The first Sunday in September is Father’s Day in Australia. So this was the 6th of September this year. We had a number of visitors on that day.

First came grandson Troy with wife Nina. They had stayed with Mark and Monika overnight and were on their home to Sydney soon after lunch. They came just for a brief visit to say Hello. And I think they had brought daughter Monika along.

Then came grandson Ryan with wife Ebony and their two boys Lucas and Alexander. It was great to see them all. Monika had given her Dad some summer pyjamas, and also four reusable face-masks ( which Peter shared with me!). Mark came a bit later.

Then we were waiting for daughter Caroline with husband Matthew and Matthew’s mother Yittah. They did not arrive at the expected time. It turned out, their car had broken down pretty close to Dapto where we live. Ryan went in our Audi to pick them up together with a large cheese cake that Caroline had baked as well as lots of stuff they had purchased for us from Ikea.

Unfortunately I took no pictures on that Sunday. There would have been plenty of opportunity to take pictures. Anyhow, this Father’s Day Sunday was for us a very entertaining and busy day. Lucas and Alexander were playing a lot of ball outside. They were full of immense energy. They also went with their mum Ebony for a terrific run/walk at the back of our place. Yittah and I were relaxing in our beautiful Ikea arm chairs. Yittah had brought some goodies along, as always. The new matching Ikea footstools that they had brought along, came in very handy. Matthew played with the boys UNO on one of the footstools.

Today is already Tuesday, the 15th of September. So Father’s Day is long gone. I am trying to recollect everything that went on last week. On that Sunday, the 6th, when ‘Paulchen’, the 20 year old Proton,finally broke down for good, Matthew ended up taking Yittah home to Sydney in our Audi. He returned the Audi the following day and then went straight back home to Sydney on the train. Caroline had stayed with us overnight. She took the Monday off work and returned home to Sydney also on the train, but some time later in the afternoon. Before she left, she took me to my doctor’s appointment. I was prescribed some stronger blood pressure tablets! During the few hours that were left to Caroline at our place, she did a lot of work for us. She even found time to prepare a sumptious little lunch for us!

Now comes Tuesday, the 8th. In the morning, Peter and I did a tremendous amount of shopping at Aldi’s. When we returned, Julie, a community nurse, appeared to do a blood test on Peter. Later on Peter made an appointment to see Amit Ch., his GP, on Sunday, the 13th, at 8,40 am, to find out about the result of the blood test. It turned out, that Peter’s kidney was still not too bad after all the medication Peter had to take to reduce the fluid around his heart and in his legs.

But now back to Tuesday. I think I probably caught up with a bit of cooking that I very much like doing when I am not under pressure and can spent plenty of time doing it. We had recently very good, mostly sunny spring weather. This was good for our washing, and also for relaxing in the sun or even to do a bit of gardening as far as this is possible with my and also Peter’s restricted movements. Both of us need all the time a lot of rest! Resting in the sun, I was hoping to catch up on some Vitamin D. My doctor found out through a blood test, that I am very short of Vitamin D and prescribed Vitamin D supplements for me! I have to take these twice a week now. I also volunteered to check my blood pressure twice a day, writing down all the values to see whether my medication works satisfactorly.

Now I come to Wednesday, the 9th of September. This was the day when Matthew invited Peter and me for an outing in our Audi, that means, Matthew did drive. First to the mycar Service Centre in Warrawong, where the old Proton had been deposited. Matthew had to settle a few things so that ‘Paulchen’, the Proton, could be sold for scrap. The scrap dealer who bought the car for 100 Dollars, was in Industrial Road, Oak Flats. We knew this road very well from the times when we used to live in Oak Flats. Gee, has this road changed. It has become extremely busy. Cars, cars, cars everywhere. Where the scrap dealer was hidden away behind the street, was rather difficult to find since hardly any street numbers were displayed. But Matthew was very adapt in finding his way around. Peter, sitting in the front beside Matthew, was remembering a lot about what Oak Flats for instance was like in the past. During this trip with Matthew he remembered so much about our past life. So, Peter kept talking about it and I did too. We enjoyed being driven around by Matthew. For a lunch treat Matthew did get us fish and chips from our favourite shop at Shelharbour Village. All in all it was a very relaxing, very enjoyable day for us.

The following day, Thursday, we ended up being extremely exhausted. We went by bus to the Heart Clinic at Wollongong Hospital. It took us more than four hours before we were back home again. The people at this Heart Centre were extremely welcoming and friendly and tried to find ways for Peter to better manage his heart condition. There is a follow up for Peter. He goes to Wollongong Hospital this week Thursday with the community transport people to get an ultrasound of the heart done, whereas I can relax at home on that Thursday.

I forgot to mention, that on Monday, the 7th, another community nurse came once more to bandage my toe where to whole toenail had been taken off. And then on Friday, the 11th, two community nursed appeared. The bandage on my toe could be taken off for good. Apparently there is no need anymore to wear a bandage. The nurses spent quite some time then to talk to Peter about all his ailments and what sort of help we might need. We have been put onto flexible Respite Care now, where we are supposed to get help every week, starting from Thursday next week. It looks promising. I hope, it is going to work alright.

Actually, last Thursday, when we had this exhausting trip to Wollongong. Monika and Natasha, with little Carter and little Evie, came to see us in the afternoon. On that Thursday Monika made a phone call to Hammond Care, to get the Respite Care going. Yesterday, Monday, Donna from Hammond Care, took all our details. Peter happened to have a very bad day yesterday. Lots of breathing difficulties. He took a strong painkiller last night. His sleeping through the night was not too bad I think.