An easy Sunday.

So I paid big time for our long day at the mall on Saturday...very sore today and a bit exhausted. So today was to have been Brenna's big soccer day, but I begged off and Brenna did not want to go either. I feel so much for Roxanne, she works so much all week and then has to take care of all the errands during the weekend...I am just no help at all with groceries and stuff, so about mid day, she and Brenna headed to the mall to get some stuff done. The drama for the day is that we have no wireless Internet right now,, strange but we can connect via a cord, to our modem, but there is no signal to the computer, wireless....I have no idea how to fix it, but everything in the computer seems to be working fine, the wi-fi card, everything. I am also out of SMS for my phone and need to top up tomorrow....weird having a pay as you go plan. So I got both gaming systems hooked up today. The wii was no problem, although it is a bit squirrely running off of an external hard drive for some of the games, but they all seem to work, sans one, which is the only pokemon game we got...figures! Brenna has made due though, playing "spore" and "wipeout". The PS3 took us a bit longer to get set up as there was no transformer included with the system..I dont mean bumblebee. Here the voltage is 220, the system is rated 120...so I needed a step down transformer, so I thought. I got ahold of my friend Thuan again and he was nice enough to call the place we bought it from (we had trouble yesterday after he left, communicating so i figured the phone call would be a waste of time). He told me that the PS3 has its own internal step down transformer and the cord that we had is fine, so we tried that and "presto" PS3 baby!! Thank you again Thuan!! About this time the doorbell rang and it was Katie, they were back from their holiday in the US, Brenna was very excited!! so Rox and I talked with Dan and Nina for a bit and they offered to help if they could, good people!!Rox made some chicken curry for dinner which was very good, and the rest of the night was relaxing

Every day a little stronger...

So over the last two days, Chris has gotten out of the house a little and is definitely getting stronger on his crutches.  On Friday, we went back to the doctor for a check up.  Now, doctor's here don't give you individual appointments.  They have office hours and it's first come, first serve during those hours.  After spending 5 days driving to the hospital at various hours, I learned enough to know that it would be impossible to find parking at 10:30 AM, so we cabbed it in and arrived at 10:39 AM.  We were told to check in at the desk, where we were given a number and told to go to the 1st floor, room 13.  We went upstairs to a giant waiting room and joined a few other folks outside our room.  1.5 hours later, we were still sitting there waiting for our number to come up, so I finally asked a nurse when we would be seen, only to learn that the front desk person never registered our number (not sure how that happens since it is printed by the computer she was operating).  Anyway, they got us in and Chris' check up went well.  Things seem to be healing nicely and the doctor was happy with the range of motion Chris has in his hip/ leg.  Still, no weight bearing exercises at all, even for the upper body as the bones and blood vessels in the hip need time to heal.  Chris was disappointed, but we will go back in 2 weeks for xrays to see how everything is coming along and see if the cast can come off the wrist.

So Friday night has traditionally been our eating out night (even before we came to Penang), so we decided to try crutching over to Gurney Plaza next door to eat at our favorite Chinese place.  Brenna loves the crab rolls and we love the fried rice and various chicken or beef dishes.  We decided to stop at the bookstore first to pick up some workbooks for Brenna to use over the summer (multiplication needs work!).  I just love book stores and am so happy to see they are still very popular here.  Chris made it through the whole adventure with just a few stops to rest.  Once we got home, we had another visit from friends Andrew, Chun, Kelvin and Mei Ling (who brought another one of her fabulous cakes - this one chocolate mint - and some homemade jam).  They also brought Chris' bike back....it's actually in good shape with the exception of the rear wheel, which resembles a figure 8.  His body obviously took most of the impact... We had a good visit with the group - most of them were heading out early Saturday to KL for a night run on Saturday (which Chris had planned to do with them, but....).  We hope they all do well and have a great time!

Saturday was exciting for Brenna - finally a play date with her friend Jade!!  Jade and her family arrived at our place about 10:30 and we had a good visit.  The girls spent some time playing Moshi and then went for a quick swim.  Unfortunately, we ran out of time to feed them as it went by too fast.  After lunch, we Neilsons headed up to Queensbay Mall on a mission to find a Wii!  Our friend Thuan had offered to help us figure out which place to go to and met us there.  Gaming systems here typically are "unlocked" or "cracked" so they can play the bootleg games that are common here.  Our new Wii came preloaded with about 12 games of our choice and we can add about 18 more in the future.  It will also play our discs from home, so we're all set.  While we were there, we decided to spring for a PS3 as well since they have more games Chris likes.  An expensive trip for us!!  The other downside was that it took almost 2 hours to load all those games, so we had to kill some time in the least painful way for Chris.  We ended up at the Ace Hardware store there, checking out BBQ grills.  We really miss our grill, but were not prepared to spend another 2,000 RM (about $700) on a grill we would pay about $300 for at home.  We may go back another time for a simple Weber grill, which will still cost us about $250...ouch!  The real find was the aisle with all the cleaning supplies....they had EVERYTHING from home - Windex, Clorox Cleanup, Clorox wipes, Tide detergent, Comet, some of the new eco-friendly brands and, my favorite....Barkeeper's Friend!!  I've never been so excited about cleaning supplies.  Unfortunately, most cost about $8 US or more, so I did not splurge, but at least I know where to find stuff if I really need it!  We ended up getting home pretty late, so it was a simple leftover dinner for us and a movie with Brenna Boo.  It was a long, but good day in Penang!

Sports day for the gimp!

So Wednesday as you know is usually a busy day, I have the sports day with the kids, then the friendly match I play in, then a massage client at night...so this Wednesday was a bit LESS busy. I did head out to get some play in with the kids, it was allot of fun, one to get out of the house and two to get a chance to see the smiling faces of the kids...all the parents say that they wait all week for this time, so I cant disappoint them. It was the toughest 1.5 hours I have spent in a while though...standing on crutches for that time is rough, than god for my assistant Rhama, she is such a big help!1 I also had another assistant today, Benna Boo, who was a big help too but also wanted to play the games with the kids as much as help...which was fine, she needed the time also! So that was my time out for the day...I got back and crashed hard!! I had a good day today...great day in penang. Moving around better...everything is coming together!!

Moshi day!

So Brenna's new favorite thing is a website called "Moshi Monsters" she loves the little characters, and although you can be friends in this "game" she cannot friend anyone without our permission, and is not allowed in the chat rooms ever, I mean EVER!! so she is enjoying that for now, but we are going to have to do something to make this an interesting summer for her, with me broken...it is going to be hard. so our first trip to Langkawi is done, that was supposed to be this past weekend. The next one is in three weeks to Krabi...that one we will cancel also...sucks!! I am going to try and do the sports thing for the kids tomorrow, rox thinks I am nuts, but I have no way to get ahold of all the parents so we will make the best of it, I have an assistant Rhama, and she will make it easier. Not sure if I can last for 1.5 hours on crutches, but we will see...So yesterday was another day of nothingness for me...did get out to the porch for 2 hours though, good to be outside!! another great day in Penang!!

first full week of recovery.

So in this time, I have been operated on twice, spent 4 days almost 5 in the hospital, and am attempting to get around on crutches with a broken wrist. Today we have our new domestic help, she was on time and here...that is awesome!! Rox has been fantastic though, as has Brenna. I am getting around more and more, yesterday I went to watch Brenna at soccer experience, so that got me out of the house, but it was also exhausting. I napped most of the afternoon, and got some better sleep last night...I figured out that with the pillow between my knees, I can sleep on my side relatively pain free. So my days are pretty lazy...I try to do as much work seated as I can and get up and walk about with the crutches when I can. I did find a true sports rehab clinic here in Penang that I will check out. I am thinking it might be Singapore or KL though, if I really want to get back on the road and do more than walk. I am still a bit down in the dumps, but it does no good, so better to be positive!! Good day in Penang!! night all!!

Finally Home!

Finally home from the hospital!! got a good night sleep and I am resting. the crutches are difficult as my wrist injury interferes with using them correctly...I am making due, but don't know what I would do without Roxanne and Brenna -boo! Happy to be home. Rehab starts at the end of next week, cant wait to get some strength back!!

"It's a growth experience"

So when we decided to take the plunge and come to Penang, I (Rox) can clearly recall my boss telling me "it's a growth experience you will never forget."  Sunday was a growth experience we had not counted on...  at about 10:00 AM, I got a call from my loving husband to tell me he had cycled out with the i-Run group past the Teluk Bahang Dam (where we watched the dragon boat festival a few weeks back) and he would probably be late getting back for soccer.  So, at about 11, Brenna and I headed down to the Soccer Experience.  Not too long after that, I got a call from Chris' phone, but it was not Chris...it was someone telling me that Chris had a crash.  My stupid phone kept cutting out and it was really hard to hear. Finally, they put Chris on and he told me he was "not okay" and he thought he busted his leg.  So, I called Brenna off the pitch and started making for home to get the car.  Two more calls later, we were headed to Penang General Hospital to meet the ambulance transporting Chris in, still saying it was mainly his leg that hurt.  I also received a call from the doctor in the A&E department letting me know they had my husband in for treatment - again, focusing on the leg.  Brenna and I found the A&E (Accidents & Emergency) fairly quickly and were directed into the "green" zone (least severe injuries).  There sat my loving hubby on a gurney, with his leg in a splint and wrist wrapped up tight.  But, the biggest surprise was the gash on his forehead and dried blood all over his face, neck and shirt.  Still, I know head wounds bleed easily and I just made sure they were x-raying his head as well as the obvious parts.  He seemed fairly alert and relatively pain free.  He had zero recollection of his crash, but that was to be expected.  He was whisked away for x-rays and they came back super quick.  Skull was negative, but wrist and hip were both fractured...ughhh...the fun began.  We spent about 3 hours in the A&E waiting for his head to get cleaned up and stitched (it was pretty deep) and then he was admitted to the surgical ward to see an orthopedic surgeon.  We waited there for quite some time - he still in his dirty riding outfit with sand and dried grass particles stuck all over him, leg still in the splint.  The care was good, but they were just woefully short of staff (Sunday).  After the orthopedic surgeon came by and said the hip would require surgery and they could tell us tomorrow when the surgery could be scheduled, I decided it was time to transfer him to a private hospital.  His friends from i-Run stopped by and filled in some of the gaps, but none of them actually saw him go down (he actually went off the side of the road and down a ravine some unknown distance, but out of view of the road).  Poor Chris kept saying "I don't know what happened.  How did I get here? Who was with me?  How's my bike?"  To which I would reply, "That's okay; by ambulance; the group from i-Run and I don't know, but Chun has it."  I had to repeat this every 10 minutes or so for about 7 hours...no ability to retain the information.  So, no food or drink for him as they clearly needed to observe his concussion symptoms closely.  This led to endless requests for water, to which I had to reply, "I'm sorry honey, they said you cannot have anything to drink" for about 8 hours...so 4 phone calls and about 3 hours later (and some help from Praga, my coworker who came to the hospital as soon as he got my message), the ambulance from Gleneagles Hospital finally arrived to transfer Chris.  Once there, the surgeon arrived in about 30 minutes and had him in surgery within the hour (now about 12:30 AM Monday morning).  At this point I took Brenna home and we prayed and slept.  We were back up at 6 AM so we could be there when he awakened.  Our little girl was so calm and cooperative - she clearly grasped the situation, but was not at all afraid and read, drew and played on the iPhone the whole time.  So proud of her!  When we arrived Monday morning, he was pretty groggy and still in some pain.  The hip required 2 (or 3?) screws and his wrist has two wires inserted to stabilize the bones.  The wrist will heal in 4-6 weeks, but the hip will require him to be on crutches for 3 months, then another 3 months or so before he can start any serious physical activity.  At 3 months they will assess the healing and see if the femoral head has become necrotic at all.  Thank God we transferred him as he would probably still be waiting for the surgery and the chances of necropsy would be significantly higher had we stayed at Penang General!  So glad our research prior to moving here had us aware of and confident in Gleneagles instead of casting about for suggestions at the nth hour (thank you Steven and Carla!).  His memory was still very foggy and he was very uncomfortable for most of the day, but all in all, the situation was improving.  By the end of the day he was in a lot of pain again, but visits from several of the i-Run group (too many to name:-)) had started to prompt some memories.  JabilFacebook or phone as we can!   We cannot express enough appreciation for the support and prayers from everyone - both here and at home - though scary and NOT part of the "life experience" we envisioned, we both grasp how lucky he really was and are grateful for our friends and family!  We will definitely not forget this (and Chris will have the scars to show off too)...

A Friday or Goodbyes!

So Brenna has had to say goodbye to her first school friend as her friend Erin is going back to the states tomorrow. So they had a chance to play together today, got in some art time and some pool time. Its interesting to see people go, knowing that in another two years that will be us. Erin's mom Kirsten, brought us most, if not all of her dry goods from there house, and shared with us their problems with the "renovations" that need to be done to their place to the tune of $8000.00RM...She said they had to pay to have the condo repainted and re wallpapered...all of this on their last day here...insane!! Not much else going on today...Saturday will find us at the Bon Odori festival in Penang its going to be at the Esplanade tomorrow, its a show of  traditional dances and performances by groups from Penang and Japan. Brenna has heard that they sell goldfish as well, which makes her excited to go!! Great day in Penang!!

Wednesday and Thursday

Well Wednesday was Brenna's last day of School, now she has almost 8 weeks off before school starts back up at the beginning of September. I had my normal Friday client today as she was headed back to the UK for the summer months. Then I was off to the afternoon at the SE, for my kids sports program and my own friendly game. The kids did show up despite the last day of school, and I was able to get the word out again about continuing the program for the summer. My own game was a really good game also, and I seem to be procuring more clients every week. injuries on the pitch, means that they might come to see me! back home and dinner and a little SKYPE time with nanny. Really good Wednesday!!

Thursday was our first day (Brenna and I) relaxing day, with me sleeping in pretty tired was I!! Brenna has found another Internet program to obsess about, Pokemon has been replaced. We are monitoring this site and refuse at this point to let her become a "member"...chat rooms are pretty scare and in my opinion an 8 year old does not need to get involved in all that. Pretty much a relaxing day as the AM was rainy and overcast. The interesting part of the day was when my phone decided to breathe its last breath. I really loved my Sony/Ericsson Xperia X10, but it had been causing me some problems as of late. I cannot at this time with signs up and business cards out be without a phone. I tried everything to get this thing to come back. I brought it to the Sony store in the mall and there was noting they could do either, but give me the info to send it into Sony and wait 8 weeks...cant be phoneless for that long. Now these are all unlocked phones...no plan programs, as we are not traditional residents. So I went to the HTC store and got myself an Incredible S ($500 US). Nice phone for sure, but I still love my X10. The last thing the Sony guy said was to take the battery out for 5 days and see if the phone does not reset...otherwise it might be the OS that is corrupted...if that's the case I am out of luck!! I am phoned again which is good. Other than that it was a very relaxing day! Another great day in Penang!!

Monday and Tuesday

Well every weekday is busy for Rox, in fact there are times I feel so badly for her! up at 5:00AM off to work, home by 5:00pm, then sometimes on the phone until midnight...that is work!! No really,  I have been busy recently, if you can call it that. I had two clients on Monday, and Rox was actually home (it was a holiday). The days are beginning to fill up with massage clients. With another client scheduled for Tuesday and possibly another two for Wednesday and then one Thursday and Friday 7 in a week is not bad, that is if they all show up and i get the two maybes for Wednesday confirmed, fingers crossed! The rest of Monday was bit slow and just a normal day for us, not much to report. So for dinner we had pizza, we were all craving a good pizza hut pizza, so we broke down and went for it!! Yum!!
Tuesday broke with me finally taking care of our Rita problem. I advised her that we would no longer need her services, it was just not working out well. That left most of Tuesday open, except for a morning run, a trip to the wet market, the chicken lady had fresh duck on her table...I came this close to getting it, but i need to know how to cook it first...next week!! My favorite fruit guy is gone too...I have another lady i go to also, but she did not have the pears I love...ah well, that's the way it is with fresh produce. So that left getting some cleaning done and possibly heading to the school for my last guided reading class. Brenna has only one more day of school, and tomorrow (Wednesday) is only till 11:00 AM, which does make getting to the SE easier. I was to have another client in tonight but work kept him so we will reschedule for sometime Thursday. Good days in Penang!!

Blah days...then Saturday and Sunday of play dates...Hand vs. Motorcycle.

So This stomach thing kicked my butt most of the week, and other than my Thursday massage client I did not do much until Sunday. Friday, blah day, other than Hawker food which was SO good, but made an unhappy stomach even more pissed off. Saturday bit better, Brenna had a play date with her friend from school, Jade. her family lives at "The Cove" apartments which are in Batu Ferenggi...They are really nice, lost of green space for kids to play, two pools, including one with a cool slide for the kids, a larger one that is a lap pool for the adults, they have a nice gym, they own beach...I mean this place was the bomb!! If anyone was actually going to come out here and visit us this would have been the pre3fect place for us. We do love The Regency, mostly because it is so easy to get everywhere from here, The pool though is not a kids pool, it is 4 foot deep first of all, there is a smaller kids pool but it is not anything to write home about. There are no green spaces for the kids to play in , and the proximity to the beach area is a bit lacking. You cannot beat it for location. As far as size the two places are big, i mean big, so that is pretty even. Food for thought anyway. and now that we know people there we can share in the awesomeness!! So Brenna had fun and so did Jade, to the point where they invited her over again on Sunday to have some fun again. Brenna wanted to and we could still get to soccer and the gym and such and get here there. Oh skip back to Saturday for a minuet. Rox finally got her hair cut, and the place that she went to was great, they did a really nice job on here hair, to the point where I might go there as well. I love the hair cuts here...first they are inexpensive, like $15 US, but for that you get a cup of tea, a full shampoo, a head and neck massage, and a great haircut!! its a frackin bargain!!! Back to Sunday, so Rox to the gym, Brenna and i to the soccer experience, Brenna had fun and came just that close to scoring a goal today (when she wasn't playing grab ass). I am proud that she continues to participate, we are just never going to have an athlete, and that is fine...I am glad she tries at least. After Soccer was over and Rox was done at the gym, I worked on her hip...my good she has got some work needed on her whole right leg...I really need to get her on the table more often!! We took Brenna back to Jades, and Rox and I had a nice latte at Coffee Bean. We spent some time with Jades mom and dad when we went to pick her up, VERY nice people, we had a great conversation with them, and they invited us to dinner, we took a rain check as Brenna was tired, she still had homework to do and we had dinner to make. So all in all a good weekend. Oh yeah, "hand vs motorcycle" on our way home tonight we were driving down Gurney, which can be busy, and the cars were stopped, but the motorbikes still whiz through and this older lady was walking through the parked cars, she stuck her hand out, with the intention, i think of stopping the motor bikes and not only did she almost lose her hand, but she almost got tagged as well...Hand Vs. Motorcycle...Motorcycle every time!! Goodnight all!!

Thursday..feeling blah!!

So Rox is finally feeling better and today I am feeling a bit blah. I am not feeling as sick as she was just...well Blah...getting frustrated with the haze, should be out running today, but that is a story for another blog. I will skip over my middle of the day which was none too exciting and get to Brenna getting home. She had her school pictures today which were really good, and packaged nicely as to make for a good memory of the time here!

Boy she is growing up so fast!! Such a pretty girl (she gets that from her mom)! I had a client tonight, and other than that the day was fairly uneventful. Good day in Penang!!

Busy Wednesday

So Wednesday has turned out to be by far my busiest day during the week, between a morning run, and then having to be at the soccer experience by 12:30 for the sports stuff with the kids, and then my own friendly match afterward. I will talk more about my run this morning in the running blog, as it is more appropriate mentioned there. I will talk about the smokey haze that we have had around for the last week or so, it makes it near impossible to do anything aerobic outside, for me anyway...i end up coughing half way through a run, like i have TB. I am hoping that it gets better soon or I am just going to have to accept it and go out anyway. The Sports skills program is going well, there is one week left of it and then a break for the summer, I have talked about continuing it over the summer and have finalized the plan to do so, I just have to get the information out to the parents, which I should be able to do next week. The soccer is getting better for me, as I have said before, I was never very good even when I was good, so as an adult that has not played the game for some time, I am not finding it an easy transition, I do like playing goalie (I just think i like the challenge of the position) however the advantage is clearly not yours, the net is huge and even if you cover an angle well you give up size. My shoulder and elbow are also very unhappy about the stretching and the diving about...some ice packs have been on the menu as of late. I may have also secured another massage client I guess direct marketing works best. Anyway Wednesday will continue to keep me busy at least through most of the summer and hopefully introducing a summer camp like program will catch on here and may grow a bit!! Brenna got her report card today, she did really well despite a tough go at times. she is continuing to improve in all areas, and really excels in her reading and art skills. She tested well above in reading and at or slightly above in all other areas...that's our smart girl for you, so proud of her for a great year!! another great day in Penang!!

Sunday, Monday and Tuesday

So Sunday saw us trek off to the newly opened TESCO, kinda like a walmart. It is always interesting to see what they have and there was some things that we needed. so we spent some time there, got some stuff for the house and some essentials, and headed home. Rox and I (I only helped a little) spent the rest of the afternoon and into the evening hanging more pictures. We only had one casualty...but it was only the frame, and just one corner, and Rox fixed it. The house is looking better all the time!!

Monday turned out to be a day of real illness and crying wolf. rox has had a stomach thing now since Saturday, today it was at its worst, with her back and forth to the bathroom, and at one point she was laying on the bathroom floor, because she new it was only a matter of time. i suggested the hospital or the Doctor, but she said no. Brenna decided that her stomach hurt also, and that lasted until around noon and then it was, "can we go to the mall, can we go to the pool". So we made the day as boring as possible. I am not sure when she is going to get it that if she stays home from school sick it is going to be a day of rest, and not a fun day...I guess never. Anyway. Monday was very laid back for everyone.

Tuesday (today) So The fourth of  July passed without so much as one rockets red glare or one bomb bursting in air...Today found me at the market in the AM, rox trying her best to kick this stomach bug, and Brenna at School. The rest of the day was not much more eventful than that...the AC guys came in to look at Brenna's AC unit and decided it needed to be replaced. Rita was a no show again...had to go to the insurance office about her car...This is still not going well. time to let her go. so not much happening these last 3 days, Rox has been sick, so we have not been doing much. Brenna has two more weeks of school and then the week after that we go to Langkawi. Fun!! Goodnight all!!

Food n fun day.

Saturday woke with us, sleeping in, sorta...I got in a run, Rox did her yoga, and Brenna chilled, drew, and watched some TV. I needed a haircut so after Breakfast I went to see my stylist Thomas, at Janzens, in Gurney. He really cuts my hair very well, so I will continue to go back and see him, although, my hair is not much of a challenge. We also picked up so free weights, at one of the fitness stores in the mall...we do still have and use (occasionally) our gym membership. It is nice to have some free weights at home, just in case we cant get to the gym. The funny thing is walking through the mall and then to the Coffee Bean to get some lunch, with free weights...not the kind of thing i guess you see often, because we got some looks of confusion, some looks of concern, and some smiles followed by polite laughter...Hell I would have been scared and laughed at me too!! Anyway after a light lunch, Rox decided to let me work on her hip for a bit, that did not go well, she really does have some muscle problems in her right leg and she was in pain for most of the 45 min i worked on her, i tried my best to keep it light, but the work needed to be done!! After that we grabbed a cab to the Food and Fun fair at Brenna's school. We were going to drive there, as it is not that far away, but we were thankful that we cabbed it when we saw how far away people had to park, and the traffic today in Penang was horrible. The food and fun fair was, well FUN!!

Rox and i wandered and tried some of the foods (Thai, Korean, Japanese) all of it really good. Brenna was off with her friends running around and playing the games. Rox and i then had to man the USA table..Chili, cornbread and brownies...not sure if Chili is really ours or not...more Mexico...but i guess tex-mex is close enough...not sure what truly is ours...I would have done Cheese steaks...We were busy the whole time and eventually sold out of the brownies and most of the Chili. We got to see most of our friends (both foreign and domestic) and were saddened to hear that quite a few would be leaving this year. I guess we will have to take the point as the experienced ones at some time!! anyway it was a great time, and we all come home full and exhausted!! So another great day here in Penang!!