Day 5. Weekend Recovery

 It is Monday morning. 5 days after removal of the prostate cancer , and after a relaxing weekend at home. Although the services at the hospital are great and the personnel highly qualified, it is better to sleep in my own bed and make priorities according to my own decisions.
Helene and Tullen had their first common skiing exercises in Frognerparken yesterday, and to be a first Norwegian cross country runner from Swansea, Wales, Helene learned and managed the technique wery fast and LIKED the typical Norwegian winter activity.

 Another weekend activity is Waffle Baking. Here too Helene showed a professional attitude and with hot chocolate we had a nice after ski time. Waffle with Norwegian Brown cheese is our favorite.

Before and during hospitalization and recovery I have received a lot of greetings. This bucket of Tulips  from Gunnar and Ragnhild, our Munich Christmas Markets friends, have all the spring colors making the dream of a higher temperature outside my windows come closer.

To all of you following my fight against the cancer process, and sending thoughts and comments on Blog, Facebook, Twitter, Email, direct contact or by telephone, my warmest thanks for your concern.

Day 3. Home and self-caring

 Well home ready to communicate with the world through my MacBok Air and iPhone. Thanks to all greetings and good lucks from family, friends and acquaintances.
The recovery is evolving and self-caring about pains, wounds, managing the renal and urinary system are working according to information from the hospital.

If you are interested in how my surgery was performed, and the professional control of the laparoscopic procedures were done by my doctors, go to laparoscopy.no and watch the videos. Maybe you should not.

This model shows the gates in the body from where the tools are operated, and the next image shows the tools inside the body performing activities during the prostate removal process.

World's first prostate cancer robotic laparoscopic surgery

14 years ago I became the first pasient in Norway to go through a simultaneous heart and kidney transplantation. Later three more persons have gone through the same operation due to gifts from donors.
Wednesday the doctors at Radiumhospitalet (OUH) performed a radical prostatectomy on me as the first ever in the world with my diagnosis and condition. Congratulation.
The surgery was done by Dr Brennhovd (righ) and Dr Axcrona (back) using the socalled da Vinci method. On the photo you also find Dr Molven (performing biopsy and finding the tumor last fall) and Cancer nurse Rozita taking good care of me after operation.

I feel fine, the doctors are satisfied and proud of their job and I will go home from hospital today.
Thanks to you all.

January Sunday

 This Sunday we are staying inside our apartment. The temperature in our living room this morning required activity in the fireplace and later some Dumle candy to keep up the spirit.  Tullen has for more than a week felt pain in her back and after babysitting for many days , her chest sounds like a real flu is evolving. If not better tomorrow she has to see the doctor.

Winter at last

This morning we once more were surprised of heavy snow fall. That should not be a stange situation when the calendar shows middle of January, but every time the white flakes fall down, the emergency clearing services from the community are not ready. The first snow ploughs I saw this morning on my way to the hospital, moved up the main road three in a row at noon.
However, the beauty of almost untouched streets are lovely.

Update Saturday afternoon:
Continuous snowing and more problems for Citizens of Oslo

Happy birthday, Hedda

Today Hedda is 2 years young.
Although last week has been challenging for her and her siblings due to severe chest infection for all of them, they are all improving after testing the Norwegian Health System. Establishing permanent local doctor (fastlege) and received important help there, visiting emergency rooms and admitted to hospital have been part of their mothers activities. Hopefully the recommended treatment will have effect.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY

"Minstemor" Mari celebrates her 6 months day on this same day. Mari´s photo can be seen on a previous blogpost further down. She had some red dots on her body yesterday, but hopefully these dots are not indication of another medical challenge. She is going for a holiday with her family very soon.

Wrong diagnosis but same message from a doctor

This morning I was admitted to OUH Radiumhospitalet for preparation linked to a planned Cancer operation taking place on coming Monday.
After lunch I was told that the operation was postponed till next Wednesday.
OK, my special body and previous medical history are a bit complicated so I accept that the hospital want to peak their professional medical team, and the illustration above is only a way to make fun of the delayed situation.
Instead of sleeping at a corridor bed tonight, we went to DS Louise, Aker Brygge and had Skrei for dinner. Try it you too.

Mari´s Naming day

Today we celebrated the Naming Day of Mari (6 months). The guest of honor herself did not pay much attention to the family party. She had a temp of 39 and stayed in bed most of the day. Hopefully she will recover quickly and give us her smiling attitude again and again.

Helene´s school and Math homework

 Picking up Helene at school today. The first week has developed very well and she is happy with class mates and teachers. After school we went to a shop buying skiing equipment and she is really excited for trying the new cross-country skis during the coming days.

Then she did her homework. Logical math. A coming Mensa member?

Sunday visit and waffles

 It´s cold outside, but a Sunday tour from their short term hired apartment to our home is just an appetizer before the waffles are served.

 The chef is showing Maja some of the first examples. Maja loves to take part in the kitchen work.

 And the load of waffles served in the living room with brown cheese, strawberry jam and sour cream was to the satisfaction for everyone. A nice Sunday visit that will be copied in many weeks I thrust.

Memories from "earlier times"

My son-in-law David is online.
Always.
And he can be followed on Twitter @berrydm if you want to get some interesting links to the world. Yesterday he gave me this link to The Restart Page.

You will probably remember some of these rebooting messages. Do you still use one of these antique operating systems it may be time for upgrading of your devices and/or systems.

Path, next generation FaceBook ?

Path  is the smart journal that helps you share life with the ones you love — your thoughts, the music you’re listening to, where you are, who you’re with, when you wake and when you sleep, and beautiful high quality photos and videos. And for those of you who like to share on public networks like Twitter, Foursquare, Tumblr, and Facebook, you can easily check-in, upload photos and videos, blog, and tweet directly from Path.


Try it, I am on already.

Christmas lasts till leftovers are gone

It´s a few days till the end of Christmas (Jan.13th), but in our home we still have Christmas food.
The Christmas Tree was transported to the junkyard on Monday, but the fridge is still full of leftovers from the Christmas week. Christmas cakes ended yesterday and today we had traditional Christmas Pork Ribs for dinner.

Now it´s time for preparing other important traditions. Life is Great!!

Happy New Year - Welcome 2012

With some photos from the family brunch table today, I wish you all a Happy 2012.

From yesterday night the firework at midnight over the Oslo night seen from Akershus Fortress was very nice, and here you can see some spectacular shots from my iPhone 4:

 This was Oslo City Official Firework from a barge in the bay

 Here you can see the barge at sea outside Aker Brygge

Welcome to Norway

The Berry family has arrived Gardermoen and Norway for their seven months stay in Oslo. Welcome to you all: Hedda, Helene and Henrik plus Trine and David. Helene will join a Norwegian school-class to improve her language skills. Looking forward to having you closer for half a year.

In the aftermath of Dagmar

At Frognerkilen, Oslo four of Christiania Roklubb´s Ladies performed their training activities today. Nothing reminded us of the strong wind last night. A feeling of Spring and walking along the beaches in Costa del Sol was closer than winter and white snow in Norway.

Feeling the Hurricane Dagmar

The extreme weather on the western coast of Norway last night could also be felt here in Oslo. 

At Holmenkollen, this tree fell over a car and stopped the local train. (The police has received information of at least 25 broken trees.) Outside our windows at Frogner traffic signs rollover in the streets, and our old house was squeaking and braking. That is only a fart compared with the consequences at Møre and Trøndelag with over 30.000 without electricity.

This morning the streets in Oslo are dry and it is plus 5C. Ready for a walk along the beaches and quays.

Christmas 2011 in Stavangergata and Tycoch Road

This year we celebrated Christmas Eve together with Rikke and Tor-Marius and their family in their new home in Stavangergata.

The dinner table was covered with Christmas plates and red tulips. The food (Svineribbe) prepared by Tor-Marius was excellent.

Under the Christmas tree Julenissen had already delivered the Christmas gifts and Rikke was showing Mari the lights and glitter and the star at the top.

The two sisters were playing nicely together during the opening of some parcels prior to dinner. Don´t let the children wait too long in their excitement on a day like this.

Mari was also happy on granddad´s knee. An extremely kind and relaxed child. Hope I can say the same in some years time.

Maja got skis from Mormor and Bestefar, and on Christmas Day morning she tried them on the living room floor. Now it is only to wait for the snow to fall on the ground outside their apartment

The largest parcel in the evening and for Maja was an electronic kitchen to play with. The assembling process took some time, but that´s what daddies like most.

The most loved gift for Tullen was the 2012 calendar with photos of the Bjørkmann Solsrud family and their activities in 2011.

An email with photo from Swansea with the Berry family having traditional Norwegian Christmas dinner (Pinnekjøtt) makes the day complete. Looking forward to see you within a week here in Norway.

Merry Christmas to Trine and her old friends

A star was born. A YouTube video from late 1980s with my daughter Trine and her friends at Uranienborg Skolekor and a lot of "famous" Norwegian politicians
including the present Minister of Justice, Grete Faremo, Minister of Environment, Erik Solheim and Head of the liberal think tank Civita, Kristin Clemet.
Two previous prime ministers are also part of the video: We need secure children
Merry Christmas to you all.

Brunch the day before the day

 Traditional brunch at our home the day before the day. Herrings and eggs, shrimps, salmon, "rakfisk", various meats, swedish christmas ham, "pinnekjøtt" and cheeses plus,plus accompanied with beer and aquavit. Next brunch seating will be Jan 1st 2012 with additional 5 family members, presently in Wales.