Viewing posts tagged family
James had his Bone Marrow Biopsy (which happens routinely every 3 months) and Lumbar Puncture (and monthly intravenous chemo!) last week. The operation went smoothly, although he felt a lot more queasy than usual and ended up throwing up all over the car. David had to go straight off to conduct an interview after dropping us at home ... so it made it interesting for him with the state of the car!!!!) We got the results on Tuesday, telling us that he is still clear from leukemia! The Prof (his doctor in charge of his treatment) explained to us that we are exactly where you should be ... but you've got a long road left to walk! These were honest, but sobering words for us and reminded us of the continued need for prayer in many dimensions! We thank God that He is our strong foundation, never shifting or 'wobbled' by events or difficult happenings!
Unfortunately we've all come down with colds this week. James woke up crying on Thursday night with a sore ear from an ear infection. He saw his paediatrician the next day with the nice side-benefit that she saw how he's been limping. So he's going to see a physio some time which may help. It's a nice relief to feel that we have some medical support on this.
For anyone who didn't see - we had a wonderful family holiday in the UK in July / August - there are photos of our time in London (including James's excitement at seeing Big Ben), Shetland and Bedford).
We had a wonderful holiday at Volmoed in Hermanus. It's a most beautiful Christian retreat center in the Hemel-en-Aarde (Heaven and Earth) valley that we've been to for church camps and also for holidays from time to time, so it was so lovely to go back there. We also had an afternoon at the beach which was just lovely for James and Charis...
Danielle's parents have just been for two weeks and it was such a precious time - full of all kinds of activities from her dad making a model boat with James, to Danielle speaking on a students camp, to visiting penguins at the beach, to having a birthday party for James and Charis with both grandparents there for the first time. We just said goodbye to them and we're off tomorrow for a week to Hermanus to stay in a beautiful place in the mountains with lots of ducks! Very exciting...
We had a fantastic day on Wednesday celebrating James's birthday. His bedroom and the lounge got decorated the night before with streamers and balloons; he had breakfast in bed (and we all joined him); and I took the day off so we could all have fun together.
We went to Aunty Elle for morning tea, then off to the Scratch Patch at the Waterfront where we all had lots of fun collecting semi-precious stones.
Fish and chips for lunch (although James didn't want any) and then James and Charis were both so tired they fell asleep in the car. We went to century city, put Charis in her pram and James in a trolley (with a blanket!) and let them both sleep while we had a drink together (a nice unexpected treat!)
Then we went to the Science Center which is basically a gigantic play area so that although little kids may not appreciate everything that's being taught through the activities they can certainly have fun!
Visited the Loizides on the way home and then had Gramps and Granny round for pizza in the evening - and James even ordered it over the phone! (With some coaching from mum...)
There's definitely something special about taking time out to celebrate!
It's quite an adjustment... James being on maintenance means he's freer to do things with other people, eat more food, etc...
Last weekend was amazing - going to church for the first time together as a family - not being able to go has been hard and it was amazing being there. We also went to the aquarium, visited a few friends, and went to one of his friend's birthday parties - quite a gear shift!
We went away for the weekend with Ulrik and Andrea and stayed in Betty's Bay. Seems a bit crazy with only 11 days to go now before we leave and much to do - but it was actually brilliant to just have relaxed time with friends and I don't think we would have had that otherwise! James and Charis loved their little Staffy puppy called Mimi. We went for a walk to Disa Kloof and saw some baboons on the way back.
Went to a local nursery today with James where they have pigs, ducks, rabbits, you name it. Some of the ducks are really ugly! It was lots of fun wandering around ... Have uploaded some photos which you can see in the image galleries or by clicking on the 19th of August on the right...