Last crumbs

Last of the crumbs swap, these cards are from Inge in Berlin (top) and Heather (bottom).

My cards have been ready for posting for over a week but with everything happening I haven't actually got them into the postbox.  Hopefully this will happen today.  Sorry girls for the wait.

Crumbs and Homophones

Two more swaps I showed my 'crumbs' in the last post these are ones I have received.

 Top crumb is from Jan and the bottom crum from Alice.

 

This one is from Miriam



The other swap is Homophones, words that are spelt differently but sound the same.

 Sail and Sale from Janet

 Sea and See (Eye of Horus) from Jacquie

And mine, Sew and So.

Family update is that Keith is home, still a little weak on the left side but improving.  He's very tired and his concentration is poor when tired but apart from that he seems to have come through unscathed thank goodness.   He is bored though, no driving and worse still no woodturning - he isn't allowed to use sharp tools.   He's having a doppler test tomorrow but as he has had the clot busting drug it may prove negative, still better late than never.

I though seem to have lost the will to sew at the moment but hopefully once the Bank Holiday is over and I can talk to Keith's GP and other carers I will relax and begin to shuffle bits of fabric around.

Wouldn't you just know it

Thank you for your kind thoughts they helped me get through this.  But wouldn't you just know it - I've been given a new date for my op.  Its the 5th June, now I'm in a quandary, do I accept it or do I decline.

I spoke to Keith's doctor yesterday who advised me to go ahead as Keith will improve and so long as he can look after himself making a simple meal ( the boys will take care of other things) he is okay to be left.

Hopefully he will come home today, the news is a bit mixed.  Physically he has returned to normal, slight weakness on the left but he can do everything he used to do.   The main problem is that there appears to have been some cognitive damage and they are less sure how much better this will get.   He favours his right side and although he is well able to use his left he forgets he has a left arm.  He was holding his Ipad when his fingers slowly opened and he dropped it because he had forgotten he had hold of it.   He can't drive, naturally but he doesn't seem to understand why he can't and is determined he will drive when he gets home.   I am looking forward to having him home again, its cold at night without him and I miss cuddles but I am also a little apprehensive.   But I'm sure we'll cope.

I did manage to get my 'crumb' cards finished but they have not as yet been posted.

I did intend to make a card using all the crumbs but decided to make crumb boats instead.

Day out

Last night my dh me if I fanced a day out tomorrow.   What he hadn't said was that the day out would start with a ride in an ambulance with flashing lights and a howling siren.  Keith had a stroke this morning and we've spent the day in the Stroke Unit at Durham.   Marc, Simon and Alix have all been with me and together we've rejoiced as slowly the droopy face and slurred speech improved.

He's not totally back to normal but tomorrow will tell whether or not he has recovered all functionality. I am quietly confident he will have.  I just hope he doesn't ask me again if I fancy a day out.

Crumbs

I've calmed down now but I wanted to sew something mindless where the only decision I had to make was which piece of fabric did I want to add next.   I had a postcard swap in mind when making these blocks, I say blocks in the widest sense of the word.  First I started by separating the colours into groups and blindly sewed them together into some sort of shape.

 First two colours, the photo doesn't show the raggy edges.

 Before going into hospital I had the idea of making Flynn a rag doll and had actually finished making the body.

Today I wrapped my green piece around the body and thought hmm... can I use this to make an costume doll.  Flynn can have one when he gets older I think this is going to be my play doll.

Just a quick blog to let you all know my op was cancelled - due to my medical records going walk about!!!!  My surgeon considered it too dangerous with my complex medical history to go ahead without being able to re-read his notes.   Whilst I accept his explanation I am darned mad that no one had the gumption to check that my case notes were available prior to my admission yesterday.  Why was it only when the consultant jumped up and down did they bother to look for them.   It appears from the casenote tracking system that they have gone walk about between one hospital and another.  

Now I am back on the waiting list with the instructions to the booking people not to give me a new date until my case notes return from their ramble.   What do I do if they never return?

Almost time

I'm clock watching - I have to ring the hospital at noon to confirm they have a bed for me.  My surgery is planned for tomorrow and over the past week I've undergone a battery of tests and scans.  Now all is in place, my bag is packed and Keith and I are hovering.  God I hate this waiting period.
So to take my mind off things I'm going to show you the swap postcards I've received recently.

First the 'Cake Swap'  there were only 3 of us in this swap I showed you my version previously now here is Jacquie and Valerie's versions.

Valerie;s card has some wonderful fancy cakes on it.  Could just do with one right now but got to watch the old glucose levels.



I love Jacquie's unique take on the swap theme and might even try out the recipe.

There were 7 of us in the Doodle swap and so far I've got five cards, I'm sure the sixth one will be waiting for me when I get home but here are the ones so far.

Top card is Jacquies and the bottom one is from Alice.  Jacquie has used free motion stitching and ribbon on her card whilst Jacquie has explored the stitches available on her machine.

 

This pair of cards is from (top) Jan and (bottom) Marian.  Both have doodled beautifully Jan looks as though she may have done the whole thing without stopping.  Love the colours on Marian's card they zing.

Lastly this card is from Sue and was actually the first to arrive.  I love what Sue has done with this card and it demonstrates just how effective you can be without having complicated stitches.

Now back to the present and I've just remembered I haven't packed my Kindle, also want to pack an Ipod so I can listen to a book when I can't sleep at night.  I find hospital beds so uncomfortable and usually there is a light on somewhere, I'm used to sleeping in the dark.  At the moment I'm listening to Elizabeth Peter's Amelia Peabody series, got to the "Lord of the Silent" so far.  I just love the whole Emmerson family sometimes Amelia sounds just like my mum.   Reading on the Kindle one of Paul Doherty's 'Sorrowful Tales of Brother Athelstan' series.

Better go and make a cuppa and a sandwich before I phone the hospital and I have to be in by 2:30pm and the traffic can be heavy at this time of the day.   Speak soon.

Dog Day Out

The sun was out and Buster was restless so we decided to pack a picnic and go out into the countryside to let him play in water - his favourite pastime (unless its a bath).  We drove up into Teesdale stopping in Middleton-in-Teesdale for a leg stretch.

One of the beautiful views over Teesdale and the Pennines

We stopped at Bowless for our picnic with the intention of walking up to the waterfall at Gibson's Cave.  Unfortunately there had been a landslide so we only got to this tiny one.

Still it allowed Buster to go stone fishing.  We had a bit of a job getting him out of the water, he went home a wet but happy dog.

At last I have been given a date for the removal of my dodgy and ruptured implants.  May the 14th is the big day, I'm told the op will take around 2 hours as its not a straight forward rip-em out and push-em in job.  With luck though I'll be back home by the 17th. I'm not looking forward to the process but for the last few weeks they have given me a bit of trouble so I will be pleased to be rid of them.  When they are done I'm hoping for cupcakes rather than the pancakes I have at the moment.