Deacon's Diary

Busy but well....

2010-06-17T18:10:00.002+02:00

Back again! I have received a few messages from people who have followed this Blog and were worried when it all went a bit quiet! Thank you for your concerns and I will endeavor once more to post especially when it concerns Karen as so many of you have been very kind with your thoughts and prayers.

Karen is well with the latest set of blood results the best yet. She has her next set of tests on Friday. Unfortunately the recovery of her immune system has led to her developing psoriasis over many parts of her body but in particular her scalp. She has been to the hospital about this but again unfortunately her having had Leukemia means that some of the most effective drugs etc are not suitable. However I am pleased to say that the cream she has been given does seem to be helping.

We are now in the last few weeks of the school year and have been very busy with writing reports, marking tests etc. Next week Karen is away in France with her class. Of course you may remember it was on such a trip last year that she was diagnosed, so she is understandably nervous that all goes well this time.

Finally I have noticed that I have recieved a number of comments in Chinese which I a presume are not real but some form of spam? Has anyone else had these?

A year on.....

2010-06-02T20:36:00.003+02:00

Well I know I have not posted anything for such a long time but today is a special day as it is one year to the day that Karen was diagnosed with Leukemia. I could say much but all I want to really do is thank God for her recovery so far and humbly ask for your prayers once more that she may continue in remission.

The photo is from our visit to Oslo last weekend where we went to see the Eurovision Song Contest, something we promised ourselves we would do.

Ma Nature's lyrical, with her yearly miracle....

2010-03-24T08:28:00.003+01:00

Ok sorry not updated for a while.....

Karen well and has her all important Bone Marrow test next Monday. She had a telephone call from one of her nurses who looked after during her treatment. I am not sure however if she has heard of patient confidentiality as she told Karen about the progress of a number of her fellow patients. This was not good for Karen to hear as it seems Karen is the only one so far who has remained in remission. Please keep praying for all those now facing Bone Marrow transplants and of course for Karen that she continues in remission.

We are now in the last week of the school term and this afternoon it is the spring fair. It was going to be called the Easter Fair but then because of the religious connotations the name was changed - arrgghh! However the English section will be singing 'Easter Parade' with Karen's class wearing the appropriate head care! The whole school will also be singing the rather sickly European Anthem which I think, if he was still alive, Beethoven would have been glad of his deafness! During the past weeks Karen's class has been making decorated candles, cards and picture frames in order to sell at the fair which of course will be brought by their devoted parents just as we will be buying our daughters muffin which she baked in her class.

Weather supposed to be 19 degrees today and Spring seems to have definitely made its appearance. My parents flew in for a week on Monday and will be here to celebrate my birthday on Friday before Karen and I fly off to Prague for the weekend....

karen latest

2010-03-18T14:51:00.001+01:00

Further Blood Test today for Karen. Despite Karen having a "bad feeling" about this, the results were good. We also were able to have some time with the Professor of the department who was concerned about Karen's mental state. She has been having many sleepless nights since coming out of hospital, with recurring nightmares about coffin lids closing on her. She was referred to someone to talk it through but the best he could come up with was to eat more chocolate! The Professor however was much more helpful and we both came away feeling a bit more positive.

Interesting!

2010-03-12T12:26:00.004+01:00

Today at school my Secondary 4 years continued their presentations on World Religion to year 4 of the Primary School - conveniently Karen's class. I gave them a free choice out of all the world's religions however I had hoped that at least one of the major ones would be covered but no we had Religion of the Ancient Greeks (!), Buddhism (not so bad I suppose), Rastafarianism (the picture of the Cannabis leaf had to be cut!) and last but not least - Scientology (thankfully the clip from South Park did not work). Karen and I had our worries and sent out a letter to the parents explaining what we were doing in case they did not want their children to take part. However no one complained and in fact many wrote and said how they thought it was a good idea and wished that the school would do more of it and they think it important that their children are aware of and respect the belief's of others, even Scientologists!

OK............

2010-03-10T08:28:00.003+01:00

Sorry again for lack of updates....

Karen went to the hospital for a further blood test and the results were good, with just one of the tests slightly down. However she has been told that her blood count will never be 'normal' again. Her lung function test also showed that the bronchitis has gone and they were impressed that Karen (who previously has suffered with a pulmonary embolism) has a lung capacity of over 4 and a half litres. Next blood test on the 18th and the lumbar puncture the week after.
I was a bit concerned to find her last night looking up the signs of a relapse from Leukemia, however I am sure we would all do the same...........

We have had blue skies for a week here and snow at the week-end, most of which has thawed, albeit slowly because of the cold temperatures.....School ok we are doing an Easter musical in the primary school called ' Jesus is alive' and yesterday my class were busy making Roman swords and shields etc! Teaching first year of secondary today.

slight concern...

2010-03-04T14:58:00.003+01:00

Karen's Leuko level slightly down following her blood test this morning. She was offered a Lumbar Puncture to put her mind at rest but decided to wait for the result of her next test on Tuesday as the results could be down to her having Bronchitis.ECG result was fine.
Whilst Karen was at the hospital, I met with the new priest of the English Catholic Speaking Parish in Frankfurt. Monsignor Alker was Principal RC Chaplain to the Army and before that was a army chaplain for many years posted in numerous countries throughout the world including here in Germany. I very much enjoyed meeting with him and wish him well and Godspeed in his new ministry in Frankfurt for which I ask your prayers alongside those for Karen.

Bronchitis :(

2010-03-03T10:42:00.003+01:00

Karen was sick yesterday at school and had a severe headache, her cough had also returned. She went to the hospital just to be on the safe side and thankfully the blood results were good with no obvious signs of any Leukaemia. However following further examination it was discovered that she has Acute Bronchitis which was so bad that the Doctor was surprised that it hadn't turned into Pleurisy. She has been given various antibiotics which we think thankfully are already starting to work. She has been signed off for a week but wants to continue at work....I know what can I say!!

We continue to be very stressed and burdened by thoughts of the Cancer returning, please continue to hold us in your prayers. Thanks.

Busy.

2010-02-28T09:10:00.002+01:00

Failing once more in my updates! This is largely due to the fact that I have been setting up a new Facebook group and Twitter page for a challenge I am setting myself in August this year. I and an Anglican priest friend are hoping to climb by bike the famous Mont Ventoux in Provence, France. We are doing it in aid of the Lance Armstrong Foundation and Livestrong in order to help there fight against Cancer. I will try and give more details shortly including how you can sponsor us!

Karen's cough has returned, which concerns me a little. She goes for a blood tests on Thursday although her lumbar puncture has now been out off for another 3 weeks to fit in with the protocol of the trial in which she is partaking.

Better but worried.....

2010-02-24T14:56:00.002+01:00

I am pleased to report that Karen seems much better, with her cough seemingly gone and without intervention from hospital or doctor. Every single thing seems to worry us at the moment and I have to say I am dreading next Thursday when Karen has a Lumbar Puncture and her Bone Marrow is once again checked to see if there are any signs that the Leukemia is coming back. It would of been less of a worry if the last blood results were OK but the last two were not in my opinion all that promising - however I suppose it is not my opinion which really counts.........

Hope its nothing more.....

2010-02-22T15:44:00.002+01:00

Karen not been feeling too well over the past few days. She has had a bad and she says painful cough. She thinks that this is because she has a chest infection and it is painful, because as a result of her low immune system she is not producing any phlegm. She telephoned me earlier today from school and asked me to get a Doctors appointment however I am inisisting we go to the hospital instead as because of the recent low blood counts we can't take any chances...........

Don't hold the front page....

2010-02-20T21:58:00.002+01:00

Not much to report for the last few days. Mirjam and Eloi have been a bit poorly but seem to be feeling better now. As I type Karen is putting together another 'flat pack' from IKEA - our second home....thrilling eh! Hopefully I will have something more interesting to say next week and maybe even the launch of a new blog to accompany a little something I have planned....

Ok in the end (we hope).............

2010-02-18T21:35:00.002+01:00

Karen had her next blood test this morning. We had the results before seeing the doctor and they were not as we had hoped and we began to worry. However the Professor of the Department happened to be passing and he recognised Karen and had a look over her results. He asked if Karen had had a recent infection (she was ill last week) as this could be why the blood count in certain areas was low and told us it was normal and not to worry. In two weeks Karen has a further Lumbar Puncture............

Ashes to Ashes

2010-02-17T22:28:00.001+01:00

Winter barrenness: Last year's welcoming palms are ashes now. We, the walking dead, move forward slowly, silently under the yellow lights. Remember that thou art dust and unto dust thou shaft return. Sealed composed isolate we stumble slightly, finding our way. In each forehead burns a black bullet-hole. That empty third eye, gaping socket, looks into time, into self. Remember that thou art dust Cross. Mark of Cain. We are killers. We are victims. Our deaths acknowledged, we exit into the Lenten night..........

Parties, pancakes and prayers........

2010-02-16T21:38:00.004+01:00

Things getting back to normal here after our very enjoyable but very busy week back in England. On Saturday we said our farewells to my parents and sister and headed to London where I had a rendezvous with a professional cycling friend and picked up a new bike....but more of that hopefully tomorrow! Then onto Dover for the night before catching the ferry to Calais and the long drive to Germany through Belgium and the Netherlands.

Of course this part of Germany for the past few days has been celebrating 'Carnival', with the many famous parades through many of the regions towns and cities. In school on 'Rose' Monday there was an afternoon party where the children dressed up (including my daughter wearing a pink wig - I am not sure if she was supposed to be someone from Hannah Montana or Lady Gaga!) danced and played party games - even Karen joined in the fun as she was dragged onto the stage to take part in the teachers dance!

Today for Shrove Tuesday my class had to think of some things they would like to give up or/and some extra things they would like to do during the season of Lent. We then joined with Karen's class and began practising songs from a musical of the Easter Story which we hope to perform to parents before the Easter holidays.....

Karen well but a little stressed over various things at the moment - not least her next blood test coming up on Thursday. On our return we found a hand written letter in our post box from the Archbishop of Westminster wishing us well and offering his prayers for Karen, he asked us to pray for him too. We will of course pray for him and maybe you too dear reader can also pray for this great servant of the Church.

Back....

2010-02-15T13:05:00.002+01:00

We returned to Germany yesterday will update when I have a few minutes!

Bugs to Blades...................

2010-02-12T11:45:00.002+01:00

A lovely sunny but cold morning here in the West Midlands. Had a good time yesterday in Birmingham and then we met up with Deacon David and Lisa for a meal last night. It was great to see them again and catch up.
Unfortunately it seems Karen has picked up a 'tummy bug' and was sick a number of times last night. As I write she is still in bed and hoping that she will start to feel better soon. We are supposed to meeting more friends near Oxford this evening but will have to see how she feels later. Off with my sister soon to the supermarket and may also be calling in to get some new wiper blades..what an exciting life we lead!

Brum

2010-02-11T11:07:00.004+01:00

We are in Birmingham where yesterday we spent far too much money shopping.... Last night we went to see 'Porridge' at the theatre, it was excellent even though the star of the show was unfortunately ill and an understudy took his place. Afterwards we had a terrific Indian meal. Today yet more shopping and then we are out with my fellow Blogger Deacon David and his wife Lisa this evening.....I have to go now as Karen is moaning that we have to check out of the hotel!

Nine out of Ten Catholics support the Pope!

2010-02-10T10:21:00.002+01:00

Yesterday was spent in supermarkets and other shops buying things that we cannot get hold of in Germany. I also went to the Dentist to have a filling replaced something that is much easier and cheaper to have done in England, how we and our wallets miss the great British National Health Service.....

Last night we went with our nephew to a local pub quiz. We were the leaders after the first round but at the end we came a lowly ninth, never mind it was all good fun and it was nice to have a few pints of English Cider, which is perhaps a heretical thing to say since in Germany we live in an area world famous for its apple wine!

Speaking of heresy, I was dismayed to watch the television here late last night and the 'comedy' quiz show "Nine out of Ten Cats". One of the questions revolved around the backlash surrounding the Pope after urging Catholic bishops in England and Wales to fight the UK's Equality Bill with "missionary zeal". Pope Benedict XVI said the bill - which could end the right of the Church to ban gay people from senior positions - "violates natural law". I was shocked but perhaps not surprised to hear the 'celebrity' team members suggesting that the Pope should "f*** off!" and of course we then had all the old chestnuts about 'pedo priests and 'choir boys'....I think they meant 'altar boys'. Would they dared to have said such things about leaders of the Islamic faith - I think not. The presenter of the show is actually Karen's favourite comedian - Jimmy Carr and he is a catholic albeit in his own admission a 'lapsed' one, a very lapsed one it seems, as later in the show he said he "didn't believe in Jesus"..............

Today we head off the Birmingham to spend the night and do some more shopping. We also have tickets to go and see 'Porridge' at the theatre...lets hope there are no anti-catholic 'jokes' there!

Home Sweet Home...........

2010-02-09T10:03:00.004+01:00

I am writing this at my sisters house, near Redditch, England where we are staying during our half-term break in England. We have palmed the children off to their Grandparents for the week although they are only 10 mins down the road!

We missed our intended ferry across the channel on Saturday morning, partly because (and this is terrible) we were busy on Facebook and partly because I took the wrong turning to the ferry port. Still we eventually saw the white cliffs of Dover and made our way to Wiltshire to stay with my parents-in-law for the weekend. On the way we also took the chance to call into some good friends of ours. At Karen's mum and dads I took the opportunity of using my mother-in-laws superior computer knowledge to update my laptop here to Windows 7 which took most of the day.

Yesterday, following an appointment at the Doctors for me where I had to get a prescription, we called in to see our old parish priest at our last parish in Oxfordshire. It was really good to see Fr.Gerry who was always so kind to us and I have to say I felt a few pangs of wanting to go back, particularly as any form of parish ministry in Germany is just not happening at the moment....

Yesterday after we had dinner with my parents and took my brother who is currently staying there to the pub, we then came to my sisters. Plans for today include getting our English goodies to take back with us to Germany, a visit to the dentist, fish and chips (yummy!) and then off to a quiz night this evening with our nephew.

The other exciting news is that yesterday I got up bright and early and went online to get tickets for the Eurovision Song Contest 2010.......so in May Oslo here we come!

Good news.......

2010-02-05T22:45:00.003+01:00

Just a quick update to say that thankfully Karen's blood test result earlier today was better and she has been given the all clear. The next test is in two weeks.

Now in a hotel in Calais following a long drive from Frankfurt - including an hour stuck on the Brussels ring road - something we swore would never happen to us again! Tomorrow we catch an early morning ferry to Dover and are looking forward to a good week back home with friends and family.

World Cancer Day.........

2010-02-05T09:51:00.005+01:00

Yesterday was World Cancer Day 2010.

Each year, over 12 million people receive a cancer diagnosis and 7.6 million die of the disease.
The good news is that approximately 40% of cancers are potentially preventable and this is this years World Cancer Day's theme focussing on how the risk of developing cancer can significantly be reduced through simple measures such as:

Stopping tobacco use and avoiding exposure to second-hand smoke
Limit alcohol consumption
Avoiding excessive sun exposure
Maintaining a healthy weight, through eating healthily and exercising regularly
Protecing against cancer-causing infections

This, of course, is sound advice but in the next hour we go to the hospital to see if Karen's cancer has come back and for her there seems to have been no reason for her getting this dreadful disease in the first place.................

First attempt....

2010-02-04T12:03:00.001+01:00

Just trying to blog using my mobile phone, so hope it works! In Frankfurt with my son getting various jobs done before we head back to England tomorrow. Very worried about Karen's blood test and praying hard that all will be ok.....

Slightly worried....

2010-02-03T14:52:00.004+01:00

We were at the hospital all morning. Firstly Karen had to have an examination of her Thyroid where it was discovered that she has a small nodule of the left side. Reassuringly the Professor thought the growth "not to be cancerous" but she will probably have to have a biopsy just to be certain. Then Karen had an ECG just to make sure her heart etc are behaving themselves with the drugs she is taking at the moment. Then it was the blood test which showed a drop in the number of white blood cells. The Professor again seemed not be overly concerned but wants Karen to go for a further test on Friday just as a precaution. Although the Professor may not be concerned of course anything that is not quite right makes both of us panic, so I humbly ask again for yours prayers and on this the feast of St. Blaise, it is perhaps appropriate that we call upon his intercession:

O glorious Saint Blaise,
who by thy martyrdom
has left to the Church
a precious witness to the faith,
obtain for us the grace to
preserve within ourselves this divine gift,
and to defend,
without human respect,
both by word and example,
the truth of that same faith,
which is so wickedly attacked
and slandered in these our times.
Thou who didst miraculously cure a little child
when it was at the point of death
by reason of an affliction of the throat,
grant us thy powerful protection in like misfortunes;
and, above all,
obtain for us the grace of Christian mortification together
with a faithful observance of the precepts of the Church,
which may keep us from offending Almighty God.

Amen.

Presenting stress!

2010-02-02T10:06:00.003+01:00

Stress!

Yesterday the buses and some trains were on strike in Frankfurt, which meant Karen was at one stage marooned in the city centre and not able to continue her journey to school. Much panic ensued with a teacher colleague eventually coming to the rescue. This morning we got caught in a very long traffic jam on the motorway due to a car being on fire and again Karen was late for school. Added to this we have no money in the bank due to problems with Karen's wages and we have not been having a great time......It is of course at time such as this that we need to just stop and think what we have a family have gone through during the past year and how unimportant these things are.......

Karen had a telephone call from the hospital on the way to school and she has to go have some tests done tomorrow on her Thyroid and then she has the next Blood Test on Thursday.....more stress then!

This afternoon during my primary class we will be making hand-print turtle doves in order to celebrate today's feast of the Presentation of the Lord...............

To be the mother of her Lord-

What means it?

This, a bleeding heart!

The pang that woke at Simeon's word

Worked inward, never to depart.

The dreadful might of sin she knew

As innocence alone can know:

her its deadliest gloom it threw

As shades lie darkest on the snow.

Yet o'er her sorrow's depth no storm

of earth's rebellious passion rolled:

So sleeps some lake no gusts deform

High on the dark hills' craggy fold.

In that still glass the unmeasured cliff,

With all its scars and clouds is shown:

And, mellowed in that Mother's grief,

At times, O Christ, we catch Thine own.

Aubrey De Vere

"May God who has begun the good work in you bring it to fulfillment."

2010-01-31T02:41:00.002+01:00

It was quite an honor to be invited by Deacon Dale to contribute to this Blog. I have, however, been quite remiss in living up to it! It is my Lenten resolution to post more frequently – at least once a week – providing an update on my formation. I ask you all to keep me in your prayers that I will follow through!

It has been a little more than a year since my last post, so I guess you deserve an update. I am approximately half-way through the formation process. This past Fall, our Bishop admitted 45 of us as candidates for ordination to the permanent diaconate. You can read an article in our diocesan newspaper about the big day here. If you look closely, you will find a photo of yours truly with his family! It was a special day for us all, as it marked the completion of more than two years of formation. While we still have three more years to go, gathering together with family and friends to celebrate the Eucharist was very powerful.

The intellectual aspect of our formation involves the completion of a Master’s degree in Theology. Completing the coursework as a father of four and holding down a fulltime job has been a real challenge! So far, our coursework has included the following:

 History & Theology of the Permanent Diaconate
 Diaconal Spirituality
 Hebrew Scripture
 Christian Scripture
 Philosophical Foundations of Theology

We meet once a month for eight hours of classroom work, and the rest of the work is completed at home, online. I really enjoy our monthly gatherings; it is a blessing to be together with others who are on the same path praying, studying and enjoying each other’s company.

In addition to the academic work, our formation includes spiritual, human and pastoral aspects. I meet regularly with a spiritual director, and meet with a smaller group of candidates to discuss the challenges we face in doing all that we do!

Well, I will sign off for now, with the promise that there will be more to follow in the coming week. If there is anything in particular that you would like to know about my formation, or the Catholic Church in the States in general, please let me know! It is easier for me to write in response to something as opposed to thinking something up!

Peace!!!

Snow and Second Life..........

2010-01-31T00:52:00.005+01:00

Just a quick one as it ten to one in the morning! Heavy snow here today, I am hoping that Karen will be able to get home tomorrow (today!) as it has been worse in the north of Germany. Spent a nice day at home with the children with various DVD's, pizza and chips etc. Mirjam and I have also been wasting many hours in that wonderful fantasy world that is 'Second Life'. I am now the proud owner of a 'Swiss chalet' and am up late as I have been buying some virtual furniture...yes I know that is sad but who cares..............

When you believe.........

2010-01-29T22:56:00.004+01:00

First of all my thanks to Deacon David for his post. Nice to see something intelligent being written for a change rather than my constant ramblings! Welcome back David and please post much more and Joe where are you?

The weather here in Germany has been pretty bad with a lot of snow and sleet. We had intended to drive to see a friend around a 5 hour drive away in Hameln (of Pied Piper fame) but in the end decided it was just to dangerous so Karen has gone up alone on the train. Unfortunately there was an incident on the line earlier in the day so at one point she had to spend an hour on a freezing cold platform apparently in the middle of nowhere. She has now arrived and when I last spoke with her was off in search of a curry to warm up!

School ok today with one of my lessons cancelled due to the pupils being given there reports. With my second years (secondary) we are looking at Covenants. Yesterday we finished watching 'The Prince of Egypt' which whilst not strictly accurate certainly got the children's attention rather than just reading the story of the Exodus from the Bible, it also of course has a great song and one which has meant a lot to both Karen and during the past 6 months...

So in times when all your hope is gone
And you go through life afraid
In your heart there lies a hopeful song
That is there to guide the way
And all the hurt and all the pain
You soon will learn was not in vain
For all your prayers, they will be heard
They'll come to pass through faith

Is the catholic church necessary for salvation?

2010-01-28T17:36:00.004+01:00

Is the catholic church necessary for salvation? this cropped up at our journey of faith group on Tuesday night. One of the group who has been recently bereaved got upset, her husband was a permanent deacon in the Anglican church and the thought of him not being in heaven with the lord in the company of the saints greatly saddened her. I could relate to her feelings my own family are Anglicans ,my eldest son remained in the c of e . then I remembered what a good and very wise priest said to me when I was troubled over this question. its not for us to worry God will take care of all, look at it this way, when we die all the good enter purgatory where we are cleansed of all wrong doing and thoughts and beliefs. its just like a large RCIA course. here we are prepared to be received into the very court of heaven to see God face to face. Yes, the catholic church is the means of salvation for all God's people, salvation is offered to all . All the baptised of other denominations are members of the Church of God, we all share in a common baptism, we are all members of the body of Christ.
" All human beings in various ways belong to or are ordered to the catholic unity of the people of God. Fully incorporated into the catholic church are those who, possessing the Spirit of Christ, are joined to the church by the bonds of the profession of faith, the sacraments, ecclesiastical government and communion. The baptised who do not enjoy full catholic unity are in a certain, although imperfect, communion with the catholic church." Compendium of C.C.C. 168

It is through the catholic church that mankind is saved, because this is what Christ willed, he established the church for this very reason, Christ wills that all are saved his love extends to all who have faith and those with no faith.

So we do not need to worry about our loved one's, all are loved by Christ and Christ wants to present all to his Father. Man is never turned away by God only those who who deliberately turn their back on God are lost.

Keep going.......

2010-01-27T21:40:00.004+01:00

Good news! Karen had her blood test and ECG on Tuesday and, after a nervous wait, the results showed that all was on target with no sign of any return of the Leukemia. The next test is next Friday.

Snow still here and not likely to thaw very quickly as when we left the house this morning to go to school it was - 13 - positively warm however compared to around this time last year when it got down to - 25!

Today is World Holocaust Day and I have and will be in all my lessons both in the primary and secondary school be focusing on this tragedy. I have to say there is something quite surreal about discussing it here in Germany particularly with a number of German children in my classes. Most of the time the reaction from them has been quite positive however from some unfortunately not so..................

Not feeling brilliant at the moment -just a cold I hope- need to just keep going for another week and a bit and then its half -term and we head back home to England for the week.

Have Land Rover will travel..........

2010-01-25T12:41:00.004+01:00

Well at least the miserable grey weather has gone as we woke up to a blanket of snow. If we were back in the UK I am sure that today would of been a sNOw day and the school would of been shut, however this is Germany and as we left in the 'wee small hours of the morning' (love that song) the inhabitants of our village were busy with snow shovels and brushes clearing the pavements. There is a law here, that states people are responsible for keeping the area immediately outside of their dwelling clean and clear which includes the pavements. We knew the school would be open but the journey along the autobahn to drop Karen and Mirjam off at the station was slow and there has been reports of many accidents in this part of Germany due to the snow and jams of over 30km approaching Frankfurt. It is days like today that our Land Rover really comes into its own......

The Circle of Life............

2010-01-24T10:24:00.004+01:00

Ah well - didn't try very hard did I!

Since Wednesday life has continued as normal with early starts, child minding drop offs, school, shopping, lesson planning, report writing and too late to bed with weekend here just to recover and prepare for more of the same!

Karen has a further blood test on Tuesday and we are beginning to feel nervous once more. However we have realised that it is something we just have to live and deal with however hard...

Getting slowy fed up of the miserable grey and cold weather here. It was our son's 3rd birthday last week and we spoke with his Godmother who lives in Australia. She was telling me how she spends most days on the beach.....hmmm I wonder???

Here, yes really!

2010-01-20T11:48:00.005+01:00

Christmas Lunch 2010 - Mickey Style!

Wow nearly a month since I have posted something on here...don't you just hate Blogs that are not updated - I do, so I hope I still have some people who haven't given on up on me??

We all had a great time at over Christmas and New Year. Christmas was for the first time not spent at home but instead we enjoyed a few days at Disneyland Paris...it was certainly different although it felt very strange having our Christmas dinner in Buzz Lightyear's Pizza Planet restaurant!!! To bring in 2010 we were at our home in Burgundy, France where we spent a much more relaxed and well needed quiet week.

Karen is ok and going for regular blood tests. Last week her blood count was slightly down which caused some concern however we think this is due to her Thyroid being destroyed by the Chemotherapy, she has therefore been placed on even more tablets.

We are both now back into the swing of things at school and as usual life is very busy...however being 'as usual' is very good as we are now back to normal, although life will of course never ever be the same......

Off now to get ready for my lesson this afternoon. In the last few weeks have been doing school reports, if I was marking myself on this Blog it would say "Must try harder".....I will try.

Off soon.........

2009-12-22T08:41:00.004+01:00

Snow here for the last few days but as I type it is raining.....Our bedroom full of presents ready to load into the car and to be opened in our hotel room in Disneyland Paris on Christmas Day! Mixed feelings as although it will be great at Disneyland, it is the first Christmas for all of us that we have been away from home.....it may even be McDonalds for our Christmas Day lunch aarrgghhhh!

Karen well but needs a blood test on the 28th. This was supposed to be at the hospital but we asked them yesterday if it could be done whilst we are away as we wanted to spend a few days at our house in Burgundy. No problems, however apparently in France you go to the nurse for a blood test and then the pharmacy to get the results - should be interesting. Karen a little anxious why they need a blood test, thinking thoughts such as "do they think the Leukaemia has come back?"

Off now to pack my case, clean out the fire and then load the car. We are staying in Reims tonight. Good job we are not flying as Frankfurt airport was closed last night due to ice and snow!

One went POP! and another went BANG!

2009-12-19T20:27:00.003+01:00

Sorry for once more lack of posts but things have been busy at home and at school. Friday was the end of term and Karen's return seems to have been a success as, although she was tired, she managed to avoid picking up any of the children's various ailments! We now have a two week break to look forward to and are heading off once more to Disneyland Paris on Tuesday.

Karen had a Lumbar Puncture early last week and thankfully she is still in complete remission. The next months will continue to be a worrying time as of course the Leukaemia could come back, so please keep praying.

This afternoon I drove my parents to the airport for their flight home to the UK. They have been here since the start of Karen's illness and have been amazing caring for us all. It was sad to see them go but we are happy that we are back to a little more sense of normality.

Like most of Europe it is very cold here at the moment, the temperature outside today was -12, warm here however as we have a roaring fire and as I type I can hear our (British!) sausages sizzling in the pan............

Welcome Back!

2009-12-11T19:17:00.004+01:00

Karen returned to school today. It is of course much earlier than we would have hoped however because she has been off work so long, it now means she is receiving half pay and needs must....
She was quite happy to go back however even if it will mean wearing a facemask until we break up for the Christmas holiday next Friday. The staff at the school have been very kind and supportive to me whilst I have been teaching Karen's class and today they showed their fondness for Karen by presenting her with numerous bunches of flowers, the first of which was a posy from the headmaster! Although she knows most of them, this was also a chance for Karen to be with her new class although she wont be teaching them full time until January. Accordingly we had a little 'welcome back' party with snacks and party games. Please continue to pray that Karen keeps safe and that she does not try and do too much....easier said than done for my wife!

All good........

2009-12-07T23:02:00.004+01:00

Sorry for lack of post and short ones at that, however I am sure you will understand.......Thanks to all once more for your messages of support. Karen had a blood test today and her blood count was very good, she was though very tired after spending most of the day out.

Home.

2009-12-04T21:16:00.004+01:00

Karen home, 6 months to the day that she first went into hospital, treatment successfully completed. Thanks be to God and thanks be to you for all your support and prayers.

Nearly there..yes!

2009-12-03T23:14:00.002+01:00

Karen is to be released tomorrow at 10am! So excited...................

Looking good........

2009-12-02T22:49:00.001+01:00

Karen's temp now normal and cast taken off her arm. The abscess has shrunk and so it looks like surgery may not be needed. Doctors say she could be released on Friday.......

A little better....

2009-12-01T22:51:00.004+01:00

I am pleased to report that Karen's fever seems to be subsiding. It looks like the cause of the infection is an abscess in her arm which has formed as a result of one of the many needles Karen has had, been left in the arm for too long. This has brought about septicemia. Thankfully the surgeon called to look at her arm, spotted it straight away and appropriate antibiotics have been administered. To try and prevent any further infection, Karen's arm has now been put in a cast!

The good news is that it looks as if the Bone Marrow is now starting to regenerate.

Thanks again for all Masses, Rosaries and prayers people have been offering, I KNOW these have made a real difference.

No change..........

2009-11-30T22:57:00.003+01:00

No real news. Karen's fever continues. They are trying a new antibiotic but basically are waiting for Karen's bone marrow to regenerate in order that the immune system can fight off the infection. Thanks for all the prayers which mean so much...............

Worried...........

2009-11-29T21:00:00.002+01:00

Karen has now had very high fever constantly for the past six days. She has had a serious infection and at the moment they cannot locate the cause and accordingly they are groping in the dark a little for the correct antibiotics to administer. Karen, as you can imagine is feeling terrible and I am very worried. Please pray.

More fever and not much fervour...........

2009-11-27T20:57:00.004+01:00

Sorry for no post for a week, but have been busy with school (including a trip to a Weather Park on Monday) parent-teacher talks and of course with visits to Karen in the hospital.

Karen is now in Fever. Her temperature has been approaching 40c and after various tests it seems that she has picked up an ear infection. Her temperature and the hot and cold shakes get better when she is given antibiotics etc however they are only effective for a short time. She seems to be much happier this evening, so I just hope that the fever is on the way out.

Had an interesting insight into my Year 4 Secondary 'Catholic' students today who only see Church as somewhere where they are lectured at, made to follow impossible rules and are bored to tears - those that go to Mass only attend as they are 'forced to' by their parents. Ah well I will battle on.................

Hb and BN..........

2009-11-20T21:18:00.004+01:00

Karen firmly now beind closed doors in hospital as she waits for the Bone Marrow to regenerate. Her Hb (haemoglobin) was low today so she required a blood transfusion. easier said than done as all her veins are, as Karen says, 'shot to pieces', and so it was difficult to find a place where the needle and drip could be inserted.

Long day at school today with Parent Teacher talks continuing after school, still am relaxing now with my first glass of Beaujolais Nouveau 09!

Goes off like a bottle of pop!...............

2009-11-18T22:08:00.003+01:00

Feeling very tired still. I don' think I have been to bed much before midnight since Karen was diagnosed!

Karen at home again this evening as her Blood Count is high enough, it will soon plummet and so are expecting she will have to remain in hospital for two weeks or so from tomorrow as regeneration of the Bone Marrow takes place.

Had an interesting time with my first years at the Secondary School today. We were talking about anger and I explained that often we are like fizzy drink bottles and that when we are shaken up to such extent, we are all capable of exploding. To demonstrate this I bought in some fizzy drink and I told the class to gently throw it to each other and then when I had counted to 10 the person left holding the bottle had to try and open it without the liquid going everywhere. That was the plan, however one of the class decided that the bottle was a rugby ball and he was going to throw a pass down the length of the field/classroom. The result was that the person he was throwing it to nearly broke his hand trying to catch it, missed and the bottled smashed and cracked apart on the floor. Most of the lesson was therefore spent mopping up fizzy apple juice from floor, chair and schoolbags....guess who was then able to demonstrate what anger really is!

Chemo over.........

2009-11-16T22:49:00.002+01:00

Karen had her last bag of Chemotherapy today. She is home for tonight and tomorrow before returning for the final stretch of regeneration.

A day of mixed feelings, happy that the Chemo has finished but still worried and scared about the future................

There's no place like.............

2009-11-14T20:38:00.004+01:00

Day spent in Frankfurt with my mum trying to think of Christmas gifts for the whole family! Had coffee and cake in a department store before visiting 'A Taste of Britain'. 'A Taste of Britain', as you might of guessed, is a shop in Frankfurt where ex-pats can find some of their favourite British goodies. It is only a small shop but on its shelves you can find such delights as Marmite, Walkers Crips, Cadbury's chocolate, HobNobs and, in the fridge and freezer, steak and kidney pies. OK you pay a premium, for example a pack of bacon rashers cost 7 euros, but for an occasional taste of back home it is fantastic!

In the afternoon we picked up Karen who has been granted parole for the night...two bags to go!

Going..........

2009-11-13T23:33:00.002+01:00

Just 3 bags of Chemo left now.................

Schweinegrippe Fever..............

2009-11-12T21:38:00.003+01:00

Working at both a large primary and secondary school means that I am often at risk of becoming ill, no not to may badly behaved students but to the presence of all sorts of nasty viruses etc. This risk is now heightened by the arrival of Swine Flu on German shores (must visit the German coast) and with rumours abound, my daughter and I had our vaccination today. It is of course very important given Karen's condition that we do not pass on this and any other virus to her. The hospital do not have the vaccine yet, however I was informed of a doctor who had the elusive vaccine in Frankfurt. It seemed I was not the only one who knew for as soon as we entered the surgery we were greeted with a wall of people all demanding to be vaccinated. I felt sorry for the receptionists who were finding hard to cope. At one stage the Doctor came out and had to shout at the assembled masses, it all seemed a long, long way from the serenity of our former surgery at the foot of the Chilterns! Still I am happy that it has been done and I can relax a little back at school now.

Karen doing as well as can be expected. She now only has 4 Chemo bags to go but is feeling a little sick and very tired. We hope that she may be allowed home for the night over the week-end.

Cards and Chemo

2009-11-11T22:47:00.004+01:00

Following on from moving the class around, today I introduced the yellow/red card tactic, a popular ploy in maintaining class discipline. Basically the first misdemeanor earns the child a yellow card and a second 'foul' means a red card is shown and parents are informed. Tough love I know but if the children keep a clean sheet then after a period of time they can choose a reward. Two yellows awarded today!

Karen got a call from the hospital to say that a bed was now available. So when I had finished school I returned home and then took her to the hospital. As soon as she arrived she had a blood test and then the first of 6 Chemo bags began to drip through. Mixed feelings as of course I am sad that Karen is back in hospital however I am also happy that at last the final treatment has begun. I just hope and pray that she does not feel to sick or that fever returns. She will be very tired I know as the two hourly eye drops have begun again.......

Be quiet!

2009-11-10T21:08:00.003+01:00

This morning was partly spent organising and moving my class around. On Karen's suggestion all the tables were put in lines and I hoped that may have solved my 'too much chat' problem - it didn't and so I may have to impose the ultimate solution that of the dreaded 'boy-girl, boy-girl' deployment. Other suggestions on a postcard or in the comment box please!
We have a weekly meeting with all teachers of the Primary School English section and today we met with the man from the Department of Children and Families responsible for the European Schools and a very nice man he was too. He was particularly understanding and supportive of Karen.

Karen telephoned the hospital today and was told that there is not a bed available for tomorrow, so it may be Thursday before she is admitted for her final treatment. She is getting very anxious, as am I, and as I write she has retired to bed early with a bad headache. Please keep praying...

Remember, Remember the 9th of November or maybe not!

2009-11-09T22:36:00.003+01:00

Nothing much to report although any Catholic (former Anglican) Blogger living in Germany worth his salt should have something to say on today of all days - what with the publishing from the Vatican of the Apostolic Constitution for Anglicans and the celebrations taking place here today of the fall of the Berlin Wall...................

I am afraid my major concern at the the moment is how to stop my class from chattering so much (me thinks the tables may be put in lines tomorrow!) and of course worrying about Karen who returns to hospital on Wednesday for her final bout of chemo. Sorry.

Lucky 7.............

2009-11-05T22:54:00.004+01:00

Karen's Lumbar Puncture took four attempts this morning before the drill was finally inserted into her bone. The first doctor could not get it in so another had to be called while the drill was still in Karen's bone! Karen was in excruciating pain for 55mins. Thankfully the second doctor was able to complete the procedure and extract the required marrow in 5 mins. Needless to say Karen is feeling very sore at the moment.

The good news is that the Professor who is looking after her says that her prognosis has now risen from poor, at the start of the treatment, to good. Apparently the type of Leukemia Karen has is very rare with only 6 reported cases worldwide! All six so far are survivors, who have not required Bone Marrow transplants and have been cured just by the use of Chemotherapy. Karen is going to be No.7.

All OK............

2009-11-03T22:36:00.002+01:00

Not a lot to report, with the usual round of school and planning. Karen keeping very busy catching up with things here at home, sometimes I think she is too busy and needs to take it easy - not that our two year old lets any one take it easy! At least she was able to have her blood test at our local hospital today instead of having to travel into Frankfurt. Lumbar Puncture still scheduled for Thursday.

Test and Trifle.........

2009-11-01T15:07:00.005+01:00

Karen back to hospital this morning for a blood test and to get her discharge letter. Results ok although she has to be careful not to cut herself over the next few days! She has to have a further blood test on Tuesday and then a Lumbar Puncture on Thursday. They are planning for her to return for her fourth and last bout of Chemo on November 1oth. I am little bit worried that her body will not have recovered enough after all the hammering it has been having lately, however I must trust that the Doctors know what they are doing......

Roast Lamb and Trifle for our All Saints Day lunch..................

Happy Halloween........

2009-10-31T19:55:00.004+01:00

I write this with a glass of Macon in my hand with my wife at my side sitting in front of a blazing log fire. We have had Pumpkin soup and Pumpkin Risotto for dinner and on the table are the carved squashes from which these delicious dishes have come. Earlier the children were making chocolate spiders and meringue ghosts and we all enjoyed a game of apple bobbing! I am sorry dear reader if you do not celebrate Halloween and think badly of a Christian family for doing so..however I suppose that is exactly the point we are Christians and with Christ and His Saints we have no fear of the powers of darkness, however much they try.....

Home.....

2009-10-30T21:09:00.003+01:00

Karen is now home. She will not be fully discharged until Sunday when she has to go back to the hospital for a blood test. She will probably be 'on leave' for two weeks in order for her body to recover and prepare itself for the last round of chemotherapy. Great to have her back!

No go...........

2009-10-29T19:43:00.004+01:00

Karen was not allowed home today which was upsetting for everybody. The doctors were not happy that she has only just recovered from fever and they want her to finish her course of intravenous antibiotics. Her infection rate is still quite high and her immune system is still not at a safe level. However these things can improve quite quickly during regeneration so we hope for better news tomorrow.

This afternoon I took Mirjam and Eloi to the small town of Ilbenstadt to buy our Pumpkins for Halloween on Saturday. I blogged about the place where we get them from last year. While we were there we paid a visit to the town's wonderful Basilica dedicated to St's Peter and Paul. I can't tell you much about the place as the guide is in German and I need time to try and translate it. I also need to find out about the saint whose shrine is in the sanctuary Gottfried II von Cappenberg. Suffice to say it is a beautiful building with a mixture of architectural styles from it seems Romanesque to the Baroque. When I find out more I shall dedicate a post to it. I was pleased to see an icon of Our Lady of the Sick to whom of course we pleaded to on Karen's behalf.

Much better.....

2009-10-28T17:55:00.003+01:00

The good news is that Karen's fever has now gone. She is looking and now feeling good although her drip stand rather resembles a Christmas tree as it has bottles of antibiotics, water and,when I was there, two bags of blood. Throughout her treatment Karen has had many blood transfusions and we are so grateful to all those people who give this life-saver so generously. We are hoping that if her blood levels and cell count is high enough tomorrow that she may be allowed home.

Before visiting the hospital today I dropped children and Grandma at a indoor play centre in Frankfurt. The play place is situated in the brand new 'My Zeil' shopping centre in the heart of Frankfurt. One of the local newspapers waged a sarcastic campaign to have the developers change the name, complaining that its name was Den-glish (German/English) however developers held to their convictions and didn't change it. The centre has over a 100 shops and is popular not only with shoppers but also it seems with photographers as whenever I visit there are always people taking pictures of its futuristic design.

Wafarin and Worry..

2009-10-26T23:19:00.002+01:00

Half term so it allowed me to visit the Doctors for a Blood Test. When I was 15 I had a Deep Vein Thrombosis which came back on a number of occasions. Since then I have been on long time Wafarin in order to keep my blood from clotting again. I am supposed to go for regular blood tests to make sure that my blood is not too thin or too thick, however appallingly given what has happened with Karen I haven't been for probably nearly a year!!! I get the results tomorrow I hope, and I also hope that my German is good enough for me to understand them!

Karen continues worryingly to have a high fever. Over the last few days it has been over 39c. They have taken blood and given Karen a CT scan but so far they can find no cause. She is on antibiotics through a drip which work for a while but then the fever returns. Due to the chemo she has no white blood cells at the moment so we just hope that her bone marrow starts to regenerate soon so her body can fight back.......

Mission Impossible?............

2009-10-25T13:09:00.004+01:00

"I would "confirm once more that the task of evangelizing all people constitutes the essential mission of the Church" (Evangelii Nuntiandi, 14), a duty and a mission which the widespread and profound changes in present-day society render ever more urgent. At stake is the eternal salvation of persons, the goal and the fulfilment of human history and the universe"

The full text of the Pope's message for World Mission Sunday can be found here.

Did I hear you correctly??

2009-10-23T23:20:00.004+02:00

Hurray its now half-term. I need it especially after some in my famous now Year 4 religion class today admitted that they really didn't think Jesus is the Son of God and that they only did their first Holy Communion for the party and the money!!

Karen's blood count probably now at is lowest, but she is ok although starving having run out of provisions - looks like a trip to the English shop tomorrow then!

Stop Polizei!.................

2009-10-22T23:09:00.003+02:00

Karen continues to do well. She had some Plasma today. She has arranged for a meeting between professors, doctors, me and herself to be held in the next few weeks so all options for her continuing treatment can be considered.

I was late leaving the hospital this afternoon. So late it seems that in order to get to my class in time I drove a little too fast and was caught in a speed trap by the Frankfurt Polizei! Unfortunately this misdemeanour will cost me 40 euros (the fine comes through the post) and maybe a point on my license, although the point will be perhaps a little difficult to process as I still hold a UK license. Very annoying, although of course if I had paid a little more attention to the speedometer....................

Transfusion, Triangles and Tradition.......

2009-10-21T22:24:00.003+02:00

Karen yesterday needed a Blood Transfusion which took nearly 1o hours to go through. She is feeling ok however, but is missing the children and being here at home so much. Hopefully the blood count will begin to rise over the week-end and then perhaps she may be out of hospital for a week or so sometime next week.

In the meantime she continues to work hard at planning lessons and marking books for her class. This often takes a lot out of her but she is determined to keep hold of the reins! I just hope she is able to pick up the pieces from me...what was it today oh yes scalene, equilateral triangles.....oh dear such a long time ago. Thank goodness for mobile phones so I can phone her up when I get stuck. Karen has a webcam too so soon perhaps have a live link to her hospital bed!

Interesting news of course regarding the announcement regarding Anglicans and Rome. I am watching developments closely. It seems as if men who are already married will be able to go forward for ordination..if this is the case then Deacon David and myself may have the possibility of becoming priests??.....watch this space!

Fall...........

2009-10-18T22:13:00.004+02:00

Instead of Mass today went for a Autumn morning walk with our two children. Maybe when I can think things through I can explain why I didn't go....Our church today was the majestic trees shedding their golden and red leaves, inhabited by hawks of different kinds framed by their blue sky playground...wonderful.

Went to see Karen this afternoon. All well although this evening she sadly reported that a 50 year old man in her ward had died.

Back in..........

2009-10-17T23:39:00.002+02:00

Karen's blood count going down as usual, so she is back in hospital. She is feeling good, although was a little sick after her test drug this morning. Her new roommate is nice but apparently snores!

Bejeweled

2009-10-16T23:16:00.002+02:00

Karen allowed home once again. Probably last time for 10 or so days however as the Bone Marrow will soon start to regenerate. I am sorry if I don't seem to be blogging about much else, I suppose Cancer is 'all consuming' in many ways.

Still one good diversion tactic for us both has been the addiction to the Facebook game 'Bejeweled Blitz'. Would you believe we have both been sitting here in the living room playing it for hours on our respective laptops - how sad is that! Still if you are on Facebook and haven't played it, give it a try - I promise you will be hooked. While you are there don't forget to add me as a friend!

Escape...........

2009-10-15T21:37:00.002+02:00

Better news in that Karen's isolation has been lifted as the chances of getting VRE are less than 5%. They can't be too worried as she is currently sitting on the sofa opposite having been allowed out for the evening :)

More worry...........

2009-10-14T20:43:00.002+02:00

Karen now in Isolation until Monday. The lady who had to be resuscitated yesterday was suffering with syptoms of Vancomycin-resistant enterococcus (VRE). VRE are a type of bacteria called enterococci that have developed resistance to many antibiotics, especially vancomycin. Enterococci bacteria live in our intestines and on our skin, usually without causing problems however they become a problem when they cause infection. These infections can occur anywhere in the body including the intestines, the urinary tract, and wounds. For some people, especially those who are weak or ill or like Karen with little or no immune system these infections can become serious. VRE infections are more difficult to treat than other infections with enterococci because fewer antibiotics are effective against the bacteria.
Sorry for the medical lesson but as you can imagine we are very concerned and just pray and hope that Karen does not become infected.

A difficult day........

2009-10-13T20:12:00.003+02:00

Another busy Tuesday at school today. Literacy and Maths all morning followed by Religion all afternoon. Told my religion class that if they didn't keep quiet they would spend the whole lesson writing lines!

Karen's ECG now put off until tomorrow. Karen's roomate had to be resuscitated in front of her this afternoon. She has now recovered but please pray for her too.

Returned home to find that our Landlady's beloved Rottweiler died this morning. Since the. death of her husband, her dog 'Anton' has been her constant companion. She is intending to get a chocolate coloured Labrador in the near future and has said that Mirjam can take him/her for walks....not quite sure about that!

Off now to plan for tomorrow's classes...

Consolidation III

2009-10-12T21:39:00.003+02:00

Back again - sorry. One excuse being a few weeks ago I skillfully spilt a glass of red wine over our laptop which I'm afraid killed it! It did revive a few days ago but alas it is no more again...
Another excuse is that I have not had much spare time what with being virtually full-time teaching at school and of course back and forth to the hospital in order to see Karen.

Karen has just finished her third Consolidation Chemotherapy. As I write she is home (marking homework!) on parole for the evening. She returns to hospital tomorrow for an ECG and also to start the next round of her Test Drug. She may be allowed home again for a few nights before returning back to hospital while her blood counts drops and then rises again after the Bone Marrow Regeneration.

She remains in good spirits and keeps positive although she and us all often have bad days.....

The end (at least of the Chemotherapy) is in sight as next month will see Karen have her last batch of Chemo. Then we will have 3 anxious months as the Doctors say if the Cancer is to return it will be during the first 3 months following the end of final Consolidation Chemotherapy.

I will try and keep the Blog from now on a little more up to date. Please continue to keep Karen and our family in your prayers.

Happy Pain

2009-09-20T22:05:00.003+02:00

Sorry for no Blog post for quite a while. Karen still in hospital. She is now going through the 'Bone Flare' phase again. I hate to see her in so much pain but as she says it is 'happy pain' as it shows that regeneration is taking place and also means the blood count will shortly start to rise and she may be allowed home for a short while. Karen did come home last week and spent the night here on Mirjam's 8th Birthday and was also able to celebrate our 16th Wedding Anniversary on Friday which was brilliant.

It is birthday season here at the moment with Mirjam going to 5 parties in so many weeks! Still at least it keeps normality going and her mind off her mummy for a while.

Time for sleep now as I am up once again at 5.45am for school, which after the initial worries I am quite enjoying!

Day Release...........

2009-09-07T22:55:00.003+02:00

Sorry for lack of updates but life has been pretty hectic here over the past few days. My blogging time has been replaced with lesson planning etc. It was my first full day of teaching Karen's class today. All went well but there are things they and I can improve! As I write Karen is with me marking their English and Maths books as she has been let out the hospital for the evening. She has now finished her Second Consolidation Chemotherapy and is now waiting for the Blood Count to drop and then ultimately rise in the coming weeks. Thankfully none of the bad effects of the Chemo reappeared with the final bag yesterday, however she has the awful bone-flares to come in the next few days.

Off to bed now as I have to drop Karen off at the hospital early in the morning before school.

Unreal..............

2009-09-04T23:33:00.002+02:00

Karen continues to suffer with continued fever, headaches and shivering. Yesterday it took them nearly 6 hours for them to give her the antibiotic - not good. I am sorry that this seems more like a Facebook/Twitter status update rather than a proper blog entry but the truth is I really do not know what else to say, it still seems so unreal that this is happening.........

Bad day...............

2009-09-02T22:36:00.003+02:00

After feeling very un-confident I am pleased to say that I survived my first day of teaching Karen's new class. I am lucky that Karen is able to plan the lessons etc which means that she is still very much involved and also means that I can pass on the marking to her! Not that she is in the mood for anything like that today. She has been feeling off all day with sore eyes, a high temperature and even hallucinations. I have just spoken with her and she is waiting for some antibiotics to try and combat her fever. Hate this..........

Round 2.............

2009-09-01T23:09:00.003+02:00

Just a very quick update. Karen now back in hospital for her second round of Consolidation Chemotherapy. She has had her Complete Remission now confirmed with the last puncture showing no signs of any further Leukemia. Her first chemo drip went through this evening, she now has to have the dreaded eye drops again every two hours.

When I left the hospital I spent most of the day at school, trying to organise Karen's classroom and attend a few beginning of term meetings. I am, until Karen's return, going to be taking her class Mon, Tue and Wed alongside my primary and secondary Catholic teaching. Term starts tomorrow and I am very anxious about the whole thing, so please pray for me too when you pray for Karen.

Time to go as that's the end of the Summer break (not that we have had much of break with all that has gone on) and I need to return to getting up at 5.30am :(

Arrivals.............

2009-08-30T21:59:00.003+02:00

Not much to report today. I went to Frankfurt this morning to drop off some children's clothes (handed down from Mirjam and Eloi!) to a friend who is seven months pregnant. I then picked up my parents from the Airport. They will be staying with us until Karen finishes her treatment. Big week next week as Karen goes in for her Second Consolidation Treatment and Mirjam and I start back to school.

D'oh

2009-08-29T21:34:00.004+02:00

We have a garage which whose doors are operated by a remote control. We thought that during one of Eloi's tantrums the other day that he had thrown the remote control at the IKEA store as we couldn't find it anywhere. Yesterday we went and purchased two more remotes which were very expensive and also had the problem of trying to get them reprogrammed for which we needed to find the original control. This afternoon we went to IKEA customer services to see if anyone had handed the remote in, they hadn't but whilst we were there we gave them some more money by purchasing a broken shoe rack (don't ask!). Once home I thought I would just check the side pocket of the car and guess what the offending article was right there where it should of been in the first place...D'oh!

Battered and Bruised............

2009-08-28T22:13:00.004+02:00

Last few days spent doing usual routine stuff, supermarket shopping, IKEA, DIY stores etc. One thing we have been struggling to cope with is our son's temper. At all the aforementioned places he has been throwing tantrums including biting and scratching us - as I write I bear the marks of this. I think it is just frustration rather than anything else however it is all rather embarrassing at times as it seems he is the only child in Germany who does such things. Lets hope he grows out of it soon!

Karen well and is now sorting things out in our loft. I am keeping well clear as it is my fault that she is up there sorting things out in the first place. I just find it so easy to throw things up there if they are creating a mess or taking up space, much to my wife's displeasure!

Complete Remission 2

2009-08-26T21:31:00.004+02:00

Karen and I were both very relieved at the results of yesterdays Lumber Puncture which continue to show that Karen is in Complete Remission. Karen's hands were visibly shaking as she made the call to the hospital. It doesn't matter how much I say "It will be fine..." etc to her, it is still terrifying. Unfortunately it is something that we have many more times to go through.................

Catholics Prefer Relics.............

2009-08-25T22:38:00.005+02:00

Karen had another Lumber Puncture this morning and Blood Test. The Blood is going the right way and we get the results of the Puncture tomorrow.

Following on from yesterdays post it seems that Saint Bartholomew should of perhaps deserted his service of the Son of God and starred in a few feature films and perhaps then more people would of taken notice of one of his final resting places. An eBay bidder from Japan (I wonder if it was the man with the camcorder and camera I saw in Frankfurt Cathedral!) offered $4.6 million for the chance to spend eternity on top of the grave of Marilyn Monroe. Beverly Hills widow Elsie Poncher, whose dead husband was laid to rest in the crypt directly above Monroe, put her beloveds valuable vault on Ebay to help pay off the $1.6 million mortgage on her home.
Bidding started at $500,000 and shot to $4.6 million in three days. Everything seemed to be going so well, until the widow's rep sent an invoice to the winning bidder on Monday.
"I am awfully sorry, but I need to cancel this because of the paying problem," the unidentified bidder said in an email!

Apparently the stone façade of the film stars above-ground crypt stands out with a darker hue left by the fingerprints and lipstick marks of countless fans, something which could of course have been said for the countless relics (Bartholomew included) and tombs of saints over the ages. It seems sadly now they have gone out of fashion although it will be interesting to hear of the numbers of pilgrims venerating the relics of St. Thérèse of Lisieux which are visiting the UK from 16th September to the 16th October 2009. More details of the visit here.

St.Bart

2009-08-24T17:29:00.006+02:00

The Martyrdom

Today is the Feast of Saint Bartholomew. The cathedral in Frankfurt Am Main is dedicated to the Apostle and it has a relic of his skull I was in the cathedral on Saturday evening and the relic was placed in front of the nave altar. At first I did not realise what it was until I went up close. It seems I was not the only one as I spent a few minutes watching the tourists buzzing around the building and not one took any notice of the reliquary! I watched as an oriental man with a camcorder and digital camera, both in the same hand, filmed and clicked at the cathedral roof but as I went past the altar nothing took his or his apparatus's interest. Then a glimmer of hope as a young boy dressed in a football kit stopped for a few moments in front of the relic and with a puzzled look on his face went, I think, in search of his parents to ask what it was, however he and his parents didn't return.....

Friends........

2009-08-23T22:50:00.002+02:00

Have been enjoying the last few days with friends from England. Weather continued to be hot and oppressive. Karen still doing well although it is hard for her not being able to come out of the house, however we cannot take any risks.

I have just found out some sad news that my best friend from school days has died. I haven't seen or heard from him for over twenty years but at one stage we were inseparable - Rest In Peace Martyn.

Feeling hot, hot, hot............

2009-08-20T23:23:00.003+02:00

Hot today with temperature over 100c. Karen had to go to the hospital today for what we thought was a Lumber Puncture, however they were not informed by the Ward so that has been put off until next Tuesday. She did have a Blood Test and the results from that were excellent. She is feeling good but like the rest of us very hot! Following on from the visitation of Karen's parents we now have some friends with us and our Goddaughter. I picked them up from the airport yesterday and they are staying until Sunday. We wont be doing much however as Karen is of course confined to barracks. Leaving my fan now in search of a cold drink - not much sleep tonight I think!

Home.

2009-08-18T17:52:00.003+02:00

Great news - Karen is now home! Her Blood levels are at a safe enough standard. She returns for her next set of Consolidation Chemotherapy on September 1st. Thanks be to God.

:(

2009-08-17T22:33:00.004+02:00

Karen's blood count continues to go the right way but it is still not quite enough for her to be let out of her 'prison cell' as she calls it. Her Bone Flares have been worse today and she is really tired of it all, as we all are. She asks for all the prayers going that she can just get out soon. Her parents leave on Wednesday morning and I think she really, really wants to be home for then. This is so hard........................

Bone Flares...........

2009-08-16T23:00:00.002+02:00

Karen's infection rate has halved which is very good news and her blood count continues to rise. The cost of her bone marrow regenerating however is at the moment she is suffering from horrendous 'bone flares'. As I type she has just been given something to ease the pain but is so strong that you cannot walk for a number of hours, however it also makes you go to sleep.....talking of which.

zzzzz......

2009-08-16T00:09:00.003+02:00

Just a quick update as it is once again past midnight, indeed I have not been to bed before midnight since Karen was first diagnosed!

Saw Karen this afternoon. Her rate of infection has gone down and her blood count is starting slowly to climb again which is a sign that the bone marrow is coming on line again. If all this continues then we hope Karen may be allowed home for a few days next week.

Sick to Screaming, Placebos to Pi...............

2009-08-14T21:57:00.005+02:00

Karen's fever has now gone and her temperature back to normal. She was however sick today following taking what she calls her 'bullets'. The bullets are very large tablets (hence the name) which are either the test drug or placebo. Around 40mins after taking these tablets each day Karen has been feeling sick and today because she hadn't eaten anything - she was sick. Now I am sorry for the next bit, but apparently the sick in question was fluorescent yellow! This caused excitement all round as nurses and doctors were all called in to have a look at this strange phenomenon. Seriously however this could be very good news as the doctors said that it is likely that Karen has the test drug as placebos contain sugar and wouldn't cause the sickness that Karen experienced. The new drug has so far produced very promising results regarding the lack of relapse in people suffering the same type of Leukemia as Karen.

On a lighter note children and adults enjoy the many challenging puzzles and interactive exhibits at Giessen’s Mathematics Museum which Parents-in-Law, the children and I visited today. The museum, which opened last year features several floors of displays — most of which challenged us to put on our thinking caps to work out puzzles using logic and basic maths skills (shame I don't have any!) helped by building blocks to form arches, giant soap bubbles, wooden triangles and plenty of other exhibits which kept us entertained for a few hours. Well most of us were entertained as I am afraid our two year old spent most of the time screaming - I think he take after me and prefer English to Maths!

Much better

2009-08-13T22:27:00.003+02:00

Good news, it seems that Karen's infection and resultant fever is on the way out. Her parents, Mirjam and Eloi and myself were able to see her this afternoon and were pleased to see her back to her just about normal self. Thanks for your prayers and concern.

Feeling better but...

2009-08-12T21:49:00.003+02:00

Karen is feeling a lot better than last night. She now has a Webcam on her laptop so I can now see her in pain, which I did last night when her spleen was playing her up. This,as you can imagine, was not very pleasant both of course for Karen and also for me as I just felt so helpless. Although feeling better Karen is still in fever and is constantly on Antibiotic drips. They want to take her blood pressure and temperature through the night. Please keep praying that she can continue to ward off this infection.

Fever....

2009-08-11T23:37:00.006+02:00

Karen not well today. For the first time since beginning treatment her infection rate has gone up and she has a fever. Her spleen is also very enlarged as it attempts to battle with the infection. Very worried, please pray.

Just as I am.....

2009-08-10T10:11:00.005+02:00

If you are a Deacon, well today is surely a day of celebration, as we indeed celebrate the life and ministry of the great St. Laurence. I often feel a bit downhearted about my vocation especially as was the case a few weeks ago, when someone says "Oh you are JUST a Deacon!" It is then that I remember that Laurence too was JUST a Deacon but is now continuing serving and embracing Our Lord in the Communion of Saints and praying for us all, following his self-sacrificing service to Christ and His Church and people here on earth.

I was interested to find out that Laurence is also the patron Saint of Librarians and Archivists and that they celebrate his life and in particular his manner of death by eating cold cuts of meat - sounds a bit sick to me!!!!

So to all you 'JUST' Deacons out there, may you and I continue to follow the great example and humility of Laurence and ask for his prayers in our own service of God's people and when we are downhearted may we too have the courage to say "Turn me over. I am done on this side."

Screaming Saturday...

2009-08-09T00:13:00.003+02:00

Did not see Karen today as my mother-in-law has been spending the whole day trying to repair two of our defunct computers. My daughter is now very pleased to be back online now in her bedroom - she is only 7!! We went shopping this afternoon only for my son to scream and I mean scream for virtually the whole time we were in there. He gets tired and frustrated however I do try and keep him awake because if he has a sleep in the day, it is a nightmare trying to settle him down at night. Our landlady's son brought us up some peaches and mirabelles freshly picked and shaken from the trees in the garden which I will take to Karen tomorrow.

Karen told me that she went to Mass this evening in the hospital chapel (if you can call it that - it really is awful). She became a little upset with the cruelty of her disease as another lady from her ward came with her and her children. The hospital chaplain is arranging for an english speaking priest to come and visit her soon.

Home?

2009-08-07T23:45:00.004+02:00

Karen's parents arrived from the UK today to stay for a few weeks. I took them and the children in to see Karen. She is much better today and has not been 'Googling' Leukemia! She has also seen the hospital psychotherapist who has recommended that she should be allowed to come home for a while as she felt it would certainly be better for Karen's state of mind at the moment. Unfortunately Karen's "cell mate" as she calls her is not at all well and is apparently coughing out fungal spores which can be lethal for people suffering from Leukemia, another reason why it may be good that Karen comes out for a while.

More harm than good...........

2009-08-06T23:53:00.003+02:00

In yesterdays post I said that Technology can 'sometimes' be wonderful. I can now qualify the 'sometimes' bit as Karen gave me a call this afternoon in tears. She had requested on Facebook from, I think a Leukemia society, information about her particular form of the disease. From what she read she has now got it into her head that her prognosis is very poor. This is not what her doctors are telling her however. What she read was a generalisation using statistics covering whole age ranges and health conditions not those of 35 year old otherwise healthy woman. One of Karen's greatest strengths through all of this has been her positive attitude and I am sure that it has made a big impact upon her recovery so far. Please pray that her positivity returns

I think maybe I should get the laptop off her - boredom can be dangerous!

Happier..........

2009-08-05T23:33:00.004+02:00

A beautiful warm and sunny day here in Germany. This afternoon I took the children to the park and then we all enjoyed ice-cream in one of those wonderful German traditions an Eis-Cafe. The forecast is for it to get hotter so it will not be our only visit I am sure.

Karen well, with her eyes much better. Her blood count has gone up today which does seem a little unusual at this stage, however it is good news and maybe just maybe if it stabilises, she may be allowed home - here's hoping.

One good thing is that she has been lent a Laptop. In Karen's ward there is sponsored free Internet access so that now means I can chat with her on Facebook or even better on Skype and she can see me and the children. There is no webcam on her Laptop but I will probably buy one so the children can see their mummy. Technology can sometimes be wonderful................

Confused..............

2009-08-04T22:58:00.002+02:00

More tears of sadness today as we are all finding what we are going through pretty unbearable. What we cannot work out is why Karen cannot come home? Yes we know there is a risk but I think that we know what is at stake and would not be stupid with any sign of fever etc being met by an immediate return to the hospital.

My daughter and I just burst into tears as we left the hospital today as we were then off to buy Mirjam's new school bag etc, a simple thing but it is just something that we would of normally all done together. We also booked the venue Mirjam's 8th birthday party next month, I just hope and pray that Karen will be out to join in the celebration................

Tears and Tea...........

2009-08-03T23:24:00.004+02:00

Back to the hospital to see Karen this afternoon. She looks again very well and there have been no side effects from the wasp sting yesterday afternoon. There were a few tears from us all as from now on we will not be able to see Karen for very long or not at all due to her immune system being dangerously low as a result of the Chemotherapy. However Karen and one other patient are the only ones in the ward who have no signs of fever, so maybe it would be better if she were at home?

On a more mundane note have just completed a supermarket online order for my parents-in-law to bring over some British goodies when the arrive on Friday. Can you believe that I forgot to include tea!!! Thankfully I was able to change the order just in time - German equivalents are not even worth talking about!