So Christmas is over, but there is still enough turkey to feed an army, what do you do with the leftovers? Turkey curry(see my blog) is always an option, but how about a turkey casserole?
Searching through my fridge I also found some vegetables which were languishing in the bottom drawer and so I decided to concoct my own turkey casserole recipe – so here we go!
I put the onions, carrots, leek, swede, parsnips into a slow cooker and sprinkled over the flour. Then I added the bay leaves, mustard and tomato puree and mixed this in. The stock was added and another quick stir and salt and pepper for seasoning.
I put the slow cooker on low for eight hours and two hours before the casserole was due to be finished, I added the cooked turkey.
The result was a very filling and comforting turkey casserole which could be served with new potatoes or mashed potatoes, perfect for between Christmas and New Year.
As I said before, I don’t remember much about being in Intensive Care, but I do remember the vivid dreams I had: Goblins running around the ward, peeking behind the curtains at me: a bus crash near where I live and intensive care readying itself for the patients (this was so vivid that I asked a nurse if it had happened!). I vaguely remember Phil visiting, when right in the middle of a sentence I would drift off to sleep and he would wait patiently until I woke up again to carry on the conversation.
After Intensive Care I was transferred to the High Dependency Unit. Here, there was one nurse between two patients, there was also several care assistants who helped with things like giving bed baths, moving you from side to side so you didn’t get bed sores, cleaning your teeth and making your bed.
I had developed a hacking cough after surgery and one particular time I coughed so hard it dislodged the feeding tube that was down my throat. I immediately knew it wasn’t good as I was choking, I couldn’t breathe. One of the nurses noticed I was in distress and came over but she thought I was just struggling to cough. I was pointing at my throat and by this time I was gagging as well. Two more nurses came over and one shone a torch down my throat and immediately saw what the problem was and they whipped the feeding tube out of my throat, I can’t tell what a relief that was, I literally thought I was going to die. Afterwards it reminded me of a scene from Airplane…
After spending a day in this ward the nurses told me I was going to get up and walk, I panicked a little bit, not feeling ready to do this, but later on that day I managed a walk around the ward and sat back in the chair. Phil was very surprised to see me sat in the chair when he came to visit a little later.
I began to drink soup, have some ice cream and plenty of Fortisips, which are a protein milkshake. I started to take longer walks, with my trusty IV drip following me and sitting for longer periods in the chair. They took out a tube which was in my neck, removed the catheter and took out the cannulas, as they had put a PICC line in when I was in ICU. So, I was beginning to feel a little more human again.
I spent three days in MDU and suddenly one morning I was told I was moving to a general ward. I was pleased as this meant I was getting better, but also a little worried as I thought I wouldn’t get the care and attention I had been given over the last six days as the nurses there are sometimes very stretched.
There were six beds on my ward, I was lucky enough to have a bed by the window where I could see the entrance to the hospital and I needn’t have worried, the nurses were amazing, they looked after us all so well.
The doctors did their rounds each day and gave you an update on where you were at, mostly based on the blood tests you did each day. I was told I was doing well, that was until I did a re-enactment of The Exorcist and threw up everywhere.
I’d been sick in the past six days, but nothing like this. I felt queasy and asked for something to be sick in, well once I started, I couldn’t stop and it was going everywhere and it was fluorescent green! The Sister on the ward told me it was because I had a lot of liquid settling on my stomach and the only way to get rid of it was to insert the feeding tube back down my throat. Well, I wasn’t best pleased about that, but if it was the only way to stop it then I would have to do it.
Three nurses turned up and I was told to sip water through a straw whilst they put the tube up my nose. We managed it after a false start but I could feel it at the back of my throat and so I started gagging and being sick once again. They decided to take the tube out and because I had regurgitated so much liquid most of it had gone from my stomach, so they were happy to not try again, much to my relief. I was sick again, in the middle of the night, but I was in the toilet and didn’t tell anyone and I wasn’t sick again!
Another problem I had (like Phil said, there were inevitably going to be some setbacks) was going to the toilet. I felt like I needed to go all the time and when I did it was just a trickle. So the doctors decided that the stents I had fitted in my kidneys needed to come out. I was a bit worried about how they were going to do that and I was wheelchaired to Urology.
I was taken to a room where there were two doctors and a nurse and had to lay down with my legs apart, very dignified and one of the doctors inserted a long clamp watching via a monitor and the other one operated the clippers to take hold of the stent. They did this in a matter of seconds and then the other one just as quick. The stent was a long plastic tube and I have to say, I immediately felt so much better. I was taken back to the ward where everyone, including the nurses, were amazed at how quick it was.
Talking of the other patients: we all had various stomach problems, there were three other ladies who were there when I arrived, one left a week later, one left the same day as me and one remained there. We all got on very well and it made the days seem a bit more bearable. They are long days in hospital, only having blood tests, scans and meals to look forward to and of course, visiting hours.
I was very lucky in that I had lots of visitors, so a HUGE thank you to everyone who visited me, you don’t realise how much it meant to me. Phil, of course, came every day, I think there was only a couple of days he missed, bringing me my spare pyjamas, snacks and just conversation, even if it was just talking about his work, it was nice to talk about something different than my operation!
Apart from a couple of hiccups, my recovery was speedy and I was very pleased when I was told that I could go home. The lady in the bed opposite me was also being released the same day and she was especially happy because it meant she could go to her son’s wedding a couple of days later. I was lucky in that my son’s wedding wasn’t until October, so that gave me plenty of time to get fitter.
Before my operation I did a lot of walking, I was doing around 10,000 steps every day and was quite fit and the doctors said that because of this my recovery was a lot quicker, so that’s my main piece of advice, get fit before you have any kind of operation!
I’m not sure this is what the doctor meant!
On my release date (it sounds like I was in prison!) the lady opposite put her phone on loudspeaker and she played a couple of tunes to celebrate us leaving. Of course, I requested Dancing Queen and the nurses were dancing and singing along as they made our beds, it was so nice to see them having fun.
I came home three weeks after my operation, with the intention of not returning to hospital, but unfortunately I contracted an infection in my stoma. I was told later by the doctor that the HIPIC surgery had caused this and so was in hospital for another week, in isolation, which I didn’t mind and so far, three months later, I haven’t returned.
We went to see the Oncology doctor about a month after the operation where I was told that the cancer had gone! There was no sign of it at all, even when they examined the ovaries after taking them out, there was no cancer on them.
I had an MRI scan yesterday and I am due to see the consultant in a couple of weeks time, so hopefully I will receive the same news from him and also news on when my stoma can be reversed. But until then, I’m taking one day at a time because you never know what’s around the corner.
I hope you have found these blog posts informative and helpful and I would like to say that when you receive the bowel screening test through the post from the NHS, please, please do it, it only takes five minutes and it could save your life – it saved mine!
From the moment we walked into the restaurant, to when we left, we were made to feel very special – nothing was too much trouble for any of the staff (not that we made any demands, but there was a particularly testing table that arrived as we were about to leave.) I loved the décor, it was just to my taste and we were sat at the window!
We did wonder who St. Petroc was, so we went to good old Google and found this: “St. Petroc, also known as Petrock, was a British prince and Christian saint. He was renowned for his goodness to both men and animals and he founded monasteries at Padstow and Bodmin. Although he had been brought up as a prince and trained to rule over people, he had a call to lead a holy life.”
We chose to have the Set Lunch at a cost of £26 each, with additional sides of Savoy Cabbage with bacon and chives and Tenderstem Broccoli with salsa verde.
We both decided on the same courses, Tomato Soup with Basil for starters, 4oz Steak Frites with thin cut chips and rocket salad for Mains and Sticky Toffee Pudding with Cornish clotted cream for dessert. I forgot to take a picture of the starter, but it was just soup!
The whole meal was absolutely delicious, hubby particularly loved the Tenderstem Broccoli and we ate everything, nothing was left to waste. The soup was very tasty, the steak just melted in your mouth, the chips were crispy with a light potato filling and the dessert was heavenly, not too rich, not too heavy and topped off perfectly with the clotted cream.
And just when we thought it couldn’t get any better, a special Happy Birthday plate was presented to the table!
The whole meal, including drinks, cost us £90 . I always say that I don’t mind paying that extra if the meal is worth it and boy was this meal worth it!
I am off work at the moment as I am recovering from bowel cancer and my husband booked two weeks off as our son was getting married and he wanted some time off around that. I received an email from Parkdean Resorts saying we could book a four day holiday for £89. I was a bit sceptical but it was true, so we booked to go from Monday to Thursday at St. Minver Holiday Park, Wadebridge, Cornwall, PL27 6RR.
Day One
The journey from Southampton to Wadebridge is roughly four hours, so we booked to stop off at The Jamaica Inn for lunch. This was a bit of a bucket list item for both of us, as every time we drove to Cornwall we threatened to go there, but never actually got there, but because it was my birthday, we decided to go for it.
Picture from Jamaica Inn website
We stopped off at The Jamaican Inn, luckily we had booked as it was very busy.
Our onward journey took us another 45 minutes where we found St. Minver Holiday Park quite easily and after booking in at Reception we found our caravan.
We booked a four berth caravan and when we entered we were pleasantly surprised by it. Sure, it wasn’t the biggest caravan we’d stayed in but it was only for the two of us and we wouldn’t be spending that much time in there, we were more concerned with the facilities the park had to offer and the location of it.
Living roomKitchen area
On looking at the map of the site and the entertainment programme it looked like there was a lot going on. We saw that there was an entertainment hub which housed the pub, showbar, restaurant, arcade and soft play area and the list of activities for the children was quite extensive, including an indoor heated swimming pool, plus bingo, karaoke and even a tribute band for the adults. I was quite impressed that you could order food from your table via their App and even have food delivered to your accommodation.
After unpacking, we decided to visit a beach called Polzeath Beach which is popular with surfers and we could see why when we arrived, the waves were awesome! We took a walk around the town centre, purchased an ice cream and took a wander down on the beach. There were lots of surfing classes and we spent a while watching the surfers ride the waves and some quite spectacular wipe-outs.
As it had been a long day, we drove back to the caravan and as we were both still full from the lunch at Jamaica Inn, we had a cup of tea and went to sleep….
Day Two
Today we had decided to go and visit Padstow which is one of my favourite places in Cornwall, my very favourite being St. Ives. But, instead of driving to Padstow we were going to park at Rock, which was only a couple of miles away and then catch the ferry across the bay to Padstow. This was a good decision as the car park in Padstow is way up on a hill and whilst this is fine in the morning walking down, it’s very tiring after a long day and having to walk up this steep hill, plus after chemotherapy and bowel surgery, I’m still not up to full strength so I’m not sure I would have even made it!
We arrived and parked up and went for a walk along the sea front to take a little look at the place where the celebrities live, people like Gordon Ramsay and Dawn French. We spotted Paul Ainsworth’s restaurant, The Mariners on the sea front and it did look fabulous, somewhere we’d love to go for a special occasion.
We walked back as we could see the ferry was approaching Rock Beach. The ferry only took card payments and it cost £3.00 – Adult Single, £1.50 – Child Single and £3.00 – Bike.
The ferry dropped us off at the harbour and after checking what time the last ferry back to Rock was, we went off to explore.
Padstow is a fishing port and is situated on the west bank of the River Camel. There is a lot of shops to visit, we particularly like the glass art that you can get from Cornwall, plenty of tea rooms, restaurants and of course, pasties. After a cup of coffee and a piece of cake, we took a stroll round and sat on a bench on the harbour just people watching and enjoying the view.
After a delicious meal at Rick Stein’s, we had another wander and stumbled across a craft fayre and never one to walk past one of this, we went in. There were lots of stalls to have a look around and I bought a ceramic heart necklace which was very pretty.
We then caught the ferry back to Rock, thankful that we didn’t have to go up that steep hill back to the carpark and drove back to the caravan site.
We were going to go to the Entertainment Hub but we were very tired and so we just chilled in front of the television watching The Great British Bake Off, munched on a few pork pies that we had brought with us and then departed to the bedroom and I haven’t slept that well for a very long time…
Day Three
On our journey down to St. Minver Caravan Park, we saw a sign for Pencarrow House, it wasn’t a National Trust house but privately owned, so we made a mental note to visit it if we had time over the next couple of days. Well, day three afforded us this chance and so we headed over to it early morning to book a house tour.
Pencarrow HouseLanhydrock House
It’s a standing joke between us that wherever we go somebody always knows hubby and today was no exception. As we walked into the shop a voice said, “Hello Phil, what are you doing here?” The lady who worked behind the counter used to work in one of the buildings he runs as the Catering Manager!
A walk around the gardens and a guided tour of the house and we were on our way to Lanhydrock house, but not before have a bite to eat at a pub we passed along the way.
We had downloaded a free National Trust pass so we used this to gain entry to Lanhydrock House, which was just as well as it was quite expensive at £20 each.
After a look around the House, we would have loved to had spent more time there but we had a meal booked at Bodmin Jail before we went on our ghost walk, we had to move on.
The rain was coming down which added to the eerie feeling about the jail. We arrived fully expecting a meal but was told that even though we booked it online for a time of 16:45, they weren’t open at that time for meals but did open at 17:00 for a set menu. On looking at this menu it was £50 per head, so we decided against it and found a lovely little pub down the road and had a bowl of tomato soup each!
Back to the jail for 18:30 and we booked in for our ghost walk.
The walk around the jail was very interesting, we were told about the different ghosts that haunted the jail, facts about some of the inmates and we got to look inside the jails, which was a bit creepy.
The person who led the tour was very knowledgeable and we were surprised to find out it was his first tour he had ever done, so well done to that man!
It was at Bodmin Jail where the episode of Most Haunted was filmed and Derek Ocorah (a medium) was set up by Ciaran O’Keefe (sceptic) to expose him as a fraud….
After the tour we headed back to the caravan site where we went to the entertainment centre and feasted on a £12.49 pizza and a couple of drinks.
We took a picture of the different menus:
After feeling full after eating the pizza we did a quick tour of the amusement arcade where we won a couple of small teddies and then we headed back to the caravan for our final night before we packed to go home.
Amusement Arcade
Day Four
Phil got up early to go to a bakery we had seen at Rock the day before to buy some pasties and scones for when we got home. Phil is very partial to a cream tea and we hadn’t had time to fit one in this trip, so we bought one to take home with us.
We didn’t stop on the journey home, mainly because we sailed past the services we were going to stop at, so it was nice to have a ready-made tea when we did get back.
My view
We thoroughly enjoyed our time at St. Minver Holiday Park, so much so that we’ve booked five days next year this time staying in a lodge so that our families can come and stay if they want to.
Our lodge for next year
We found the park to be central for where we wanted to visit and there was plenty to do, from playing bingo, karaoke, swimming to walking through the woods.
The first thing we noticed was that it was decorated with Halloween decorations, they had a backdrop of a haunted house where you could have a picture taken.
We sat down at our reserved table (I would recommend booking ahead as it was very busy) and I ordered the Chef’s Steak & Jamaica Inn Pie which was served with creamy mashed potatoes, seasonal vegetables and gravy: Price £16.95
Hubby ordered the Jamaican Inn Burger with 6oz beef burger topped with Monterey Jack cheese, bacon, tomato, gherkin and salad in a toasted brioche bun served with skin-on fries: Price £15.95
Both meals tasted delicious, just what we needed, a hearty meal after three hours of sitting in a car in traffic! As I said before, it was busy, but the meals didn’t take very long to reach our table and we were far too full to order dessert.
We then headed towards the museum which focused on the author, Daphne Du Maurier and of course, pirates, smuggling and ghosts.
The cost to enter the museum was £3.95 for adults and £2.95 for children and OAPs.
Daphne Du Maurier
Well known for her novel, The Jamaica Inn which was a tale about Mary, an orphan, who lives with her Aunt Patience and Uncle Joss Merlyn, who was the Landlord of the Jamaica Inn and her uncle’s involvement in smuggling along the Cornish coast. One of her other well known novels is Rebecca which was a very successful film. There is a room created at Jamaica Inn which is full of memorabilia including her writing desk on top of which is a packed of the Du Maurier cigarettes named after her father.
Smuggling Museum
The Museum purports to house one of the finest collections of smuggling artefacts in the country. Custom taxes were first introduced in the 13th century but there was little enforcement of this until the 18th century when taxes were raised to fund foreign wars. Goods could be purchased much cheaper abroad and so smuggling became rife. Tea was six times more expensive in England than Europe. Other goods such as silks, tobacco and branding were also smuggled into Cornwall.
Paranormal Activity
The presence of paranormal activity here is one of the reasons we wanted to visit, we do like a good ghost story and if there’s any chance of an investigation we’re there. But unfortunately we didn’t have time to attend an investigation this trip, but it’s something we would like to do in the future! You can book a stay in one of their haunted rooms which includes a two course dinner and is £85 per person.
Most Haunted did an investigation here and said it was one of the spookiest they have ever recorded. Below is the programme they recorded….
After a look around the gift shop, I wanted to buy a Jamaican Inn t-shirt but unfortunately they had run out of stock, we then went to the farm shop and then we left the Jamaica Inn.
My husband and I arrived at The Mayflower Theatre with different expectations: I was looking forward to seeing the presenters of Most Haunted in person after many years of watching them on the TV – my husband, who is something of a sceptic was interested to see if they could change his mind.
Most Haunted Stage Show
Never to miss an opportunity, Yvette Fielding’s books were on sale in the foyer, a great marketing strategy, but I resisted the temptation to buy. We found our seats and wondered at the array of people who came to watch, a very mixed bag.
The show opened with Yvette coming on stage, she laid out the format the show was going to follow and then introduced Karl, Stuart and Glen to the audience.
Stuart Torevell and Karl BeattieGlen Hunt
Now, I’ve never been a huge fan of Karl, the rumours of him throwing stones and coins and claiming it’s spirits and the famous ‘rope-gate’ at 30 East Drive haven’t done much to endear him to me, but I was willing to give him a chance tonight.
But when he started swearing as soon as he opened his mouth I didn’t think I would be changing my mind about him anytime soon.
Stuart and Glen didn’t really have much to say, only speaking when Yvette asked them a direct question. Stuart looked especially uncomfortable with being on the stage.
The show mainly centred around them showing their favourite clips and then talking about them. They showed the infamous Stuart ‘ghost’ and explained it was Stone Tape theory and they also showed the doll catching fire which they strenuously denied any misdoings.
In the second half there was audience participation: a séance and a mini investigation backstage of the theatre.
The theatre opened on 22 December, 1928 originally called The Empire Theatre. It’s the largest theatre in the South of England. It has held concerts by famous artists such as Bill Hayley & His Comets, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones and Queen.
Yvette said that an old man has been spotted sitting in a chair backstage and tapping has been heard and so they picked four people out of the audience to go backstage with Karl and Stuart with a night vision camera. They also picked out four people to participate in a Ouija board session.
The people who went backstage heard lots of knocking and a lady said that when she went into the toilets she felt the presence of a little child who tried to hold her hand. The remaining three concentrated on knocking and asking for it to be repeated. When they came back they recounted their experience when one of the men revealed he was a sceptic and he wondered if the tapping was because they were directly under the stage.
The séance started off quite calmly, but they received a spirit who spelled out C3 and Glen suggested that could be a seat number. The lady who was sat there got up on stage and it was revealed the spirit was called Peter and was her deceased husband. She told him she was “doing fine,” without him, that touched the heartstrings of the audience.
They then had a question and answer session with the audience, where Karl for no reason that I’m aware off, decided to speak in an extremely effeminate way, which again didn’t endear him to me at all. His swearing was even worse than in the first half, to the point where Yvette told him to stop.
The show then came to an end, after plugging their Most Haunted Experiences in different locations and I left feeling a bit dissatisfied with what I had seen and it had done nothing to persuade my husband that ghosts do exist!
I found reviews online and most seemed to agree with me regarding Karl’s behaviour, here’s just a few, there are a lot more, I can assure you!
This blog contains spoilers, ie., who went out and who won Star Baker, so if you don’t want to know this, please stop reading now!
So now begins a brand new series of GBBO, where things have changed a little since the last season ending with the departure of Matt Lucas and Alison Hammond taking up the reins. This provoked a mixed reaction from the public to the news, but let’s not judge her until we’ve seen her in action!
The new line-up
Meanwhile let’s take a look at when she was a contestant and couldn’t find the oven door!
I did laugh at this photo posted on Twitter (X) by @alexr_241 which showed Noel and Alison as depicted by houses:
There was also another addition to the tent, Daryl, a BSL interpreter for one of the contestants. Refreshing to see him front and centre and not out of sight.
The bakers were asked to make a vertical layer cake with a perfectly baked sponge rolled with a filling so when sliced it will reveal neat vertical layers.
Rowan
Judge’s Remarks:
Prue: “Perfect example of a vertical cake. The buttercream is terrific. Well done Rowan.” Paul: “I like it. It’s delicate, but the flavours are there. Just be aware of the strength of flavours that you’re putting in.”
Josh
Judge’s Remarks:
Prue: “The flavour is sensational.” Paul: “The colours work, I think the cake looks amazing but I actually think you’ve over-baked your sponges.”
Amos
Judge’s Remarks:
Prue: “The chocolate dominates and not a lot of orange.” Paul: “Obviously there’s been some issues with the drip effect. The layers just aren’t even enough.”
Cristy
Judge’s Remarks:
Prue: “I think it looks lovely. Beautiful lines. I mean, it’s delicious.” Paul: “Good height to it, wow. I think the flavour, you are 60% there, don’t be afraid to punch us in the teeth with citrus flavours.”
Nicky
Judge’s Remarks:
Prue: “Yes, the layers are good. The flavour is very subtle and it is delicious.” Paul: “It looks like a barrel, a bit like me actually, but I don’t think it’s terrible. I quite like the layers, they’re pretty even. It’s just not punchy enough.” Nicky: “Perhaps the flavours will grow on you?” Paul: “Yes, like a fungus!”
Abbi
Judge’s Remarks:
Prue: “I like that informal cornucopia look. Very nice vertical stripes. It’s delicious. The balance of the texture of the cake and the buttercream is beautiful.” Paul: “This is the wild poppy, isn’t it? (Yeah) I think the flavours come through, they’re nice and punchy.”
Dana
Judge’s Remarks:
Prue: “Well those are pretty good stripes. I must say, the flavour is lovely, not too salty.” Paul: “It’s a bit messy, the piping is not particularly good.”
Saku
Judge’s Remarks:
Prue: “Don’t make a face like that. It is a bit wobbly. The stripes are there. What I think the real achievement is to get the flavour out of the blueberries which they are not the easiest fruit to make taste great.” Paul: “I like the colours, let’s have a look at this wobbly tower. Oh, I got the sharpness from the outside which brings that sour and the sweet together. I love the flavours.”
Matty
Judge’s Remarks:
Prue: “It certainly is strong. That’s a muscular cake. It’s very nice.” Paul: “That would wake you up in the morning. That coffee level is perfect.“
Dan
Judge’s Remarks:
Prue: “That is the cutest little cake. Beautiful stripes Dan, well done. That is rhubarb and custard. It’s a beautiful cake, it’s very light.” Paul: “It looks like a circus tent. With the crème pat and the rhubarb, it’s quite moreish, good job.”
Keith
Judge’s Remarks:
Prue: “It looks so dramatic and the colours are so strong contrast and it looks so wonderful. It’s delicious, absolutely delicious. I could happily eat all of that.” Paul: “Oh my god. The cream is so light against the density of the chocolate and then that orange liqueur, it is absolutely delicious.”
Tasha
Judge’s Remarks:
Prue: “But you know what, its flavour might save it. Well, you’ve certainly got the stripes. I think you’ve got too much filling to cake though. That is very unusual and rather delicious.” Paul: “Did you sit on it? If you had used less of the filling and more of the sponge, that would have been absolutely brilliant. I think it looks terrible, but I love the flavours and the texture of it.”
There were ups and downs in the tent – I think Saku’s ‘up’ was definitely the hug she received from Paul and Matty’s ‘down’ was not getting his buttercream to behave!
Technical Challenge
To make the Great British Bake Off chocolate cake, the one with the missing raspberry which appears in the opening titles with two layers of moist chocolate sponge covered and filled with a silky smooth chocolate ganache topped with fresh raspberries. Time: 2 hours.
The mystery of the raspberry was solved: Noel has it in a box, ready to sell on eBay when he reitres!
This challenge should be bread and butter to the bakers, but there is pressure to get it perfect as it will be tasted by Paul and Prue.
The big debate in the tent was raspberry on or off the cake?
The ganache seemed to be the main focus of attention, whether it had a shiny or matt finish.
The bakers were ranked from 12th to first position:
12th – Dana 11th – Tasha 10th – Nicky 9th – Rowan 8th – Josh 7th – Matty 6th – Cristy 5th – Saku 4th – Keith 3rd – Abbi 2nd – Amos 1st – Dan
Showstopper Challenge
Make a cake shaped and decorated in the form of an animal of your choosing. Time: 4 hours.
Cristy
The judges loved the colours, loved the isomalt lake. Gorgeous and raspberries taste tart which cut through the flavour of it.
Keith
Judges commented there was the right amount of flavour running through the layers – not oversweet, full of flavour.
Matty
Paul said it looked like it had been run over. Nice flavour. Never seen a spaniel that colour.
Rowan
Very impressive. Delicious flavours.
Saku
Astonishing to look at. Beautiful. Tasted quite stodgy, overbaked, style over substance.
Dan
Adorable. Very moreish. Done Bruno proud.
Josh
Charming. A lot of buttercream.
Dana
A bit flat on the back. Strong peanut flavour.
Abbi
Look great. Great character to his face. Rhubarb jam excellent. Really good job.
Amos
Everything slipped slightly. Cake a bit doughy, tough as old boots. Bone dry. Stodgy and oversweet.
Nicky
Sorry – couldn’t resist – Bake Off innuendo at its best.
Beautiful. Heavy on the fondant. Overbaked sponge.
Tasha
Incredible, sensational. Robin with personality. Delicious. Paul didn’t like it …. he loved it.
It’s always sad to see someone go home, but especially on the first week – perhaps the powers that be should take a leaf out of Strictly’s book and everyone stays the first week and the competition begins for real on the second week!
I was in Intensive Care for three days, but I can’t remember much about it as I kept drifting in and out of consciousness, but here is Phil’s story…
“The day of Karen’s operation was the longest day of my life. We were told that the operation was to take about 12 hours, but if there was nothing that could be done then we would hear from the surgeon a lot sooner than that. So when the time edged past 11.00 AM, I knew that the operation was going ahead. I had told friends and family that I would contact them as soon as I heard any news, but some couldn’t wait and messaged me wanting to know if I had heard anything, I couldn’t really blame them.
I went to work as I couldn’t face sitting at home all day and needed something to take my mind of it. The day went past very slowly and at last at about 10:30 PM I received a phone call from Dr. West, the surgeon, to say that the operation went well and Karen was in recovery. The relief was immense and I telephoned the family to let them know. The next morning I passed on the good news to our friends.
We didn’t know if I could visit Karen in Intensive Care so we didn’t really make any arrangements, but I was told when I phoned up to see how she was doing that I could visit, so I went there that afternoon. Before I saw her, I was warned by the nurses that there would be a lot of machines and drips and tubes so I was to be prepared to be shocked. They were right, there were about seven drips, five machines and tubes from anywhere there could be a tube and in the middle of all this was Karen.
I didn’t recognise her at first, she had ballooned and her skin was really tight, we were both emotional when we saw each other. I would be talking to her and she would drift off to sleep, so I would watch all the machines and take note of the numbers that were being shown.
The nurses in Intensive Care were fantastic – Karen had two nurses looking after her at a time, they were washing her, taking her blood pressure, doing blood tests, cleaning her teeth, moving her into a different position every two hours so she wouldn’t get bed sores, just chatting to her when she was conscious, nothing was too much trouble for them.
The part of the Intensive Care Unit that Karen was in, there were no windows so she didn’t really know what time of day it was, her bed was right next to the Nurse’s Station and I noticed that they were always keeping an eye on her. I noticed as well that Intensive Care was very much no thrills, there were no comforts, no bedside table, no cupboard or drawers to put things in, but I suppose people aren’t supposed to spend a long time in these wards.
Each time I visited Karen she had less tubes and drips which I assumed was a good sign. She was still sleepy, but we could have a conversation now.
One morning I received a message from Karen to say that she had been moved to the High Dependency Ward which was a relief as that meant she was getting betterand when I went to visit her that day, she was actually sat up in a chair next to her bed and that was only four days after her operation!“
I was admitted the day before my operation, Monday 10th July, 2023, at 9:00 AM in the morning. After completing my admission form I was left mainly to my own devices until people started turning up at my bedside: McMillan nurse, doctors, the anaesthetist followed by the surgeon.
The talk with the anaesthetist went well until he informed me I’d be having an epidural whilst awake before the operation. That I wasn’t expecting. But by far the worst talk was with the surgeon who gave me a long list of things they will be doing during the operation: removing both my ovaries, my uterus and my rectum! Plus taking out the infected bowel and re-connecting it. He said that they were going to do the HIPEC surgery, filling my bowel up with chemotherapy, leaving for 90 minutes and then flushing out. The hardest thing to hear was when he told me that if the cancer has spread to my stomach lining then he would simply stitch me back up again and that would be that.
Phil came to visit me and we went down to Costa for a coffee where we discussed what was said, we both were very upset about the possibility if nothing could be done. I think the hardest thing was saying goodbye to him, not knowing for sure if I would ever see him again.
I was nil by mouth, only being allowed to sip water and some Fortisip, then the nurse came and informed me I need to have an enema. I thought that was just going to be a torpedo-shaped tablet put up my bottom, but boy was I wrong. It was a tube of lubricant or something, I’m not sure what it was, but I know it hurt like hell and as soon as she finished, I made a dash for the toilet and stayed there for a good 20 minutes. “At least that’s over,” I said to myself but unfortunately it happened twice again, each time hurt as bad as the last!
Time to try and get some sleep, which you can imagine was very difficult, not just because of the operation but also because of the noisy ward. I woke up at about four o’clock in the morning and had a bad case of cold feet, not wanting to have the surgery at all, perhaps persuade them to postpone it but then I thought about the enemas and I certainly didn’t want to go through that again.
I woke up again at seven o’clock and was given some cream to have a wash in to sterilise myself and then I was visited by the two surgeons who were performing the operation. They just wanted to say hello and make sure I was feeling okay.
I walked to the operating theatre with a theatre assistant who warned me not to get overwhelmed by the amount of people in there and when I entered the operating theatre she wasn’t kidding, there was loads of people. I sat on the bed and waited for my epidural and was asked the question by one of the theatre staff, “What would you normally be doing on a Tuesday morning?” “Watching Homes Under the Hammer,” was my reply and we had a conversation about buying and selling houses!! Meanwhile they were fiddling with my lower back preparing me for the epidural, which I have to say, didn’t hurt at all.
I noticed there was a huge blue screen down one end of the room and when I asked what that was for I was told. “All the machines we will be using are there, we don’t want you to see how many there are.”
I laid on my back and was told that I would soon be drifting off to sleep and seconds later I was asleep.
I’m sorry that I haven’t updated my blog for SUCH a long time – but the truth of the matter is I simply haven’t felt up to it. Since my fifth chemo session, I have been in hospital five times, spending at least three days each time. Mainly to do with chemo side affects, but also dehydration. Anyway, I will come to that later on, first of all was the PICC insertion which I was really dreading, I mean, how can they get a line to go up a vein on my arm, round the bend towards my heart? I know they’ve done it maybe a 1000 times before, but that didn’t reassure me. I read on one Bowel Cancer page that it didn’t hurt just a bit of pressure whilst they try to do it, so that put me in a better place.
The day arrived and to say I was a big of a mess is an understatement – I put on a brave face for the sake of Phil and we made our way to Hamwic House.
Once there I went into a small office where I was told about the things that could go wrong and there were a lot but I was also told that the procedure was routine. I signed my life away and went into the room where the procedure would take place. The nurse who was going to do it was very nice and she put me at my ease. The comments on Facebook were right, it didn’t hurt at all, I didn’t feel a thing and after about 20 minutes I was able to go home.
I never realised how much this PICC line would help me, it is used for the chemotherapy, the same way in which a cannula is used and it can also be used for blood tests which is a godsend for me as getting blood out of me is a little tricky.
The next day I was to have my first chemotherapy session. Again, I was nervous not knowing what to expect but I found the atmosphere relaxing and even was served coffee, sandwiches and crisps at lunchtime! Due to Covid no-one was allowed to sit with me during this time, but my treatment only lasted about three hours and with the constant visitors of nurses and the Macmillan nurse, the time really did go fast.
The first three chemo sessions seemed to go according to plan. Yes, I had side affects: tingling in my fingers and hand when I touched something cold, tingling of the face when it was cold outside, what is known as first-bite syndrome, when you take a bite of something it is quite painful, food was tasteless and a general feeling of nausea.
I had to have a pump attached to me for 48 hours after the chemo session, which continued pumping in the chemo and then after that time a district nurse would come and disconnect me from it. It was a feeling of freedom when that was detached.
Session four took a bit more of a toll on me, I ended up in hospital as I was quite breathless and after they took an X-ray discovered I had a blood clot on my lung, so I had to inject myself every night and morning with a blood thinner.
After session five I felt like I had been hit with a hammer, I was in hospital for a further four times, suffering with acute kidney injury as I was constantly dehydrated. I think that this was because of the stoma bag because it would fill up quite quickly after eating and so the food and water was passing through me too fast for me to gain any benefit from it.
I have to say that I saw some very colourful characters in hospital (that’s a whole another blog!) and I admire the nurse’s patience in dealing with them, I’m not so sure I would be so patient.
The last time I was in hospital they gave me an iron infusion which certainly made me feel a whole lot better. I was discharged and I then seemed to turn a corner, I’ve been drinking lots and have been leading quite a normal life, even going to Swanage for a few days in a caravan.
The only thing now is that my hair is falling out quite a bit, it’s really very thin now so I’ve taken to wearing a baseball cap, really trying to put off having to either have my hair cut short or even shaved off.
My body rejected the PICC line and it started to come out, so it was removed, which means that when I have a blood test it’s a bit of a nightmare – one time in hospital it took six different people to get the blood, you can imagine how bruised my arms were!
At the moment I am trying to get fit for the operation to remove the tumour which will probably be in the next eight weeks. I have an MRI and CT scan at the end of this month and a fitness test.
My tally of scans etc., is:
MRI scans
3
CT scans
4
X-Rays
3
PET scan
1
Ultrasound scans
2
So there you have it, that’s my journey up until now. It’s amazing to think this all started back in November, it really has gone so fast. Once again, thank you to everyone for their kind messages and care packages and flowers, they are all so appreciated.
A journey through the meaning of life and anything else that grabs my attention!
Making My Home A Haven is important to me. Sharing homemaking skills. Recipes and food. Bible Studies. This is a treasure chest of goodies. So take a seat. Have a glass of tea and enjoy. You will learn all about who I am and Our Neck Of The Woods.
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