Category Archives: Maddie

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Surprise ending to the week

Chemo is finished. Yeah!

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On Friday I was due to have my first chemo f round 6 with 2 to go after thus ending on 16 September. My oncologist Dr Gary Richardson said no we were cancelling 2nd and 3rd treatments because of the bad neuropathy I have in my feet. What he then told me was a bit of a shock and that is I am still going to have treatments (but not chemo) every three weeks until I think he said June 2017.

He assured me he did tell me in the beginning but admitted he hadn’t mentioned it since. Anyway the angiogenesis treatment I think called Avastin does not compromise immune system and now my hair can grow back as it was – hopefully. I have to admit I am pleased as it means I have my blood checked each 3 week visit and I think I will feel more secure in a doctor’s care for some more time. The treatment and doctor’s visit will only be an hour so really in and out. Only issue is that I have plan my life around the three weekly treatments. Not sure what happens over Christmas. Next visit I will ask how we do it, just miss it completely or do another week …

No more frozen hair so can retire the mink hat. Usually stop at New Street bottle shop on way home to stock up on French wine. To celebrate we decided to have a drink and yummy nibbles there. What with wine and happy pills I was very happy!!

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Sorry importing these photos drives me crazy – they are right way up in draft and preview then when I publish they go sideways. Sometimes I seem to get it so I will have to work on it – maybe I am still too happy today as pills go for 2 days!

It is good to see the NY gang having fun in the Hamptons (do you mind?) before school starts. It is great news about Sophie’s luck getting into a great class plus two clever girls, Sarah and Hannah getting into the selective school they wanted. Hoping that Charlotte also gets into a class she likes and Baxter as well.

Two family birthdays this week. Thanks to everyone for my happy birthday wishes and gifts. Liz looks like she had lots of attention from the cake I saw on Facebook. I am now planning for my bucket list birthday next year. Have done a deal with the Ritz Paris already. Numbers were down i Paris this summer and from what I have read the luxury hotels are hurting. They have another luxury one, The Crillon, on Place Concord due to open soon after being closed for 3 to 4 years of renovation.

Maddie had a bit of bad news medically. She didn’t come to work on Thursday and it seems she has gall stone and will need an operation. She is only 19 years old.

It is business as usual at PPG. Peter continues to do well. Rebecca is on the road to recovery and they are now planning where they will go in Europe when Rebecca finishes up next March.

Today is Fathers’ Day and I took Erich to a French restaurant, Noir, in Swan Street Richmond to thank him for 20 years of being a pretty good step-father and Opa.

On the way home from lunch I tried to catch a snap shot of corner of Chapel and Toorak Roads (photo taken from Chapel Street side). The Fun Factory building has finally gone. They had two goes at selling the 500 apartments which are going to be built on the site. They had Charlize Theron as the face of their second go – I am sure she is not going to have one in there so why her image was plastered everywhere ?? Anyway remember all those trips to the Fun Factory, roller skating and the gun gallery? It seemed such a long trip from Sandringham/Highett back when!

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Kate strikes again! Now she is off to China for one of her unbelievable runs. Good luck. Your mother will be holding her breath until she knows you are safe! I hear knitting is the new hot challenge!!

love you.

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Paris, here we come …

5 Week Chemo Break

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I was so excited last Friday to finish Round 4 of my chemo treatment. As luck would have it because of the dates of our trip I am now getting a five week break. So I have three weeks to get into top shape before we leave. My skin is still an issue but hopefully this break will help.

Both Charlotte and Sarah are thinking about their packing. It is quite a challenge for me to go to Europe with only carry on luggage but I am determined to do it. Erich keeps asking about the return trip with the ‘goodies’ but I intend using the post if we buy stuff that won’t fit into the luggage.

I am so excited and I have really enjoyed finding lots of fun and interesting things for us to do. Most of the activities I would have not known even existed but for one lucky contact which then led to another. Even people who know Paris didn’t know that there were private tours of La Tour Eiffel. We are also doing children’s treasure hunts with our own private guide at Le Louvre and Musée D’Orsay – lots of fun hopefully. And lots of other surprises. (We are spending their inheritance!)

Everyone seems so busy. The Gowdeys with James’ s birthday and the end of the school year. Also the round of farewells and sadness of having to say goodbye to some good friends. That is the downside of being an expat … the continual movement of friends. The Buchanans and Joyces are also on the move. Baxter and Liz at the farm for the weekend, Charlotte and Sophie getting ready for their holiday with their dad. Liz and Baxter off to New York to be joined later by Sophie whilst Charlotte joins Sarah and me for our Paris trip. I hope someone in the family has shares in an airline!

Peter is doing a great job at work. He has brought some real energy into the business at exactly the right time. It has made an enormous difference to my peace of mind particularly now with the medical interruption. Maddie is still working with us on Thursday afternoons. She is enjoying her course.

Liz has shared lots of mini videos through icloud sharing in photos on my phone. I have access to them but I can’t figure out how to move them to my mac. I was able to export the photos and they went automatically to my dropbox but the folder in dropbox which says videos is empty. When I look at them on my phone there is no sharing, export or other button/indication I can see.

I have made an interim video of Baxter at the farm but I will add some of the small videos once I figure out the above.

 

 

 

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Busy Families

Mother's Day, Blue Mountains Racing, Yeah Weekend and more

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Erich and I went to the Park Hyatt for my second Yeah Weekend! We went shopping early Friday afternoon then back for a swim on Friday afternoon then out for dinner at their restaurant. Saturday was a spa then more swimming. Back home then for an afternoon rest before heading into the city again by tram to have dinner at French restaurant then onto the State Theatre for the Carole King Songbook Concert which was great. Three young singers telling the story and singing the songs. I now see that there is also a broadway show about her life which may be following here. I had no idea she had written so many of the songs which went along with my life. 400 hits over fifty years. Amazing.

On Mother’s Day we had a quiet day. I am grateful for my gifts and phone calls and Facetime. Thank you all.

I am now looking ahead to my third Yeah Weekend, not sure what we might do – the fourth will not be a weekend but a trip to Paris. July is getting closer and I am excited.

Maddie is now working at Planinsek Property Group one afternoon a week. She is doing some much needed data entry work. At the moment mostly for Peter but I am waiting in the wings with my data – building up our email lists is the priority at the moment.

Peter continues on his selling way which is great. He has introduced a very positive energy around sales in the office. Great for our business.

The big news is Kate and Sarah coming back for the races in The Blue Mountains. Congratulations to both of them for such a great effort. I wonder if Kate has run out of punishing races?!! I am amazed at what she can do! I’ve made a video The Blue Mountains 2016.

I have now started my third round of chemo and things are going along OK. I have had a terrible skin reaction on my arms which started in Singapore and is now worse. Thankfully with long sleeves it is not so noticeable. It isn’t itchy just looks disgusting.

We are looking forward to Liz and Baxter visiting on Thursday. Rebecca and Peter are helping with the babysitting! A family affair.

 

 

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May Day

Another month gone ...

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I have made another monthly round up video. These are only as good as the photos I get via messages and emails plus what I can lift from Facebook so take more photos! I get a bit tricked on Facebook as something is loaded 2 min ago and then I discover it is actually a couple of year’s old. I think there are a couple of these in this roundup.

Kate organised a weekend in Bali to say farewell to their Scottish friends the Drummond family. It looks so good- in Melbourne we have had a couple lovely sunny almost summer days but now we are back to cold Autumn ones. The trees in our courtyard have lost about half their leaves.

I finished Cycle 2 on Friday with good results so next weekend is what I call a ‘Yeah Weekend’ as I get one Friday off. The first Yeah Weekend we went to Singapore. Not so flash next weekend but we are going to spend Friday night at Park Hyatt. So swimming Friday afternoon, dinner at their restaurant, spa Saturday morning, shopping in the afternoon, French dinner in the city and then onto a show at State Theatre and then home Saturday night after the show.

Maddie is coming to the office Tuesday as Peter may have some data entry work for her to do part time. Really becoming a family business!

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Sharing our News

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Can you please subscribe so you will get an email when I add a post.

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Please add comments to let us know your news. I only just discovered that Liz has just returned from New York, Charlotte, Baxter, Hannah and Sarah B. have been in Tasmania and David was in India this week. I am not sure that comments are working as I think Sarah Gowdey tried when I first started and it didn’t work.

I think I can add comments so I am going to add the last email I received from Maddie as a comment.