Padi fundraising

With the help of the good people at CLIC Sargent, I've had a justgiving team page set up in memory of Pads. This means that anyone who is fundraising in future through justgiving can make their page a part of his 'team' so that they have their own page but the money shows on the team page as well. We may be able to get the funeral director's page associated in this way too. There's also a 'donations' page which we can use to put up any further donations we or CLIC Sargent get sent.
How are we doing? That varies a lot. Time passes, which helps. As you know, we also have a wonderfully supportive church fellowship, where Ally's taken on leading Sunday School - everyone says she's very good at it. The kids are all settled back into school. I'm back full-time now. My secondment will conclude at the end of this month.
It was great to see Will (Ally's brother), Vic and Elias, over from Australia. They have followed every detail of our story from afar. We visited the grave and shared meals together and then the whole of Ally's family met in Marlow for a get-together. It was strange not to have Pads there - rocky road dessert was ordered in memory of a previous gathering when, being on steroids, he'd scoffed one 'unassisted'.

Donations in lieu of flowers

The good people at Green Willow have set up the 'Just Giving' page in memory of Padi. We're asking for donations instead of flowers to go towards two charities close to our hearts:

CLIC Sargent pay for our nurse who has visited us and helped us through many difficult symptoms and situations at our home for years. We are very grateful to and for her. The Just Giving page is at https://www.justgiving.com/green-willow-funerals-donations233/

The other charity is the WVHigham Trust and we're planning for a retiring offering at the funeral (to try and keep things simple). It is hard to estimate the importance and impact of Mr Higham's ministry. He has remained a dear friend to us, and Padrig in particular. The Trust aims to make as much as possible of his long ministry freely available online through the website: www.wvhigham.org

 

More trips in the car

Making good use of the Motability car while we've got it, yesterday Pads ventured out to enjoy Star Trek 'Into Darkness', and today he went in the hot tub. The sub-cut (subcuticular or 'below the skin') needle which delivers analgesia needed taking out and a new one inserted in a different site. The previous site had started to go bad and he's still got pain and a big colourful bruise on his right hip from it. After an hour and a half with no pain relief going in it was great that Jane was able to drive to us at Ruth's and make the change. It was lovely in Ruth's garden and Padi's wit was spritely, even if his speech was slurred having become worn out by the excursion. We're getting used carrying him up the stairs. He's generally pretty awake between the hours of 12 and 8pm, but it depends what he's been up to.

Ethical gifts and counting the costs

Pads had a very quiet day today, feeling 'zonked' after yesterday's visits from the play therapist and his tutor. However, it did make him easy prey for the nurse who needed to take some blood, to check that the chemo is not harming his counts. This involves a finger/thumb prick (he has a choice!) and then a collecting vial is scraped over the hole. It makes me wince to witness it but Pads is an old hand at this now.
A calmer day also gave him chance to consider options for his birthday... and he's plumped for a single game of 10-pin bowling with a couple of chums.
We're somewhat amazed to be looking at Pads' birthday. He'll be 14. Regarding gifts, as I've said before, he really does not lack for anything. However, flexing significant powers of imagination, some have managed to come up with a suitable present idea. If you are failing at this, and were thinking of going any higher than a card, Pads would like to encourage you to consider an 'ethical gift'. These two sites looked promising when he was reviewing them earlier today. http://www.goodgifts.org/ and http://www.presentaid.org/ For example, £15 will buy a single 'Medical sniffer rat', or, if vegetation is your thing, a similar sum will gift 20 fruit trees to struggling families in Nicaragua.

Our LATCH social worker arrived with the nurse to help Ally with a benefits form. You may have missed an article on the Welsh regional news last night, following up a recent report published by CLIC Sargent, 'Counting the Costs of Cancer'. There is no doubt that we have also been hit financially by the disease. Ally would be working at least part of the week, and earning more than our carer's and disabilities allowances. However, we have gratefully received significant financial support, as well as support that equates to financial, from charities, friends and family. Furthermore, we do not experience the same outlay on travel and accommodation that most families in our situation do because we live within 10 minutes walk of the hospital, a singular providence.