After a long time away, I'm back again, like the proverbial bad penny.
It's been a somewhat strange time, so much has changed, so many things have happened and I have now emerged, butterfly-like (ye Gods, that's a hell of a big butterfly...) into another new phase of my life.
In a year or so things will change again, but for now, I can sit relatively calmly and take stock.
#1 daughter is fairly settled in her new job, living a little way away with her boyfriend/soon-to-be-husband. They have worked everything out, aiming to get married on or around the 23rd April 2010, and probably starting a family not too long afterwards if all goes to plan (I'm WAY too young to be a granny!!!!!!). She graduated on my birthday last year, and I don't think I've ever been so chuffed.
#2 (almost) daughter is as happy as she's ever been. We've managed to keep her living with us, though at times it was a bit of a battle, and now things are settling down into a peaceful routine again. She made the transition from school to day centre very easily, and is having the most fantastic time making new friends and having fun. She has a new respite placement too, one where the people running it actually care for her. She's safe, loved and lovely, and I couldn't be more pleased. The one blip on the horizon is the scoliosis operation scheduled for February 5th - 7 hours under anaesthetic scares me to death, but because her understanding is limited, she remains blissfully ignorant of my fears for her.
#3 daughter has a social life that defies belief - she goes out more than she stays in, staying with friends, going to gigs and festivals, and working now too - and still she finds time to study for her A levels, and run a campaign to become one of the school officers. She's an amazing girl, the change of schools could have been a time of anxiety, but she entered into the challenge and has grown beyond belief.
I'm so proud of all three of them.
As for me, after 6 months of tests and worrying about my eyesight, I seem to be in the clear for now. I have to wear glasses all the time (at least I do if I want to see things in focus....), but I can handle that as I have to handle to stockings etc..
Happy days ahead....
