Extreme Knitting Redhead: Happy New Year to everyone!

Tuesday, January 1, 2008

Happy New Year to everyone!

Here we are at the start of 2008 and it's traditional to make lots of 'resolutions' to which one struggles to adhere so I'm not going to! Instead I'm giving myself some more flexible goals and one of those is to blog more frequently and include more general stuff about what I get up to (I have so many hobbies and interests that it seems a shame to miss them out). This morning when I looked out of the bedroom window I noticed a little visitor in the horses' field - a sheep had found a way through the hedge from the adjoining field and was grazing quite happily with Esther looking on! I haven't bothered to get him back as he's in no danger and the ponies don't seem to mind him being there.

I did a pleasant 6 mile run this morning along the lanes and wished I'd taken the camera with me as I saw 2 newborn lambs. Awwwwh! I shall try to remember to take it with me in future as there's always something of interest.

I'm feeling the urge to knit again, thank goodness, but I've also got some crochet and cross stitch projects on the go so my time will be spread out as usual.

I also need to plan out my fund-raising and racing for the year. I will definitely be raising money for the Alzheimer's Research Trust again as my main charity plus there will be other individual events for different charities. I'm running the London marathon again and will most probably be doing my knitting too as the publicity was fantastic (even though actually doing it was jolly hard - the knitting that is, not the running!!!!!!!).

1 comment:

Marina said...: Happy New Year, Susie. Here's to 2008 being a year of good health, fabulous knitting, crocheting & cross stitching projects and another successful fundraiser/challenge.

"Pleasant 6 mile run"? You're my hero! It's bitterly, cold here and seeing your green grass makes me envious. It looks wonderful there.; January 1, 2008 at 7:54:00 PM PST

Post a Comment

Mum's Story

In 1997 my mother, then aged 81, had a series of minor strokes. Shortly after that we started to notice behavioural changes notably memory loss and confusion over everyday items. We thought it was just old age finally catching up with her. Then she started wandering and had violent mood swings. Although she already lived with us it became obvious that she couldn't be left alone for long and so I left my job to care for her. The next few years saw a gradual decline into the blackness that is 'vascular dementia'. My normally placid mum became violent and aggressive. She had psychotic incidents where she would see imaginary people (children hiding in her wardrobe, Russians sitting on the stairs, women stealing her clothes) and she would shout at them and sometimes throw things too. She was so convincing that we used to go and check that there wasn't anyone there! When my sister died mum did not know who Judy was or that she was her daughter. There came a point when I suddenly realised she no longer knew that I was her daughter and this was a terrible time for me. In the last 2 years that she lived with us, life for us all became almost unbearable as she needed 24 hour care - she couldn't be left alone at all because she would either wander off or hurt herself, she never slept for more than 30 minutes at a time during the night, she became incontinent and incapable of doing anything for herself. Finally my husband and I realised that we could no longer provide her with the care that she needed and she went to live in a special care home where the team did a splendid job caring for her in the last few months of her life. There she lived a zombified existence unaware of who she was, what she was or where she was. It was heartbreaking. She died in March 2005, the day after her 89th birthday.

Thank you for taking the time to read mum's story and I hope you'll dig deep and sponsor me using the link below to help find a way of beating this destructive disease.