What a difference a year makes.

Thank you to Mr C and Mr M, surgeons; Dr G, nuclear physician; and Nurse R, nurse specialist in thyroid cancer.

progressing and plodding

Not so much progress on the quilting front this week. I finished stitching the binding down on the pictoral BOM quilt, but haven't done the label yet. I keep looking at it and can't make my mind up as to whether it needs a bit more work in the white corners of each small block or not. I think a small white flower in each corner might look nice, but I can't find a design I like that fits. More rummaging needed in my design books I think.

Next on the list is the Round Robin, but that's ground to a halt until I can find the right thread to work with. I'm looking for a variegated thread that's in greens AND browns. Not difficult. Not greens, not browns, but greens and browns. Might have to keep looking for that! I've stay stitched around each heart using my normal bobbin thread, which gives them a bit more definition.

This week I'm planning to make a start on unpicking the ghastly borders I put on the lovely salmon and chocolate top. I really could do with some more fabrics to use for the border, not much idea what to do as I've not got a lot of the original pieces left and they were a gift in a Secret Santa swap a couple of years ago.

Mike and I went for another long walk around Saltram this morning, it's about 7-8 miles right round, so I've admitted in public now that I'm planning to do the Beachy Head Marathon. It can be done as a walker, which is what I'm planning.

My final update this week is on my ongoing battle with the complexities of the NHS! I'm booked in to see an ENT surgeon on Thursday for discussion as to what he thinks is the best way to progress with the tumours in my lymph nodes. I'm leaning towards asking for them all to be removed as soon as possible rather than waiting for what could be another couple of years then finding that the cancer has recurred and I need to have another single node removed.

reporting in again

See, I'm doing well at keeping the blog updated on a more regular basis this year!

This week's quilty report is that I've finished the autumn runner. I slip stitched the binding down during the week, and have to admit I'm really pleased with it. I'm quite glad I used the paper leaves as guides for doing the FMQ, I'm really not that confident that I'd be able to do them all free hand and get a nicely balanced spread of them through the piece. Hopefully as I keep on trying, I'll get more confident at being able to do more work without paper or drawn guides. I'm quite happy to use guides when I need to though! If I was to do it again, I'd spend a bit more time looking for a quilting thread with a higher contrast to my fabric. Both thread and fabric are orange-red based with bits of green and yellow thrown in, so the quilting doesn't stand out as much as it could. However, for a first attempt at this style I'm thrilled with it. I could also have a go at hyper quilting some of the leaf veins in a higher contrast thread to add some definition.



My second quilt project has been to assemble the main body of the Japanese taupe quilt from a jelly roll I bought in Birmingham. I need to press it and add the borders. No idea how I'm going to quilt this either. Something oriental is the obvious thing, but apart from that I've no firm ideas.

Other big news is I've got a new appointment with my surgeon for Monday...the previous one was cancelled because of the snow. It seems like such a long time since I was referred what with Christmas coming in the mean time. I'm hoping to get the results of the MRI in December, and also a date for surgery on the "lesions" in my neck. Dr G mentioned needle aspiration as a possible first step, but after my experince before my thyroidectomy I'd rather they just went straight for surgery. With any luck Mr C will be able to give me an early date and I can get back on with the rest of my life.

Thyroid update and a bit whiny

Sorry, this is going to be a totally self indulgent whine. I'm waiting for a week of injections, blood tests and scans to determine if the radio iodine treatment I had in January has worked. It's coming up next week, and frankly I'm terrified of what they might find. Work has been pretty quiet so every time I have nothing to do my mind has been drifting to what's coming up. I ended up making loads of stupid mistakes and forgettng to double check what I have done, so I've had my manager on my back, yelling across the office at me and on one occasion across the main corridor. I was on my mobile to the hospital trying to sort appointment dates and put it down the second a customer came in the shop.

I'm struggling to make simple decisions (what to make for tea, what colours to use in a quilt, what to wear for a run) and panicking about stupid things. Because I've been so scared about what they might find and that I might have to go through radio again, it's been coming out as anger, and I've been veering between bursting into tears and snapping people's heads off. I eventually went to see my GP who has signed me off with stress for a couple of weeks which has given me a breathing space, and I'm going to see him again this afternoon to see if he'll extend it till after next week's tests. I'm also going to ask about anti depressants. Hubby phoned the nuclear medicine to check how long I'd be waiting for the results, and it seems that I should get the in the middle of the week after.

Some photos to make up for the whine, I've been following the Carol Doak scenic block of the month, here's some of the blocks so far.

Back racing!

Sunday was my first race since having my thyroidectomy. I've been training half heartedly throughout all the treatment, but was finding it really difficult to be enthusiastic about it. I'd booked in for two other races before now, the first one should have been on January 4th, but this was the day before I had the radio iodine, so I'd been off all medication for 2 weeks, and was sleeping for nearly 18 hours every day. Not the best conditions for running a 10K race! The second was even worse timing...the morning after the Christmas party from work. I still maintain I wasn't hungover, I was just tired, but either way, we didn't make it to the race.

No excuses for this time however, it started less than 3 miles from home. I'd planned to jog round and just enjoy being racing again. It was a glorious spring morning so I was more enthusiastic than I'd expected, and I trotted round in 1:12. Not my fastest time, but not my slowest either.



I've got a 10 miler in 2 weeks!

Baby quilt news...I've finished one and only have hand sewing left to do on the other one. I'm thrilled with how they're looking. I've enjoyed doing the prairie point finish on the border. I think this is one I'll be using again.

More thyroid news.

Backdate to early November.

I went in to the local hospital on November 11th for my thyroidectomy. This is the first stage of my cancer treatment, and will be followed in January by a dose of radioactive iodine. I was told to be at the clinic to see the surgeon at 7.45am, but didn't go down to theatre until gone 1pm.

I was back on the ward around 4.30pm with an IV drip, morphine pump and a drain. Dreadful night's sleep, every time anyone came in the bay, I woke up, couldn't get comfy due to wires and tubes and the staff having to wake me for post op obs. Mike came in to see my in the early part of the evening but I know I slept through his visit.

I was reviewed by the surgical team on the Wedesday who took bloods for calcium levels as I was getting pins and needles in both hands and around my lips. No chance of discharge on Wednesday but if the drain reduced the amount of fluid being collected each hour, I could go on Thursday. Drips and morphine taken out mid morning and I was able to get dressed and start moving a bit. The drain came with me in my back pocket! Eventually it came out shortly before the family visited me.

Once I was free of tubes, the worst thing was the boredom! I read 2 books, magazines and played online. I'd forgotten how much I treasure my ability to be active! Now I'm back home, all I want to do is sleep! I spent the first 2 weeks lounging and being incapable of any housework or anything really. Now I'm gradually able to do more, but typically I'm pushing myself to do more, so I'm even more wiped out!

Getting better slowly now though!

Mass update coming soon

Ooops, I'd not realised it's been such a long time since I last posted. To save having one mahoosive War and Peace sized post, I'm going to post lots of shorter ones over the next few days.

Coming soon: New Sewing Machine!, Operation!, More Quilting!, Race and Social Meeting!, My Birthday!, Driving Test News!