Random Stuff and Medical Update

Hi Everyone,
it feels like it has been forever since I updated. We have been busy, busy, busy. We have had multiple children's parties and birthdays. Isaac is also at home now on a Wednesday from about 12pm. He is gaining a lot of rest from having Wednesdays at home. Last week was his first week doing this and on Thursday and Friday he coped heaps better with school and got all his spelling words right in his test :-) We were all so proud of him. He has been getting to bed a bit earlier too. I also feel like I am getting into a routine with homework, school, play and rest etc.

I have an IVIG infusion this Friday which I am not really looking forward too. But oh well. The next one will be in 4 weeks and then the trial of 5 weeks and 6 weeks. Hopefully my levels hold like the haematologist is expecting and I can then go 6 weekly instead of 4 weekly for these infusions.

I have been very clumsy lately. A couple of weeks ago I got my arm caught in a cupboard door. It was a spring door and I didn't realise it wasn't open properly and it flung back on my arms stretched up to the top level. It hurt. One arm didn't bruise and one bruised nicely (horrid looking).

Sunday night I was clever again and with my arms out over my head, pulling my fingers through my hair, I turned around very swiftly and smacked my elbow into the door post. A VERY loud snapping sound frightened me SO badly. I then ran into the kitchen, quite distressed, to get ice and was repeating over and over, "oh no, my arm is going to be black and blue!" I was quite upset and very much in pain. Fire type feeling ran down my arm to my wrist and fingers and t my shoulder and I couldn't lean on my arm. I was hoping I hadn't broken anything. The next day it was still really sore and I was nauseated. Took some maxolon which helped with the nausea but I couldn't move my fingers or wrist properly and certainly couldn't lean on my arm. However, guess what??? No outward bruising at all! My arm has no bruising on it! What a miracle!!! It still has no bruising and obviously I am typing properly now. I did go to the doctor yesterday and after making me do things, he told me I had bruised my ulnar and radial nerves inside my arm which is why I am having so much trouble with pain in my wrist and fingers. I still can't lean on my elbow or on my arm because I get shoots of pain. However, it is much better and I am not nauseated anymore. I have been able to use my arm normally but carefully with manageable pain :-) I am SO glad it is not broken. I can't describe how hard I hit that door post! So that is my adventure so far :-)

Some of the random things we have been doing as a family. Let me see. Oh yes! Below is a picture of Alan and I after a children's party that Isaac was invited to. Yes, Isaac was invited but parents also stayed. They had hired someone to do face painting and Alan and I decided to join in. Obviously Alan is a clown and I am a butterfly....in case you didn't know. Hehe. This was the end of the day and so Alan's make up is leaking a bit. He has white paint throughout his beard! :-)
Isaac didn't want his face painted but he wanted a snake painted on his arm. This is a mean looking snake! I was proud of Isaac having a go!

Another child's birthday party. Yep, Isaac was invited and Alan and I stayed as well. They went bowling! It was so much fun to watch all the 6 and 7 year olds bowl. Hehe. Isaac actually won! Alan helped him with the last 2 goes because Isaac was tired. I was SO surprised at Isaac picking up that bowling ball and hauling it to the ramp!

Below is a picture of Isaac and one of his best friends from school.....mucking around by the seats saying they were stuck and laughing. It was cute. Action shot!

Another photo of Isaac and 2 of his best mates! In case you are new....Isaac is on the left.

An action shot of Isaac bowling using the ramp!

More random stuff. You have probably all heard about our devastating fires here in Australia. They are in a different State to where Alan, Isaac and I live. However, Isaac's school is buddied with another school in that State. That school lost practically everything we are told. Some members killed and all sorts. So Isaac's school had a "funny hat day" to raise money for this school and the community. This is one of Isaac's best mates with his funny hat. If you wanted to wear a funny at you needed to donate money to the cause :-) The junior school raised about $3000 I think.

Here is Isaac's funny hat. Hehe. A turtle shower cap on top of a normal, karky (sp?), bucket hat. Very cute.

Funny hats!

We have been up to all sorts. Alan has a personal trainer and he has been doing this for about 9 weeks. Things are going well. This was on a day where his personal trainer had upped his training to a new level. He fell asleep after his training and Isaac decided he needed to be "doctored". Out came the medical kit and Alan had his arm bandaged, temperature taken, heart listened to, blood taken....you name it, he had it. Hehe. It was cute. Alan is now used to this new workout and not sleepy anymore :-)

It is interesting what Isaac gets up to when you are asleep. I declare! This is after Alan has done some training at some other point. He is wearing his training clothes and is most likely almost asleep. Hehe. Isaac has everything piled high on top of Alan....hehe

We had prayer meeting as we always do on a Thursday night. I know it was a night that Isaac was calling out more than usual. Then he went quiet and we knew he had fallen asleep. After everyone left that night which was close to 11pm, we walked around the corner to see Isaac asleep in the doorway. Hehe.....cute

Random stuff again! Haha! Uncle Darren (Alan's brother) and Aunty Angela have a new puppy. Well they got one a few weeks ago now. His name is Dexter and we went to visit. He would have grown a lot since this visit. Here is Alan having a cuddle....hehe

This is such a sweet photo of Dexter! Awwww......little baby puppy!

At least once a year we head off for a visit to the Big Rocking Horse which is one of our attractions here in South Australia. It also has an animal park where you can hand feed the animals. Here I am in my great, comfortable, pink dress.....hehe.....and groovy hat!

This is at the very top of the Big Rocking Horse. It is quite high up!

Such a flattering photo of myself.....NOT!! I thought it was amusing!

Going up the first flight of stairs.....

The first level :-)

Going up the stairs to the second level :-)

We went up the rocking horse twice. However, I didn't go all the way to the top on the second round. I thought I would take a picture of Isaac and Alan way up there on the head.

The little rocking horse beside the big one. Every year when we go, without fail, we take a picture of Isaac on this rocking horse and you can see how big he has grown since the last one!

So that is some of our excitement! Well today when I was helping Isaac with his homework, Alan decided to get on the roof to clear some gutters. We have been having rain the last 2 days which is a miracle!!! We are SO dry here in South Australia. Praise the Lord for the rain. Hehe. Anyway, so Alan is on the roof clearing the gutter and Isaac and I are doing his homework and we here a BANG and a SCRAPE. I said to Isaac, "what was that? I hope daddy is ok". Hehe...but I didn't think to go and check because I then heard footsteps again. Haha. Well when Alan came in he had reddy colour on his white shirt. It was all smugged and I looked at him and said, "Is everything all right out there?" and he started laughing. He HAD lost his footing and slid about half a metre or so. Heart pounding reached up to grab the vent from the toilet on the roof to stabalise himself and pull himself back up! He is SO lucky he didn't fall off the roof! Praise the Lord for protecting him. So yes.....that's Alan for you! Haha.....hehe. I am glad we didn't have a tradegy though.

All right. I cancelled my port surgery for sure. My neutrophils are back up again. Platelets are bouncing everywhere right now which always makes me feel uneasy so keep praying.

Nothing else to report. Keep praying for the Cliftons and little Emma as they sort out what they are doing with the monosomy 7 report that came back from her bone marrow aspiration/biopsy. Please keep Delia in prayer as she has begun her journey with here Bone marrow transplant and John Hanna as he recovers from his ear surgery. I could name so many other FA families! Keep them in prayer.

Thanks for checking up on me!

Love Charisse