Hi Billy,

Nong time no hear! I hope things are going ok with you? I have just had my latest CT scan and am waiting for the results at the end of July. I'll let you know...

Yes the wedding preps are going really well thank you. It is sooooo exciting! They read the banns in church on Sunday (I'm the religious(ish) one). Not long to go till September. Let's hope we're not back on lockdown again by then :(

It is good to hear from you!

Love to you both,

Mary

xxxxx

Hi Billy,

Hope you're both as well as you can be. I said I'd let you know about my scan results:

As far as they can see they can find no progression again. It was a long wait to hear this time and a bit of an emotional rollercoaster too. They originally thought they might have spotted a tiny new patch of something in my lung, but it turned out to be nothing new. Phew! It is very difficult for them to see because I have a lot of very small lung nodules to examine and compare with previous years. They do such a fantastic job, and I am eternally grateful that they are prepared to look so carefully for me, and with such amazing skill (it all looks the same to me)! Hopefully we can catch the cancer early if it does start to progress in the future.

Three weeks to go till the wedding and we are both filled with a mixture of excitement and apprehension. There is a lot to organise ("wedmin" - a mixture of "wedding" and "admin", my daughter said she also had a lot of "wedmin"....such a good word for it!), and we're both feeling pretty tired too. I have had 3 of the grandchildren over the summer too and am feeling pretty exhausted to be honest!

But life is for grasping, and living isn't it. So here goes!

When it's all over, I would attach some photos of us on our wedding day, but I can't see how to. Perhaps an admin might tell me how? I'm sure it used to be possible.

Wishing you all the very best,

Always,

Mary

xxxx

Dear Mary.

Really glad scans were good,I know waiting for results can be nerve racking, but as you say making sure is better than missing something.  Bet your really glad it's nearly the big day,bet your counting the days, and soon counting the hours . all I can say is congratulations on your big day, really hope the weather is very good for you both and everything goes like clockwork.

im having problems still with low BP, very tired most days , but im here and positive,    .keeping the garden tidy, All the new plum trees (4) and cherry (3) are doing well,all the bulbs are flowering,bird feeder and bath getting plenty of birds on so brenda is happy.shes still improving mobility wise exercising regularly.Just her mind tends to go off rather confusing tangents alot of times but. she's happy, mainly outside in garden or in with TV or radio .                                                                     .be thinking of you on the big day.

We both wish you both the best for a long future together and a very happy one.

Love from brenda , Billy and Bella xxxx ️

Hello Mary, 

Unfortunately it is no longer possible to attach photos to forum posts as we've had to disable the function as it was slowing the server down. However, perhaps when the time comes you could change your avatar photo to one of the wedding day? This way we would all get to see it!

Sorry for the inconvenience caused. Good luck with all the 'wedmin' - I love that word too!

Lucie, Cancer Chat Moderator

Hi Brenda, Billy and Bella,

I am glad Brenda is staying happy, but concerned that you are tired. I agree the garden is the best place for staying in a good frame of mind. My plums did terribly badly this year, but I think because I had a bumper crop last year.

Please send my best wishes to Brenda, and I definitely will change my "avatar photo" after the wedding, thank you Moderator Lucie.

I will stay in touch

xxxx

You're very welcome mare. And I look forward to seeing it ;) We all love a good wedding here!!!

Lucie

Dear Mary . just noticed your new avatar,thank you for doing that, and congratulations  , hope everything went smoothly and to plan  , brenda asked who im writing to and she sends her congratulations and love to you as well .

Hope I don't put a damper on your happiness but thought better tell you im having problems really struggling doing things , Dr sent me for a blood test after phone consultation , my endocrinologist noticed and phoned me unexpectedly and asked what is going on,then played hell with Dr for not seeing me in person,so my Dr is sending me for more blood test and askiing my specialist what they should do next  so im still waiting for someone to get me sorted out. 

Lighter note again looking for mobility scooter for us both,got a spar shop just down road but it's up and down hills and I struggle walking and car playing up small journeys (diesel keeps sooting up and going to engine management mode),so we go to boot sale to give it a run and clean it out,im pushing bren around in wheelchair soon warn out brenda having time of her life spending, doesn't mind when I tell her I've had it and were going home,as long as she can have some ice-cream  we get fresh air out and spend time together main thing .

Please don't forget some wedding info sometime  . take care keep safe and positive .

Love Billy xxxx

Hi Billy, and Brenda,

I'm sorry to hear that you're struggling Billy. I shall cross everything I have that this will turn out to be just another blip in the long saga of living with things. It is really frustrating having to always be waiting around whilst other people make decisions about you isn't it, even though we know they are doing their utmost to help. I shall be wishing you well and hoping for the very best news it can be for you.

Please say hello to Brenda from me, and thanks to you both for your good wishes. We had such a fabulous day. The wedding service was in our local church here, and the reception was there also. Our old church has been transformed recently into a fabulous community space for everyone local to use. It is such a beautiful and calm space, and it was a perfect venue for us all and we were so lucky to have our families and friends there to support us. It really has been such a long lockdown with the Covid - it was good to get together, albeit carefully.

It has been almost a month since we got married, but nothing has changed at all for us. And I think that is a good thing as we are both very happy together.

Tony hasn't even moved in yet because we are having trouuble playing furniture Tetris because my home is smallish and we both have lots of stuff from our separate lives to amalgamate. He also has a Harley motor bike which he wants to build a secure bike house for here. Things are settling down again now & I am back on a pretty strict diet and trying to exercise as much as I can to lose some of the excess weight that I piled on again over lockdown!

It is interesting that you say you are looking at mobility scooters. My friend has had one for ages and he can get out and about much more easily now, so he remains quite a active as he can. My daughter, who is a Physio, often tells me how people tend to do well if they adapt to each situation as it arises. So I'm glad to hear that you are thinking of creative ways to get out and about, and to make your life easier Billy.

My Dad's old wartime friend came to our wedding. They were in Burma together in WW2. He insisted on kicking off the speeches. He is 97 and has had just about every complaint going, including cancers and he had a double heart bypass at 91! And there he was, at my wedding, behaving like my dad! Now, he is someone I always listen to when he talks about his survival. He certainly adapts, and his stoic attitude is something I try to copy. I am so proud to know him (even if he does tongue in cheek phone my kids and ask about me "Have I won yet?"....It is a rather dark longstanding joke between us. When I was first diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer ten years ago we started a competition to see who could outlive the other, and we're both still here and going strong!)

Such an emotional and wonderful day. And such a kind man I am married to. He is my best friend. I am very lucky. And, after my dreadful diagnosis in 2011, it has all been so very unexpected.

Life certainly does know how to turn things round. One never knows what's next so its always best to make the most of the time we have isnt it? And I certainly intend to!

Love and best wishes to you both,

do keep in touch,

Mary

xxxx

Dear Mary some good news for me, my endocrinologist changed my dose of strong hormone therapy tablets down from 120 MG to 80 mg as when I went on these my problems started, also told me to wean myself off Clonidine (for my hot flushes) as they can drop BP . since that my BP has slowly increased and I'm feeling slightly better so hopefully as meds get steadied I'll improve more .

Really glad all wedding plans went right.i like the idea of the bet thought that was a good one.

We've got a mobility scooter each,I bought a second hand one cheap to try we both loved it, so I got a new one for bren with twice the milage just incase alot of shopping around town, and we live up hill fairly steep as well as long climb .

Hope things are still going well and you are getting things sorted around your house so your husband can move in .

Take care keep positive and enjoy married life hopefully as much and as long as we have, despite odd setbacks.  

Thinking of you.

Love Billy xxxx