It’s Christmas again and time to bring you up to
date with the news from Williamsland!
David has made an excellent recovery from his two major operations in
February and November 2011 and is more mobile now than he has been for a
number of years. As we went into 2012,
we thought that our health problems had been solved and we planned to return to
Wales
In February, after a routine op to remove a polyp,
Lesley was diagnosed with early stage endometrial cancer, and two weeks later
was admitted to hospital for a total hysterectomy. She was very
lucky. The cancer had not spread and she
needed neither radiotherapy nor chemotherapy. She has made a very good
recovery. Since then she has also been
diagnosed with type 2 diabetes but Metformin has brought her blood sugar levels
down, and by modifying our diet we have both lost weight and are looking to
shed more.
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Outside, a large area of the garden is still
overgrown with brambles which we are gradually clearing (but we have enjoyed
eating the blackberries first!) David
has been working on levelling an area to create a base for a large shed which
will eventually be his workshop but before that will be used to store all our
furniture when we finally clear our Linton house and start our big project here.
At the top of the garden, there is another big shed
which came with the house. Here we have
created a studio - a space where we can both work on our hobbies. When it
rains, we play! David builds model ships
and railways. His current projects are an aircraft carrier and a tiny model
railway layout constructed inside a briefcase!
Lesley makes cards and crafts with beads.
We have both made new friends here in Wales
David works three mornings a week as a volunteer at
a charity woodwork shop, creating saleable items from recycled wood and working
alongside unemployed to help them develop new skills and gain self
confidence. So far this year he has made
travel boxes for gun dogs and birds of prey, and a dais for a choir (all
bespoke items). He also designed and
made some 3D Christmas trees as table decorations and these have proved very
popular at fetes.
Lesley has become involved with the Godre’rgraig
Community Association, which works to restore an overgrown park and bring it
back into use. As she’s on the Committee
she gets involved in other things too.
She has designed a publicity leaflet for the group, and made nine litres
of soup to serve at the Halloween event!
Her main brief is to lead a group researching the history of the park
and the people who created it. She has
been given access to the school’s Admission Registers from 1908 – 1918.
Transcribing them will be a fascinating project!
Lesley has also started learning the Welsh
language, two lessons a week. It’s
a real challenge but she is starting to get her tongue and teeth around the
vowels and diphthongs. However, the
mutations are another story! She has two
good tutors and her classmates are very supportive. We’re a good mix of English incomers and
Welsh-born who have never spoken the language.
Other highlights of the year include:
·
The christening of Erin Manford, our godson’s
daughter
·
The birth of our great nephew Eli, son of Phil and
Becky
·
Visiting Laugharne with Judi and Dave Manford
·
Williams family gathering to welcome Eli
·
“Discovering” Caswell Bay
We still enjoy our four-legged family. Tiffany, at
16 is still a kitten at heart. She loves the freedom of the outdoors and has
created little “nests” around the garden but she enjoys coming indoors to
snuggle with us too. We also have our two Belgian Shepherd dogs. Quinn is now 9
and is as energetic as ever. He loves
the big garden and races up and down patrolling his estate! Zoe is 16 and the
matriarch of the family. Like us, she
suffers from stiff joints, and her hearing is selective unless we’re filling
Tiffany’s food bowl, or sharpening the carving knife.
We are based in Wales
We wish you a Merry Christmas
and a Happy New Year
Nadolig Llawen
Blwyddyn Newydd hapus
