We love the NHS

This week we had Joel's long awaited cardiology appointment. A 3.50pm appointment slot on a dark, rainy afternoon... doesn't bode well. Our cardiologist is great but she always runs late, this time she was over an hour late!

Joel started crying before we even got into the consulting room. Jamie had downloaded Peppa Pig to his Itouch hoping that would help, I packed sweetie hoping they would help but nothing helped. He cried it out and then surprising was very cooperative, whilst complaining that the wand thing was "owwie on his boom boom."

After an ECG... have you ever tired keeping a two year old still enough for an ECG? we received the results.

1. His ECG was more or less normal :)

2. His aortic valve is undamaged at the moment. :)

3. Open heart surgery will never be an option unless in an emergency. :)

4. We can wean him off the diuretics he has been on since 16 days old. :)

5. The hole may close. 50% usually by 5 years old. 75% by 8 years old. So Joel may be one of these but as time goes on the likelihood gets smaller. :) and :(

6. He may need surgery later but the success rate right now is not high enough to give this to Joel as he seems so resilient and unless there are knock on effects he may just live with it. :)

7. When he comes off the diuretics his weight may improve and then he can come off the milk and maybe the iron. :)

So we left smiling, Joel was full of sweets and crisps and had snow white stickers stuck all over his clothes, shoes and hands. We are back in 6 months to see if he can cope without the medicines, if the hole is smaller or improving... until then we only have to give him his infatrini and iron. A nice break in a 2+ year routine. No more trips to the dr for repeat prescriptions, no more waiting for special orders and the pharmacist reminding us to watch the shelf life or, "Wow, he's a lucky boy with the cost of this gold dust!"

We are grateful for the gold dust, but we are not sad to see it go! Thank you NHS for looking after us.

And to Joel... keep getting better little man, you are so much fun, we love you dearly and your smile and humour brightens up our day; but you are a cheeky monkey too!.

We have been busy, Emily got her first swimming badge! A big achievement for her. Also our neighbour is so cool. We came home the other day to this box of goodies grown on her allotment. How great is that?

All is well with us, we are just about hanging on to the holidays in 2 weeks. Joel is at the hospital on Wednesday for vaccinations for the Winter, Emily and I are going to Disney on Ice on Friday with some friends and Jamie and I are going to see Romeo and Juliet with the English National Ballet on Sat. Lots to look forward to.

Sunny Autumn Days

Days out at Dunham Massey and Crow's Wood at Lyme Park, complete with new winter hats and fleeces!

School Days

Emily started school last week. We can't believe it is time for uniforms and black shoes already! All is well so far but she is on half days until 27th! We are adjusting to the rhythms of term, Joel starts at our new childminder tomorrow- hope that goes well.

It has been a while... and it will take a while to read this one!

It is 2 weeks until the end of our summer break and we have nearly finished the DIY. The conservatory is done, we just need to save for two pieces of furniture. We all love it, it is a great place to play, read and look out into the garden. It is even a good place to do school work!

The loft has had its fourth and final coat of paint and all it needs is some blinds on the windows so that when we need to sleep in it (in two weeks) the sun won't blind us!

The weather has been pretty unpredictable so we have had fun in our 'lounge cinema' complete with beds, popcorn and blankets. We have also popped out to visit Stan at Manchester Museum and have been to feed the ducks at Woodford Park Garden Centre. Sun would be nice so that we could enjoy our own garden a bit more.

We have been on holiday with friends on the Isle of Wight. Our god daughter is 11 and about to start high school, it was fun spending a week with her and her family. It is bizarre that the tiny little baby we were holding all those years ago is now holding our toddler's hand and playing with him in the sea! The sun shone for most of the time, we played on the beach, picniced a lot and had a fun time. We stopped at Longleat and had a great time at the Safari Park. Our kids love animals so it was a fab thing to do. Emily was beside herself at the thought of meeting Sportacus and Stephanie as well as holding a millipede! Joel enjoyed the train ride and the safari boats looking for sea lions and hippos!

Joel has had his second birthday. He got a scooter and a football net as well as fire trucks, rockets, animals and books. He even got a personally addressed and signed copy of Cave Baby - the new Julia Donaldson book! I am so excited for him - thank you Auntie Nic and Uncle David! We went to Monkey Forest with the McCulloch tribe and had a fun time with the 140 Barbarary Macques (not sure how to spell them... monkeys will do,).

It is hard to work out where the last 2 years have gone, Joel has been an amazing addition to our clan, he brings so much joy and laughter to our house and has a real love for all things four legged. I am sad to see the baby time go but he will keep us busy in the toddler years as he is as strong willed as his sister and Mummy! ( He also has a great thowing action like his Daddy, but sadly it is not just balls that he likes to throw!)

Well 2 weeks left, we are off to Greenbelt - a Christian arts and music festival. It is the first time we have camped since our America Trip in 2003 and the first time with 2 children. It is only for 2 nights..... I will let you know how it went. It is also results day for Jamie on Tuesday. He will find out how the students did in their exams and how his department has performed this year. Emily, Joel and I are going to our church kids club - the theme is super heroes. I don't plan to dress up in a cat suit! My parents arrive for a dessert afternoon with friends and family to celebrate Joel and Jamie's birthdays. A little late for JoJo but lots of people are away in August!

Then, before we know it, the 5 weeks that I have longed for since Christmas are done and I am meeting my new class of 32 Year 6 children on Wednesday 8th Sept after 2 days of Inservice training. Before that, I need to successfully convince a very adament 4 year old that she needs to wear black shoes to school and not pink ones. I have tried all summer and failed but this week I am biting the bullet! Wish me luck!

Catching up

Well, now that we have all caught our breath, it is time to reflect and get excited about the summer holidays that start this Friday for Jamie and next Wednesday for me! So here is a potted few weeks.

Emily finishes Nursery school next Thursday and has had a wonderful year.

She got into the Primary school we wanted after a successful appeal. She is now in the same class as 5 of her friends from Nursery.

We got her uniform last week. :)

Joel has been recovering from yet another virus, so lack of sleep and appetite for him and us!

Joel is chatting more, his favourite words are donkey, airplane, penny, football, no and sweeties. Usually not in the one sentence, but wouldn't that be an interesting idea!

We have entered the world of Disney Princesses with Ariel and Price Eric, Jasmine with Aladdin, Prince Philip with Sleeping Beauty, daily gracing our dinner table.

I have had sinusitis, fluid in my ears, a chest and throat infection.

Our loft conversion is finished, we are now painting and decorating it.

Our conservatory is half up with the brick work done, tomorrow the frames should arrive.

My class staged 'Bugsy Malone' last week - they were amazing.

I wrote 31 school reports and so far there has been no 'fall out!'

I saw Hairspray at Manchester Opera House. It was so, so great.

Jamie is busy writing speeches for colleagues who are leaving his department, he has survived his first term as a Head of Department and has enjoyed it.

Our potatoes and shallots are growing well with the much needed but unwanted rain.

It's my baby sister's birthday tomorrow and my dad's birthday tomorrow.

Jamie and I celebrate 15 years together next month as well as our 10 year wedding anniversary.

Well, that is enough, I need to go to find food for tomorrow's tea as well as bags for Nursery and our Child Minder.

Where has the time gone?

Last weekend Emily celebrated her fourth birthday. Today we had her party with friends from church, nursery school, baby massage, our friends from school and their kids as well as family. We had a fun time, the sun was out and really hot and we had a great time together.

Emily is great. She has too much to say for herself. She often needs the last word and has an opinion on most things. She is the organiser and is often the leader but likes to be the follower too. She laughs easily and cries a lot. She is clumsy but tries to succeed. She is kind and caring whilst being strong willed and stubborn. She asks great questions but struggles to wait for the answers. She is great. We love her dearly and are so grateful that she blesses our lives every day. There are lots of lovely things about Emily, for me, it's her smile!

Ba Ba Black Sheep

Sing along folks, there is even a message, of "No more" at the end!

Fundraising whilst running

Enjoying a free snack bar whilst watchig the big screen

A reward from the Golden M on the way home!

Jamie did his run and shaved off over 2 minutes from his time from last year. He did it in 57.15 mins and really enjoyed it too! He has raised over £500 including gift aid for The Charnwood Trust and is really excited with what they can do with this money. Thank you to all of you who have contributed.

It's been a while

Life has been busy. I also feel that I have had nothing to write.

We have just returned from a fab 8 days on the Costa Blanca. Emily and Joel wore sunhats and sun screen instead of woolly hats and waterproofs!

Jamie starts his new role at school on Monday. Head of Maths... we hope that goes well for him and his peers.

Emily was refused a place at our local Church of England School. We are 4 streets out of catchment but really want her to have the foundation of a faith based school. We are now in the process of the Appeals process. Apparently only 28% of appeals are successful! We will find out next Wednesday where we are on the waiting list of 31 children! ( that is more than another class!) Then the appeals panel meet in June, however some of the dates are when I am in Belfast to hopefully meet my new niece! I kinda feel that this situation is a bit of a pain in the neck!

Joel is well, he has officially finished Infatrini now and is just on cows milk. His medicine continues until our next cardio appointment. He is walking and running with the added ability of stopping! His love of all things bouncy and spherical continues. He is learning to say sorry as he likes to blow raspberries and hit out when he cannot have or do something. Thankfully we are not at the stage of reins but the naughty step is used frequently!

As for me... busy reading a wierd kids book called Tunnels, packed away our Easter Tree today and planted the potatoes in the veggie patch. As I said not a lot to say!

We are well, enjoying the last few days before the busy summer term packed with exams and transition.

Jamie is running the Manchester 10KM to raise funds for Emily's Nursery and Joel's Opportunity Group. If you would like to help, check out... www.justgiving.com/jamiemcculloch.

Technology. Bleurgh!

Sorry folks, I have no idea why videos no longer work. Will have to look into it but it won't be for a while as my class are my priority until after SATs in May.

Hello

Hello, ground control to Joel. His favourite word at the momnet is Hello. All is well with us, we are on a half term break.

We have been enjoying the spring weather, the crocuses and daffodils are up in the garden with the crocuses blooming already. The weather is great and so our spirits are great - its fab to be in the sun.

Frankenstein is on the loose.

How cool is this?

Thanks be to God...

...and to all who have been praying and thinking about us for the past 15 months.

Today Joel had his cardio appointment. We have always gone to each one wondering when we would hear the news that he is 'really' improving and not just maintaining. We usually wait holding our breath whilst the doctor measures and clicks, makes the machine make funny whirring noises as well as humms and haas. Eventually, when we feel we can we usually ask, "Well how is it thins time?" (again waiting for the magic sentence... "it's better."

Well today we kind of heard that sentence. The hole no longer impacts on the rest of his heart, it is still there but it is small, the flow back and forth is restricted and she has , "no plans for surgery". Yes... we heard the words.... no longer are we wondering when it is going to be, Joel will not need surgery. Whoop, Whoop!

Joel continues to be a work of God, and God is 'fixing' him. (along with the help of some amazing people from the NHS).

We are so, so grateful and overwhelmed by the journey you have gone on with us. It is not over yet, but we were assured today that the worst over and that in our cardiologist's words, " you need to go, get on with your lives, make plans and not worry."

Thank you for your prayers, notes, texts, thoughts, visits, gestures, patience and kindness not only to us as a four, but to our parents, siblings and wider family as you have cared for us all.

We are blessed with Joel in our lives, we are blessed with friends and family and we are truly blessed by God's presence with us each and every day.

Thanks be to Him.

Snow Day.. the first one in our 10 year teaching careers!

This one needs a few more burgers! (not Jamie!)