Day 116: Victoria Spring Roses

On 'Robs-giving' I've been wearing another pair of Victoria Spring earrings (Day 69) Rob bought for me shortly after we got back together in June 2000. I'd gone off to Malaysia for a week with Helen (Day 23) to undertake some work and came home to find a gorgeous gift from him - these rose earrings with a green crystals and a matching necklace. I wore these for my 40th birthday party; I've finally found the photo from that night of Maddie presenting me with my Onyx and Diamond earrings (Day 38) that I'd been searching for.



They always make me smile when I wear these earrings, remembering those early, exciting, nerve-wracking days. Even though its 17 years on, it seems like yesterday in so many ways. I feel so incredibly fortunate that things have worked out as they have, today more than ever. I can't imagine my life without darling Robbie.





We've had fun on Rob's birthday festival. James made his Dad breakfast in bed, allowing him an unusual mini-lie in, and then the boys delivered the gifts. Calls and messages from family and friends have been coming in all day. This in the morning I took the birthday boy shopping followed by lunch at Three Blue Ducks - the food looked delicious, but my lack of tastebuds meant my hot smoked salmon salad was not quite as wonderful as it looked. Fortunately Rob enjoyed his grilled prawns matched by a Clare riesling. I was jealous! We passed on dessert but headed straight for Black Star Bakery right next door, to buy a treat. We came home for me to rest, and Rob to crack open his birthday whiskey as an afternoon treat!

Having purchased the missing essential ingredient for Rob's standard birthday cake request - a Victoria sponge - Angus and I baked this afternoon. This time we used Betty's sponge recipe. Ours is nowhere near as good as hers, we need to perfect it, but it's a big step up on last years effort, which was too heavy, and the one before that, that looked like the moon including with very large craters (and had a cardboard texture, even without chemo!).


On Day 116 I'm very pleased to have had enough energy to get out and about, but the stabbing still continues, my eyes are streaming and my mouth remains so annoying. Rob was very ill with shingles this time last year, and I'm far my best right now. We agreed over lunch that we'll both be in tip top condition on 18 May 2018!