James 1:2 has it seriously wrong… when troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. Troubles are an opportunity for great joy!! I'll give you troubles! My child has cancer, where is the joy in that? - Watching her much loved hair fall out.... Joy! Err no. - Catching vomit... No joy there - Preparing her for yet another procedure... what can bribe, err reward her with? Joy? no. - Dealing with the constipation/diarrhea pendulum... Umm maybe the joy of hidden in one of her nappies. - Sleepless nights.. Joy joy joy Let me read on (in James 1:3-4), maybe James was joking… They do that in the bible!… ...

A trait that I highly rate is humility. We live in a “look at me” and “look at what I have” society where I think humility is lost. My take on the word is, someone who is humble, no matter what status you have, or where you are, you have time to listen stand up for and help others. The dictionary has a slightly different take on it.. ...

A couple of colleagues pulled me aside at different times over the last few weeks and said something similar to “I really feel for you, I’m sorry I haven’t said anything until now, but I didn’t know what to say”. To tell you the truth, it wasn’t until recently that I thought about the way I would have reacted if the roles were reversed before Violet got cancer, and it would have been very similar. ...

Over the 300+ days since diagnosis, 100+ nights as an inpatient across 16 admissions there’s a few things I thought I’ve picked up about the way I feel leading up to, during and after a hospital stay…. A week before admission Yeah! I think we're back to normal (or have adapted to the new normal), time to take on that next bit of renovation or gardening. The week leading up to admission As we subconsciously think about things (sleep deprivation, disruption to routine, juggling the older kids emotions), anxiety creeps in in various ways, usually by getting irritable for no reason. Everything is normal, there is nothing to see here (kids can sense fear/worry/anxiety) ...

I see you friend… Swimming with kids… My child has a central line, so showering or swimming is not possible. I see you friend… On holidays… My holidays have been all used up, filled with sleepless nights caring for my child in hospital. My last holiday was before she was diagnosed, wondering what was wrong, dealing with her whinging. I see you friend… On a road trip / flight hours away from home… My Child is only allowed to be within an hour of the hospital ...

A little girl’s bald head reflects the light of the morning sun. It’s Sunday morning. Her sleepy eyes open - pop!- under the warm blankets is a very skinny, scrawny (not so) hungry caterpillar. She asks her Mum for some food. (This equates to yelling as if someone is attacking her to allow for the fastest possible reaction time). Her mother asks what she wants to eat. “I don’t know” she replies. “Just food.” ...

This hack is especially important while your child is nauseous! The three point plan is simple: At any time, have three vomit bags visible. You never know when you'll need it!

What happens in hospital, stays in hospital. Requirements: Warm feet Footwear that's easy to take on and off to get in and out of bed Solution: Socks Thongs I'm not the only one, when lining up at the trough food cart I looked down, a mum in the next room was doing the same.. Great conversation starter!

In August last year, 5 year-old Violet had a bout of gastro. Although the vomiting lasted only a day or 2, she continued to feel sick and lethargic in the weeks following. She complained frequently of ‘feeling sick’ particularly in the mornings before school and when in the car. She’d also complain of aches and pains just like most growing kids do. I would keep her home from school after tears in the morning and then she’d be fine all day. I put it down to separation anxiety, because in general she really enjoyed school. I was studying at the time and I thought maybe I just needed to spend more time with her. ...

Once again we can look back and ponder ‘another day in the life’ (that we’re thankful is over!). We started the day with a cranky and rather apprehensive little girl. I drove her in to the hospital for her second day of testing. The whole way to the hospital Violet displayed multiple personalities, ranging from singing happy ballads to groaning to lashing out in anger. (She even complained about not having breakfast which was rather comical because breakfast for her only happens once in a blue moon). Despite leaving 30 mins earlier than usual, we arrived late and checked in for her 3 tests for the day (MIBG, MRI and CT scan). ...