The good news is C’s had her op and she has pretty much recovered from it (a week with a catheter wasn’t the best fun). We now wait on biopsy results and further treatment. We don’t know what that looks like, but as the initial prognosis was that there had been no metastasises, it’s just focusing on making sure the bladder’s OK. We should be clearer on that in a couple of weeks. Finger’s crossed.

We finished Chatel in a flurry. Having Rebecca, Steven and Henry with us for their HT was perfect. The apartment(s) we borrow (thanks E&A) are small and four adults and an effervescent young lad is still a squeeze – but we are so lucky to have somewhere which we can rely on. The conditions were good (but how long can these resorts survive as the snow wasn’t great?) and the weather pretty fab. And we skied!

C and I did our usual fair weather skiing and then joined Bex and Steve as they got Henry on a pair of planks. Bless Rebecca. She has the patience of Jobe and only because of that did Henry manage to turn himself into a skier by the end of the week. He was fab … just like every other French 4-year-old bombing down the slopes on a pair of reins (otherwise he might get ahead of himself). There is something about watching young people get on top of things they are initially uncomfortable with. It’s so heartening. Which is why, I suppose, I loved teaching so much.

It took a full day to get home. Note to self: never travel on half term weekends. I’ve never seen so many Range Rovers! The route out of the Alps and all the way to Calais was packed. As was the ferry. It was, though, a small price to pay.

C then had her op and since then we’ve been pottering around. Doris has been in for her MoT (failed again on her brakes which we spent £1500 fixing last year, which was frustrating). But that’s done. And then we had a gas man come and check the gas system and fit two new Gaslow bottles. That was another story. The bottles were overfilled at a UK petrol station (even though they have 80% protection). As a result they vented and as we were unwilling to risk them, and only after a fight, did Gaslow agree to provide one free bottle –  both still had a couple of months warranty on them. In the end, though, we now have a new system and the whole thing has been checked. Phew.

Which nicely leads us onto, what’s next? Well, we can’t really do anything until we have a prognosis from C’s consultant. We should have that soon. In order to cheer up a pretty low mood, we have bought a wall planner for the year and ambitiously filled it in. It looks like: all of April in Holland and north Germany in Doris, looking at the tulips and generally meandering about; two weeks in May in Sardinia – flying, AirBnB and renting a car; all of September/October/November doing our thing in Spain and, hopefully, popping over to Morocco. That leaves the summer in the UK (with the kids). Then it’s Christmas!

And I have finished and first edited book nine. How does it feel? Well, I’m not sure. Which worries me. I’ll have to wait until C and the beta readers do their thing to wait for a sensible view. At least it’s done now. 

I think you’re up to date. We are always thankful for what we have been able to do, and what are plans are. C’s hiccup is, hopefully, just a hiccup. But if it isn’t, we recognise that we have already fitted a huge amount in and are v lucky to have done that. But the message is clear: you have to make most of what you have now. Tomorrow is a long way away. And, and this is more poignant, perhaps, yesterday was the anniversary of the start of the pandemic, during which we lost my brother. He never had the opportunities we had, and where he might have been able to take them … that time was taken from him.  

Stay safe everyone. And make the most of today.