2024 has been quite a strange year for us; we seem to have spent much of the year trying to fit around a constant stream of doctors and hospital appointments. Jonathan in particular has had a shocker of a year with several completely unexpected health problems.
The year started out well with a lovely trip to Dumfries and Galloway in January. Jane had last visited the area with her family when she was six years old and enjoyed revisiting some places she remembered. We stayed at a place called Coo Palace which had originally been a very posh shippon for cows – it has a very bright red roof if you browse the photo album.
Robbie has developed a young boys fascination with vehicles; he can spot a Land Rover at 100 paces and has a soft spot for fire engines. His 4th birthday in February had a Fireman Sam theme together with a very impressive fire engine cake.
Tash and Hannah came to stay at Hill Top in March whilst their house in Portishead was having a heat pump fitted together with upgraded piping to the radiators – consequently no heat for a week and not suitable for a six month old. Hannah was weaning and an absolute pleasure to feed as she ate everything that we put in front of her. Graham stayed in Portishead to work and be on hand to supervise the plumber and clear up before the girls returned!
Ben, Eddie, Harriet and Robbie joined us for an Easter break in the Dordogne. Jane and I drove out, taking the ferry from Portsmouth to St. Malo so that we could take bikes for ourselves and the grand children. The weather smiled on us and we did lots of cycling and swimming.
We took Robbie on his first camper-van trip in May; 3 days cycling in the New Forest and a visit to the Beaulieu Car Museum, which he loved. He was especially taken with the monorail and watching some of the older cars struggling to drive up the short slope to the parade ground due to their low powered engines.
Jonathan had a shoulder operation in May to remove a spur of bone that was impinging the tendon and do some repair work to the tendons. The operation went well but shortly afterwards he developed poly-myalgic rheumatica – this is an auto-immune condition which affects the arteries to major muscle groups leading to pain, weakness and muscle loss. The treatment is a long course of steroids (strong anti-inflammatories) which have certainly helped but there are some side-effects and it will take at least a year to gradually taper off them, assuming that all goes well.
After the operation Jonathan couldn’t swim / sail / cycle / play badminton / do gardening or physical jobs around the house etc. for many months but the physio went well and some strength is finally starting to return. Another year with no sailing, very disappointing!
Talking of cycling, we took the plunge and got some second-hand e-bikes in June and have become ardent converts! Jonathan has really benefited from being able to head off for a cycle around the glorious dales without having to worry about getting back home up some steep hills, especially whilst being under-par health-wise. Jane reckons completing the Settle loop off road bike trail was a bit ambitious for a first go on her e-bike.
Tasha returned to work at end of April (part time). Fortunately her project (as lead naval architect ) to build the support ships for the aircraft carrier has survived the new governments re-prioritisations. Hannah is enjoying nursery – the staff report that she is “physically motivated” and she took her first steps at age ten and a half months. Hannah is now loving being pushed around on the trike she got for her first birthday.
Ben, Eddie, Harriet and Robbie, joined us in the Trossachs in July. We all had fun climbing mountains, cycling and paddle-boarding. Robbie enjoyed the climb up Ben Aan so much that he wanted to (and did) climb it again later in the week. Harriet completed a 22Km cycle ride along the north shore of Loch Katrine – Grandma and Grandad cheated this time and used their e-bikes!
In September, just before Mum’s second hip replacement we put a pin in a map and chose North Wales for a camper-van trip. We had three nights in Harlech then three nights in Abersoch, both of which were very nice. Both locations had lovely quiet lanes for e-biking and deserted beaches.
Mum’s hip operation eventually happened in early October after several delays. All went well and after three nights she came to recuperate at Hill Top for a couple of weeks; she is now well on the road to recovery. Meanwhile Jonathan had some tests for his heart – it has been spiking up to surprisingly high heart rates for no apparent reason .. the investigations had started back in February but are inconclusive so far. One test involved a gastroscopy, during which a biopsy is taken – leading to further blood tests that confirmed Coeliac disease (gluten intolerance). The Coeliac causes improper absorption of nutrients which might explain the anaemia and low iron. So, no more tasty home made bread, or any other wheat or barley, and no more beer, humph! :-(
In late November / early December we went to Madeira for some winter sunshine and warmth. It’s nine years since we were last there and the roads, which are basically a never ending succession of very steep hairpin bends with scary drops to the side, were noticeably busier. There had been some forest fires in the summertime so some of our favourite mountain and levada walks were closed but we found some others that were equally nice. The weather was fabulous .. it was rather surreal to receive phone alerts of snow and ice for back home whist having breakfast on the balcony in shorts and tee-shirts!
Wishing you a very merry Christmas and a healthy and happy 2025.
Click here for a link to our 2024 photograph album.