Both Sophie and Mike were out all day today - Mikey had two exams and Sophie was covering for Maureen at work who had taken the day off. I dropped them both off and came home to struggle with my assignment as it was overdue!
It's been another beautiful day today with warm temperatures and plenty of sunshine. At lunchtime I had a break and made a batch of choc chip muffins as my parents were due around in the afternoon to see Keith and have a cup of tea with us. After they were baked I finished the hated assignment and then went to put a colour on my hair as I'm fed up with the grey strands coming through!
Keith and I went for a little walk to the end of the estate and while we were reading the notices on the board we saw my Mum and Dad arrive. They were pleased to see Keith up and about and we had a very pleasant chat over tea and gooey muffins.
I went to collect Sophie up from work at 6pm and the sky was very threatening. By the time we'd arrived home it had started raining and over dinner the thunder and lightening arrived. Keith ate dinner with us tonight and Sophie and I celebrated with a cocktail each...I treated my concoction of Vodka, Triple Sec and orange juice with the utmost respect and only had one!
After dinner the storm carried on and going out to put some bottles in our recycling box was a hazardous affair!
Tuesday, 7 June 2016
Monday, 6 June 2016
Coming home!
Michael had an exam first thing this morning so I took him into school and then came home to do the ironing. Once that was finished and I was preparing the vegetables for dinner, the phone rang and it was Keith to say he was ready to come home! I'd spoken to him earlier in the morning and he said he could come home later in the day so I was delighted! My last trip to the hospital!
He was still a bit fragile and begged me to drive slowly and carefully on the way home as he still had a fair bit of pain in his stomach. I'm sure most of it is now down to the incisions rather than trapped wind. We arrived home without any mishaps and I got him settled. He's now my responsibility!
Mike called me to ask me to pick him up from school (so much for getting the school bus!) and on the way home he got very upset about his break-up with Heather which was a bit of a shock. He had a bag of his clothes with him and which he'd left at her house so maybe that was the catalyst for his sadness. Again, what a time to break up!
When I'd picked Keith up the nurse said I had to return to get some more of his medication so after making sure both boys were OK, Sophie and I went to Tesco to buy food for dinner for the next two nights and then to go to the hospital. I asked my lovely daughter to go to the ward for me as I just didn't have any more change for parking and at £3 for 0-3 hours I was loathe to pay for just a few minutes.
Sophie said the ward was hectic but she came out with what he needed and we headed thankfully for home. At last! No more visits!
Back at home we sat in the garden with the cat and soaked up the late afternoon sunshine. Keith didn't want to eat the dinner I'd prepared and I made him a bowl of soup with some bread. He's slowly getting better but I think we seriously under-estimated the effect the operation would have on him...hopefully this time next week he will be well on the way to getting back to normal!
He was still a bit fragile and begged me to drive slowly and carefully on the way home as he still had a fair bit of pain in his stomach. I'm sure most of it is now down to the incisions rather than trapped wind. We arrived home without any mishaps and I got him settled. He's now my responsibility!
Mike called me to ask me to pick him up from school (so much for getting the school bus!) and on the way home he got very upset about his break-up with Heather which was a bit of a shock. He had a bag of his clothes with him and which he'd left at her house so maybe that was the catalyst for his sadness. Again, what a time to break up!
When I'd picked Keith up the nurse said I had to return to get some more of his medication so after making sure both boys were OK, Sophie and I went to Tesco to buy food for dinner for the next two nights and then to go to the hospital. I asked my lovely daughter to go to the ward for me as I just didn't have any more change for parking and at £3 for 0-3 hours I was loathe to pay for just a few minutes.
Sophie said the ward was hectic but she came out with what he needed and we headed thankfully for home. At last! No more visits!
Back at home we sat in the garden with the cat and soaked up the late afternoon sunshine. Keith didn't want to eat the dinner I'd prepared and I made him a bowl of soup with some bread. He's slowly getting better but I think we seriously under-estimated the effect the operation would have on him...hopefully this time next week he will be well on the way to getting back to normal!
Sunday, 5 June 2016
A little wind has to blow...
I took Sophie to work as normal today and before going home I went to Tesco to buy dinner for tonight and to get some other bits and bobs that we needed. In our naivety we honestly thought that Keith would be home on Saturday but seeing how he was yesterday we now think it will be more like Monday or Tuesday.
Before going to see Keith in the afternoon I did some laundry and vacuumed downstairs. I'd spoken to Keith on the phone and he'd said he'd had a bad night and that his blood pressure was quite high this morning. I hated the thought that I had to wait until the afternoon to see him.
Mike said he had a friend coming over in the afternoon to help him revise for his history exam on Monday morning - it turned out the friend was a girl...he has broken up with Heather which is a shame and also very bad timing seeing as they are right in the middle of their GCSEs!
Sophie called to say she could finish work early as they were very quiet (the weather is glorious again) and it was great that she was able to come to the hospital with me. It wasn't the best of visits as Keith was in a lot of pain, both with his throat and his stomach and his tummy felt like he'd swallowed a large beach ball. I massaged the area and it felt very hard. A huge fart would have been great!
We didn't stay for long as Keith wasn't in the best of moods so we left and I said I would return on my own in the evening. Sophie asked me to call into a shop so she could buy a late lunch and like an idiot I decided to head into town by way of Abington Park. I had forgotten that the Race For Life was taking place in the park and the whole area was crammed with cars and thousands of people wearing pink tee-shirts. Both of us felt pretty low and worried about Keith and we just wanted to go home and relax for a while. Sophie bought herself a pasta salad at a nearby Tesco Express and treated me to an ice-cream.
We were able to go home and sit in the garden for an hour and I was relieved to find Mike and his friend revising in the conservatory. I went back to the hospital for the evening visiting time and I encouraged Keith to move his legs about to try and encourage the wind in his tummy to dissipate. I was very happy and relieved to see it had the desired effect but I'm not sure the people visiting the patient opposite appreciated the release of air!!
After this Keith felt a little better so I was able to return home with a lighter heart. Sophie had started the dinner for me (beefburgers, potato wedges and salad) so by 8pm we were eating and enjoying a glass of red wine. After dinner Mike said he wanted to go for a walk so Sophie and I settled down to watch The Good Wife. However, by 10pm Mike still hadn't returned and I was starting to worry. It was still quite light outside but I needed him home as I was thinking about going to bed myself!
Sophie and I walked out of the estate and down to our noticeboard but there was no sign of him. We waited a while and then returned home where I had made the decision to drive into the village. Just as we were getting ready to go he came home and this started an argument between him and Sophie who had been just as worried as me. He said he'd gone to look for a friend who'd gone missing - why he didn't tell me the truth, I'll never know! Teenagers!
Before going to see Keith in the afternoon I did some laundry and vacuumed downstairs. I'd spoken to Keith on the phone and he'd said he'd had a bad night and that his blood pressure was quite high this morning. I hated the thought that I had to wait until the afternoon to see him.
Mike said he had a friend coming over in the afternoon to help him revise for his history exam on Monday morning - it turned out the friend was a girl...he has broken up with Heather which is a shame and also very bad timing seeing as they are right in the middle of their GCSEs!
Sophie called to say she could finish work early as they were very quiet (the weather is glorious again) and it was great that she was able to come to the hospital with me. It wasn't the best of visits as Keith was in a lot of pain, both with his throat and his stomach and his tummy felt like he'd swallowed a large beach ball. I massaged the area and it felt very hard. A huge fart would have been great!
We didn't stay for long as Keith wasn't in the best of moods so we left and I said I would return on my own in the evening. Sophie asked me to call into a shop so she could buy a late lunch and like an idiot I decided to head into town by way of Abington Park. I had forgotten that the Race For Life was taking place in the park and the whole area was crammed with cars and thousands of people wearing pink tee-shirts. Both of us felt pretty low and worried about Keith and we just wanted to go home and relax for a while. Sophie bought herself a pasta salad at a nearby Tesco Express and treated me to an ice-cream.
We were able to go home and sit in the garden for an hour and I was relieved to find Mike and his friend revising in the conservatory. I went back to the hospital for the evening visiting time and I encouraged Keith to move his legs about to try and encourage the wind in his tummy to dissipate. I was very happy and relieved to see it had the desired effect but I'm not sure the people visiting the patient opposite appreciated the release of air!!
After this Keith felt a little better so I was able to return home with a lighter heart. Sophie had started the dinner for me (beefburgers, potato wedges and salad) so by 8pm we were eating and enjoying a glass of red wine. After dinner Mike said he wanted to go for a walk so Sophie and I settled down to watch The Good Wife. However, by 10pm Mike still hadn't returned and I was starting to worry. It was still quite light outside but I needed him home as I was thinking about going to bed myself!
Sophie and I walked out of the estate and down to our noticeboard but there was no sign of him. We waited a while and then returned home where I had made the decision to drive into the village. Just as we were getting ready to go he came home and this started an argument between him and Sophie who had been just as worried as me. He said he'd gone to look for a friend who'd gone missing - why he didn't tell me the truth, I'll never know! Teenagers!
Saturday, 4 June 2016
In a pickle at the Chinese...
Sophie and I didn't have to be up early this morning so we were able to have a lazy start to the day, which was lovely. Mike was still at his friend's house but called me to ask him to pick him up at about 10am. He came home and said that the party he'd been to hadn't been that good, poor thing!
After he'd showered and had something to eat we dropped him off in Brixworth again on the way to the hospital. The grey, overcast morning had given way to a beautiful warm and sunny afternoon - let's hope it stays like that!
We were delighted to see Keith sitting in a chair at the foot of his bed looking really perky and wearing his own clothes rather than the hospital gown. He appeared to be much better and I took a photo of him and Sophie and posted it on Facebook so all his friends could see his progress.
We stayed for a couple of hours but towards the end of our visit he complained of pains in his tummy so we helped him into bed. We all think that it was air trapped in his body as his stomach was quite distended. Air is pumped into the patient's body during an operation so they can move other organs to one side and it seems that this was causing him pain. I said he would go off around the ward like a burst balloon if he wasn't careful!
Sophie and I went to Riverside after hospital and had a cup of tea at Costa. We then made a quick visit to Boots and went home where we just had time to decide what we were going to order from the Chinese van in the village. The plan was to collect Mike from Brixworth, go back to the village and order dinner and then return to the hospital but we decided to call the van from the car-park instead. I have to say I admired Sophie for calling as the man who takes the phone-calls isn't the easiest to talk to! We ordered our meal and then went to find Keith still in pain and looking a bit sorry for himself. We didn't stay too long and Ian (one of his ex-workmates) came to see him after visiting his own daughter who was also in hospital.
As we were a bit earlier than expected we dropped Mike off at home and asked him to set the table before going to collect our order. We could see that the two people were preparing our meals but then a woman appeared from the houses nearby and apologised to me profusely for having a large order. She said she'd just had a baby and had been on the wine and I think she was either a little drunk or a little high...why I needed to know all this I have no idea! She then gave the man a huge order and her boyfriend roared up in his open-top BMW. He shouted out more orders at her which made the poor Chinese man all the more confused! Another woman turned up to collect her meal which she had ordered, like us, earlier in the evening and then a white van arrived and a woman got out with two bags of food and said that her order was wrong!
Talk about a muddle! Sophie and I just stood there and watched the poor Chinese man and his wife get more and more confused but luckily, after only a ten minute wait we received our meal, and amazingly, it was correct! Phew! By now we were both hungry and tired and looking forward very much to a delicious dinner, a glass of wine and something good on the television!
After he'd showered and had something to eat we dropped him off in Brixworth again on the way to the hospital. The grey, overcast morning had given way to a beautiful warm and sunny afternoon - let's hope it stays like that!
We were delighted to see Keith sitting in a chair at the foot of his bed looking really perky and wearing his own clothes rather than the hospital gown. He appeared to be much better and I took a photo of him and Sophie and posted it on Facebook so all his friends could see his progress.
We stayed for a couple of hours but towards the end of our visit he complained of pains in his tummy so we helped him into bed. We all think that it was air trapped in his body as his stomach was quite distended. Air is pumped into the patient's body during an operation so they can move other organs to one side and it seems that this was causing him pain. I said he would go off around the ward like a burst balloon if he wasn't careful!
Sophie and I went to Riverside after hospital and had a cup of tea at Costa. We then made a quick visit to Boots and went home where we just had time to decide what we were going to order from the Chinese van in the village. The plan was to collect Mike from Brixworth, go back to the village and order dinner and then return to the hospital but we decided to call the van from the car-park instead. I have to say I admired Sophie for calling as the man who takes the phone-calls isn't the easiest to talk to! We ordered our meal and then went to find Keith still in pain and looking a bit sorry for himself. We didn't stay too long and Ian (one of his ex-workmates) came to see him after visiting his own daughter who was also in hospital.
As we were a bit earlier than expected we dropped Mike off at home and asked him to set the table before going to collect our order. We could see that the two people were preparing our meals but then a woman appeared from the houses nearby and apologised to me profusely for having a large order. She said she'd just had a baby and had been on the wine and I think she was either a little drunk or a little high...why I needed to know all this I have no idea! She then gave the man a huge order and her boyfriend roared up in his open-top BMW. He shouted out more orders at her which made the poor Chinese man all the more confused! Another woman turned up to collect her meal which she had ordered, like us, earlier in the evening and then a white van arrived and a woman got out with two bags of food and said that her order was wrong!
Talk about a muddle! Sophie and I just stood there and watched the poor Chinese man and his wife get more and more confused but luckily, after only a ten minute wait we received our meal, and amazingly, it was correct! Phew! By now we were both hungry and tired and looking forward very much to a delicious dinner, a glass of wine and something good on the television!
Friday, 3 June 2016
Recovering
I didn't have a brilliant night's sleep last night as I was worried the phone was going to ring. Silly I know but it is a very worrying time at the moment. However, I spoke to Keith first thing and although he still sounded extremely drunk (the morphine I think) he was fine and had had a good night.
I took Mike into school for another revision session and Sophie into work and then came home to have a bath. Right in the middle of soaping myself the phone rang again and it was Keith asking me to take in towels and more pants for him. Sophie had spoken to him and was a bit shocked by how he sounded so she was quite upset. I told her not to worry and that he would need time to get over the anaesthetic. He was out for quite a while so would still be very groggy!
At 11.30am I collected Mike from school and made him some lunch. We then went into hospital at 1pm and took a load of stuff with us. Keith was still connected to a load of tubes and was very sleepy but the nurses said they were going to move him to another ward later in the day as he was doing well.
Mike was a bit bored and, like me, hates hospitals, so we popped to the cafe for a drink then went back up to see Keith. He was just about to be moved but we said we would go and that I would return later in the day with Sophie.
Mike was off to a party in the evening so I dropped him off in Brixworth then went to collect Sophie from work. As I arrived in the car park I could hear a very loud alarm and as I was parking all the customers started streaming out of the fire exit door. Sophie ran over and asked if I could help but as it's been almost ten months since the new owners took over I felt there was little I could do. I did go and see Maureen and I showed her what I used to do but it made no difference! The noise was ear-splitting!
Suddenly it stopped and it turned out that the nursery had gone home and had set the alarm! Why on earth they did that at 5.30pm on a Friday night is beyond me! With the panic over the customers went back inside and Sophie and I went off to the hospital. I was pleasantly surprised by the number of spaces in the car park and we found Keith's ward very easily. He was right by a window but was sweating quite a lot so we washed his face with a cool flannel and I washed his arms and put some deodorant on him.
He was still a bit sleepy but looked brighter than he had yesterday which was great. We stayed until 7pm then drove home to put the dinner on and to pour ourselves a much needed glass of wine!
I took Mike into school for another revision session and Sophie into work and then came home to have a bath. Right in the middle of soaping myself the phone rang again and it was Keith asking me to take in towels and more pants for him. Sophie had spoken to him and was a bit shocked by how he sounded so she was quite upset. I told her not to worry and that he would need time to get over the anaesthetic. He was out for quite a while so would still be very groggy!
At 11.30am I collected Mike from school and made him some lunch. We then went into hospital at 1pm and took a load of stuff with us. Keith was still connected to a load of tubes and was very sleepy but the nurses said they were going to move him to another ward later in the day as he was doing well.
Mike was a bit bored and, like me, hates hospitals, so we popped to the cafe for a drink then went back up to see Keith. He was just about to be moved but we said we would go and that I would return later in the day with Sophie.
Mike was off to a party in the evening so I dropped him off in Brixworth then went to collect Sophie from work. As I arrived in the car park I could hear a very loud alarm and as I was parking all the customers started streaming out of the fire exit door. Sophie ran over and asked if I could help but as it's been almost ten months since the new owners took over I felt there was little I could do. I did go and see Maureen and I showed her what I used to do but it made no difference! The noise was ear-splitting!
Suddenly it stopped and it turned out that the nursery had gone home and had set the alarm! Why on earth they did that at 5.30pm on a Friday night is beyond me! With the panic over the customers went back inside and Sophie and I went off to the hospital. I was pleasantly surprised by the number of spaces in the car park and we found Keith's ward very easily. He was right by a window but was sweating quite a lot so we washed his face with a cool flannel and I washed his arms and put some deodorant on him.
He was still a bit sleepy but looked brighter than he had yesterday which was great. We stayed until 7pm then drove home to put the dinner on and to pour ourselves a much needed glass of wine!
Thursday, 2 June 2016
Operation Keith
So today was the day I'd been dreading and Keith was up at 5am getting ready for his admission into hospital.
I woke up at 6am and had a quick shower and we both left the house before 7am. We parked very easily and walked over to the admissions department where we took a seat in the waiting room. I didn't know whether I'd have to say goodbye to him there, but a nurse called us into another room with beds and said I could accompany him.
We were both a little nervous but Keith tried to make jokes as he always does. A nurse came to take all his details and brought him a gown, compression stockings (lovely!) and some slipper socks so he wouldn't slip on the hospital floors.
Once he'd seen the Consultant and the Anaesthetist, he changed out of his clothes and into the gown and stockings. It was very difficult putting the stockings on and I was glad I was there to help him. Some people waiting for an operation were completely on their own. The consultant had spelled out all the risks to us both which made for alarming news and I suddenly realised what a serious operation it was. He would be in theatre for about four hours and was having a general anaesthetic, the first he's had since he was about 16.
As it was getting on for 9am now I had no choice but to say goodbye. Keith looked nervous which upset me a bit as he's very much one for putting on a brave face. I said goodbye and then went home to take Sophie to work. I didn't tell her about the risks as there was no point worrying her as well, but I wished fervently that she wasn't working today! Mike was at home but kept to his bedroom so I had a very anxious morning waiting for news.
Finally, at just after 1pm the Consultant called to say the operation had gone well and that they were just finishing up in theatre. I was mightily relieved! I called my Mum to let her know and then went to check my emails and to my astonishment found a message from our Accountant saying there was a possible job for me in his office. That was completely out of the blue!
It's been a good day all round as Sophie received an A grade in her Marketing exam so she was really pleased. I have no idea what to do about the possible job but I replied to say that I'll go down and see him and take it from there.
I was able to go and see Keith in the afternoon and he'd been put in a bed on the High Dependency Ward. He was very groggy and his face was quite puffy but he was in good spirits even though he was in a fair amount of pain. I stayed with him until almost 6pm and took back all the nightwear and underwear that he'd taken in with him. The nurses were very good and he was right opposite the station so they'll be keeping a good eye on him.
As I was a little early for Sophie I had a cup of tea and chatted to Maureen before we headed home. As Keith is not here for dinner tonight we had meatballs and pasta - the meal we always have if Keith is not dining with us!
I woke up at 6am and had a quick shower and we both left the house before 7am. We parked very easily and walked over to the admissions department where we took a seat in the waiting room. I didn't know whether I'd have to say goodbye to him there, but a nurse called us into another room with beds and said I could accompany him.
We were both a little nervous but Keith tried to make jokes as he always does. A nurse came to take all his details and brought him a gown, compression stockings (lovely!) and some slipper socks so he wouldn't slip on the hospital floors.
Once he'd seen the Consultant and the Anaesthetist, he changed out of his clothes and into the gown and stockings. It was very difficult putting the stockings on and I was glad I was there to help him. Some people waiting for an operation were completely on their own. The consultant had spelled out all the risks to us both which made for alarming news and I suddenly realised what a serious operation it was. He would be in theatre for about four hours and was having a general anaesthetic, the first he's had since he was about 16.
As it was getting on for 9am now I had no choice but to say goodbye. Keith looked nervous which upset me a bit as he's very much one for putting on a brave face. I said goodbye and then went home to take Sophie to work. I didn't tell her about the risks as there was no point worrying her as well, but I wished fervently that she wasn't working today! Mike was at home but kept to his bedroom so I had a very anxious morning waiting for news.
Finally, at just after 1pm the Consultant called to say the operation had gone well and that they were just finishing up in theatre. I was mightily relieved! I called my Mum to let her know and then went to check my emails and to my astonishment found a message from our Accountant saying there was a possible job for me in his office. That was completely out of the blue!
It's been a good day all round as Sophie received an A grade in her Marketing exam so she was really pleased. I have no idea what to do about the possible job but I replied to say that I'll go down and see him and take it from there.
I was able to go and see Keith in the afternoon and he'd been put in a bed on the High Dependency Ward. He was very groggy and his face was quite puffy but he was in good spirits even though he was in a fair amount of pain. I stayed with him until almost 6pm and took back all the nightwear and underwear that he'd taken in with him. The nurses were very good and he was right opposite the station so they'll be keeping a good eye on him.
As I was a little early for Sophie I had a cup of tea and chatted to Maureen before we headed home. As Keith is not here for dinner tonight we had meatballs and pasta - the meal we always have if Keith is not dining with us!
Wednesday, 1 June 2016
Getting ready...
Today has been taken up with preparing for Keith to go into hospital tomorrow and it's been manic, to be honest!
Sophie and Hannah slept in until quite late and were just getting themselves a coffee when Keith and I left to go to Jones's. We needed some batteries and other bits and bobs and we also had to go over to the bank at the Weston Favell Centre. I have to say that the improvements they've made to the car park and the actual shopping mall itself have been lovely and it's looking much more modern and refreshed now. Sometimes I don't actually mind going there!
After Jones's we returned home so that Sophie could come shopping with us. We went to Tesco first as I was dying for a cup of coffee and Keith treated Sophie to a bacon roll. She was hungover hungry! The girls didn't have a lot to drink last night but I think it was the lack of sleep that was making my daughter a bit groggy this morning!
Once the shopping was all done it was home to unpack and Mike said he wanted to go and see a friend and could I take him into town? I agreed but it meant I was late getting back and had to squeeze in a quick sandwich before Sophie and I went to give blood at 4.30pm.
The session was running half an hour late due to an accident with the tea urn earlier in the day so we were held up until after 5pm. It was quite a relief to lie back and donate a pint and even nicer afterwards to sit and drink a cup of tea with a biscuit! We left in the rain and drove to East Hunsbury on the other side of Northampton to pick up Mike who had taken a bus to his friend's house from town. Getting back home in heavy traffic and pouring rain was not pleasant!
On the way we witnessed an accident that must have just happened...a car was on its side on the road but it looked like the woman driver was just shaken up and not hurt, thank goodness! Whether the slippery, wet roads were to blame I don't know but I took things a bit more easily after that!
Sophie and Hannah slept in until quite late and were just getting themselves a coffee when Keith and I left to go to Jones's. We needed some batteries and other bits and bobs and we also had to go over to the bank at the Weston Favell Centre. I have to say that the improvements they've made to the car park and the actual shopping mall itself have been lovely and it's looking much more modern and refreshed now. Sometimes I don't actually mind going there!
After Jones's we returned home so that Sophie could come shopping with us. We went to Tesco first as I was dying for a cup of coffee and Keith treated Sophie to a bacon roll. She was hungover hungry! The girls didn't have a lot to drink last night but I think it was the lack of sleep that was making my daughter a bit groggy this morning!
Once the shopping was all done it was home to unpack and Mike said he wanted to go and see a friend and could I take him into town? I agreed but it meant I was late getting back and had to squeeze in a quick sandwich before Sophie and I went to give blood at 4.30pm.
The session was running half an hour late due to an accident with the tea urn earlier in the day so we were held up until after 5pm. It was quite a relief to lie back and donate a pint and even nicer afterwards to sit and drink a cup of tea with a biscuit! We left in the rain and drove to East Hunsbury on the other side of Northampton to pick up Mike who had taken a bus to his friend's house from town. Getting back home in heavy traffic and pouring rain was not pleasant!
On the way we witnessed an accident that must have just happened...a car was on its side on the road but it looked like the woman driver was just shaken up and not hurt, thank goodness! Whether the slippery, wet roads were to blame I don't know but I took things a bit more easily after that!
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