heading home, and then away

Hi all,

Well, the latest is that David is doing quite well lately, he has been eating full meals and everything! Really good to see him enjoy a steak dinner :)

The medical and hospital staff have been working together to prepare David for his trip away and are comfortable with his trip and the support he has set up. They have been wonderful. 

God willing, the plan is that he will 'check out' of the hospital tomorrow sometime (Tuesday), then we all leave for our family holiday in Kangaroo Valley (2.5 hours away) on Wednesday. He will be well set up with all his medications to manage pain and nausea and our dear friend/nurse Helen O on 24 hour call if we ever feel we need more advice (as well as all his other medical support staff of course!). We will also get a wheelchair for getting out and about if he needs/wants it.

The plan is to try a round of chemo when we get back. David is just going to see how his body responds to it. 

We have lots of contingencies and support in place for while we are away. The awesome cancer care coordinator is even checking into finding a local palliative care nurse to come check in on David. The original plan was for us all (11 adults, 9 children) to stay for a week but we are going to take it very much on a day by day basis. It will be whatever it is, supporting David and Mum will come first, we may cut it short if he isn't going too well, and that will be ok. 

The place we are going is a very peaceful little 'farm stay' type place in an olive grove! Lots of animals, wide open spaces, and pools and playgrounds for the kids, and best of all, peace and quiet in the bushland for us to just hang out together. We are very much looking fwd to time to be together, make memories and support each other.

Appreciate your prayers for David and all of us over the next week. Please be aware that reception is likely to  be very patchy up there so may not be many/any phone calls or blog updates till we get back. (The owners of the cottages is aware of our situation and we have use of their landline for any medical situations).

Thanks everyone, for your ongoing support. How blessed we are to have such a caring community. We are truly grateful.

Love, Kate