Palo Alto August 2008

"Last week, Nicola's mum "Netta" came into town. Foolishly, I opted to go on a camping trip with the VA. It was pretty fun and I definitely would not do that again. I don't think I am cut out for that outdoor stuff. It was a good idea, but it didn't agree with my personality. It's okay, I'll do it if the job calls for it (i.e.Quantico,and Iraq). But I found solace in going with people I like. Last Thursday, we went to the Stanford vs Oregon State. The match up was the cardinal against the beavers. I really expected Stanford to have a total of under ten points, but the Beavers let me down. This past weekend, I spent some time with some of Nicola's family that live in the bay area." (Derek)

Mad Dogs and Englishwomen go out in the midday Sun- We went to Shoreline Park for our Labor Day holiday. Having picnicked and played a competitive game of scrabble, we took a short stroll around the lake. This light stroll turned out to be a lot longer than we had anticipated, and in our typical fashion we came ill equipped with no water, no sun screen or shade devices. "At least we had hope" Derek.

Al, Steve and Derek- Northwestern Pals

Derek had a great time reminiscing about the good ol' days in Chicago whilst playing the Wii.

Family Gathering - These are relatives on my grandmother's side of the family who reside in the Bay area.

Derek and his Mother in Law- We've been having a great time catching up with my Mum. I had been threatening to take her camping and kayaking with the VA. She, to her great relief, escaped this ordeal and we went shopping instead- this was much better!

It's been incredibly hot in the bay this past week, reaching temps near the 100s. My Mum has traveled all the way from England to see us, so she most certainly cannot complain that she didn't see the sunshine, just possibly a little too much sunshine.

We've been having a good time catching up and doing important things like eating good food and shopping (the window variety of course)! It's just such a shame we live on the opposite sides of the world, as we both miss her (and the rest of the UK family) very very much. So in an effort to persuade her to emigrate :p , we have been trying to further indoctrinate my Mum into American culture- we went to an American football game at Stanford, the cheesecake factory, several BBQs and Target. During her short stay we also met up with my extended family (we're still a little unsure as to how the bloodline works, essentially they are my paternal grandmothers cousins, though they range from being my grandmothers age to being younger than my father). There were about 20 of us in all (and that was still only a handful of all the relatives) and we had a great time hearing about my father when he was a boy.

But unfortunately my Mum's time in the US is coming close to an end. Thank you Mum for making the trip out to see us- it means so much to both of us, but I have a feeling you already know that. Can't wait to see you all again at Christmas! Though our deepest apologies for the minor sunburn and Wii fatigue we have sent you back with. Just to let you know Derek is already practicing his bowling and tennis in preparation for the rematch.

As Derek mentioned in his little piece, he went with his rehab group to the American River near Sacramento to go camping and white water rafting. It was only a two day trip, but I gather they managed to squeeze in a lot of rafting time and they camped under the stars. So I'm incredibly proud of Derek for braving the elements and pushing himself even further socially and physically!

Derek is also now embarking on the third stage in the rehab program. No longer will he be residential at the VA, but he will be moving out to our little home. He will then be going into the hospital everyday to receive his various treatments. Derek is obviously extremely pleased (he's been a real trooper these past few months) and I too am delighted that we have progressed even further again to the goal of living like a "regular" newly married couple. Derek has also just started to make both of us breakfast (this may sound small, but I really can't stress how BIG a step this is in terms of Derek's initiation ability), so as you can imagine, I'm doubly happy about his move home.

Stanford v. Oregon State Football Game. This was the first game of the season, and the first ever American sporting event my mum has been to. My mum and I haven't got a clue as to the rules, but it was still a thrilling few hours for both us Brits. We had a great time, though Derek was rather dismayed by the Standford victory. In fact it was the possibility of going to the football games which was one of Derek's incentives to come back to Palo Alto. Good to know he has his priorities in order ;p

These are two of our most favourite people, Jenna and Bill. Fortuitous timing brought our dear friend Jenna to the Northern Cal while my mum has been visiting. Jenna is a US Marine and former colleague of Derek's back in HI, they even served in Iraq together. When Derek suffered his injury last year, Jenna was working hard to make sure everything we could possibly have needed was provided (before it even occurred to us). She also traveled with us from HI to Palo Alto to make sure we transitioned into the VA as smoothly as possible. Bill was our Social worker at the VA last year. Again he has been sooo helpful and supportive to all of us, and to many many other families going through similar crises and adjustments. So I really cannot put into words how helpful and supportive both these people have been to us (and extended family)- they are simply just wonderful!