of the stomach contents, and along with the acid-reducing Omeprazole, this should sort the problem. He also recommended propping the head of the bed up on bricks to elevate my upper body so my hubby is going to sort that – although what it will look like I don’t know – it’s a four-poster and might look like a ship on the high seas!

I saw the gastroenterologist a few weeks ago about my ulcerative colitis, and he continues to be pleased with my condition, which is responding well to the Pentasa medication. I had thought that my next colonoscopy wouldn’t be until August 2015 (two years after my first one) but he wants me to have it in February, which will be something nice to look forward to after Christmas (not…)!

Following a recent blood test, I have been told I am still mildly anaemic, so continuing with the iron for another few weeks. I am probably bleeding from the bowel although I’m not aware of it, but it could be enough to lower my haemoglobin sufficiently to need medication.

I bought a circulation booster from Ebay and it really helped with the swollen ankles. Now the weather has cooled off, the problem really isn’t so bad, and I have stopped using the machine for now, but it’s there if I need it.

Since my recent heart attack, I haven’t really been feeling myself – not exactly depressed, but feeling under the weather and a bit down, and rather unsettled. This is very unlike me because I’m usually very upbeat and bubbly. My creative mojo seems to have departed a bit recently, too. I had put it down to the constant low-level stress I suffer from with Mum in the house, but the other day I thought to myself that whenever I’ve had a day feeling like this, after a good night’s sleep the feeling generally disappears, but recently this has not happened. I mentioned it to my hubby at this point, and he said he wished I’d said something before, because he knows that it is very common indeed for people to get depression after a heart attack. I had no idea, but since then have spoken to several people who have experienced it. My hubby told me to Google it, and 18,900,000 search results appeared!!! He said, “Well, get reading then…” and I said if I read all that lot I’d be severely depressed by the end, not to mention still being at it well into the New Year!! It made me feel a lot better knowing that this was quite normal, and although I felt very down a couple of days ago, I’m feeling very much better again today.

I think I have to accept that it’s going to take time, and that my whole system suffered more of a shock than I was aware of. The most important thing is not to worry, and to know that it will pass. I don’t feel it’s bad enough to approach the doctor with.

My M.E. is ongoing, of course, and fluctuates from day to day, but there’s nothing new to report there, except to say that the dry mouth problem was probably a recurrence of this very common M.E. symptom, which has now gone into abeyance again. I have been continuing with the Sterimar routine before bed, and making sure my nose is as clear as possible before I go to sleep, and this is helping.

Ending on a cheerful note, I have been doing the 5:2, or “Fast” diet since our return from holiday towards the end of June, and am happy to report that this is the most brilliant diet I’ve ever been on. Because you reduce your calorie intake on only two days a week, and eat normally for the rest of the week, it is sustainable. Having to watch one’s diet every day, and deprive oneself of all the things one enjoys, soon becomes very tedious, and this is why so many people give up, especially when the weight loss tends to plateau, sometimes for several weeks.

I have had a three or four week plateau when I lost no weight, but I’ve stuck with it, and over the past couple of weeks, the weight loss has started again, resulting in a further half-stone coming off! I have now lost a total of 1 1/2 stone since June, and I am highly delighted. It doesn’t seem to be showing much – at least, not where I want it to (my stomach and bum) but one or two people have asked me if I’ve lost weight as it’s showing round my face, apparently!

So, generally speaking, I am pleased with how things are going. I am hoping that will be the last of the hospital visits for the rest of this year, at least for myself!

Mum, on the other hand, seems to be constantly going to the hospital or GP surgery these days. She had a TIA (transient ischaemic attack, or mini-stroke) a little while ago and has been undergoing tests since then, resulting in a diagnosis of atrial fibrillation (AF) and she is now on Warfarin, necessitating a weekly blood test until they stabilise the dose. Her blood pressure continues to be very high, and she is therefore at increased risk of another TIA or more serious stroke. She has bashed her leg again… and a few weeks ago, Phoebe, one of our kitties, scratched her arm, both of which needed an A&E visit and dressings which required changing – each time she has such an injury to her paper-thin skin, she digs her heels in and refuses point-blank to go to the hospital and we have to go through the whole process every time, of my hubby getting really stroppy with her and bullying her into submission! She never learns… she has no idea how serious such things can be at her age (93), and how they could easily get infected and lead to ulceration and worse. Oh well, my sister can deal with it for 10 days – we are currently enjoying a lovely break! After everything that’s happened recently, I think we deserve it – my hubby especially, as he is the one who has to drive her, and pick up all the prescriptions, etc.

WOYWW 271

For details of WOYWW and how to join in the most fun nosey fest online, please click the WOYWW logo in my sidebar.

Not a great deal going on on my desk this week, but you can see the third of the recent cards I’ve been making, embellishing teabag stains with Zentangle drawing. To the left of the card, in the centre of the desk, you can see some of my Zentangle ATC-sized cards with patterns, which normally live in my large Zentangle album. Just above this is my Stamping Up set of sentiment stamps – I have used the “Thank You” one on the card. My usual collection of acrylic paints and gel mediums and gesso at the back of the desk, and on the left, my Inktense pencils and in the red box, my pastel pencils. On top of this is a software CD ready to install on my computer. At the back you can also see a little pile of distress inks and my usual dirty water pot, in front of which is my red Stanley knife – I can’t get on with normal craft/exacto knives and find this is much the best knife! On top of the gesso is some stazon ink and a home-made bubble wrap stamp. I think that about covers it!

I am now feeling a lot better after my recent heart attack, and yesterday I went back to the hospital for my annual gastro-enterology check, and the consultant is pleased with how I am getting on, with my ulcerative colitis responding well to the medication. He wants me to have another colonoscopy in February to check on how things are, and also to screen for bowel cancer as I am more at risk of getting this with the inflamed bowel. Mum’s heart scan results came back yesterday and she’s got atrial fibrillation which is not good news for the potential for causing strokes, so she’s now on warfarin. Last weekend Phoebe, one of our cats, scratched her arm and it was pouring blood everywhere, so off my hubby went with her to A&E again, and it’s now all bound up and needing dressing every couple of days (just like when she bashed her legs) and she’s on antibiotics. Never rains but it pours, eh.

Anyway, things are looking up – I had a perm today so I’ve got nice curls again, and having one’s hair done always gives one a lift!

Have a great week, everyone.

WOYWW 265

For details of how to join in the world’s most famous nosey fest, click on the WOYWW icon in my sidebar, which will take you to our hostess Julia’s blog, where all will be revealed.

Now we are back from our holiday and over all my hubby’s retirement celebrations, I hope I can now return to WOYWW on a regular basis. Here’s what my desk looked like late on Tuesday evening:

As you can see, I am working on my recycled mini-album, and I’ve done a few pages now. It is resting on a nice scratch paper which is developing well into a usable background sheet, and to the right is a similar piece, a sheet of kitchen paper that I’ve used for mopping up with. It’s nice enough to use for a background now, and it will eventually be incorporated into the album.

You can see from the picture how the borders are working on the pages which decrease in size to the centre of each signature. If you look carefully, you can see on the right hand page, one of the gorgeous little bicycle die-cuts which Julia (our WOYWW hostess) sent me a while back – it began life as lime green card, but with the application of a bit of Tea Dye Distress Ink, some careless application of gel medium and finally some copper gilding wax, it’s ended up with a nice texture and colour and looks lovely and vintage!

There’s a little tag between the innermost pages of the signature, the sides of which I have glued together to form a pocket for the tag. A semi-circular punched hole allows for the whole of the tag puller to be visible.

Surrounding the album you can see the various gel mediums, acrylic paints, brushes and ink pads etc. that I’m using in the project. Just visible on the right is a pile of stamps which I may or may not be using in the project (mostly background stamps).

Please see my previous post for further details and pictures.

Also this week I’ve started editing quite a lot of raw video from recent projects so hopefully I shall be uploading some videos to my Youtube channel again soon, and updating my blog accordingly. The trouble is, making and editing a video of a project seems to take longer than the project itself!!

An update on my recent health update – the result of my blood test did reveal that I was anaemic (probably as a result of bleeding from one end or the other – there may be bleeding from the throat inflammation caused by the acid reflux, and I’m almost certainly bleeding from the other end as a result of the ulcerative colitis) so I am back on iron again. I have also been on the 5:2 diet for a week now, and in just one week, with two days’ partial fast, I have lost 5 lb!! At this rate I shall be skinny in six months! This diet is definitely do-able, because you only have to eat less on two days a week (reducing your intake to 500 cals max) and the rest of the time you eat normally.

Happy WOYWW everyone, and may the coming week be creative and productive for you all.

Health Update

I had an appointment with my GP (family doctor) this morning, following on from my recent hospital appointment – I have been having problems with my mouth and throat. I suffer from a dry mouth especially at night, and this is probably partly due to my M.E. and partly due to nasal congestion – I have to spend some time every night clearing my nasal passages with Sterimar (an aerosol saline solution). Also, I had a throat infection back in February and since then I have not been able to throw off a chronic irritating cough, the production of mucus and a constant feeling of a lump of catarrh at the back of my throat which I am unable to clear.

My hubby has been telling me lately that I am making a lot of noise while asleep – not exactly snoring but a sound as if I am struggling to get enough breath.

I mentioned the lump in my throat to the hospital doctor but she couldn’t find anything and only recommended continuing with the saline spray to clear my nose and prevent mouth breathing, which should help the dry mouth. She ruled out Sjorgren’s Syndrome.

The GP was very helpful, and agreed it didn’t sound like obstructive sleep apnoea which my hubby suffers from – she asked if he could hear me stopping breathing altogether when asleep, which he couldn’t, and I don’t suffer from the same daytime sleepiness which featured so strongly in his condition before he started with the CPAP breathing mask.

She asked if I suffered from acid reflux, and when I said yes – I get bouts of this and according to my GP where we used to live, this is probably caused by my M.E. and is the result of the sphincter at the top of my stomach not closing properly. The GP today said all my symptoms were characteristic of reflux – the acid contents of the stomach can cause inflammation and irritation at the top of the oesophagus and give rise to a feeling of swelling and a chronic cough. She has prescribed Omeprazole, a slow-release medication which reduces the acid concentration in the stomach, for the next four weeks, and we have to see how it goes. If it works properly, it should prevent the reflux and give my throat a chance to recover. If the symptoms persist, she will refer me to an ear, nose and throat specialist who will take a proper look at my throat, and take it from there, with any treatment based on what they find.

I also mentioned my swollen ankles, and she confirmed what my old GP said, that I should keep my legs elevated as much as possible, but obviously I can’t be on the recliner all day as there are other things to do when I’m well enough! She said that my lack of mobility is the main cause, because walking exercises the calf muscles and keeps the blood flowing, and without it, blood plasma can leak out from the blood vessels and pool in the tissues, causing the oedema and discomfort. She said that it was most unlikely that my left bundle branch block (chronic heart condition) would have any effect – since being less mobile this condition has been completely asymptomatic and I tend to forget all about it. She said being female was against me, and also the heat – both of which exacerbate problems with swollen ankles. She said support stockings might help but I said they would be terribly hot – I wore my travel socks when we drove up to our holiday venue, which helped, but I did get very hot! She was reluctant to put me on diuretics because they would make me pee more, and could cause more M.E.-type symptoms, and would not be good for long-term use in my case. She ordered a blood test for anaemia, which is common in people with ulcerative colitis because of continuous low-level loss of blood, and which can cause ankle oedema. I asked about those circulation booster machines, and she said it certainly might help, and would do no harm. Looking them up on the Internet, they are pretty expensive, so I am now watching one on Ebay and hope the price doesn’t rise too high!

So now I am waiting for the result of the haemoglobin test, and for the end of the four-week period on the new medication, and we will see what happens. I am very pleased with our new doctors’ surgery – my new GP is extremely efficient, really listens, is friendly, and takes all these various niggles seriously. Untreated, reflux can increase one’s risk of developing throat cancer so it should not be ignored. I am happy that I can hope to feel a lot better soon, because something is being done about it.

Today I weighed myself for the first time for ages and was absolutely horrified! I have never been so heavy. I knew I’d put on a lot recently, and going on holiday and having lots of meals out, and starting each day with a full English breakfast and delicious home made scones probably hasn’t helped, but it’s given me the impetus to try and do something about it, so starting tomorrow, I am going on the Fast Diet (intermittent 5:2 fast where two days per week you consume a maximum of 500 calories, and eat normally the rest of the time) – I know several people on this diet and the results have been dramatic. Losing some weight should improve my health all round, I think.

Card from Recycled Medication Sachets

Those who follow or visit my blog will know that I’m in Full Recycling Mode at the moment, and lots of things I would normally throw away are prompting the question, “Could I make art out of this?”

For my ulcerative colitis, I take medication in the form of granules, which come in individual plastic foil sachets. Taking two of these a day, I realised I was throwing quite a lot of the empty sachets away, and asked myself if they could be recycled in some form. I asked my hubby, “Could I make art out of these?” He pulled a face and replied emphatically, “NO!!” I think he thinks I’m completely off my head at the moment with my obsession with used teabags and empty food boxes… but he should be used to me by now, after 28 years of marriage!!

Anyway, I decided to give it a try. The project turned out a lot more difficult than I’d anticipated as these sachets are made of the most unresponsive material ever!! However, I was determined to make my hubby a card for his birthday today – one in the eye for someone who so doubted my abilities to make art out of such things!

I have made a video of most of the process – disasters and successes – but unfortunately I got so carried away that towards the end I didn’t notice that the camera’s memory was full, so I didn’t manage to complete the whole thing. I also forgot to take very many photos. (Actually, altogether, this project seemed fraught with problems from beginning to end!)

Empty sachets cut open, with some “spills” made from them. The scissors are to stop the beastly things from curling up again!

Epic Fail! My first attempt at creating the background for my project.

I tried to stick the flattened out sachets onto a piece of card using gel medium. They kept curling up and not sticking, so I left it to dry under a pile of books. The result was anything but successful, with a very messy and lumpy surface.

I tried sticking the sachets with Scotch Quick Dry Adhesive (my favourite wet glue) but it didn’t work, probably because the surface was so slick, and not porous. For paper and card, that glue is second to none, but not for this, unfortunately. I was at my wits’ end, trying to think of a way of sticking them, when my hubby phoned, so I picked his brains without giving him any details about the project, and he suggested double sided tape. I was sceptical, but decided I had nothing to lose by trying, and lo and behold, it worked a treat.

I covered a fresh piece of card with strips of double sided tape, and laid down the opened-up sachets onto this, centring the first one and cutting the excess off the sides of the outer ones. It was really, really hard lining these up, because the surface was soooo sticky, and stuck on contact, and the sachets kept curling up. I managed some degree of success in the end, and once it was done, I embossed it with the Cuttlebug, using the folder “Diamond Plate,” which I thought would give the card a more manly air!

I thought the stuff might melt in an interesting way, and produce some nice wrinkled surfaces like Tyvek, but it was very stubborn and only rolled up on itself, but with further heating, it got quite tacky, and I was able to scrunch it up and make it stick to itself. I made six scrunched up ones and laid the three smaller ones on top of the larger ones, hoping they wouldn’t end up simply looking like scrunched up tin foil! I stuck them together with double sided tape and secured them to the embossed card with small jewelled brads. This piece was then layered onto a piece of black card, which in turn was stuck to a white card base.

I had a terrible job rolling the sachets to form the spills which I wanted to use for flower stems – the stuff was so darned slippery and it was very hard to get them to roll tightly enough, but after experimenting, I discovered the best way was to start them off around a wooden barbecue stick, and after a few turns, to withdraw the stick, and pull back on the roll to tighten it, before applying exactly the right amount of pressure (learnt by trial and error) to complete the roll. A line of ATG double sided tape secured the roll.

I stuck down three stems made from the spills, using narrow double sided tape, and then heat-embossed in silver the Happy Birthday sentiment at the top.

Here is the finished card:

and a detailed shot of the flowers.

I used the reverse side of the sachets for the background, being unprinted, and a slightly duller silver than the front surface, which I used for the 3-D pieces. I have got some dull silver card which would have been a lot easier to handle for the embossed background, and I would have ended up without all those joins, too, but I wanted to prove that I could make something out of the sachets!

I gave my hubby the card this morning and he loved it. When he opened it, he saw that I had stuck a sachet onto the inside of the card, with the message, “Who said I couldn’t make art out of these?!!”

Honour is satisfied! However, this was such awful stuff to work with – very unforgiving, and very unresponsive, and the whole project involved a huge amount of very frustrating work. The result wasn’t over-impressive after all that, so I don’t think I shall be continuing with this material. Some things are better for recycling than others! If anyone can come up with some other ways it might be used, I’d be glad to hear it, but from now on the empty sachets will be going into the bin again, I’m afraid. The only part that I think may have potential for the future is the rolled “spills” which could be quite effective en-masse, but it’s a lot of work! Is it worth it, I wonder?

A Roller-Coaster of a Year

Here is my usual end-of-year roundup post. What a roller-coaster of a year it has been, to be sure! So much has happened that I scarcely know where to begin.Last December, I could never have imagined that our circumstances would change so much in a single year.

The most important event of the year was the death of my dear father on 6th December. I am so full of good and happy memories of this exceptional and wonderful person – a true Renaissance man with all his skills, interests and accomplishments – and I feel extraordinarily blessed to have had him as my father. His influence on my life has been profound, and as well as being a wonderful father, he was also my mentor and friend.

Eighteen months ago he first went into residential care with dementia, which had been slowly increasing over the past couple of years with his short-term memory beginning to fail, but with the onset of a severe UTI, its progress was exacerbated, and with each further infection which he suffered, he recovered less well, and his decline was steady up until the time he died. When he first went into the residential home, my mum was on her own in their cottage which was not ideally placed for an elderly person living alone with no access to transport – there were absolutely no amenities nearby, and with her increasing needs, my dear hubby was having to do a great deal of running around on her behalf, and for Dad, too, and we needed to centralise things.

Our original plan was to get both of them moved into more suitable accommodation, and then in 2014 when my hubby retires, we would move in with them, possibly converting the upstairs into a flat for ourselves, and we would continue to live there after they had both passed on, and for the past two or three years, we were house hunting with this scenario in mind. We looked at several houses that would have been absolutely ideal, but because we could not sell my parents’ house for some considerable time, we were not in a position to buy, and we lost them all. It was very disappointing at the time, but God knows best, and if we had managed to get one of them, and then the situation changed with Dad having to go into residential care, it would have been a total disaster! As it was, we then had to search for somewhere for us to move in straight away, and my hubby would have to commute to work rather than living more or less over the shop (which is not convenient, but workable, and it’s only for about 6 months anyway). It had to be organised so that my hubby and I would have the larger portion of the house, and Mum would have an annexe or single-bedroomed flat.

We were able to find the perfect place eventually, and things fell rapidly into place with an offer being made and accepted on my parents’ house, putting us in a position to buy. However, considerable work needed doing on the property, including the complete replacement of the roof, and so began the great adventure with Andy and the other builders – I was popping over two or three times a week and got really involved with everything that was going on, and had such fun! You can read the whole account with lots of photos if you look for posts entitled “Our New House” or “My New ARTHaven” in my blog archive. I had a major input into the design of the various alterations and renovations, and this has improved my own quality of life no end, with adaptations (including a stairlift) that mean that my hubby has to do far less for me these days – good for both of us as I enjoy more independence, and he is free of the burdens that took up so much of his time, especially as now he is having to spend more time driving, and of course there are always things that Mum needs doing.

The major renovations indoors are my new kitchen:

with its reduced-height work surface that I can sit at, to prepare food, wash up and cook. The other side has full-height units with cupboards underneath, and a new peninsula unit which makes the whole working area a lot more compact and manageable.

I have a new utility room which also includes part of the back passage, with access through a lovely new arch.

I also have a newly formed airing cupboard (made to my own specifications) with new bi-fold doors, and we have a new glass panel in the back door which gives a nice view into the garden, and lets in loads more light.

The new boiler replaces this one and its huge tank, which took up so much space in the old annexe kitchen:

The door from the annexe kitchen has been blocked off, and the annexe kitchen has been completely redone, using units from the original main kitchen but with much nicer worktops.

Before the door from the annexe kitchen was blocked off, there was access from the annexe to our back passage and out through the back door. With this exit being blocked, there was only one entrance into the annexe, from the hall in the main house, and for safety, and also to maintain our privacy, we had a new door opened up from the annexe sitting room into the garden.

Outside, we had a ramp built up from the back door to the garden steps, and sloping down each side, for easy access with the wheelchair.

At the top of the garden, the other main alteration was the building of my hubby’s magnificent new Man Cave, which he now has so well equipped that he could actually move in there – microwave, kettle, TV and radio!

He has graciously allowed me one corner to store my new buggy. This is something else new this year. Two years ago, almost to the day of Dad’s death, my uncle died, and since then, his mobility scooter had been sitting in their garage, and my aunt said I could have it, so a little while after we moved (mid Sept.) my hubby drove up to Staffordshire to collect it. My new-found independence! I can get to the shops on my own, and go visiting!

Upstairs, more magic! My beautiful new en-suite bathroom (which my hubby calls my “girlie bathroom”) was created from the original separate bathroom and loo. It is the last word in modernity and glamour, and with the addition of some very stylish grab rails and walk-in shower, it is well suited to my needs.

This bathroom, my beautiful new kitchen and utility room and airing cupboard, and all the other renovations, work so well for me! We both so enjoy living in this house now that it has been upgraded to our own specifications.

Last, but not least, is my fabulous new purpose-built ARTHaven. Ever since I semi-converted my office in the old house to double as a studio, neither use worked properly, and I hankered after a space built for my requirements. One of the features that attracted me about the upstairs of the new house was one of the bedrooms which had a partitioned off space with a washbasin (called a “dressing room” on the agents’ particulars) and I realised that this space could become my office, with the ARTHaven beyond. (By the way, the awful floral wallpaper in the hall and landing has now been replaced with cream emulsion, which shows off our pictures much better, and is far more restful on the eye!)

It was made to measure! My big desk fits across the end of the office with 6 inches to spare!

(The office is a bit tidier than this now. Not a lot, but a bit!!) The washbasin at the other end of the room has been replaced by a sink, which will be wonderful for my art work.

It has been left open at the front deliberately, for easy access for storage. There is now a small microwave on a corner shelf above, for dyeing and other procedures.

Into the ARTHaven proper, I designed the layout myself, and Andy the Magician brought it to life for me! The continuous curving MDF work surface is supported on el-cheapo open-fronted kitchen base units, and is divided into different work zones. I had a brainwave that since I could only sit at one work zone at a time, why waste precious storage space by having several empty spaces under the work surface? Andy put base units on castors, so that they can be pulled out when I want to sit there, and these units also provide another surface to put things on while I work.

There are wall units above the work surface, with extra shelves, and over the blocked-off fireplace is my display area, for showing off small artworks, both my own, and gifts from fellow artists.

On the final wall, backing onto the office, is an area of free-standing storage with a large, deep MDF shelf above for storing all those large flat items that we find so difficult to find homes for.

There is still a lot of sorting to do in there before I get it how I want it, but I have started working in there and it is an absolute dream… the window faces more or less due north, so I have none of the problems I had before, with dazzling afternoon sun. I have ample power points around the room, and excellent LED lighting over each work zone, and have I have also set up a rig for my new video camera. The original carpeted floorboards have been covered with a beautiful light wood laminate flooring which makes cleaning up easy. It is an absolute dream of a room and I keep pinching myself, wondering when I’m going to wake up!

The trouble is, with all the activity of the past year, and the tremendous amount of work involved in sorting my parents’ house and getting Mum moved up to my sister’s till the new house was ready, sorting and packing all of our own stuff, moving in while the builders were still here, and then all the unpacking, and then the emotional upheaval of my dear dad’s passing, and the work involved in planning and taking part in his funeral, have left me feeling exhausted, and not able to spend as much time in there as I had hoped, but in the New Year I am sure that things will settle down and I will get into a better routine at last.

We had a lot of stress getting Mum moved in and settled. She is better now, but we have had a rocky start and at one time I did wonder whether this arrangement was going to work at all. Things are better now, and she does realise that even if it’s not what she really wants, which is to be back in her old house, living the independent life she once enjoyed, it is the only possibility apart from a residential home which she won’t consider, and as her friends keep reminding her, that she is very fortunate to have us under the same roof. So many of her widowed friends live alone, and far from their children. We see Mum every day and help her with things, and take her out, and generally keep an eye on her and make sure she’s OK. She’s had several episodes of bashing her legs (twice on Christmas day!!) necessitating visits to casualty to have them dressed, but apart from that and her severe deafness, she is remarkably fit for 92, and is still cooking for herself. We share a delightful young lady who cleans for us, and my hubby has a much smaller and more manageable garden to deal with – it is so lovely, and when he retires next year, he will have more time to enjoy it.

On the health front, my M.E. has remained remarkably stable despite the stresses and the huge amount of physical work I have been involved with. I had a fairly big dip shortly after we moved, with extreme exhaustion and badly swollen legs, and a recent severe cold which has left me coughing still, but apart from that I am now quite a bit better. Back in the summer I had a positive result on my first bowel cancer screening test, necessitating a colonoscopy which revealed not cancer (thank goodness!) but ulcerative colitis, for which I am now taking medication which has reduced my bowel symptoms by about half.

We have moved from an area where “broadband” was a complete joke, to the outskirts of a town that rejoices in fibre-optic broadband, which is so fast that it leaves us breathless! For the first time we can now access catch-up TV, and recently got a wireless box for our Sky satellite TV setup, enabling us to watch this on our smart TV.

Because of everything that has gone on this year, I have been much less productive on the art front than in previous years, but I did manage to make myself a smart pair of mixed-media spoke guards for my wheelchair before I started packing up well in advance of the move:

These incorporated some of the fabric flowers I received from Judy in Australia, in a swap.

I also started work on an album all about Dad’s life. If things had been different, I would like to have had it completed in time for his funeral so that everyone could have looked at it and seen all his amazing accomplishments, but that was not to be, and it remained packed in a box for months. I have now got it all out again, and am beginning to scan material for use on subsequent pages to the only page I have yet been able to create, on his ancestry.

Since the move, I have made a mixed-media card for a friend, using one of Ryn’s moth stamps and angelina fibre, against an inked and embossed background:

I have also started making some door plates for the downstairs of our house, where the beautiful art deco originals have been removed. I took a mould from one from upstairs and have been experimenting with different materials to make them from.

When trimmed up and painted with a faux vintage metal effect, I am hoping they will be indistinguishable from the originals.

With everything that has been going on over the past two or three years, with my parents gradually becoming less able to cope, and culminating with the events of this year, my hubby and I have not had a holiday for three years. I am hoping very much that we will be able to get away for a fortnight together after he retires next summer. We could both do with it!

Plans for the coming year also include finishing unpacking the remaining boxes, and getting my big spice rack and various other things fixed up, utility room cupboards to be organised, and touching up bits of painting around the house. I am planning to continue organising my new ARTHaven, and as time goes on, incorporate my art into its beautification – I have lots of storage boxes which I would like to decorate, and I’d like to make some wall art, bunting and other decorative features. I also want to return to my Zentangle art which has been seriously neglected of late – this, along with my knitting and other sedentary activities could well have been done from the comfort of the recliner, but I have simply not felt inclined, with everything else that had to be done.

My most imminent, and very exciting activity for the New Year will be the arrival of my new iMac computer, and learning how to use it. I currently have two laptop PCs which are now about seven years old and starting to show their age with the huge demands I put on them with the video work I am now doing, and when I considered updating them, was put off by Windoze 8 which doesn’t appeal to me at all, as I believe Microsoft have lost the plot somewhat. I have been fed up with Windoze for years, with its constant security problems and the workflow being incessantly interrupted by upgrades of this and that, and the general lack of integration of the system. I have often wished I’d started off with Mac in the first place, but once I’d got caught up in Windoze I had so much invested in it that I thought it would be impossible to change at this late stage. However, I have now discovered that there are ways of running Windoze software on the Mac, and ways of integrating my data with the new operating system, and after a discussion on Boxing Day with our nephew, who has used Mac for years, and playing with his Mac Book, I have finally decided to take the plunge. It is due for delivery in the first or second week of January. I am super-excited. Watch out for progress reports!

Further plans include developing my mixed-media art skills and experimenting further with different materials. I want to pursue my interest in working with reflective surfaces, and I am really keen to get started with Gelli printing. Now that I have work zones set up, and my sewing machine can be permanently out, I want to expand the parameters of my mixed-media work and incorporate textile, fibre and stitch into my work, and begin experimenting with dyeing and fabric printing again – something I used to do many years ago. The boundaries between all these disciplines are increasingly becoming broken down, and it is a very exciting time to be exploring new techniques, with all the wonderful materials and equipment at our disposal these days. I just hope and pray for enough energy to be able to get really stuck in in my wonderful new ARTHaven during the coming year!

To close, I want to pay tribute to my wonderful hubby. Over this past year, he has worked tirelessly for our family – dealing with all the arrangements for Dad, having power of attorney, and organising everything surrounding his care and eventual death, sorting out endless problems with Mum, arranging removals, storage and clearance, ferrying me and loads of stuff here and there – the list goes on and on, and all the while, he has been working full-time in a demanding job, and sacrificing so many of his days off for the needs of the family. He deserves a medal, and so much more besides – not to mention a good long rest! People like my hubby are the unsung heroes of our society, who do not receive recognition in the New Year’s Honours List, but without whom our nation would be the poorer. I simply cannot imagine what we would have done without him. Thank you, my darling boy. You are a rock.

May I wish all my faithful followers, visitors and friends a very happy and prosperous New Year, full of stimulation and creativity, and happy relationships with friends and family alike. May God bless you all.