Saying goodbye to 2012 ....

Last year for me, had it's highs & lows, plus a huge change in lifestyle too.

Cripple Camp in May was brilliant, I am not being unkind by calling it that, it's just the pet name that we call ourselves. We are a small group of people that have all spent some time in the Royal Mineral Hospital for Rheumatic Diseases in Bath. I spent 2 weeks in the hospital in October of 2011 & met some lovely ladies from all around the UK, who quickly became friends & wanted to remain in touch, Katy set up a closed facebook group where we can visit to support each other on the hard days & share the good days & generally just have a good old chin wag. In May some of us met up in a Bristol hotel for a weekend, a few I hadn't met before but, they quickly became my good friends too. We all have different conditions, some similar symptoms between us & some are more disabled than others, but we all support each other & accept the way we are & don't expect anything of anyone. Roll on the next meet up!

In June, I started my own challenge blog called The Cupboard Trilogy, this is something that I have wanted to do for a long time, but not quite had the courage to do it. So far it is proving to be active & entry numbers are growing monthly, I am sure this is down to the wonderful work of my fab Design Team, who continue to produce fabulous examples every month. We have a new prize challenge start on the 1st day of each month & paper crafters everywhere are all very welcome to play along, please visit us HERE to join in.

I was made a grandmother again in September, when Skyla Esme Beau was born, being my 4th grandaughter to join my other 9 grandchildren that I am very blessed to have in my family. The ages of my 10 darlings range from 14yrs down to tender age of Skyla, still a babe in arms. I have been told that their will not be anymore grandchildren now, because my 4 wonderful sons families are now complete.

September also saw the breakdown of my 12yr relationship with Alex. Where we lived together was on the edge of a village, although not remote public transport was very poor & I would have become very isolated, so I needed to look at moving into a nearby town where it would allow me to be more independent. I don't own my home, it's a housing association property, so I started to look for a mutual exchange. Within a week I had found a little 1 bedroom flat where I thought I would be happy to live & the occupant wanted my little bungalow, so we put in for the exchange to take place.

October 1st Alex moved out & on the 27th I moved into my flat, I felt comfortable immediately, everything I need is on my doorstep, which is great because of my limited mobility. This move meant such a big change for me in more ways than 1, because it's the 1st time in all of my 52 yrs that I have ever lived completely alone. I quickly had to learn to budget & any other things that would have until now, been done jointly, but I am managing it just fine so far.

The year was topped off by spending Christmas with my sons & seeing in the New Year with Alex, we remain good friends & hopefully always will.

So come on 2013 bring it on, let's see what you have in store for me during the next 12 months .... I am ready!

Happy New Year to you all, I hope it brings you health & happiness, as well as a comfortably balanced life .....

~ Jane ~

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