Geelong visit

We're just back from a 4 night stay in Geelong. We were meant to go two weeks ago to see sister Ros, and Pete, but at the last minute we cancelled because with Pete undergoing immunotherapy we didn't want to risk him catching any of Rob's cold germs then. 

As it turned out it was good we went this weekend anyway. Pete is not well; he's had 4 nights in the ICU with serious complications resulting from his immunotherapy the week before and is currently in the oncology ward undergoing further treatment. It was good to be around - spending time with Pete at the hospital and keeping Ros company, at a difficult time. 

We all have our fingers crossed that Pete continues to improve and get stronger and he's out of hospital soon. He's been on a wild cancer ride, on and off for over a decade now, and his current battle with melanoma is probably the wildest ride of all.

It was cold in Geelong over the weekend - but clear and sunny most days. We took long walks along the beautiful Barwon River each morning we were there and spent the afternoons at the hospital with Pete.
 

Saturday morning we spoilt ourselves with a pretzel/pastry stop at our fave Born & Bread just off Pakington St in Newtown.

We love the way Geelong looks after its beautiful riverfront. Balyang Park in Newtown is a sanctuary for birds and wildlife and very restorative to walk by.

Me and my darling sister Ros....... precious time together!

... and me and my darling Rob (and a loaf of olive bread from our fave bakery!)

We left Geelong this morning for the long drive back to Canberra - hoping for the best for Pete, and for Ros, as they navigate the next stage of Pete's cancer treatment!!

Meanwhile, we have other hospital visits to make. With his intense medical/rehab program now complete Rod was transferred to Queanbeyan Hospital on the 19th May, almost a month ago. He's comfortable there and being a small local hospital it feels much more suited to Rod's needs compared to the larger hospitals in Canberra. 

We're trying to find a suitable place for Rod's longer term care but there aren't many vacancies at the moment - it's hard!!! Until that happens, friends and family are trying their best to make frequent visits to keep him stimulated and his spirits up. We're also contributing our bit to Queanbeyan Hospital fundraising with all the coffees we buy from the volunteer run cafe.

Our Coogee renovations are progressing well. The bathroom tiling is done and the kitchen plans have been finalised. We are very hopeful it all might be ready by the end of next month - which is just as well as we have very important visitors arriving in mid August. We won't know the place!

Eighteen years of Ella

I started this blog in 2007(!!) just before Ella was born. She was the reason I started doing this. I have posted all of these photos of her over the years, through play times, birthdays, Christmases, holidays, trips away, family get togethers, cooking in the kitchen and everything in between. I thought on her eighteenth birthday it was definitely time to look back over some of my best portraits of this gorgeous girl over the years. I treasure them all and all the wonderful memories they bring back.  

Ella - not quite three months old in 2007....

Seven months old - her first Christmas 2007....

Almost two - with her cousin Angus, in 2009 ....

Taken on a hot January day in 2010......

Almost three and a half, in 2010.......

She has a baby sister - February 2012 .....

Ella is five - 2012.....

Ella and Abi - July 2013......

Seven and a half years old in February 2015.......

First day of school 2016.......

At Joel and Kay's wedding in Seoul, Sth Korea in September 2016........

August 2018 - Ella is eleven ........

End of March 2019......

January 2020 - Ella is twelve and a half......

January 2021......... thirteen and a half....

Christmas 2021 - Ella is fourteen and a half .........

Sweet fifteen - May 2022......

At Coogee together - September 2023...Ella is sixteen (I am so much older than that!)

The Year Ten Formal November 2023.....

November 2024 at the National Gallery of Australia. Ella is seventeen and has her P plates!

Our Ella - still seventeen - Narrawallee - Easter 2025.....

Happy birthday - darling girl!!

Eighteen

This gorgeous girl is turning EIGHTEEN this week. We are so lucky to have shared so many happy times and adventures together over those eighteen years...... and this girl is just getting going (I hope we're gonna be able to keep up with her, no matter what the future may bring)!!

Happy birthday darling Ella! The world needs more people like you in it.

Fancy our Josh being the Dad of an eighteen year old!

We had a (Canberra) family celebration last night for Ella's birthday and she was able to join us for a glass of Majella to mark the occasion. 

(I'm sure there will be other celebrations for this birthday that may not be quite as sober as ours last night.)

Sober yes - but definitely not serious!

Joshy always cooks a beautiful meal. This was slow cooked pork - on for hours in the smoker - and absolutely delicious.

.... and did I say we definitely weren't serious - although quite sober?

Each year Ella's birthday coincides with peak Autumn colour in Canberra. These pics are of the Lipstick Maples outside our building - taken this morning.

Mid May

We continue to fit a lot into our days. Over the last two weeks we've had the tribunal hearing to settle Rod's legal affairs and take the first steps (under the guidance of the UC Rehab Hospital) around Rod's discharge plan. Rod's been in that hospital 76 days now - nearly 11 weeks - after his transfer there from Canberra Hospital on 27th February. 

About a week ago Rod was moved to his own room in Cotter Ward. It feels like such a luxury for him to have his own space after all this time and he's really happy about it. He and Claire (and we) have to take each day as it comes now - which is hard some days!

Rob and I were granted the responsibility of feeding and stabling Sammy last weekend while J & J & A & E were in Sydney. Sammy didn't seem to mind the situation too much and it was a lovely experience for us.

We heard a rumour that the Sydney shops were grateful for the young ones' visit!

Sammy's home at the Freshford Equestrian Centre is always a pleasure to visit.

Meanwhile "our" front garden is looking its best at this time of the year. We re-started our weekly walk (climb) up Mt Ainslie this month. We're pleased we can still manage it after our few months break. The walk back down the mountain and then through our front park to home is definitely the best part of the "climb".

Meanwhile builder Greg and his team are making great progress with our Coogee reno. Our bathroom and kitchen have new ceilings now, all the plumbing and electrical lines are in place and its definitely getting to the stage when all the really dramatic things can start to happen (eg the tiling and the install of bath and toilet and all the other lovely things we've been buying over the past few weeks).

We had another overnight stay in Coogee on Monday and Tuesday this week. There are a million details and choices to sort out and always something to order or buy that we hadn't thought of before. We also had a kitchen joiner to meet with on Tuesday - we're still trying to get this part of the project nailed down!

This is how the bathroom looked at the start of this week.... ready for the final layers of waterproofing before tiling starts next week.

And this is the kitchen - with its new ceiling and no remaining signs of that nib wall that used to break up the space into two tiny rooms. It looks like a much bigger space now.

Today is the 14th May - the 82nd anniversary of the sinking of the hospital ship Centaur in 1943. 

Rob's dad Alan was one of only 64 survivors of this war crime/ tragedy. We attended the Last Post ceremony at the Australian War Memorial this afternoon in honour of Rob's dad and all the other men and women (332 of them) who were on the Centaur on that fateful day. Its always a very moving ceremony. 

Today there was a specific focus on two of the 2/12th Field Ambulance Officers who lost their lives on the Centaur (brothers Fred and Alan Fortier). Members of their family were there as part of the ceremony, which must have meant a lot to them.