No grapefruit please....

A sweet picture, taken seconds before Elijah threw his footstool at Isaac.


Just a quick update ..... The great news is that it ISN'T the big C...which was what we were all dreading. The diagnosis is that one of his medications has damaged his liver, added on top of a virus and dehydration his poor liver has had such a hammering! He will be in the hospital for a while, they will take him off his medication, test his liver function constantly and are ' hopeful' that the effects of this will be reversed. So, for now we are breathing a sigh of relief and praying that this IS the good news we hoped for. We are also reminding ourselves that he is 70 years old, 70 year old livers probably don't bounce back too quickly from such a beating. We are sure he will be grumpy and impatient when he isn't able to plaster ceilings and lay carpet next week, or the week after.
We were able, however, to enjoy a belly laugh at him yesterday though. He has been told ( a long time ago) that if he were to eat half a ton of grapefruit it could possibly stop one of his medicines from being effective. He has latched onto this is and at every opportunity tells people that he definately can't eat grapefruit, absolutely not, ever. Not even flavouring because who knows, it might just have the same effect and then where would he be? He told the nurse when she checked him in at the hospital and tells the sweet lady that asks him what he would like for his meals......at the same time as trying to wangle apple pie AND ice cream for dessert, even though he is diabetic. Even though they KNOW he is diabetic and tell him he can't have that. He eats chocolate, drinks soda with so much sugar in it he should be either comatose or high as a kite, he eats chips and pasties and anything and everything that diabetics should avoid at all cost....but he's alright because he doesn't eat grapefuit. Thankyou.

On a home note....the boys are wild, kids can feel tension and worry and anything out of the ordinary and because the good Lord has such a sense of humour, they go crazy, heaven forbid they should develop a sense of calm and co-operation, oh no. Yesterday, while I was at the hospital Elijah had a super jump fest, he split open his head, his lip twice and his nose, his face and legs are mottled with bruises. The kid won't stop jumping. He has also discovered that Isaac is terrified of him, probably has something to do with his penchant for biting him. What fun to make Isaac run for cover screaming in his high pitched ear shattering way! Isaac is bigger than Eli so he holds the top of Eli's head while Eli gnashes his teeth at him. Eli then screams in frustration. We are the worst example of what Super Nanny dreads. We deep down know that we should use peaceful time outs or naughty corners or something but when your head is trying to take in something like your dad on death's door, it seems all you can manage is shouting. Yelling "STOP! YOU LITTLE BUGGERS" seems to be as natural as breathing to me, in between driving here and there and throwing laundry at the washing machine.
I feel no shame for sitting in the hospital cafe with mum eating a peaceful lunch before coming home to face it again.
God bless H. Who doesn't get away from it at all, who does ironing with Eli swinging from the wire, who feeds them which is actually a silly thing to do ....as if they need energy for the next round! Who pats me on the back when I get home and tells me he loves me.

What happy news for my girl. She has a friend called Dan ( already a star in my eyes, how can he fail with a name like that?) Dan likes Sophie, he is unphased by her, even though he has seen her at her most revolting, while others cringe and shudder in somewhat impressed terror, he just smiles at her.He has asked her out, several times. When he asks her out he means it, not a request to sit in a car with a group of other kids, no hanging around outside Mc Donalds...he wants to take her out, somewhere posh and treat her beautifully. He and I have discussed this and he knows that she is terrified.
Last night he came into the sitting room and said " tomorrow, I am taking Sophie out, maybe to Exeter or somewhere but somewhere nice...will you tell her that YOU are taking her somewhere, so she gets ready and dressed up and doesn't come up with some excuse why she can't go?" ( she says she has to pay for herself because she can't imagine anyone wanting to actually take her out and pay for her) so that's what I did.......however, she then started talking about Dan and read me the sweet text he sent her earlier asking her when she was going to actually go out with him. So I told her that she IS going out with him tonight......she needs to enjoy that tummy flipping nervous feeling, she needs to wonder why he likes her, where they will go and she will enjoy it!!



I shall let you know how it all goes and pray she doesn't try to push him away in case she likes him and gets hurt.
I'm off to the hospital to see how the grapefruit avoiding swollen bellied father is today. Thankyou for your concern and thoughts, it means the world to me!