Easter

Richard's choir had two outdoor gigs at the Folk Festival on Good Friday. Sylvia and I got there after church and in time for the second gig. The choir sang well. We all had an enjoyable day listening to the different types of music and appreciating the many talented people. We all thoroughly enjoyed the Beatles Singalong. As always, buying our snacks and meals is a highlight. We had our old favourites: German , Turkish, Ethiopian and Dutch, as well as a couple of coffees. I also tasted some delicious Tassie ginger beer.


Today (Easter Saturday) we have arrived in Cronulla to spend a couple of nights overlooking the beach. It is going to be a lovely break for us.


North Cronulla

Gunamatta Bay

What a great view! It was a bit too cool to swim, but it was nice to watch the waves.

We arrived home on Monday in the early afternoon. The roads were busy but the traffic moved steadily. We were thankful to get home safely. Not a great time to be on the roads.

Thursday April 1

Rare photos of Jeni and Paul... taken at the wedding reception on Sunday.







Thursday:
I spent today at school. I have been filling in while a colleague is on leave. She takes small groups and individual students. It's been a pleasant week, with a half day of teaching and three days of assisting in the Enrichment program.
I started the new medication this week. It's called Arimidex. The plan is that I am on this medication for five years. It's really nice to have all the treatment decisions made now. There should be no more changes, unless I have intolerable side effects on this new medication. So far, so good. Only regular check-ups from now on! It's a good feeling.

We are going to spend three nights in Sydney at Paul and Jeni's beach-side apartment. This is ideal for us to take a breather and relax while looking at the ocean. The National Folk Festival is on in Canberra this weekend. I originally wanted to go to that, but my fitness level is not quite adequate to really enjoy the whole weekend there. Taking into account the circumstances of the last six months, the mini beach-side holiday is "just what the doctor ordered". Thanks Paul and Jeni. We appreciate your generosity.

Sarah and James' Wedding

Sunday March 28
What a wonderful celebration!
More photos of the actual bride and groom, and others, to come.
In the meantime...

Deirdre, Avril, Sarah, Emma and Paul.

Mum and Dad made a handsome couple at the wedding

Rick and me at the reception. Dad, Jeni and Sylvia and a bit of Paul in the reflection.

The food was delicious and abundant!
This was the entree before the actual entree!

Amy's rug

I have finally finished the simple rug I have crocheted for Amy. It was made with her Oma's wool. Her Oma (maternal grandmother) did a lot of knitting and crocheting and often re-used her good quality wool. She was very talented with her hands . Her daughter, Sylvia, has inherited her talents and is, in turn, passing them on to her own daughters.

Friday March 26

Where did the week go? This week I've had lunch with friends, rested at home and read my book, taught a day and a half , and am off to the GP today. This visit is to find out the results of the blood test. These results will determine when I swap to a different hormone therapy drug that they think is more effective for me. If all goes well, I will start on this drug straight away and be on it for the next five years.
The teaching was enjoyable after such a long break. I missed going to my regular Thursday study group though. Hope to teach on days other than Thursdays next term!
Looking forward to attending the wedding of our nephew James and his lovely bride-to-be Sarah, who will be married on Sunday in Sydney.

An enjoyable week

I took some photos of our back garden at about 6pm the other night. The crepe murtles are coming out and the trees are getting rather large now!


















I spent Wednesday resting at home. It was great to be able to stay home after the Sydney trip the previous day.

On Thursday March 18, I went to see the oncologist. Rick came along. It was reassuring to have another set of listening ears. The purpose was to check that all is well and to discuss switching to the post-menopausal drug which they planned for me to be on after my second surgery had been completed. I realised, after the appointment, that all the decisions about my treatment have been made. This was a big relief. No more big decisions on my part, just regular check-ups from now on and five years of taking the medication. I just need to get blood test results and see my GP, and then it should be all plain sailing on the new medication.

Thursday was a full day as I went from the specialist to the Thursday morning tea and study group at church. After that it was lunch at the Portrait Gallery with Sylvia and Penny, followed by a tour, with Penny, of the special exhibition at the National Gallery: "Masterpieces from Paris". It was most enjoyable. We were very fortunate to get into the exhibition with only about a 10-15 minute wait. On the weekends, many have spent up to 3 hours or more, waiting in line! Our friends, from Sydney, gave up without seeing the exhibition last weekend.

On Friday I had a call to teach at school! This was my first time since all the treatment started last year. I had a very pleasant day and it was a good test of how much I have recovered so far. I managed well. I did notice that I was slowing down a bit towards the afternoon! I fitted in a blood test and a "drink" with the staff after school When I came home I had a good long rest and felt fine. This is good news!

Avril arrives home

Yesterday I had a lovely treat... a trip to Sydney with Lee and Kate. We spent about 7 hours travelling , with morning and afternoon tea stops in Berrima, and 5 hours actually in Sydney. Lee and Kate went shopping after dropping me off at Deirdre and Paul's house.

It was a special day, as Avril had just returned on an early morning flight from USA. She had spent the last year there. I was able to see her and catch up with the family. I then spent a couple of hours with Mum and Dad in Lugarno.
It was such a good day.


Mum, Avril, Dad and Deirdre

It was nice to be there for the "coming home" celebrations

March 13 & 14 - a full weekend

On Saturday some friends got together at Sylvia's to welcome Penny, who is visiting from the UK. We had a great day together. We ate, talked, sang Abba songs, some swam and we all enjoyed each other's company. I came home feeling thankful that I have such a wonderful bunch of friends!


This was at brunch. Others joined us later on.




I also had the opportunity to catch up with two friends who were visiting Canberra for the weekend. We first met Peter and Jenny when we lived in Michigan, USA. They now live in Sydney after many years in USA.

I stayed with them twice, in San Francisco, when I went to visit about 5 years ago. We had great fun then and it was lovely to sit and chat with Jenny over coffee ( indoors), while Peter and his friends (the ones with the hats!) rode around Lake Burley Griffin.
It was quite cool and overcast when they set off, but I think the afternoon would have become warmer and a bit brighter by the time they were half way around the lake.


Peter looks rather angelic here. While that could be true, I think it's just my bad photography.

On Sunday Rick and I went to early church ( 9am) and then spent the day at Government House. It was the Open Day that is on each year in Canberra Week. We walked through Government House and then walked around the grounds. We enjoyed the entertainment and looking at the vintage cars. Rick's choir sang as part of the entertainment. It was a lovely sunny Autumn day and we enjoyed the time we spent there. I forgot to take the camera with me!

Photos from Stuart and Cherie

Stuart teaches English at this school in Seoul.


Cherie's brother gets married in Feb 2010.
We met Cherie's brother, Seun Geun and his new wife, Jin Young, when we were in Seoul on both occasions. We hope they will be very happy together and we hope that they come to visit us in Canberra sometime.


Cherie looks beautiful at her brother's wedding. She is dressed in a traditional hanbok.


Stuart looked handsome and had the job of signing the groom's wedding guest reception banquet tickets, to allow them to go in to the reception.

Being tourists at home

Saturday 6th March :
Rick and I decided to spend some time being tourists in Canberra. We visited the National Museum of Australia and Civic. We pretended we were in some exciting city in another part of the world. It was fun... and I think slightly cheaper than travelling.











We had lunch in Civic. It was a warm Autumn day.