So January was pretty s**te and, despite my high hopes, February was pretty bloody atrocious. With the death of a relation of my dads – who he and mum were very close to – and then my lovely Auntie L finding a lump that has turned out to be malignant, topping the list of horrible news, it wasn’t a great month. At least we had A’s 18th birthday to look forward to on the 3rd March. Until I caught bloody Covid and scuppered some of the plans. Eff off February.
But, she was still able to get her tattoos done, which look fabulous and she is thrilled with them, and she was still able to go to the party that Ella hosted for her on the Saturday night, despite constant worry from the moment I tested positve to the night itself that she was going to start showing symptoms. Thankfully she, T and K have all seemed to avoid it. I was very good and totally isolated myself as soon as I knew and didn’t even get to hug my lovely girl on her birthday. We had to cancel all family plans – so no meal out on her birthday with M&D and postphoned cake afternoon with P&C. But all was not lost and she still had a great time. The party was a huge success with people telling her it was the best party in ages, due to the Great Gatsby era theme and how much they had all embraced it. The boys all looked like extras from Peaky Blinders and the girls looked stunning. A is part of a great group of friends who all seem to be on the same page with regards to their outlook on life and she is increasingly comfortable in a social situation, possibly helped by the discovery of wine. It’s just a learning curve to know when she’s had enough socialising and planning in recovery days to try and avoid any drastic burnout. It’s so tempting to say yes to everything but she is learning that sometimes saying no is the best thing for her own well-being.
We spent most of last week wondering if she was going to start showing symptoms before our trip to see The Cursed Child. It was booked nearly a year ago and has been much anticipated that it would have been a cruel twist if she had been poorly, but thankfully the day arrived and all was well. We had a brilliant time, and were so engorssed in the action on stage that we hardly noticed how little legroom and how uncomfortable the seats were. We had an amazing view and the show was spectacular. Neither of us really knew what to expect as we had deliberately kept ourselves in the dark about it. But we had high hopes for it and it exceeeded all expectations. Clever, very funny and the staging was incredible – some seriously amazing illusions. We loved it.
We then spent the rest of the weekend with the things we had to reschedule the previous weekend. Unfortunately, my dad had another eye injection on Friday so wasn’t feeling up to the lunch out on Staurday (rearranged from A’s actual brithday) but mum came and then my brother and his wife and my nephew came over for cake in the afternoon. Then Sunday was the turn of K’s brother to come and see us – unfortunately his mum had Covid so we are yet to see his mum and dad – with his wife and their grandson, our great-nephew. He’s such a lovely little boy, a real credit to his amazing mum. By Sunday night I was Knackered with a capital K. Friday had been such a long day and, although all we were doing was eating and talking, the rest of the weekend had really taken it out of me. Factor in a bad nights sleep and I could quite happily have spent yesterday in bed.
Tomorrow my Auntie goes to the hospital to see the consultant and get the results of the array of tests she has had done to see what we are dealing with. It’s so hard with her being all the way down in Cornwall but she is getting fantastic NHS care there and we know she is in the best hands. It would likely have been a very different scenario if she had still been living in Cheshunt. We know it’s not going to be good news but we have to just keep hoping and praying that it isn’t the worst. She has her son P and his family nearby who are a massive support to her and she and Mum speak or text every single day. She knows how much we all love her and Nan will definitely be keeping an eye on things. Thinking positive thoughts.
The diary of a happiness hunter 