Blog 24-Getting there! What a proud mummy I am

The last few months have been all about decision making for the future and luckily, things just seem to have slotted into place and this has made the choices we've made so much easier. I'm a great believer in fate, and things happening for a reason.

Back in January,we had excitedly booked return flights home for June and set about filling the diary with exciting activities to do with friends and family in the short time we had with them before returning to Oz. Since then however,we have had a few more changes taking place which has lead us to decide to come home for good (well,unless we get itchy feet)! First of all we found out I was pregnant, which is very exciting news. We originally intended to have the baby in Brisbane,but then a couple more things came up which helped to make the choice to return so much easier. Our landlord decided to sell the property we're living in once our lease is up in July which meant that we would need to start looking to move AGAIN. Since being in Oz we have moved 4 times in 3 years and are over it. Along with this,Paul wanted a change in his employment but with Australia being so big,and his line of work quite niche,unless we moved cities,it wasn't going to happen. I think you're starting to get the picture! Along with all these changes,Charlies treatment coming to an end means that we are free to fly and go home so we just decided why not?! Having the baby and being close to family will be a huge plus.There's 3 and a half years of babysitting/sleep overs to be made up for so why wouldn't we rush home?hehe.

To backtrack slightly,Charlie started school at the end of January and he is doing amazingly well.He

Charlie and his home-made wings

isn't an A* student and probably is a little chilled out on the learning front. He's more interested in being a scientist and making experiments out of things he finds in the kitchen or making himself fly with home-made wings or helium balloons (don't ask),but thats Charlie. Paul and myself are just happy that he has managed to settle into school life so well and is a popular class member.The pressure of learning his "golden words" will come later as we're just so proud of the small steps hes making as the last 3 plus years have been tough on his body and mind.  Charlie is so excited to be moving back home as he gets to dig for worms and have his own builders yard like Uncle Rob had.That's Charlie in a nutshell.

Thomas is continuing to flourish and is such an energetic little boy.He began Jujitsu last month and is loving it. He's still as loving and caring as ever and does get very excitable (like a puppy) at times. Moving to Oz has been just as tough a journey for Thomas as the rest of us and not having family around to take him out when Charlies been too unwell for us to go anywhere,is a credit to his caring and understanding nature. When told moving back to the UK was a possibility,Thomas was a little apprehensive as he didn't want to leave his friends but soon came round to the idea when we spoke about all the fun he can have with cousins,friends and exploring "new" areas that he has no recollection of at all. Neither boys have many memories of living in England so they will be in for a lot of surprises when we return (thank god its "summer" when we come back is all I'm saying).They will love it!
Both boys happened to get an award on the same day at school assembly which made me a very proud mum.They were stood there amazed that each other got an award at the same time and kept giving one another the thumbs up.Very funny and cute.

Boys collecting their merit awards at the same time!

This blog wouldn't be right without singing the praises of my amazing hubby.Now this doesn't happen often so listen up! The last few years have been bloody hard and without Paul being there to support me,I wouldn't have got through it the way I have. Paul and myself have worked well as a team and I'm not going to be mushy but just say that he is the best husband and father ever! Even during my "morning sickness" (which should be renamed "all day sickness") he has stepped up and taken over everything I've been unable to do. He really is amazing. Oh,and he's sorted out a job for our return!Superman or what,hehe.

As for me,well I've had my head down the toilet bowl just about every day since being 5 weeks pregnant.(I'm now 14 weeks).It's no fun but I know how lucky we are to be having another baby so its a means to an end. I have a beautiful friend who has 2 young boys and she was sadly diagnosed with stage 3 Lung Cancer a few months ago.Seeing her and what my brave Charlie have gone through allows me to moan about my sickness,but get on with it as its not life threatening.You may find my empathy for some things has wavered a bit since you last saw me,but I think experiencing what we have, not only with Charlie but with other children at the hospital,it's understandable to be a little tougher and not sweat the small stuff.

So,currently we are waiting for Thursday which will start the beginning of the end of Charlies treatment. Charlie had his final lumbar puncture last month and this week its his VERY last chemo in hospital.Phew! He will then be taking his daily chemo at home until April 14th then that is it,remission begins! Once this has completed,the Consultant will book him in for his port-a-cath removing in May. Charlie has increasingly been asking questions about this and is clearly anxious about the prospect of having it removed. He told me he didn't mind keeping it as it would hurt more to get it out. He's also told me it would be good if he could drink something and it just disappeared and the skin healed itself. Unfortunately, he also asked about what happens when people finish their treatment and they return to the country they're from (like everyone who has Cancer is foreign) and it comes back. I've had to chat to him about the fact that its unlikely for it to return but if it did,Dr's in the UK will be keeping a close eye on him and they would need to give him further treatment. Not an easy conversation to have with your 5 year old.

Coming back home will be so exciting but also very sad for us as we have made a new life out here for the 3 years we lived here. We have made amazing friends to share the good and bad times with. As I keep being reminded by a certain friend (cough,Lori) they will always be there if they are real friends.

So,it's onto the next chapter in our life and this will involve packing (again),unpacking (again),moving (again),finding a school,a new home and changing nappies! Wish us luck in our next adventure and we hope to share lots of happy memories with you on our return.